Description

This session will be an opportunity to reflect on the fact that, even before the COVID-19 pandemic, life had changed significantly in the first two decades of the 21st century as a result of trends such as increasing levels of inequality, disruptions in technology, climate change, globalisation, the financial crisis of 2008 and its recovery. The COVID-19 crisis has further magnified these transformations, and put into sharper focus the need to support the most vulnerable members of our societies to avoid the scarring effects of the previous one. At the same time, societal roles and responsibilities between citizens, institutions and other societal actors have been challenged, offering a renewed role for the State in driving the recovery, with governments around the world taking on very significant measures to help keep people safe and employed. Whilst in the pre-COVID environment, many around the world were urging for a “profound reset”, the current context fundamentally calls for an even deeper reflection on the type of society in which we want to live. This new societal contract will require all stakeholders to join forces to shape our future, and help find solutions to address deep-seated fragilities within our current economies and societies, while seeking to maintain livelihoods and improve people’s lives.