Edward Cameron

A World Made New Edward Cameron

According to her son, Eleanor Roosevelt said the same prayer every night and closed with this wish: "save us from ourselves and show us a vision of a world made new". This prayer reminds us that in the midst of managing crisis we must also keep one eye on the better future we want to create.

COVID-19 is a public health emergency and economic crisis of unparalleled scale. Lives are cut short prematurely, the dreams of small business owners hang in the balance, and unemployment rises to levels unseen in a century or more. It is natural that we want this nightmare to end and that we yearn for a return to normal. But normal wasn't working. The economy of December 2019 created wealth for a privileged few while leaving millions to suffer from chronic hunger. Long before the acute shock of coronavirus we were charging headlong into climate crisis.

In "A World Made New" Dr Edward Cameron asks us to resist the temptation to re-establish a pattern of environmental destruction, social injustice and economic inequality and instead "reinvent" - turn this moment of crisis into an opportunity to build a 21st century economy and society - one that is low-carbon, resilient and inclusive. He offers design principles and practical recommendations to shape the unprecedented rescue packages that will inject tens of trillions of dollars into the economy over the coming 24 months.

This book is a must read for anyone who wants to understand the full impact of COVID and is yearning for ideas on how to build a world made new.