Mr Indika Edussuriya , in a sense, it is a blessing in disguise! The pandemic crisis as it is a globally spread one, the post Covid-19 situation should be an eye opener to the entire humanity, to turn back and correct our behaviour of 'indiscriminate living styles' we had followed so far. But, I see only very sketchy remarks in the print and visual media about 'revamping the entire course of human action towards protecting the environment and natural resources' in the post-Covid context.

I would rather not see the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people as being a 'blessing'. Instead, I would rather work on how to constructively focus on achieving the change we need without crisis. Here are two published agendas for achieving sustainability along these lines:

1. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8959-2_2

2. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.imic.2015.04.001

Naturally, we should not avoid the current situation in order to reach our goals, and it is the reality which are in and the baseline from which we are currently starting, but nor should we revel in it. Thank you for contributing to a better world.

Hi Ilan Kelman , no one in this world would think the crisis as a blessing!! Rather, the impression that myself and Indika Edussuriya shared here, to be read only as an alert that the entire humanity gets, to have an introspection among ourselves, as to: 'whether are we doing the right things in the name of development?'. Having realized that we weren't, the only concern we both share here is that: 'as a humanity, we need to rectify the mistakes we have done so far, to the nature and the environment'. Hence, it becomes a blessings in disguise that: "this sorrowful situation gives us an opportunity that we shouldn't miss out' to change our irrationally rational behaviours". Hope and wish, you agree with this!

Whilst agreeing with P K Viswanathan , to elaborate more; human race has had various opportunities to correct the course, or in other words to adopt a global sustainable lifestyle that allows coexistence with the environment we live in and draw upon. From the Mayans, Buddha, Influenza epidemic of 1200BC, Typhoid Pandemic of 430BC, Jesus Christ, Roman Empire, Crusades, Justinian Plague 540AD, Black Death 1350AD, so on and then, the 1st world war, Industrial Revolution, 2nd world war, all these Ilan Kelman were opportunities to reset the way of living and were used to certain extents (pro-environmentally or otherwise). If you investigate the aftermath of each of these significant events, you would see a change in human thinking, attitude, consumption, habits, lifestyles and to complement that change, production, industries and development would make significant changes as well. Since the 2nd world war (Holocaust, UN, Soviet Block, NATO) the current crisis is the most impactful on a global scale and the aftereffects of which still to be estimated and dealt with. This is where I feel the opportunity is to converge on achieving systemic change to draw nearer to sustainable development goals set. If we all bring about a concentrated effort, such catastrophes as the one we are going through could be averted in future.

Thank you P K Viswanathan and Indika Edussuriya . I understand the sentiments and the explanations. I aim to ensure that we can sustain our common agendas irrespective of a crisis, which means seeking to understand how to achieve our mutual interests before a calamity.

I do not think that we really disagree, since I wrote before "we should not avoid the current situation in order to reach our goals, and it is the reality which are in and the baseline from which we are currently starting". For me, it is simply about reframing it slightly to ensure we think beyond catastrophe.

Part of this comes from the knowledge that disasters, including epidemics and pandemics, do not typically seem to fundamentally change humanity's direction. Instead, they are frequently used to reinforce, catalyse, and enhance already existing directions. See disaster diplomacy http://www.disasterdiplomacy.org including two papers on disease diplomacy:

1. https://doi.org/10.1111/disa.12306

2. https://doi.org/10.1080/10402659.2019.1667564

This work is now being applied to coronavirus diplomacy:

1. China's coronavirus diplomacy http://polarconnection.org/china-coronavirus-diplomacy

2. Coronavirus disaster diplomacy https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/03/03/disaster-diplomacy-iran-coronavirus-north-korea-not-path-to-peace

3. Why No Coronavirus Diplomacy? https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/irdr/2020/05/07/why-no-coronavirus-diplomacy

4. Coronavirus and Disaster Leadership https://blogs.ucl.ac.uk/irdr/2020/04/29/coronavirus-and-disaster-leadership

Thank you for your work and contributions. I look forward to continuing to learn from them.

Thank you Ilan Kelman for the articles on Disaster Diplomacy. Your explanation and the sentiments expressed by P K Viswanathan added value to this discussion.

Indika, I think the silver lining behind the global pandemic is the urgency to rethink 'old' hygiene and behavioural practices with the view to adapting these so as to survive not only as individuals but also as groups and nation states. Part of such adaptation in what and how we learn, do business and relate with one another within various communities of practice may be beneficially guided if these are premised on sustainability principles as enshrined in the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. Fascinating...

Nice thoughts Indika Edussuriya