Three Ways the Coronavirus Is Shaping Sustainable Development

The International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) identifies three critical themes emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic: the necessity of resilience in human systems to cope with both health crises and climate change; the need for economic stimulus packages to avoid locking economies into a high-carbon future; and the magnification of global inequality, which disproportionately affects the poor in developing countries and frontline workers in developed nations.

• The pandemic has highlighted a critical lack of planning and preparation, underscoring that resilience—defined as the ability of human systems to anticipate, cope, and adapt—is essential for both managing outbreaks and responding to certain future temperature increases from climate change.
• Economic stimulus and support packages implemented by governments must be designed to facilitate a transition to a more sustainable economy and clean energy infrastructure rather than reinforcing a high-carbon future.
• COVID-19 acts as a global shock that worsens inequality, specifically impacting frontline service workers in developed nations and poor populations in developing countries who lack social safety nets.

APA

Florizone,, R. (2020). Three Ways the Coronavirus Is Shaping Sustainable Development. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/articles/insight/three-ways-coronavirus-shaping-sustainable-development

Chicago

Florizone,, Richard. Three Ways the Coronavirus Is Shaping Sustainable Development. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2020. https://www.iisd.org/articles/insight/three-ways-coronavirus-shaping-sustainable-development.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Florizone, |first1=Richard |title=Three Ways the Coronavirus Is Shaping Sustainable Development |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=30 March 2020 |url=https://www.iisd.org/articles/insight/three-ways-coronavirus-shaping-sustainable-development |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{florizone2020three, author = {Florizone,, Richard}, title = {{Three Ways the Coronavirus Is Shaping Sustainable Development}}, publisher = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2020}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/articles/insight/three-ways-coronavirus-shaping-sustainable-development}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }