Message from the Elders

Dear Friend,

We bring you the Elders’ latest reflections, insight, and analysis on the COVID-19 pandemic. This covers the period 16 November to 16 December.

16 November: At a speech for the annual Sustainable Innovation Forum, Ban Ki-moon calls for greater investment and committed leadership to ensure a pandemic-resilient and zero-emissions future.
23 November: Mary Robinson joins The China Current for a three-part conversation with James Chau on China’s role in tackling climate change during COVID-19.
24 November – 10 December: The Elders mark 16 Days of Activism against Violence Against Women, with special emphasis on the alarming increase in gender-based violence since the start of the pandemic.
2 December: Ricardo Lagos welcomes the 2020 Production Gap report by the UNEP, which calls for greater transparency and accountability from governments as they build back better from COVID-19.
4 December: Reflecting on the shocking rise of violence against women during the pandemic, Ricardo Lagos, Ernesto Zedillo, Lakhdar Brahimi, Ban Ki-moon and Juan Manuel Santos call for greater male responsibility to help prevent gender-based violence.
9 December: Gro Harlem Brundtland, Mary Robinson and Ban Ki-moon discussed the necessity of strong climate leadership and the importance of a green recovery from COVID-19, in a live virtual event with Project Syndicate.
11 December: The Elders launch a new report calling on world leaders to prepare public health systems for future pandemics and make the achievement of Universal Health Coverage a top priority in their COVID-19 response and recovery plans.