CHRISTIAN SARKAR & PHILIP KOTLER

If anything, COVID-19 has opened our eyes to the startling weakness of our current economic system – both in the US and around the world. The “new normal” is simply another way of asking – what does a recovery, a return to business-as-usual look like? The economy was already failing, and COVID-19 simply pushed it over the edge.

The question we must ask now is: How do we make the shift to a virtuous economy? That is, from an economy driven by private interests to one that works for everyone (including the planet)?

What is a virtuous economy?

A virtuous economy has the common good at its core; it balances the interests of all people along with the planet. A virtuous economy is based on democracy – on the participation of citizens in decision-making at all levels.

Will COVID-19 helps us take the steps necessary to start the shift to a virtuous economy? Can we seize this opportunity to flatten the climate curve?

Many will argue that the government is the problem. The evidence points to an even more damning fact: our government does not work for us. And no economic reform is possible without a government that works for all.

So where to begin? And begin we must. Because if not now, then it will be never.

Let’s reimagine the economy.

Stay tuned.