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As we ready to welcome 2021, this last week of an unforgettable year has given us room to reflect. From threatening climate patterns to tumultuous divides across society, the global pandemic to the economy it spawned -- it has been a year that has exposed detrimental cracks across generations of collective behaviors and systems. Yet, "hope and fear cannot occupy the same space," Maya Angelou once said, adding: "Invite one to stay." In a year of tremendous upheaval, change, and impermanence, we have been witness to remarkable resilience, kindness, and a depth of joy that would perhaps not be accessible during times of comfort and convenience. This final newsletter of 2020 zooms out our field of vision to patterns of hope across the past nine months and beyond.
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Dan Burton | Unsplash
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The year 2020 is now history. This unprecedented year simultaneously faced incredible loss and some remarkable goodness. KarunaVirus.org's editors took a look back at the last nine months and assembled our 10 most memorable news stories and patterns that have given us hope in this unparalleled year.
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Lexi Hanrahan. Audio: Listen Here.
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UPS driver Anthony Gaskins never expected to see hundreds of residents in the Hallsley neighborhood of Richmond, Va., lined up along the street to thank him for being a bright light during the pandemic. On December 15, when he drove into Hallsley, he was astonished to see people holding signs, honking their horns and shouting words of appreciation. He was moved to tears. "Anthony always smiles, waves and goes above and beyond to deliver packages with care. He makes you feel like a friend when you see him. He brightens our day whenever he drops off a package, which is frequently at our house! He stands out from all the other delivery drivers, and we love him! Cheers for Anthony!" one neighbor told local CBS News station WTVR.
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Javier Allegue Barros | Unsplash. Audio: Listen Here.
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A global Ipsos survey for the World Economic Forum reveals a widespread intention to change for the better through this pandemic. Surveying more than 21,000 adults from 27 countries, the study found that 72% of people would like their life to change significantly rather than go back to how it was before the coronavirus pandemic. What's more, 86% of respondents around the world would prefer to see the world changed significantly -- toward greater equity and sustainability -- rather than go back to how it was last year. "Russia and Colombia top the list of countries where the desire for change is most prevalent, at 94% each. They are followed by Peru (93%), Mexico (93%), Chile (93%), Malaysia (92%), South Africa (91%), Argentina (90%) and Saudi Arabia (89%)," Ipsos reported. On a personal level, "more than 4 in 5 adults throughout Latin America and in South Africa, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Russia and India express a desire for significant change in their personal lives after the pandemic. By contrast, at least 2 out of 5 adults in the Netherlands, Germany, South Korea, Japan, Sweden, the U.S., Great Britain and Canada just long for their life to return to how it was before the pandemic," the study found.
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Fran Boloni | The Paris Photographer. Audio: Listen Here.
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Hundreds of immigrants in France who have been working on the frontlines of the pandemic this year are being honored with fast-track citizenship. France's Interior Ministry invited residents who have been engaged in health care, cleaning, childcare, grocery checkout work this year to apply for accelerated naturalization. First announced in September 2020, a total of 2,890 have applied, with 74 people having already been granted a French passport and 693 in the final stages. Typically, an immigrant must have been a resident in France for five years with stable income and demonstrated integration into French society in order to be granted citizenship. In this case, the government has shortened that five-year requirement to two years for those on the front lines of the pandemic, in recognition for their "great services rendered."
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Bruno Martins | Unsplash. Audio: Listen Here.
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"In 2020, a devastating virus officially disappeared from the continent it had once ravaged -- a remarkable public health achievement that followed decades of work. But you may have missed it," CNN reports. Though this past August will inevitably be known for the coronavirus pandemic, that was the month that wild polio was eradicated from Africa -- a development celebrated by the World Health Organization and public health officials around the globe. Their work complete, the team of scientists combating wild polio in Africa quickly repurposed their operation to tackle Covid-19. In another recent medical milestone that was publicly announced in March 2020, in 2019 a team of doctors cured HIV in a patient for the second time ever. The first time was almost a decade ago, and people had begun wondering if it was a one-time fluke. "In a world with a lot of problems, you're kind of banned from talking about good things," says Ola Rosling, co-author of Factfulness, a 2018 bestseller that generated awareness of under-appreciated improvements in global poverty, health and wellbeing. The pandemic has triggered vaccine development faster than ever before, a realization of the profound importance of everyday heroes -- essential workers -- who keep society running, a renewed appreciation for scientific work and so much more.
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