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As governments prepare recovery plans amidst the COVID-19 crisis, KAIROS has joined an informal alliance of over 150 national and local civil society groups to demand that these plans move us toward a more equitable and sustainable future. With the release today of six Principles for a Just Recovery, this alliance is saying: we cannot go back to the way things were. 

COVID-19 has exposed the crisis of the status quo. Chronic underinvestment and inaction have exacerbated pre-existing crises of colonialism, human rights abuses, social inequity, violence against Indigenous women and land defenders, ecological degradation, and climate change. As we emerge from this phase of the pandemic, we are at a kairos moment to demand that government deliver transformation for all peoples and the planet. 

The Principles, in brief, ask that recovery plans: 

  1. Put people’s health and wellbeing first, no exceptions. 
  2. Strengthen the social safety net and provide relief directly to people. 
  3. Prioritize the needs of workers and communities. 
  4. Build resilience to prevent future crises. 
  5. Build solidarity and equity across communities, generations, and borders. 
  6. Uphold Indigenous rights and work in partnership with Indigenous peoples.