Unprepared for emergencies

Thanks to an introductory microbiology class I took during my undergraduate degree, I have understood the very real threat of a pandemic caused by a novel zoonotic virus, and have been basically preparing for one since 2004. I listened to what my professor had to say then, and have been listening to the gaggle of experts that have been warning us about the likelihood of a global pandemic for decades.

Being prepared and listening to experts are qualities our leaders could use a little more of.

Which is why it was so refreshing to see the Trudeau Liberals carve out emergency preparedness into its own stand-alone portfolio. We’ve all been beaten over the head with the term emergency preparedness because of the pandemic, but the truth is very few of us — including those in media and government — seem to have a proper understanding or grasp of all of the looming issues and threats our country should be prepared for.

A big reason for this is the absence of basic scientific literacy and numeracy in much of our overall political discourse and ensuing media coverage. Indeed, one of the more frustrating aspects of being a strategic communications professional with an undergraduate-level understanding of basic science and math is being constantly inundated with the sad reality that many of the people who are in positions of power lack these skills, and refuse to listen to those who do possess them.

Add in the rise of anti-intellectualism and the demonization of anyone with expertise as an out-oftouch elite, and it becomes pretty clear that an alarming number of us are wholly unprepared for — or blissfully unaware of — the kinds of emergencies we’re going to have to deal with in the near future.

Even in the instances of the two most obvious and present threats, the pandemic and climate change, Canada’s chattering class prefers to treat them as regular political fodder instead of the very real and current dangers that they are.

This won’t be the last pandemic we see in our lifetime. With increasing deforestation and the loss of biodiversity, researchers have established that the animals that tend to survive human devastation, like bats and rats, are much more likely to carry pathogens that can infect humans. Couple that with the wild animal trade and irresponsible farming practices, and it’s no wonder experts are warning us that novel zoonotic outbreaks are going to be increasingly likely. And despite the catastrophe wreaked by COVID, we are actually incredibly lucky our first real pandemic in a globalized world wasn’t with something much worse than COVID.

The devastating climate changeinduced flooding in British Columbia and subsequent collapse of key infrastructure should be a wake up call for us all, especially since the stark reality is that this will not get better any time soon. This is our new normal, and it was brought to you by decades of failure from the folks in charge by not heeding the warnings of the eggheads with the expertise.

Emergency Preparedness Minister Bill Blair will certainly have a lot of work to do to ensure that Canada is indeed actually prepared for the emergencies we will be facing, especially since Canada has chronically underfunded our military. This has wide-ranging consequences for us, as domestic military operations such as the one currently underway in British Columbia can basically only occur if Canada is only dealing with one localized disaster or emergency at a time.

Up until now, Canada has not given emergency preparedness the serious attention it deserves. It’s incredibly welcome news that this government seems to be taking a different approach. Let’s hope Minister Blair is ready for the gargantuan task that is before him.

This is our new normal, and it was brought to you by decades of failure from the folks in charge.

SUPRIYA DWIVEDI