Purpose of review
To review and compare the constellations of causes and consequences of the two current pandemics, Covid-19 and climate change.
Recent findings
There has been a transient counterbalancing, in which the response to Covid-19 has briefly mitigated pollution and greenhouse gasses. This divergence belies multiple commonalities of cause and effect.
Summary
The convergence of these two pandemics is unprecedented. Although at first glance, they appear to be completely unrelated, they share striking commonalities. Both are caused by human behaviors, and some of those behaviors contribute to both pandemics at the same time. Both illustrate the fact that isolation is not an option; these are global issues that inescapably affect all persons and all nations. Both incur prodigious current and anticipated costs. Both have similar societal impacts, and disproportionately harm those with lesser resources, widening the gap between the ‘haves and the have-nots.’ One can only hope that the devastation caused by these unprecedented pandemics will lead to increased awareness of how human beings have helped to create them and how our responses can and will shape our future.
The Editorial Staff have disclosed that they have no personal, professional, or financial involvement in any of the manuscripts they might judge. Should a conflict arise in the future, the Editorial Staff have agreed to recuse themselves regarding any specific manuscripts. The Editorial Staff also will not use the information attained through working with manuscripts for private gain.
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