One World We Stand
Facing Common Enemy Together
Nelson Mandela's famous words, “When people are determined, they can overcome anything,” accompanied by the Chinese saying, “When people are of one mind, even Mount Tai can be moved,” is printed in bright orange on the packing boxes of medical supplies sent overseas from China.
These two mottos represent two civilizations. They have respectively contributed their unique wisdom to all mankind against considerable odds. The first one says that human willpower is the greatest strength in the midst of danger. The second emphasizes that only when people unite can they achieve what seems impossible. In the face of the global pandemic of COVID-19 (Figure 1), we can draw inspiration from these two mottos and find a way out of this global predicament. Only with a high degree of unity and extraordinary determination can we eradicate the plague that is ravaging the world. To accomplish this mission, international politics, national interests, and ideological conflicts should give way to concerted efforts to save life. Indeed, even if all nations act accordingly, the costs in economic loss and human suffering will still be huge.
Cite this article
One World We Stand. The Innovation 1 (1), 100008 (2020). doi: 10.1016/j.xinn.2020.04.008
