Universal Healing
A changed world
“The increased need for mental wellbeing, human support, positivity, beauty and comfort will continue long after the Covid-19 outbreak. ”
The Covid-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on our lives. Many of us have faced challenges that can be stressful, overwhelming, and emotional. The pandemic has exposed existing inequalities in society; this has increased tensions and intensified the risk of instability. Misinformation and polarisation of opinions have all affected global recovery and security.
The crisis has exposed our vulnerabilities. Societies with access to primary healthcare for their populations have performed better during the pandemic. Covid-19 has given us an incentive to restructure and invest in creating a healthier world. It is crucial to seize the opportunity to build a fairer world and a fairer economy. We can reform societies priorities by putting wellbeing at the heart of all we do.
Humans have a unique ability to adapt and thrive. We need time to recover from all that we have endured. The increased need for mental wellbeing, human support, positivity, beauty and comfort will continue long after the Covid-19 outbreak. Health, wellbeing and happiness will be a higher priority for all.
The pandemic shows the importance of personal, social, financial, and environmental factors on our mental health. Our future depends on shaping a more humanitarian society in which wellbeing and mental health take a central place. The next contagion to sweep the world may not be a virus but rather a “mental health” pandemic.
Banner image: Sandie Mural
1/Universal Resonance
Nostalgia & connections
Modern society is at a strange point. Many of our modern societies have become divided and polarised. There is anger at perceived inequalities and corruption and widespread distrust of governments and institutions. The pandemic has deepened and exposed these divisions. The impact of the pandemic on women, youth and many other marginalised groups is alarming.
There is plenty of misleading information to be found on social media. Personal content algorithms expose people to similar content-based disinformation, leading to the present age of anxiety and fear about the future.
The pandemic presented an opportunity for conspiracy theorists and the anti-vaccine movements. People tend to embrace information that supports their beliefs and reject information that contradicts them. Research suggests that people experience genuine pleasure, a rush of dopamine when processing information that supports their ideas.
One uniting factor of the pandemic is the global feeling that we are all in this together. As humans, we all share the same emotional landscape; hopes, fears and potential. The Covid-19 pandemic has reminded us how dependent we are on each other: what happens to one person can quickly affect many others, even on different sides of the planet.
Why this matters
We live in a global battle of narratives; society can no longer be seen as a whole. Solidarity between countries and the willingness to continue to collaborate for the common good is vital.
Don’t Forget to Breath/ Doug Aitken
The installation focuses on human connection, or the lack thereof, as digital life takes over. See video here
I Had a Flashback of Something that Never Existed/ Louise Bourgeois
Artist plate project to raise money for the homeless.
The End/ Andrea Galvani
The end is a multichannel synchronised video installation documenting one collective action, showing sunsets filmed in over 30 different locations simultaneously. See more here
Rethinking Closeness/Eva Visch
Eva Visch investigated how she could develop new materials that would enable people to be together and at the same time keep physical distance. See more here
2/The Kids Are (not) Ok
Attention to mental health
The pandemic has had an impact on people’s mental health. Grief has become a universal phenomenon as we face loss of life, jobs and income coupled with a sense of insecurity and isolation. History has shown that the effects of disasters on mental health last longer than the physical effects.
Before the outbreak of the pandemic, mental health was already a concern. Health problems such as stress, insomnia and addiction have been linked to the “always-on” technology culture.
For young people aged 10-25, the pandemic’s health risks are small, however, the price they will pay in the future will be high. When the pandemic is over, they, in particular, will have to bear the consequences of the crisis.
Before the pandemic, young adults were already at high risk of mental health problems combined with the pandemic’s consequences, closing universities and schools, not being able to see friends and enjoy exercise may exacerbate this. They are in a crucial formative phase in their lives when they need to explore, learn and make mistakes, which is why social interactions are so meaningful. A wealth of experiences are missed whilst they are in lock-down.
Extra attention for this age group is essential. They are rebelling against the idea of being a lost generation because of the pandemic and want to have impact and autonomy. They are creative and can find solutions. We have to listen to what they need and help them.
Why this matters
The pandemic has prompted young people to rethink their decisions and core values; this can lead them to reconsider how they move forward and radically rethink their lives.
Balisa/ Ariadna Sala Nadal
Adriana developed a series of therapeutic tools for children. See more here
World Record/ Paola Pivi
Installation where mattresses create a narrow space into which visitors are invited to enter. There is not enough room to stand up, occupants are obliged to lie down, crawl or simply observe the other visitors. See more here
I’m fine, not really/ Jessica Walsh
Part of 12 Kinds of Kindness, a 12 step experiment designed to open our hearts, eyes and minds.
How I’m Feeling/ Lauv
Accepting and celebrating the multiple facets of ourselves is a theme throughout Lauv’s songs. The artist has been open about his own struggles with anxiety and depression and has taken action on the issue with his Blue Boy Foundation, which supports programs that help young people feel more comfortable reaching out for help with mental health. Listen here
3/The Physical
The holy grail of touch
Fear of contracting the virus has made us reluctant to interact physically with others. Keeping a safe distance and not touching has become the norm, except for those in our bubble. Will we regain confidence in physical contact post-pandemic, or will we remain with life at a distance?
Touch is a basic human need. Physical interaction with others confirms our existence, our humanity and our interdependence on each other. A higher level of emotional intimacy in close relationships can positively impact our well-being.
Technology offers opportunities to pioneer new approaches. Touch will be incorporated in tech-enabled services to fulfil the basic human need for belonging. Computer interaction will be redefined to combine touch, force, and haptics. Embed new capabilities in matter moving away from simulations experienced via a headset or intangible layers but a delving into material augmentations instead. This directly connects the physical world we create to human perception and response.
After the pandemic, we seek personal experiences in micro-environments, where we can feel safe. Trust remains an important issue. To quote the saying: “people don’t remember what you say, but they remember how you made them feel“. Given the difficult situation everyone is going through, people will continue to remember how they were treated.
Why this matters
Everybody needs to learn new norms. It is a new experience as people learn new ways to interact.
Intimate Technology/ Next Nature Network
Technology has been closely attached to our bodies and a part of our lives. Intimate Technology comes even closer, as tools for closer contact and intimacy. See more here
Pneumatics Touch/ Sheryl Teng
Pneumatics Touch is a voluminous textile with inflatable pockets. The textile can be used to provide comfort, warmth and protection in various situations. See video here
Announcement Noma Burgers/ Rene Redzepi
Restaurant Noma changed direction during the pandemic and offered burgers, the concept is now a separate restaurant called Popl. See more here
4/Virtual Health
Connected wellbeing
Digital health technologies have grown during the pandemic, paving the way for healthcare innovation. Health care in the post-pandemic future will be a hybrid model with optimised personal and virtual care through the development of care portals, telecare applications and wearable devices. A new healthcare ecosystem will emerge.
More data is available from sources, such as electronic health records, genomics, and lifestyle information. Wearable tech has collected data on everything from our heart rate to the calories we burn. More data on our emotions and happiness will soon be recorded, and this will provide radically new and transparent insights into our total well-being.
Predictive analyses will lead to a more proactive attitude in patient care to maintain health and predict potential problems. As apps, mobile diagnostics, and intuitive biofeedback become accessible in our daily lives, we will become more aware and proactive about our health. One day we may even be able to print our own medicine.
Artificial intelligence and a new generation of intelligent assistants will replace some healthcare professionals’ Some of the AI applications in healthcare will be ambient assisted living, precision medicine and genetic-based solutions. The development of deep learning (DL) of AI allows us to find previously too complex correlations using machine learning algorithms.
Why this matters
Accelerated technological developments in health care resulting from the pandemic will lead to new, personalised, and intuitive healthcare ecosystems.
Digital Deepak/ Deepak Chopra
An AI version of Deepak, which will tap into his collected books and build a personal relationship with whoever’s talking to him. See video here
Urban Sun/ Daan Roosegaarde
Urban Sun is created as a symbol of hope. It shines a large circle of far-UVC light into public spaces, sanitising the spaces of the coronavirus for better human gatherings. See more here
Light of Two/ Khaula Aqila
Lamps to connect with people on the other side of the world, combining the lighting conditions at their respective locations. See more here
Further reading
Future Presence/ Peter Rubin
How will we use technology to form previously impossible relationships, explore new frontiers of intimacy, and how it will change human connections. VR will change how we work, how we experience entertainment, how we feel pleasure and other emotions, how we see ourselves, and most importantly, how we relate to each other in the real world.
The Lonely Century/ Noreena Hertz
Even before a global pandemic introduced us to terms like social distancing, loneliness was already becoming the defining condition of the twenty-first century. Our increasing dependence on technology, radical changes to the workplace and decades of policies that have placed self-interest above the collective good, are making us more isolated than ever before.
How to Build a Healthy Brain/ Kimberly Wilson
We all know how to take care of our physical health, but we often feel powerless as to what we can do to protect our mental well-being too. How to Build a Healthy Brain, is a book about protecting our mental wellbeing through factors such as diet, sleep and exercise.
Apollo’s Arrow/ Nicholas a. Christakis
Apollo’s Arrow describes the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on society, and on how the recovery will unfold in the coming years. The book envisions what happens when the great force of a deadly germ meets the enduring reality of our social nature.