Recovery

In crisis lies opportunity. Let’s build back better.



Humanity has recovered from many crises in the past: war, depression, pandemic, natural disaster. Often, we’ve bounced back to create a better future. The Spanish flu was followed by the economic prosperity of the Roaring Twenties. After World War II, the German economy grew to become the world’s most advanced. US social and economic policies responding to the Great Depression paved the way for twentieth-century prosperity.



As we emerge from the COVID-19 health and economic crisis, what can we learn from other recoveries? Through interviews with experts, policymakers and community leaders, Andrew Wear examines past recoveries, exploring what went well, what we should do differently and what the lessons might be for the recovery ahead of us.



With governments prepared to lead, listen to experts and involve communities in decision-making, not only is a successful recovery possible – we can also choose to reconsider things we thought were fixed. We have an opportunity to create a better future, so let’s use it.



Andrew Wear is a senior Australian public servant with degrees in politics, law, economics and public policy. A graduate of the Senior Executive Fellows Program at Harvard Kennedy School and a Victorian Fellow of the Institute of Public Administration Australia, he is also a director of Ardoch Ltd, a children’s education charity. His first book, Solved! How other countries have cracked the world’s biggest problems and we can too, was published in countries across the world.



‘This is a book to give you hope: Wear scours history for compelling reasons to believe we really can build a stronger and more sustainable economy after Covid.’ —Polly MacKenzie, CEO of Demos



‘The time to consider what comes after COVID-19 is now, and Andrew Wear is one of the most important thinkers on that big question of what comes next.’ —Andrew Giles MP



‘I love Recovery! And I love Andrew Wear’s realistic and infectiously optimistic nature, which powers his curiosity, innovation and resilience. My grandparents rebuilt after World War I and the Depression, and my parents rebuilt after World War II. Living up to that family history, I am working to help rebuild after a much less destructive global crisis ... Most people see a better normal for themselves and their family after COVID-19. As Wear concludes, “With the right choices, we will go on to create a better, brighter future.”’ —Victor Perton, founder and CEO of the Centre for Optimism