Joe Sterling here. I have been receiving requests about info on the COVID-19 epidemic at "above 3rd grade level" so I thought I would share what I've synthesized on this topic so far. As some of you may know, I wrote a family and neighborhood pandemic readiness guide in 2006 (for the Avian Flu threat) with updates in 2009 (for the Swine Flu pandemic). I am assembling an updated workbook now for COVID-19, which will be out in a week or so. In the meantime, I hope you find the following summary of the situation useful:

COVID-19 - Plain Talk - Practical Approach - Positive Attitude - 2020-03-02 PDF.

Feel free to contact me as questions come up based on this material. I'm sure the physicians among you will want to comment. Be kind, my goal is to provide an actionable and comprehensive view that doesn't pull punches, that stays positive and offers pragmatic and meaningful action steps. It would be great if this virus fizzles out, but it's not showing any signs that it will.

Beyond the essentials of dealing with a pandemic, there are some really interesting question here related to innovation ecosystems and entrepreneurism:

Will a community that scores highly on the Rainforest Scorecard of innovation culture attributes fare better or worse in a pandemic? Which attributes matter and how much? Think about the roles that Leadership; Culture; Frameworks/Infrastructure/Policy; Role Models; Activities/Engagement; and, Resources have on preparing for, coping with, and recovering from a major public health crisis like a pandemic. What would the answers to those questions tell us about the value of achieving strength in each scorecard attribute?

Be well, and stay tuned for further updates.

Joe