Carolyn Wilkins: Exploring life after COVID-19 - the far side of the moon

Remarks (delivered virtually) by Ms Carolyn A Wilkins, Senior Deputy Governor of the Bank of Canada, at the Munk School of Global Affairs and Public Policy, Toronto, Ontario, 12 November 2020.

The views expressed in this speech are those of the speaker and not the view of the BIS.

Introduction

Good afternoon and thank you for joining me. Thanks also to the Munk School for the invitation. Given what's going on in the world today, healthy debate around global affairs and public policy is more important than ever.

It's hard to believe that the COVID-19 pandemic was declared almost exactly eight months ago. Canadians have been affected on so many fronts-in our workplaces and in our homes. There are still more than 40,000 active cases and more reported every day-but we've heard some good news recently about vaccines.

I'm happy to see the economic recovery underway. However, the pandemic is still in full throttle, so we continue to face considerable challenges.

Today, I'd like to take us beyond the current context and discuss what we will need to thrive in the post-pandemic world. Right now, the future may feel like the proverbial far side of the moon. Much of what we knew about the moon 70 years ago was based on the side we could see from the earth. Like the explorers back then, many among us feel compelled to consider the unknown-to shed light on the dark side.