New ways to understand life in a pandemic | Aaron Maniam

Visit to get our entire library of TED Talks, transcripts, translations, personalized talk recommendations and more. Poet and policymaker Aaron Maniam describes how the language we use to explain COVID-19 shapes the way we think about it — whether it’s as a “war,“ a “journey“ or, as he suggests, an “ecology.“ He encourages us to explore a range of imaginative, interlocking metaphors to gain a deeper understanding of the pandemic — and shows how this can help us to envision a better, more inclusive future. (This virtual conversation, hosted by TED’s head of curation Helen Walters and arts and design curator Chee Pearlman, was recorded June 10, 2020.) The TED Talks channel features the best talks and performances from the TED Conference, where the world’s leading thinkers and doers give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes (or less). Look for talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design — plus science, business, global issues, the arts and more. You’re welcome to link to or embed these videos, forward them to others and share these ideas with people you know. For more information on using TED for commercial purposes (e.g. employee learning, in a film or online course), submit a Media Request here: Follow TED on Twitter: Like TED on Facebook: Subscribe to our channel: