As Chief Ethical and Humane Use Officer, I’ve worked closely with my team over the past year to apply our ethical and humane use principles when developing technology that addresses these crises. With this work, we’ve learned valuable lessons which will remain important and applicable long after the current pandemic is over. We share these lessons in the spirit of transparency as we navigate this uncharted territory together, knowing we always have more to learn.
Lesson 1: Learn from the past – avoid reinventing the wheel
When we face crises, there's often a bias for immediate action. However, it is critical that we take time to incorporate lessons from the past in developing modern solutions. In 2020, we were reminded to take a step back and recognize many of these issues are not new. While COVID-19 itself is novel, we know that this isn’t the first global health crisis we’ve faced. This isn’t the first time we’ve surfaced health inequities in our communities, though the disparities have deepened due to the pandemic. The world has experienced pandemics before, and there are many well-established, trusted organizations that deal with health crises every day.