Dealing a better hand during COVID-19
Pandemic Pack, a collaborative project between several EHF Fellows, is providing hope and encouragement in the midst of COVID-19 crisis.
The world has seen a wide range of devastating disasters in the past few decades - from floods to droughts and earthquakes to economic downturns. But the COVID-19 pandemic stands out for the way it has affected our global population all at once.
Through an optimistic lens, one can see the ways that COVID has brought people together under an umbrella of common understanding. Because we are all impacted and hungry for solutions, connection and hope are more important than ever.
These sentiments led several EHF Fellows to collaborate on a project that can help people emotionally process our current health crisis.
Disaster recovery expert, Elizabeth McNaughton, cognitive scientist, Jolie Wills, physiotherapist, Bart de Vries, and political cartoonist, Khalid Albaih formed an unlikely team that brought Pandemic Pack to life.
Pandemic Pack: A tool for coping with the challenges of COVID-19
One of the amazing things about humans is our adaptability. As a disaster recovery expert, Elizabeth McNaughton has seen many communities and individuals around the world go through a wide range of difficult situations and catastrophes, only to emerge stronger than before.
In fact, studies have shown us that most people come out of adversity with some type of growth — whether that be a greater appreciation of life, or spiritual growth, or deeper relationships.
Of course, most of us are unaware of this pattern while in the midst of crisis and mess and disruption, so we often feel really anxious. This anxiety is understandable as without knowing that growth is possible we worry about the future, all while processing the difficult present.
It’s important to remember that we, as humans, have always found a way. In this spirit, Elizabeth and Jolie created the Pandemic Pack - a deck of 30 cards that are full of hopeful reminders and optimistic questions to help people cope with COVID-19.
Their goal is not to gloss over any of the real and painful challenges we are facing, but to take a few bricks out of our baskets.
“Life and obligations don’t stop in the midst of crisis,” Elizabeth says, “so Pandemic Pack is meant to give people a chance to stop, think, and reflect a little bit and get some great advice.”
A cognitive scientist, physiotherapist, political cartoonist, and a disaster recovery expert walk into a bar…
The cards are illustrated by political cartoonist, Khalid Albaih, whose series on the coronavirus caught Elizabeth and Jolie’s eye. They had long admired Khalid’s work and thought this would be the perfect chance for collaboration.
“They just felt so on point, it was amazing.”
Elizabeth and Jolie used Khalid’s art as an inspiration for many of the cards, adding thoughtful words and questions that complemented the messaging of his illustrations. Jolie is a cognitive scientist, whose expertise provided sound insights into the psychology of humans in crisis. Physiotherapist, Bart de Vries brought key insights and expertise on the physical health aspect and was a real boost to all aspects of the project from the design of the cards to marketing.
The team are all members of the Edmund Hillary Fellowship’s 5th cohort Karamu and originally met and bonded at their welcome week. Though they have long supported each other’s work, this has been their first opportunity to create something tangible together.
The result of this unique collaboration is a set of beautiful, knowledgeable, and well-rounded cards that couldn’t have been made by any one of the team members alone.
Elizabeth, Jolie, Khalid, and Bart all agree that working together felt like magic and think the world would benefit from more groups engaging in cross-discipline collaboration.
“So often, we talk to people like us, from our own profession or area and we try to solve problems that way. Then we wonder why we're not addressing the complexity of our world.”
Pandemic Pack in action
The team hopes Pandemic Pack will lead people to make better, healthier decisions but also normalise how people are feeling. The cards are designed to be short and sweet because most of us are short on bandwidth at the moment.
“Our hope is that people won't be so hard on themselves or so critical of themselves,” Elizabeth says, “but rather go, ‘Hey, this is a moment in time. And the way I'm reacting is totally normal right now.”
The flip side of experiencing this pandemic as a global unit is that everyone is equally exhausted by it. We all are carrying a big load and that makes it harder for us to reflect or support those close to us.
“When you, yourself, are overwhelmed it can be really had to find enough energy to support other people who are really overwhelmed.”
The Pandemic Pack is something that you can send to your loved one to give them a boost and show them you care, even if you’re less “emotionally available” than normal. Elizabeth says she likes to go through the deck and think about the people she cares about. Then she sends pictures of cards to loved ones she feels would benefit from them.
“When you're thinking about other people going through the cards, you’re kind of figuring out which cards are useful to you as well. So you do both processes at the same time.”
But ultimately, there is no set way for the Pandemic Pack to be used — whether you read the cards with your family around the dinner table or sit alone with a cup of tea and one card a day. The idea is just to pause and reflect on the time at hand because that is our best path toward recovery.
As our global population faces this unprecedented challenge, it is more important than ever to come together to form solutions. Each of us has unique skills and insights and Pandemic Pack has shown how they can be made even more valuable within a team.
How to Get Involved:
You can buy the Pandemic Pack here: https://www.hummingly.co/product/pandemic-pack
Learn more about Elizabeth McNaughton and Jolie Wills’ work supporting individuals and organisations do well through times of challenge, uncertainty, and change.
Find Khalid Albaih on Instagram to see more of his incredible art: @Khalidalbaih
Learn about Bart de Vries’ revolutionary innovation in portable, ergonomic office desk design at https://limber.nz/