We did something different with today’s newsletter, highlighting some of the more heartening things we’ve seen in the past few weeks, as the world mobilizes against the coronavirus pandemic. Send us your examples, stay safe and be well. (Want this in your inbox each morning? Sign up here.
) Apparel companies are retooling to make masks and other protective garments. Factories that churn out T-shirts in the Carolinas. A company in Pennsylvania that makes uniforms for baseball teams. European luxury brands like Prada and Gucci.
Across the world, clothing manufacturers are converting their workshops to produce much-needed medical equipment. The production of ventilators and N95 respirators is particularly critical, and some deep-pocketed companies, like Apple, Facebook and Salesforce, are using their clout to source supplies. Ford, G. M.
and Tesla are also tapping their supply chains and looking into building ventilators to send to hospitals. (Though admittedly, coordination among the state, local and federal governments in directing these efforts could be much better. ) Tech companies are donating their huge computing power to crunch data in the search for a cure. A consortium including Amazon, Google, IBM and Microsoft was recently formed to enlist their supercomputers in making calculations and modeling scenarios for the spread of the disease.
Distilleries and breweries are making hand sanitizer, with Anheuser-Busch InBev, Diageo and Pernod Ricard rejigging their operations to meet shortages. Surplus alcohol generated from alcohol-free beers has come in handy for the process. Leaders are learning about empathy as they try to manage multinational companies from their spare rooms. “This is a human crisis, and companies need to treat their employees in a human-centric way,” Natasha Lamb of Arjuna Capital told the NYT.
Tending to employees’ mental health is important, of course, but so is helping them weather the blow by compensating for lost hours, covering sick pay, assisting with child care and avoiding layoffs (especially since government help is on the way). 🏭 Pollution has fallen dramatically in major urban areas as people have stayed home. Volunteers are stepping up, with homebound Americans firing up their sewing machines to make masks and others using 3-D printers to produce face shields for doctors and nurses on the front lines. N.
Right Now The S&P 500 fell nearly 4 percent. Stocks on Wall Street fell sharply on Wednesday, following a slump in global markets, as investors face new project...
Y. U. medical students volunteered to graduate early so they could start internships at city hospitals sooner. And when the British government asked for 250,000 volunteers to help deliver food, medicine and other support to vulnerable people in self-quarantine, more than 500,000 people signed up.
We’ve learned to recreate some life experiences online, and not just the angry shouting matches on Twitter people might expect. The NYT’s Kevin Roose notes that the internet has made possible virtual yoga classes, “cloud clubbing” on TikTok and online cocktail hours. (WhatsApperitifs, anyone? Sorry.
) Cultural institutions have opened their doors, digitally speaking. The Metropolitan Opera in New York and the Royal Opera House in London are putting on free virtual shows most nights, while the Metropolitan Museum of Art has begun its #MetAnywhere campaign, making more of its collections available digitally. The NYT is keeping a running list of options. There are moments of joy that spring up amid the crisis, including musical performances on balconies and nightly applause for the medical workers putting their lives on the line to care for the sick (Prime Minister Boris Johnson and members of the royal family took part in the British version last night).
🐶 Here’s a shut-in Italian and his dog doing yoga. D. J. D-Nice’s epic Instagram Live sets have featured a huge array of celebs — was that Rihanna?
Mark Zuckerberg? Michelle Obama? — popping in to the virtual party as he spins tracks for hours.
““We’re in Club Quarantine, but we ain’t gonna let corona stop us,” he shouted during the initial set last week, which has become a recurring thing.”
Some of Berlin’s famous nightclubs are also live streaming sets from D. J. s in (empty) venues every night. Washing your hands properly has never been groovier, with Neil Diamond adapting “Sweet Caroline” for the coronavirus age; Gloria Gaynor singing that, yes, we will survive; and an array of Broadway composers and performers reminding us that “20 seconds isn’t that long.
” The sports world is getting in on the action, too. There aren’t any professional events to cover, so Nick Heath, a rugby commentator in London, turned his talents to doing play-by-play of scenes of ordinary life, as has the American commentary booth stalwart Joe Buck. The former M. L.
B. great Alex Rodriguez is running a virtual baseball clinic. And the N. B.
A. star Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors interviewed Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases about how to stay safe. 🐻 Children are embarking on “bear hunts” during walks, looking for stuffed animals that neighbors perch in their windows.
“We are all in this together as a global community. For me, the best way I’ve found to get past this anxiety is to focus on what I can do each day to make a small difference. Each of us, wherever we are, has the opportunity to do the same — take an action driven by hope, a small step that makes things a bit better. ” — Satya Nadella of Microsoft “Frame this as a massive investment in U.
S. public health. ” — James Bullard of the St. Louis Federal Reserve “This is a temporary state.
It helps to say it. I worked for 10 years in the hospital system. I’ve been trained for situations like this. I’ve also studied the 1918 flu pandemic.
The precautions we’re taking are the right ones. History tells us that. This is survivable. We will survive.
This is a time to overprotect but not overreact. ” — David Kessler, author and expert in grief counseling • The U. S. now leads the world in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases, with at least 85,000 known infections.
• Real estate tycoons, sunscreen makers and student lenders are among the many industries in line to benefit from the $2 trillion stimulus package. • Big banks are putting off planned job cuts, to cover staffing shortages and to prepare for a potential burst of activity when the pandemic subsides. • Orange juice futures are soaring as demand rises among health-conscious consumers. • You might expect food delivery services to flourish in these times.
Here’s why they’re not. The New York Times is providing free access to the most up-to-date information and expert guidance on the coronavirus pandemic at nytimes. com/coronavirus. Please consider supporting our journalism with a subscription.
Best wishes to Peter Tuchman, “the most photographed man on Wall Street,” on a speedy recovery. We’d love your feedback. Please email thoughts and suggestions to dealbook@nytimes. com.
We are holding a conference call for DealBook readers tomorrow, April 2, at 11 a.m. Eastern. We will go behind the scenes of the Trump administration’s response...
Fears are growing that the worldwide economic downturn could be especially deep and lengthy, with recovery limited by continued anxiety. LONDON — The world is a...
