Feeling a bit under-the-weather, I am not getting an awful lot done. Watching season 3 of The Crown, I look at people shaking hands and standing close together and think: those were the days!

A mere two weeks ago we, the six people making up WEAVE, were in full swing preparing several events. Now we are living in a world where physical contact is almost banned and where most people are relying on connection via the internet or the phone. Like everyone else we are worried about what lies in store – not only for us here in the Netherlands, but also for those in countries that don’t have good health care systems or the ability to support people’s livelihoods.

Despite all the difficulties and uncertainties, we see this crisis as a big opportunity. We are already seeing wonderful acts of kindness and solidarity; we see people connecting more deeply with the ones they love and connecting for the first time with neighbours whom they barely knew before. We see air pollution and CO2 emissions dropping dramatically. We see overconsumption plummeting. We see much more appreciation for those without whom we would not survive (including health care workers, cleaners and garbage collectors). We see creativity and unity.

A few months ago, we wrote this mission statement: We need to come together like never before: the WEAVE mission is to connect communities to co-create the transition story, learn from each other about emerging solutions and take effective action together.

We could not have imagined how rapid and profound change could be. This crisis, and the suffering it brings, are huge. We all should do everything we can to overcome it. And yet, it is also a crisis that should not be wasted: we need to build back better. Let us use this time in which we are forced to slow down to connect and co-create this new story for humanity.What do you want that story to look like? How do you want to shape the future?