COVID: SOCIAL & ECONOMIC IMPACT

Our goal is to raise awareness how the coronavirus pandemic has affected thousands of people’s lives at a social and economic standpoint.

SPEAKERS:

● Beth O’Reilly, Vice President for Campaigns, USI
● Dr Valesca Lima, Assistant Professor, School of Law and Government, DCU
● Dr Lorcan Sirr, Senior Lecturer, Tu Dublin

Housing concerns mounted, with students and young professionals being most affected by the accommodation shortage. The Irish government has taken decisive steps in solving the housing crisis and mitigating the adverse effects of the coronavirus pandemic. The Housing For All plan launched on September 2nd, 2021, has promised to create 300,000 new homes by the end of the decade, with more than half to come from the private sector. In terms of economic aspects, despite the government’s Economic Recovery Plan which supported the resumption of economic activity through a new Business Resumption Support Scheme, commercial rates waiver and reduction in VAT rate, many fear that the government’s pre-pandemic spending approach and the country’s over-reliance on multinational companies could hinder Ireland’s economic recovery.
Facing this situation, it is significant to reflect on government policies, economic solutions and personal reactions in terms of housing and general market. In our forward-thinking panel, our discussion will review the current situation, reflect on the actions taken by the government, big companies, organizations and individuals, and provide suggestions accordingly to prevent the adverse effects of Covid-19.

Regarding the format of the panel, we will be connected 15 minutes before, via Zoom which will be livestreamed on our YouTube Channel (A Zoom link will be sent on the day). We will have a short introduction about the panel. After that the next section of the panel, each panelist will share their insights for 10 minutes. After the speech section, panelists could ask each other questions or make comments according to the speech content.

Finally, there is a Q&A section where we will select questions from the YouTube audience.

The audience will be mainly from Ireland who are interested in the economical and social trends. This includes students, academics as well as business owners, volunteers, media influencers, parents who are also audiences from our previous panels, and people who wish to educate themselves how the social and economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic has implemented the lives of thousands. The panel will last for 1 hour in total.

Join us on the 21st for an interesting and fruitful discussion!