Responding to COVID-19

COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) is the disease caused by a new coronavirus called SARS-CoV-2. Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses that include the common cold, but also more serious, even fatal, diseases such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS).

First reported from China in December 2019 COVID-19 has spread rapidly throughout the world and was declared a global pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) on March 11, 2020.

New Zealand reported its first Covid-19 case on February 28, 2020. New Zealand’s response to the risk presented by COVID-19 is an elimination strategy – a sustained approach to finding it, stamping it out, and keeping it out - that balances health, economic and social impacts.

Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research has been working in collaboration with Te Pūnaha Matatini partners, MBIE, and Motu Economic & Public Policy Research, to support the Governments response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Manaaki Whenua – Landcare Research’s contributions include research in the areas of epidemiology & modelling of New Zealand’s response to COVID-19, attitudes to COVID-19 policy measures, the economic impact of COVID-19 policy measures in New Zealand and globally, the well-being impacts of COVID-19 and societal desires post-COVID-19, and people’s connection with nature during our Level 4 lockdown.