Considering multiple risks & inequalities in COVID19 times (& beyond...)

The COVID19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented global health crisis which has elevated in prominence the importance of managing disasters caused by biological hazards. In this brief paper we question the value of overly focusing on low frequency but high impact crises and explore how such a focus might be at the cost of addressing the more frequent but (apparently) lower impact crises. Accordingly, it is explained that COVID19 may actually be an opportunity to challenge the misleading idea that the virus, as with most disasters, is non-discriminatory. It is suggested that sound (disaster) risk management principles should be applied to ensure that multi-hazard/threat assessments are undertaken to guarantee that proportionate risk management approaches are adopted for Cultural Heritage (CH). We conclude with some reflections on the challenges and opportunities for CH that the COVID19 pandemic might provide.