‘Quick and decisive’: Jacinda Ardern’s Covid-19 response recognized by the scientific journal Nature

Jacinda Ardern has been recognized by an international scientific journal for her “swift and decisive” actions at the height of the pandemic.

The research journal Nature has included the Prime Minister in its annual list of 10 people who were part of great scientific stories in 2020.

The publication said that Ardern had earned international praise for his “swift and decisive” actions that kept New Zealand “relatively safe from Covid-19 and at the same time maintained the trust of citizens.”

The 2020 “Nature’s 10” list has a strong focus on Covid-19, with Ardern sitting next to familiar faces from the pandemic.

World Health Organization Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus brought nations together to respond to a new virus threat while navigating “intense criticism” of the agency’s handling of the crisis, the magazine said.

Meanwhile, the man who became the public face of the pandemic in the United States, Dr. Anthony Fauci, provided “reliable information to a concerned population while challenging the misinformation spread by President Donald Trump.”

The list also includes Chinese epidemiologist Li Lanjuan for quickly acknowledging the threat of the Covid-19 outbreak in Wuhan and convincing the central government to shut down the city before a national holiday, helping to slow the spread of the virus.

Beyond Covid-19, American cosmologist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein was listed for her work to shut down science for a day in June to highlight systemic anti-black racism in scientific institutions after George Floyd, a Unarmed black man, killed by Minneapolis Police.

Indonesian public health researcher Adi Utarini helped lead a pioneering trial to combat dengue infections using mosquitoes bred to block transmission of the virus responsible for the disease, Nature said.

Verena Mohaupt, the German logistics chief for an international mission in the Arctic, worked to keep some 300 researchers safe from polar bears, extreme cold and themselves while his ship was locked in sea ice for a year.

Nature’s editor-in-chief of features Rich Monastersky said the people on the list were part of the biggest science events around the world in 2020.

“Together, the stories of these 10 people illuminate some of the greatest scientific and social challenges the world has faced this year.”

This is not the first time that Ardern has been recognized internationally for her actions as Prime Minister.

While guest-editing the Forces of Change issue of British magazine Vogue last year, the Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle chose Ardern as one of the faces to grace the cover.

Ardern appeared alongside celebrities like Laverne Cox and Jane Fonda.

Earlier this year, Ardern was chosen to win the world’s most prestigious award, the Nobel Peace Prize, but missed the World Food Program.

In November, Ardern joined the ranks of Malala Yousafzai and Nelson Mandela, when she received the Gleitsman International Activist Award.

The Harvard Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership Award honored Ardern for his leadership, decisive action, and commitment to inclusive and reformist policies.

Ardern earmarked the $ 150,000 prize money for a scholarship for a New Zealand student at Harvard Kennedy School.