All countries are facing the long ascent. We are joined by a single rope. We are only as strong as the weakest climbers. They will need help on the way up. The path ahead is clouded with extraordinary uncertainty. Faster progress on health measures, such as vaccines and therapies could speed up the ascent. But it could also get worse.

We must challenge our thinking on evaluation in government, accountability and performance in order to innovate, says Ngaire Woods, Founding Dean of the Blavatnik School of Government at Oxford University.

While every organisation is different, common themes on what makes an adaptive organisation have emerged from our extensive research. They apply in both the public and private sector and regardless of location.

The extraordinary global anger after the killing of George Floyd in Minnesota on May 25 has caught leaders off guard. It rightly ignited the largely suppressed issues of diversity, inequality, and above all race. Leaders have been shocked. They should not be.

Highlights from Alibaba founder Jack Ma’s discussion with Thinking the Unthinkable’s Nik Gowing, at the Kiev International Economic Forum.