COVID-19: Universities Are Filling the Void in International Cooperation

Coronavirus disease 2019
Coronavirus disease 2019

The COVID-19 pandemic is not only a trial for health systems and public infrastructures but also a test of global cooperation and forbearance. When international organizations like the United Nations, the G20, and the G7 are struggling to carve out a role for themselves in the global response to the deadly pandemic, the global universities are fighting on the frontlines against the deadly virus. Although the universities are far below the haute politique of international relations, they are within the trough wrestling to seek out a vaccine, develop therapeutics, and expedite mass production to effectively dispense the treatments as widely and as fairly as possible.

The UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has pleaded for a unified global response as nations turn inwards and seal each other off to combat the pandemic. The silence of the Security Council has sent a signal of shambolic disunity, which is resonating quite widely. Universities, on the other hand, are charged with highly qualified teams of researchers who are working tirelessly to find a cure and mitigate the impact of COVID-19. During the time of dire straits, the scientists and scholars have become increasingly connected and interdependent, disregarding concerns such as academic credit. The universities and research centres are sharing data and collaborating across national borders in extraordinary new ways. 

Doctors, engineers, scientists, researchers and university students across the world have shifted gears and are applying their skills and knowledge to fight the virus. The Serum Institute of India (SII), the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer by volume has partnered with the US-based biotech drug research company Codagenix. The two partners have been working together with the utmost diligence and meticulous efforts to develop a preventive vaccine against the novel coronavirus.

At Oxford’s Jenner Institute, one of the most reputed academic centers for vaccine research in the world, a team led by Sarah Gilbert has identified a nonreplicating viral vaccine candidate and is aiming for success in humans by June. The university has recruited volunteers with human trials already going underway. The human test is set to begin by April 22. The development of a vaccine is a glaringly slow process, however, with the support of the international community the academicians, researchers, and scientists are producing viable candidates and lab research speedily. The vaccine is being simultaneously tested in animal models by laboratories in the United States and Australia. There are plans for large scale productions in China, India, and Italy.

The team of researchers in Harvard’s Precision Vaccines Program is aiming to develop a COVID-19 vaccine for the older population. Many institutes in the U.S. such as Tufts University, Middleburg College and New York University are preparing to convert campus dormitories to temporary hospitals to provide beds for COVID-19 patients displaced from existing hospitals.

The Global Institute on Innovation Districts engaged innovation districts across the world. The institute effectively responded to what extent their research institutions, R&D labs, companies, and other actors are advancing in the development of a vaccine. The institute is focusing on the broad sector of life sciences to include all research specializations that have been tapped to address the pandemic.

The universities are also collaborating with companies and volunteers who are developing new solutions for creating and ramping the production of Personal Protection Equipment (PPE). A few universities like North Western University, University of New Hampshire and Michigan State University are developing 3-D printed face shield projects. 

Manu Prakash, who is a bioengineering associate professor at Stanford University, focused largely on low-cost medical devices. In March, he returned from Europe where the pandemic was taking a toll. After returning he started an open-source project to modify full-face snorkel masks into reusable Personal Protection Equipment (PPE) for health care workers. 

Pandemics like COVID-19 eventually generate opportunities for global cooperation. The United States and China should have put aside their differences and tackled the pandemic together. When the COVID-19 threatened the world and WHO stumbled, the two countries could have united for coordinating a global response to the pandemic. The Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) based in the United States should have assisted China in investigating the origin and nature of the “mysterious virus” when Chinese counterparts were inordinate and required more expertise and assistance in the research. As China leads in the manufacturing and exporting of active pharmaceutical ingredients, she could have cooperated with the United States to mitigate the disruption of the drug supply chain. The COVID-19 pandemic is a reflection of the incompetency of international institutions and national leaders and their governments. 

Nations eschewed Multilateralism. After inequality persisted for decades, disaffected voters in numerous countries have elected populist leaders in recent years. In authoritarian positions, these leaders turned to nationalist norms and shrugged off the international responsibilities and constraints imposed by international organizations. Defeating the COVID-19 pandemic demands international cooperation on all levels, however, the reinforcement of nationalist trends makes the mechanism of delivery substantially weak. 

When health organizations and institutes continue to work on solutions for the COVID-19 pandemic, the world is reminded that this type of global and real-time coordination doesn’t happen in isolation. It’s through communication networks of small geographic innovation in areas of advanced research, rapid prototyping and commercialization that success is achieved. 

Many experts in the world warned of humanity’s vulnerability to a pandemic before the coronavirus outbreak. In the famous 2015 TED talk, Bill Gates highlighted the vast financial resources that are employed for nuclear deterrence instead of funding for pandemic preparedness. Contrarily, governments continued to see national security in military and warfare terms, and the production of essential pharmaceuticals was outsourced to the less expensive providers in the name of private profit and public economy. Only strong international universities and institutions can effectively respond to the deadly pandemic. COVID-19 will not be the last pandemic. With more robust global institutions, developed and underdeveloped countries alike can ensure that the next one is less disastrous.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.