Lessons of COVID-19: A roadmap for post-pandemic science

Matthew Krummel and colleagues discuss the positive trends and initiatives that emerged among scientists during the COVID-19 lockdown.
The response to the COVID-19 crisis across most research institutions mandated ceasing nonessential research activities in order to minimize the spread of the virus in our communities. With minimal notice, experiments were terminated, cell lines were frozen, mouse colonies were culled, and trainees were prevented from performing bench research. Still, despite the interruption of experimental productivity, the shutdown has proven for many PIs and trainees that doing and thinking science are not activities that are bound to the laboratory. Furthermore, the shutdowns have solidified important emerging trends and forced us to further innovate to get the most out of working remotely. We hope that some of these innovations, hard-gained in this difficult time, will persist and develop into new paradigms—lessons that will improve our science and our relationship to the climate and community beyond the current pandemic.