Iceland's Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir's key to leading through Coronavirus: ‘Put your ego as a politician aside’
Source: Time
Iceland’s Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir says that humility and listening to the science have been the keys to leading her country through the coronavirus pandemic, and that she hopes the global outbreak will be an opportunity to revive global discussions on climate change.
“What we can learn from this is that it’s important to put your ego as a politician aside and learn from those humble scientists, who have been faced with a crisis nobody could expect,” Jakobsdóttir told journalist Katie Couric during a TIME 100 Talks discussion on Thursday.
According to Johns Hopkins University’s global coronavirus tracker, Iceland has 1,803 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 10 confirmed deaths, ranking it among the lowest in Europe. Jakobsdóttir is one of several female leaders across the world who have been praised for their management of the coronavirus, alongside Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-Wen, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. “I don’t think it is a coincidence,” said Jakobsdóttir, adding that several male leaders have also been managing their response to the crisis efficiently. “Being ready to admit that we are all are learning by doing, and probably will make mistakes. That has been the biggest issue of leadership, and maybe that comes easier to women than men.”
Click here to read the full article published by Time on 21 May 2020.
Iceland’s Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir says that humility and listening to the science have been the keys to leading her country through the coronavirus pandemic, and that she hopes the global outbreak will be an opportunity to revive global discussions on climate change.
“What we can learn from this is that it’s important to put your ego as a politician aside and learn from those humble scientists, who have been faced with a crisis nobody could expect,” Jakobsdóttir told journalist Katie Couric during a TIME 100 Talks discussion on Thursday.
According to Johns Hopkins University’s global coronavirus tracker, Iceland has 1,803 confirmed cases of coronavirus and 10 confirmed deaths, ranking it among the lowest in Europe. Jakobsdóttir is one of several female leaders across the world who have been praised for their management of the coronavirus, alongside Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-Wen, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, and German Chancellor Angela Merkel. “I don’t think it is a coincidence,” said Jakobsdóttir, adding that several male leaders have also been managing their response to the crisis efficiently. “Being ready to admit that we are all are learning by doing, and probably will make mistakes. That has been the biggest issue of leadership, and maybe that comes easier to women than men.”
Click here to read the full article published by Time on 21 May 2020.
