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Dear Forum Network members, Dear Friends,

I hope you’re well and in good health.

Most of us have probably spent more time inside than usual over the last twenty-or-so months following the COVID-19 pandemic. And while we have been addressing its challenges and opportunities on the Forum Network in our on-going Tackling COVID-19 series, it’s also been a time when many of us have reflected more than usual about the future and changes that we might like to make personally and professionally.

The news changes every day, and it’s sometimes hard to keep up with its pace, especially when it’s online. We can feel overwhelmed by headlines and constant information, and it can be hard to pause and contemplate where we are, how we feel, and where we want to go. That’s why books are so important: they allow us to draw inspiration from others’ perspectives.

In the context of the Forum agenda, books are gold mines for ideas. They often inspire Forum sessions and virtual events; sometimes they influence an entire agenda.

So, here’s where you – the Forum Network community – come in…

We want your book recommendations! It could be something you’re reading now, have just finished or want to start. Just create a free Forum Network account if you haven’t already, and leave your suggestions in the comments below!

As great books have a beginning, a middle and an end (if not necessarily in that order), we also have a structure to help you get your thoughts down:

• Please include books with themes that would fit into the Forum agenda; check out the full list of topics for ideas.
• Titles released within the last year/2021 or coming soon are preferred.
• Books published in English or French are preferred, but if you think something only available in other languages is a perfect fit, add it as well.
• You can add short descriptions and why you like this publication, but just the author and title are also fine.
• There are no limits to how many suggestions you can make!

Comments will be open until early January, so please make sure to add your ideas before then! If you have any questions, email us.

Happy reading (and writing), and we hope to see you all at our next Forum virtual event The New Geography of Work: From home, near home, and beyond, taking place on 8 December from 15:00 to 16:30 CET!

Willemien Bax, Head, OECD Forum

A selection of book extracts on the Forum Network to get you started!

• The Plague Cycle: The Unending War Between Humanity and Infectious Disease by Charles Kenny
• Breathtaking: Inside the NHS in a Time of Pandemic by Rachel Clarke
• Rescue: From Global Crisis to a Better World by Ian Goldin
• The Aristocracy of Talent: How Meritocracy Made the Modern World by Adrian Wooldridge
• What We Owe Each Other: A New Social Contract by Minouche Shafik
• Mending the Mind: The Art and Science of Overcoming Clinical Depression by Oliver Kamm
• The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together by Heather McGhee
• The Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence by Kate Crawford
  

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