More than a year has passed since March 11th, 2020, when the World Health Organization declared the Covid-19 – a disease caused by the novel coronavirus (Sars-Cov-2) – as a pandemic. Despite several scientific and technological advances, including the record development and testing of several vaccines, the world, especially Brazil, still suffers the serious effects of the pandemic-caused health, economic and social crisis. In Brazil alone, the death toll has reached over 300,000 people. We express our heartfelt condescendence and solidarity to all bereaved families.

Responsible crisis management is of the essence in contexts of extreme crisis like this. An extreme crisis is widely perceived as a threat to core values and life-sustaining functions of a society. It requires a responsive management through urgent actions that mobilize public, private and non-profit stakeholders in uncertain circumstances. The pandemic is a multifaceted phenomenon that involves decisions based on scientific evidence and coordinated crisis management strategies. The knowledge accumulated in Public and Business Management can and should be useful at this time.

In particular, responsible pandemic management must be based on judicious decisions made by professionals with proven expertise in their domains and guided by the best scientific knowledge in the field. Evidence should guide decisions related to production, logistics, marketing, public and business communication, among other areas, which are also relevant to respond to a challenging geopolitical dynamic. These decisions need to be adapted to local specificities, seeking to align resources efficiency with the imperative of social equity and defense of the most vulnerable communities.

Responsible pandemic management must deal with the ethical and moral dilemmas that will naturally emerge, given the multifaceted nature of this crisis and the very tensions in our society. It is expected to coordinate and articulate public, private and non-profit stakeholders, optimizing the use of resources to fight the pandemic. In short, more promising solutions may emerge from a responsible crisis management based on scientific knowledge and humanitarian attitude.

Brazil has an expressive number of more than 260 graduate programs in Management, as well as a qualified number of prestigious national and international think thanks. The qualified knowledge of our researchers (hundreds of holders of doctorate and master’s degrees) provide contributions in the most varied sectors. Since the pandemic onset, this community has been active in the search for solutions, coordinating research projects and addressing the crisis based on numerous analyses, studies and recommendations disseminated in both academic journals and the media.