We finish 2020 gasping for some kind of relief.  Caught between the worst pandemic in a century and the effective administration of various vaccines, we are at a loss to know how the next twelve months will play out.  Such an insecure global outlook hardly makes for a secure context for economies everywhere.Yet, a lot will look familiar.  The strongest economies will still show a resilience in the midst of the pandemic.    Western politics, following years of raging populism and a growing distance from electorates, have stabilized somewhat as the need for government relief proved an overriding concern.  Financial markets did better than expected, despite the earlier doom and gloom pronouncements nine months previous.But some things have clearly changed, perhaps permanently.  The global job market has been ravaged by COVID, especially in service and tourism sectors, where typically low wages left millions vulnerable and highly dependent on government stimulus measures to survive.  And with the pandemic entering a new and dangerous phase, the chances of small to medium sized businesses having to close their operations for good are strong and troubling.We rarely speak of it in these pressing times, but what of the global poor – that cohort of some billion people who were on the verge of escaping destitute poverty in the last decade?  It doesn't look good, as the World Bank contends that Covid-19's wide-ranging effects will result in an increase of the poorest by up to 150 million people.  This is a tragedy of significant proportions.  The success of the past 30 years, where the numbers of the world's poorest declined from 36% of the 1990 global population to 8% just prior to the pandemic, has now been devastated.  The United Nations reminded the world that 70 countries will be pressed into “multi-dimensional poverty” – a category listing lack of shelter and child hunger as just two of its most troubling portends.  The sight of children being taken out of school to work, or of women, following decades of economic advancements, being pressed into demeaning labour should trouble us all.  Child mortality will rise and women's rights will shrink at the same time as men and boys begin traveling in an endless search for employment.And then there is China.  Its ascendancy to the top of the global economic order, predicted decades ago, will be realized in the near future.  There is something ironic about a nation that hid much of the reality of the pandemic's origins in its earliest days becoming the world's predominant economy.  Then again, when it comes to economics, life is rarely fair.  Most Chinese are now back at work following the early days of COVID, and China's economic level is actually higher than it was prior to the virus.The Chinese comprise a remarkably industrious country of 1.4 billion people, and they are well-positioned to take advantage of a sagging global economy through their strongly authoritarian government.  Democracies, on the other hand, will continue to wrestle with endless partisan battles and internecine warfare within political parties.   Their citizens have had wealth and are unhappy losing it, whereas more Chinese people have entered the middle-class than ever in its history.  They are on the rise, while Western nations appear to be holding on precariously to their relative position.  In racing terms, China is in the advantageous pole position in the race to the new global economy.Western economies are capable of rebounding.  Yet, just as we looked for this to happen, a new wave of the pandemic devastated much of our productivity.  Unlike the Great Recession of 2008-2009, when economists felt they understood the ground and how to rebuild, our current predicament has left these same financial experts scratching their heads.  They are aware the unemployment number will remain stagnant for perhaps decades.That ominous financial challenge of only a dozen years ago primarily affected 11 of the wealthiest economies.  Our present economic challenge is now a global one and its reverberating effects remain unknown.  In order to contain the virus, actions needed to be taken that actually hurt global economies, rather than invigorating them.  Health has transcended everything as civilization seeks to survive something it can't even see.Our recovery will take much more than we actually think. And just as trust and cohesion are required at societal levels, increasing numbers of citizens and businesses are thumbing their noses at the COVID restrictions designed to save our economies by saving our people.  That division, much more pronounced and obvious south of the border, could become the tinder for endless partisan divisions in upcoming provincial and federal elections.This will be our life in 2021 – more uncertainty, slow economic recovery, the rising divisions within the temporary hegemony caused by COVID, increased tensions with Russia and China, and the ever-present climate change challenge.But there will be the positive as well – increased respect for our healthcare system and the science and research accompanying it; more productive relations with America, Europe and, hopefully, Britain; upcoming elections where we might show our collective resolve; new trade opportunities; the ability to focus on Main Street over Wall Street; and the increasing desire of Canadians to tackle racism, gender inequality, indigenous reparations, the lack of small business investment, a new climate deal, and a more collaborative form of politics at all levels. Will Canada remain a reasonable and reasoning country?  Such things are in our hands, but much of the fate of 2021 exists elsewhere and it is yet to be determined how it will unfold.Glen Pearson was a career professional firefighter and is a former Member of Parliament from southwestern Ontario. He and his wife adopted three children from South Sudan and reside in London, Ontario. He has been the co-director of the London Food Bank for 32 years. He writes regularly for the London Free Press and also shares his views on a blog entitled “The Parallel Parliament“. Follow him on twitter @GlenPearson.