The situation around COVID-19 is evolving at an astounding rate. Thinking beyond the physical health ramifications to the mental health, anxiety, communication and sense-making aspects, our panel looks at what's going on and do their best to make sense of the rapidly shifting series of events. THE SPEAKERS – Professor Nick Enfield, Department of Linguistics – Professor Ian Hickie, Brain and Mind Centre – Dr Claire Hooker, Faculty of Medicine and Health – Professor Julie Leask, Susan Wakil School of Nursing and Midwifery – Professor Agnieszka Tymula, School of Economics – Professor Annamarie Jagose (Moderator), Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences WHAT WE COVER – Why our words matter: how we talk about COVID-19 (2.30) – Past epidemics and what history teaches us (6.00) – There is value in being anxious; if we channel this productively (8.00) – Features of human behaviour: how it's playing out in the COVID-19 context (10.40) – When faced with uncertainty, ambiguity; how should we communicate this? (13.00) – Trust vs panic: navigating the complicated communication environment (19.40) – Importance and maintenance of trust and transparency in our systems (21.00) – Social media and responding to cynicism (35.50) – Final thoughts from each speaker (42.40): be aware of loss/gain frame of scenarios and the cost of opportunity; Julie's 'ABCDEF' of practical actions for people (45.00); focus on behaving collectively (47.50); use this as a chance to re-connect with each other (48.40). For more info, including a full transcript, head to the Sydney Ideas website: sydney.edu.au/sydney-ideas.