How the world has an unexpected ‘chance to reset’

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Miranda Livingston, 34, UK
Project manager

“The pandemic and the lockdowns that swiftly followed have provided us all with a chance to jump off the life treadmill and take a breath, to ponder what our priorities are. Lockdown life is a simpler existence.”

Libby Sander, Australia
Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour, Bond University

“As a researcher in the workplace particularly, not having to go to the office has given me the chance to have some stillness – to be able to have time to think, and not take these things for granted. The fact that we think that’s boring is what Covid is really about: the chance to really reset.”

Sagar Gahatraj, 28, Slovenia
Filmmaker

Sagar Ghataraj was always curious about growing his own food, but never had the time. But lockdown pushed him to do it.

“In the beginning, I worked in a small patch of land in my backyard, and planted some radish and spinach. As lockdown kept extending, I started planting many more varieties,” he says. “Soon, I started getting the harvest, which continued for the whole summer. It was a fantastic feeling.”

When he shared the vegetable garden with his friends and relatives, he was struck to find out that they were doing something similar. “Most of them were spending their quarantine doing something they wanted to do, but never had the time for. It was as if we were given time to stop and think about the most basic things in life.”

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Devina Gupta, 34, India
Senior journalist and presenter, BBC World News

“Staying at my parents’ home during the lockdown was difficult initially, but with each meal we shared under the same roof, with each board game we played, with each cup of tea we had and all the dishes that we cleaned, my parents and I started opening up about our lives – and even our vulnerabilities.”

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Eva Nchogu, 36, Kenya
High school teacher

“Due to the pandemic, I was forced to install internet in my home, and [my daughter] now has broaden her perspective on the world.”

Winnie Nchogu, 30, Kenya
NGO finance officer

“I hope after the pandemic that society or our governments will pay more workers like the delivery workers, the public transport and even give them health good insurances because the pandemic has shown that they are really essential workers in our community and our society.”

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Sandra Caballero, US
Shaping the Future of Mobility Specialist, World Economic Forum

“There’s such an opportunity to flesh out a whole conversation around equity. As this pandemic is truly global, we’ve seen who has been most impacted economically by Covid-19. Ironically, those most impacted are also the ones whom we most depend on.”

Greg Domino, 33, US
Director of communications

“We’ve experienced incredible work from those on the frontlines of this pandemic, and this awful moment in time will absolutely breed new innovation in the healthcare field. Keeping them healthy and working efficiently now and in the future should be our priority.”

Phil Feinman, 34, US
Recording studio co-owner

In Los Angeles, Phil Feinman is among those who’ve found the newer, slower pace of life has given them an opening to learn something new. 

Feinman has used his time to certify in an unusual pursuit: amateur radio. He studied for and passed the US’s Federal Communications Commission licensing exam to receive his private identification. 

“I’ve been talking to people all over the world on amateur radio, and meeting people I never would have met prior to the pandemic,” he says. “It’s been great.”

Feinman is finding the globe even more open and connected than he did before – something he’s hoping that’ll carry through after the crisis is managed.

Stefanie Lis, 28, UK
Web developer

Stefanie Lis was working in hospitality when she found herself furloughed because of the pandemic. She went back to work when things began opening again in the UK over the summer, but it was stressful, she says. Lis wanted a change.

She found one. During her time on furlough, she learned to code online. She secured an internship that’s turned into a job as a web developer, enabling her to leave hospitality entirely. Now, she works safely from home  – “a blessing during this time”.

Still, although she’s among those enjoying working remotely, she hopes that people won’t want to stay inside their homes after the pandemic. “I think there’s been a trend lately of people wanting to stay home a lot… I think this will have changed a lot of people’s minds about that.”