The Week Experience – Reflection

Hello everyone🙏🏽! so let me tell U
about this U-Shaped Week
I had…

Day 1 — Familiar Warnings, New Perspectives

The first session reopened a topic I’ve lived with for years: climate change. The video carried an emotional message, urging responsibility and awareness. However, us Gen-Zs have grown up to be part of the most climate aware and active generation, so this was not surprising at all and neither did it make me feel emotional. What struck me most was the diversity of reactions in the group. Some felt shaken; others, like me, viewed it through the lens of someone who has grown up with this crisis as a constant reality.

Our conversation highlighted how differently we internalize the same message depending on where we come from, what we’ve lived through, and how climate change has touched our lives.

Day 2 — Systems, Stories, and the Struggle for ‘Better’

The second day shifted toward a more philosophical tone. We explored the systems beneath the crisis—consumerism, capitalism, and the way narratives shape our understanding of the world. The idea of the “Story of More” resonated with me, especially as someone from the Global South, where “more” is often synonymous with a “successful life.” I grew up in a culture, where good grades, translated into better jobs which translated into a high-paying career. So the focus was always cramming for a ‘story of more.’

Our discussions reminded me how personal sustainability choices can be, and how they intersect with identity, culture, and most importantly privilege.

Day 3 — Pride, Identity, and Collective Reflection

The final session brought the whole class together. Instead of focusing on climate change directly, we reflected on pride, identity, and the futures we imagine for ourselves. Hearing so many voices, each shaped by unique experiences, felt grounding. It was a reminder of how connection and empathy are powerful tools for imagining a shared future.

So let me tell U about what this U-Shaped Week Left Me With:

Overall, The Week did not transform my understanding of climate change—I’ve lived too closely with its realities for too long. But it did give me something else: clarity of experiencing it through the lense of eight other individuals.

It also reminded me of the importance of small, personal acts: returning to calligraphy, nurturing connections across distance, watching sunsets in quiet reflection. These moments enrich my life far more than external achievements ever could. Things that would become increasingly difficult to pursue in a post-apocalyptic world of the climate catastrophy.

The content may not have been new, but the conversations, perspectives, and self-reflection gave it meaning. And that meaning stays with me as I continue shaping my own story, a story not of “more,” but of intention, compassion, and growth.