Dear 2020 Graduates

Your childhood has been lived in parentheses between 2 world changing events, 9/11 and Covid 19. College and University graduates, you arrived shortly before 9/11, and high school graduates, just after. As a cohort, you are the individuals forged through transition as society reeled and reacted through wars, recessions, technological and social advances.

You are the product of resilience and adaptability, not just of the emotional sort, but in your acquisition of new information, systems, and cultural norms. Life has never been faster moving, more demanding of instant information, feedback, gratification, and connection. Social media has made your world more intrusive, invasive and critical. It’s never been harder to maintain privacy and dignity.

And yet, cohort of 2020, you have lived your lives, flourished and succeeded. You’ve adapted to and embraced constantly accelerating change. Identities have been established, both online and privately. You’ve learned how to deal with feeling constantly exposed and publicly judged whilst still working out who you are. Real friendships and relationships have been conducted through cyberspace whilst you’ve managed to acquire real time interpersonal and communication skills too.

2020 should be your year of celebration. Instead it’s the year of Covid 19. You’re on the cusp of adulthood after years of hard work. Instead of those long-anticipated milestones of birthday parties, proms, graduation ceremonies and celebrations, some have lost family members and friends, and all have been left in isolation, without closure.

This will pass, and when it does, you, 2020 Graduates, the cohort of resilience and adaptation will once again be the group to learn from the pause and reboot our planet has experienced. You’ll use this lesson to make our world better, and you’ll mark all your milestones differently, create your own unique memories and forge new paths, traditions and celebrations.

You’ve got this.