After spending 18 years living abroad in Thailand and Malaysia, one email and a blue, kangaroo embedded passport allowed me to come home to Sydney, Australia. Although this may not be the first year experience I hoped for, I do, nevertheless, acknowledge that the opportunity of being able to Go Local is a privilege that I am extremely lucky to have.

The low number of locally transmitted Covid-19 cases in New South Wales makes life in Sydney comfortable. Aside from maintaining a distance of one and a half meters in public places, there are not many restrictions in place. Masks are heavily encouraged, but not compulsory, and people are allowed to eat out at restaurants, meet in groups of no more than 20 and, for the most part, carry on with their daily lives. For some of us, this means having the freedom to go get coffee after class or to go to the library and work together.

Image courtesy of Julie Matula

With only 12 students taking part in Go Local Sydney, most of whom are Sydney locals, the biweekly activities hosted for us are often faced with low attendance. Nevertheless, this doesn’t stop us from learning about Aboriginal history, going on walks along the beaches or hiking up the Blue Mountains. With the myriad of chances offered for those willing to interact with each other, a sense of community — even if minute — has slowly developed.

In classes, although all the students sit at separate desks to maintain social distancing, wearing a mask within the building is optional. In-person social interactions definitely help the discussions remain active and allow for better engagement. However, the lack in the variety of courses offered means that we are limited to cores and electives across several sites. Being a first year student, this poses very few issues for me, but for the upperclassmen, it may be a struggle.

For example, Zou Xinyi, Class of 2021, discovered that although Go Local Shanghai had to cater to almost 3000 students, there were almost no classes that she was able to take as a Philosophy major. Instead, many of the classes available were specific to the large number of Economics and Finance students of NYU Shanghai.

And so she decided to take up printmaking in order to satisfy the requirements needed for taking part in this initiative. Yet, even with the few floors of WeWork spaces NYUSH has specifically rented out for students to study in and the presence of four music practice rooms, Zou still finds herself unable to escape the crowded facilities and find space for her to express her artistic talents. As a result, she commutes to campus only once a week and spends the rest of her time around her rented accommodation.

“I don’t really feel like I’m having the NYU Shanghai experience, [it’s] more like the adult living experience in Shanghai,” Zou shared.

Similarly, junior year for Engineering major Yehowahi Sekan, Class of 2022, should have been filled with endless nights in the city that never sleeps, but instead, he’s chosen to use one of his study away semesters to Go Local in his home country, Ghana. Through this initiative, Sekan has not only been able to take up another language — Ghanaian Twi, spoken by a particular tribe — but, with the occasional trips planned by NYU Accra, he has also had the chance to explore different parts of the country that he has never been exposed to before.

“We have many invaluable talks about important topics pertinent to Ghana and Africa,” Sekan explained. “My fall 2020 experience would have been largely different if I was on the Abu Dhabi campus since I’d have missed out on this very rich experience in my home country.”

Image courtesy of Lenah Ankliss and Hannah Kasak-Giboff

There are only eight students taking part in Go Local Accra, all of who are from NYU Abu Dhabi, including Shaibu Sunnuma, Class of 2022, who has been very satisfied with the program and plans on continuing his studies at NYU Accra during the spring semester. Being back in his home country allows him to catch up with his childhood friends, while residing in the single room dormitories eliminates the distractions that can get in the way of his productivity at home.

Martin Stewart, Class of 2022, is also enjoying his experience at NYU Florence. Despite having to fly 13 hours from Uruguay to Spain and another three hours from Spain to Italy, followed by 14 days of quarantine, he has been able to integrate well into the country’s culture and is currently taking an intensive elementary Italian language class.

“It’s been phenomenal,” Stewart said. “I really like the class, the small class of eight people.”

Although learning Italian involves four in-person classes a week, the break that Stewart has from his screen has allowed him to relax, as well as dodge the Zoom fatigue bullet he would have otherwise been hit with if he was back in his home country.

As his planned study away in New York next semester was cancelled, Stewart will most likely remain in Florence for the spring semester so that he can seize the opportunity of perfecting his Italian, as well as spend more time appreciating Florence’s beauty.

Image courtesy of Martin Stewart

Stewart particularly enjoys walking through the garden located right next to the accommodation sites. Even though he may be the only student from NYUAD out of the 30 studying at this global site, this has not deterred him from forming friendships with students from both the New York and Shanghai campuses through city outings and trips to the gelato store. Now, with rising Covid-19 cases and the implementation of new laws, schools are prohibited from hosting group events. Regardless, the students at NYU Florence have still been able to maintain their social bonds.

Ultimately, there have been mixed opinions on the Go Local program — some find it to be a suitable substitute for NYUAD while others are desperate to return to campus. Personally, Go Local has been a one of a kind experience. Although living by myself has been rather lonely, this unique program has allowed me to explore a new way of living. Not only have I secured my first part time job, but I have also got my driver's license and learned how to cook and clean for myself. I have definitely matured in ways I wouldn’t have been able to if I was on campus. With the confidence gained from my Go Local experience, my fingers are, however, still crossed with the hope of returning to campus next semester.