100 Days of Lockdown – Part III

Less and less of our US clients are responding to communications. Dialogues generated in the past two months seem to dry up. Projects are on hold — or cancelled altogether. Back in March, there was an effort to stay positive, but the reality has now caught up. Discussions about the second wave of the pandemic aren’t helping either. I shift my business development focus for iart to outside of the US. I am getting better responses in Europe and Asia.
Work-wise, I have settled into a groove – I actually find the COVID days useful for working in close quarters with the iart team in Basel. Since everyone is now working remotely, as I have been, communications are much better. I attend more meetings, and in general we have a better working relationship. During this time, I get to know my co-workers more, and daily dialogue replaces weekly calls and our exchanges are more productive and efficient.

In other parts of America, people are protesting the lockdown. They need haircuts. I need a trim, but only my girlfriend is protesting… The weather is getting warmer, and New Yorkers are spending more time outside to replenish their Vitamin D — in order to recover from cabin fever. You can tell New Yorkers are tired of being cooped up.

With the second wave looming, I realize this lockdown could last much longer than we anticipated. We are simply not as well coordinated as Europe, with all the conflicting messages from the leadership about the hard facts, we are still unprepared. Nevertheless, there is a feeling of positivity that after Memorial Day weekend, when Summer officially kicks in, and new opportunities for dialogue with clients and partners could begin.

May 25
Memorial Day: a day to remember? A day which will be noted in all the history books? George Floyd is murdered in Minneapolis by the police. That light at the end of the tunnel turned out to be a raging fire. The protest is not just in Minneapolis, and not just in New York: the whole nation catches fire. Catches fire literally — down the street from us, 10 blocks down, a Molotov cocktail is thrown into a police car. Protests in Brooklyn spill out onto our street. For the first time, we are concerned about “professional anarchists” in the crowd, but as it turns out, the protests are heated, but remain mainly peaceful.

It takes a minute, and a curfew for a few nights, but the initial rage has simmered into peaceful, purposeful protests that start again every day. The demonstrations spread globally like the virus: in major European cities, as well 5000 protesters in Basel, and 10,000 in Zurich. It is interesting to note what impact this social justice movement is having. Where will we be by Memorial Day 2021?

June 6
My favorite headline of the day: “Hundreds of New York surfers chant George Floyd’s name on the water.”

The protests themselves are quite impressive in their range of social and racial diversity and sheer size, all the result of a perfect storm: young people cooped up and out of work for nearly three months, with nothing better to do. Social justice is a fantastic reason to flout social distancing. There is an air of positivity every evening: bars and restaurants have reopened for take-out only, so around 7pm, people grab their margaritas and negronis, applaud the essential workers from the street, then applaud the protesters on bikes. It would totally be a tourist town, except everyone is wearing face masks. Now we enjoy encounters with friends and neighbors at socially distanced block or stoop parties.

June 17
The pandemic was on the back burner for a while, now it’s back in the news. In New York the number of cases is still decreasing, but other states have seen an uptick. Today’s CNN headline reads: “Oklahoma coronavirus cases rise as Trump rally moves forward.” Indeed, an upcoming Trump rally in Tulsa is scheduled to take place at an indoor venue that will can seat up to 19 000 people.

This news comes the same day the local health department announces that the county is seeing a spike in COVID19 cases in some states, including in Oklahoma, and that in some states hospitals have become increasingly overwhelmed. In many states, the situation has become worse, surprisingly, New York has become the flagship example of doing things right. According to Governor Cuomo, New York went from the “worst infection rate” the “best in the coronavirus fight”. Following suit, our New York based partners and clients are slowly appearing out of the woodwork, with encouraging signs of getting back to business.

These are indeed interesting times. We don’t know what the next weeks will bring, so like everyone else, I will stay tuned.

Lukas Fitze (iart) is a strategic developer and project manager with a long-standing working relationship with ETH Zurich. Our “man” in New York, Lukas perhaps epitomizes the ETH Ambassador championing the university’s innovative research and creating numerous opportunities for its community.

The thing that keeps me busiest at the moment is: My cats.
My favourite app is: Don’t have any favorites, but I use WhatsApp daily and it definitely makes communication easier.
One book or movie I recommend: I thought the TV show Devs raised many important questions.
And if all else fails, my instant pick-me-up is: Running.