Day One: New Possibilities

This morning I had no idea of what to expect. The first lecture of Natural Disaster and Risk Management for my group Delta was scheduled in the afternoon – and even though group Gamma had it in the morning, I did not ask them anything about it. After having heard so many different opinions from past years I wanted to see it with my own eyes. I cannot deny I was a bit bias in the regards of such subject since the beginning… I couldn’t see the point of it nor how it would have fit inside the big picture of Global Governance – and as a matter of fact, I still don’t. But something about the lecture left me quite surprised, something I did not expect…

Professor Abruzzese, with all respect, has not been able to engage us much – he reminded me of my old High School professor and his extremely long and not-so-interesting lectures about the geological conformation of Italy. Past GG students said that the real course would have started with Professor Erdem – a super cool and chill dude with finally some experience on the field – while some others recalled the embarrassing outdoor exercises and the funny stares from all the other faculty students present there.

The lesson started with a brief introduction of the subject by the Professor and of himself too. One thing that I have noticed is that the class in general was much more involved and active compared to many other classes – and myself too, I felt more engaged in speaking up since the start by the welcoming environment (usually it is something that takes me time…). Apart from the first general theoretical part about risks, hazards, exposures and vulnerabilities, what interested me the most was a particular thought brought up by the Professor while talking about his fascinating past school and work experiences: the concept of choice.

As humans, we make millions of choices every single day, some more important and some less. Some have a direct impact with calculated consequences while some others may imply indirect long-term effects – what’s important is that we learn how to take the right choice for us with calculated risks and probabilities. Who cares then if you end up being the CEO of I don’t know which big company in California after having bothered all youth about applying for the

right master and meeting the right people or if you have preferred to take it more lightly and invent your own business if this is what makes you happy the most? After all, saving enough money for six months with the certainty and the determination to come up with something in that period is not such a bad idea, right? :)

Besides, the idea of a free and humble life, of being able to travel all around the world and at the same time being engaged in some kind of social projects, has always solicited my interest – but until now I’ve never thought about being a member of the World Bank or of the UNDP nor of being a consultant… Nonetheless, if I know what my true goals are and what satisfies me the most, as long as my choices reflect that, I can simply follow the flow of life and open up to the new possibilities and opportunities that, directly or indirectly, willingly or unwillingly, such choices bring. Now it is all about learning how to do that, hoping this class will help.