Wired Minds: How AI Is Shaping Teen Lives

Artificial Intelligence has quietly woven itself into the fabric of teenage life, not with loud fanfare, but like a soft whisper that follows us everywhere—from the moment our alarms go off to the second we fall asleep staring at glowing screens. For many of us, AI feels like a silent companion: curating our music, predicting our texts, and even helping us finish homework we didn’t know how to begin. It’s revolutionized how we think, learn, create—and sometimes, how we see ourselves. On one hand, it’s like a genie in a device. With just a few clicks, we can generate artwork, draft essays, or learn complicated concepts through interactive platforms tailored to our pace and style. But on the flip side, there’s a strange hollowness when we begin to question ourselves—are we thinking critically, or just clicking smartly?

AI doesn’t sleep. It never gets tired. And it doesn’t judge. That’s both comforting and slightly eerie. It knows what we like before we know it ourselves, and while that may sound magical, it also means our thoughts are gently being nudged in directions we don’t always notice. The line between inspiration and imitation grows increasingly blurred. For a generation that’s trying to find its voice in a noisy world, there’s a risk we start sounding less like ourselves and more like the code we consume.

Yet, I believe AI doesn’t have to be the villain or the hero of our stories—it can be the tool. The paintbrush The lens which helps us create our own definitions. As teenagers navigating a fast-changing world, the challenge isn’t to reject AI, but to rise above it—to harness its power while still holding on tightly to the messy, magical parts of being human: our quirks, our flaws, our original spark. After all, algorithms can simulate thought—but they can never feel a dream.

"From Eco-Anxiety to Eco Action & Empowerment"

“I want you to act as if your house is on fire, because it actually is”

57% of surveyed youth today report feeling eco-anxious, Greta Thunberg perfectly summarizes how the world needs to transition from just feeling anxious, to feeling action/empowerment oriented. In fact, surveys have revealed how there is a significant gap between those who feel climate change can be tackled, and those who are empowered to take action. Youth-engagement through strikes, school projects, competitions, conferences, and even direct action has definitely shown results in various areas, but the impact is far too large to handle by just a handful. Having personally experienced these harsh realities, and through research my golden key to this problem is Cross-sector Collaboration.

Starting off with the Agenda 2030, the UN has called upon all sectors of society including government, academia, private, and the public sector to help and achieve the 17 SDGs. My first encounter with these goals was when I was in middle school, we all chose a goal and described how it was important to us, and what we would change. While there were incredible presentations and ideas, the pdf got lost in my desktop and was unfortunately never talked about again. This goes to show how those methods of awareness, while effective on the surface level, didn't bring upon a lot of change. On the other hand, let’s say my high-school collaborated with a national organization like the Niti Aayog in India, along with a couple of businesses, chose an issue and worked on it; it would have yielded better results.

The businesses would provide the funding, the government the scale, and the academia the knowledge. Currently popular projects like the Ganga Action Plan have spent about 4 billion dollars without any considerable results in countries like India. Other examples to support how purely contracts or government initiatives don’t necessarily work include, the Clean Development Mechanism under the Kyoto Protocol, Great Green Wall in Africa, and even the Billion Tree Tsunami in Pakistan to name a few. The initiatives either lacked proper implementation due to lack of collaboration within state/national governments, lack of innovation, funding issues, and even acceptance amongst local communities. If a cross-sector approach was taken, this might not have been the case.

A successful effort that has been done is the collaboration between Microsoft and The Nature Conservancy (TNC) in 2022. This partnership focused on restoring the oyster reefs off the coast of Washington State, and there was considerably tangible progress as well. Additionally, Unilever worked with WWF since 2010 on various projects to promote sustainable agriculture practices. Another initiative that has achieved success includes the Global Salmon Initiative (GSI). Various salmon farming companies, NGOs, and industry stakeholders came together to show how environmental protection can be balanced with economic growth, the protection of sea life, with sale of seafood.

While there have been numerous examples of success, there are challenges that would come along with this cross sector collaboration for eco-action. The biggest one would be aligning goals and building trust. With global economies and complex political structure, it would be hard to make sure everyone is on the same page, and is ready to work together. This however can be mitigated by pilot programs, high focus on planning, and constant review.

In conclusion, the urgency to move from eco-anxiety to empowered eco-action is undeniable—as if our house is truly on fire. Just hope, and isolated actions wouldn’t solve this issue, strategic, inclusive, and large-scale action is needed. Cross-sector collaboration is the right step in the direction and can create a sustainable future for the generations.

Echoes of Empathy

Empathy is the art of walking a mile in someone else's shoes, even if they're three sizes too small and covered in glitter.“There is  nobility in compassion, beauty in empathy and grace in forgiveness.” Empathy is the most important ingredient to a good humane life. Compassion and forgiveness cannot happen without empathy. There’s something divine about the purity of this realization- the fact that one can perceive, understand and feel what another person is experiencing. Life is all about this mysterious connection with each other. This feeling of oneness. Of being one big family and experiencing what may be called universal consciousness. While one might understand empathy, it is common to confuse it with “sympathy”.  While sympathy refers to sincere concern for someone who is experiencing something painful, empathy refers to stepping into the shoes of the other person and looking at life from their perspective. Empathy can be from helping a dear one during their tough times by sharing your own experiences and understanding their challenges to looking at the world from the perspective of a five-year-old and helping them understand the little things in life. Life is like a necklace, full of colourful beads but what holds them together is the thread of empathy. Without a good quality thread, the beads scatter all around. Therefore It is one of the most essential charms in the life of a human being.

In today's rapidly advancing technological landscape, human connection has become increasingly scarce. The gap between people is increasing and the bonds are becoming superficial, instead of talking to one another now people prefer to find solutions off the net. Difficult to say if our virtual reality is taking over us or vice versa because reels and Instagram stories have engulfed our experiences and validation in the forms of likes, comments and forwards to decide our self-worth. People have lost touch with the idea of confiding with one another and creating meaningful connections. They are trying to cover up their problems by indulging in social media 24/7. Furthermore, it's vital to find the true meaning of empathy as it is a humane quality. It is what one feels through the heart and not through the mind.

Empathy serves as the cornerstone of human connection. It helps recognise the diversity within relationships and plays a crucial role in fostering understanding, compassion, and cooperation. Empathy promotes effective communication and conflict resolution helping build authentic relationships with people. It is evolving as a human being. It’s like fitting into a foreign mould and feeling like it’s your second skin. Empathy is regarded as a virtuous quality, it plays a significant role in shaping an individual's personality and influencing connections and interactions around them. It’s the ability to relate to and connect with people to empower and inspire their lives, helping address social issues, bridging gaps nurturing a more cohesive and supportive global community. 

Life is an enigma and a mystery unsolved. It’s not about just inhaling and exhaling but breathing the humanness. Reading the unwritten, listening to what hasn’t been spoken,  and feeling what hasn’t been expressed. A man without empathy is like music without rhythm, a canvas without colour and a body without a soul. Empathy is empowering to perceive and believe what the other says and wants. And when one believes then one achieves. Let’s just be empathetic and the rest like a consequential ripple effect will spread positivity, happiness and oneness.