As if like clockwork, or perhaps an unspoken tradition, in the last week of April, NYU Abu Dhabi students’ social media erupted in discussion of the #mynyuad Instagram profile and the #mynyuad branding exercise led by the Office of Public Affairs. This debate, although sometimes acrimonious, revealed a deep unease about what our institution is and what our institution should look like to outsiders.

Responses to this controversy were varied. On April 30, Student Government held a forum for students to come together and discuss the #mynyuad issue and other issues on campus. A #mynyuad Facebook challenge was started by the football team, which encouraged students to share positive memories related to NYUAD, and tag their friends. Jihyun Kim, class of 2018, wrote in The Gazelle that the legacy that we leave is shared across the student body; NYUAD is not mine, or yours, but ours.

Despite this, the issue of the identity of NYUAD remains unresolved, with each individual student having a different conception of what it means to attend NYUAD, graduate from NYUAD and be part of NYUAD. Over the past 11 issues published this semester, The Gazelle has sought to be a place in which these conversations around identity, place and meaning can take place.

We’ve explored topics such as academics diversity, self censorship and the bonds we forge together. While these topics might seem broad and unrelated, behind them is a concern with the way in which NYUAD is represented, both to ourselves and to the outside world.

These conversations will naturally continue, and while it’s important to be respectful of each other, we should not be afraid to criticize and challenge each other’s opinions. Even if the solution is not readily apparent, the act of critique can be empowering in itself, as we further understand and inquire into our unique situation here in Abu Dhabi.

But now, with the mercury steadily rising, we should also take a moment to find respite before we are thrown out into a world of summer jobs, internships and, dare I say it, life after NYUAD.