The Covid-19 Crisis has had a stark impact on university campuses, as the once crowded lecture theaters, dining halls and sports arenas sit empty and millions of students learn from remote locations. Student bodies are often the target of enhanced enforcement too, and they have been under focus for sometimes dodging restrictions, partying in college halls and close contacts been forced into sometimes repeated quarantines.

In this breakout room I wanted to hear from a group of university students themselves about their experience.

The Covid-19 pandemic and government responses have upended society and have wreaked havoc on small businesses in particular. According to data from Homebase, as we now enter the holiday season and year end, metrics in term so hours worked, the number of businesses open and the number of employees working have sunk to pre-summer levels. The number of small business owners who don’t know if their business will survive has risen to 34% from 22% in July while 6% believe it won’t (from 3% in July).

We talked to a diverse group of business owners based in the UK and the US about the effect that the Covid disruptions had on their businesses. What we learned sometimes surprised us, sometimes it was sadly predictable