Generation Z is growing up, leading many to wonder what this new generation will make of the future.  

According to the Huffington Post, Gen Z, the age group born from 1995 to the present, is a hopeful generation that chooses its battles wisely. This cohort that follows the millennials (those who reached young adulthood around the year 2000) has many expectations and challenges ahead of them. They are perceived as one of the most realistic of any past generation as well as the most diverse.  

This grasp on reality is due to of Gen Z’s early exposure to war, terrorism, and the 2008 economic recession, as well as their consumption of information from social media. They are the first generation to have grown up with the internet and were raised on technology.

Gen Z is the most diverse generation and are more open to sharing who they are. This generation personifies a high level of maturity, raising people’s hopes that they will use this self-awareness to change the future.

The beliefs of Gen Z are mainly based on equality. Above everything else, equality is what Gen Z tries to achieve for all. This need for equality ties into their embrace of failure, whether it be through education or activism.   

While Gen Z has made no significant impact as of now, there have been numerous predictions as to what their mark on the world will be. Many believe that Gen Z will be the most entrepreneurial generation ever as they have strong ambition and drive. Others say that Gen Z will help fix climate change and be more vocal about what they feel is right for the world.  

These expectations and predictions have been made by today’s older adults, but what do Gen Z themselves think they will accomplish? Will Gen Z’s future impact be more positive or negative? Why?

“I think that our impact will be positive because we are more environmentally conscious and are more likely to make an effort towards helping [the environment],” says Hazel George, a sophomore at Santa Fe High. Hazel says that millennials and Gen Z will agree on some things “but will have different priorities in general.”

Valencya Valdez, another sophomore, says that the impact will be “positive because we are taking charge more and learning more every day.” She added, “The gap between [Gen Z and millennials] will have to be filled, especially because we have to support each other.”

However, Zoe Ellvinger, a freshman, says that the impact will be negative because of “the way we are now.”  Zoe thinks that Gen Z and millennials in the workforce “might get along because we both kind of grew into technology.”

The mixed thoughts and inquiries of Gen Z are to be expected because it is such a diverse generation. How this cohort will choose to change — or not change — the world is up to these young individuals.