What Three Global Communities Taught Me About How People Respond to Crisis (Part 2 of 3)

Esther Ayorinde-Iyamu, Co-Founder of Geoffrey, is a dual U.S.–U.K. citizen, technology executive and entrepreneur with more than 20 years of experience in global tech commerce, a board member, and women’s health advocate whose life and work span the United States, the United Kingdom, and MEA (Middle East and Africa).

A CNBC reporter reached out this week asking what it feels like to live in the UAE during this moment of regional tension.

While this blog series has no affiliation with CNBC, the question made me realize how different the lived experience can be from the narrative many Americans are seeing from afar.

In Part 1, I shared what it has been like watching tensions in the Middle East unfold while in the United States even though we also live in Dubai. What struck me most during this moment was not just the situation itself, but how differently people responded to it.

Living across countries exposed me to something fascinating. Different groups of people learn to interpret risk very differently.

When tensions escalated in the Middle East recently, I noticed something that I couldn’t unsee. The reactions I observed did not break along geography as much as they broke along lived experience.

Three communities I’m connected to responded in three very different ways likely due to different histories and expectations about how the world works based on their lived experiences.

1. The African Diaspora Perspective

One of the communities I’m part of is a group of women from the African diaspora who live in Dubai. The group originally formed around something practical: Afro textured hair care. I was invited to join the group from another black woman when seeking where to find the right hair stylist, Over time it has become a broader community of women from across the diaspora from Ghana, Nigeria, the United States, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Germany, St. Lucia, Jamaica, Dominica, Australia and beyond.

When the news about rising tensions began circulating, the tone in that group was strikingly calm.

Women asked questions. They shared information. Some shared prayer lines and church groups where women could gather spiritually. But there was very little panic.

What stood out to me was something deeper.

Many women in the African diaspora grow up understanding that governments are not always a guaranteed source of protection. Our histories include colonialism, political instability, and systems that have not always prioritized our safety.

Because of that, many people in the diaspora grow up with an instinct toward self reliance and community reliance.

You prepare yourself. You watch carefully. You lean on your network.

And interestingly, these women in Dubai repeatedly expressed that they felt safer there than in many other metropolitan cities they had lived prior.

And, honestly, I fully understand that perspective.

2. The American Response

Another community I am part of is American Women in Dubai. It is actually the largest of the three communities I’m part of, with nearly 900 members who have relocated from the United States to the UAE.

For many of us, the group has become a lifeline at first arrival to the UAE. Some relocations happen because of a partner’s job or a family move, which means women often arrive needing to build an entirely new support system in a country that is unfamiliar for children, for pets, for elderly, etc.

The group is a vital place to ask the small but important questions that make daily life easier. Where to find certain stores. How to navigate paperwork. How to describe something that exists in the U.S. but is called something different locally.

It was one of the first communities where I met people when I arrived in Dubai.

Many women in that group genuinely wrapped their arms around me and other newcomers to help them build community, find resources, and settle into life abroad.

When tensions escalated, the communication in that group moved quickly.

Because it is such a large community and many members are newer to the region, there was a lot of urgency as people shared headlines, social media posts, speculation (much driven from their worried loved ones at home) about political statements, and questions about what might happen next.

Many were trying to determine whether they should leave or whether the situation might escalate further.

But this feeling wasn't just from this group. The inflow of messages I received from friends, colleagues, old coworkers in the United States was reminiscent to the level messages I received when I experienced grief and loss... which was unfortunately triggering.

While I am incredibly grateful that my wellbeing is top of mind for so many caring humans, watching that conversation unfold made me reflect on two things.

First, many Americans grow up with an expectation that since tax obligations travel wherever they go, then government protections in other countries also follow. That if a crisis emerges abroad, systems will be in place to evacuate citizens and ensure their safety. That expectation shapes how risk is interpreted.

Second, the heightened urgency also highlighted how powerful American media can be in shaping the emotional tone of a moment.

Information travels fast. But fear can travel even faster.

3. The Global Citizen Mindset

The third group I thought about during this moment is what I would describe as global citizens.

This mindset shows up clearly in a small community I started in Dubai that we call our "Power Women Walking Group". Every Saturday morning at 8:30am we meet to walk along the beach.

What started as a simple way for founders and operators to connect has become a space for reflection, support, and conversation about life across countries.

The women in that group are a mix of founders, executives, and operators who have built careers across global markets. 57% hold master's degrees or higher. 64% are second or third line leaders inside multinational organizations. Some have founded companies that have raised hundreds of millions of dollars. Others hold leadership roles or board seats at companies like Cartier, Meta, IBM, Stanford, ServiceNow, Breitling, and other global firms. It's a group of women I'm grateful to call great friends.

But the mindset I observed during this moment extends beyond that group.

Many other executives and friends in our broader network live similarly global lives. They split their time between countries. Their work spans multiple markets. Their families, investments, and communities are spread across borders.

When tensions escalated, their response followed a familiar pattern.

The first question was simple: Are you safe?

The second question was practical: Where in the world are you right now?

Because many people in this community travel frequently for work, the conversation quickly shifted toward coordination and logistics. Who was in which country. Who might need help. What resources people could share.

But there was also something else present: Calm.

Most people in this group already live with some form of mobility infrastructure in place. Multiple passports and/or visas. Residency permits. Travel documentation that allows them to move between countries if necessary.

They understand that geopolitical disruption is not unusual in global systems.

So their instinct was not to panic. Their instinct was to wait for verified information and assess what was actually within their control.

Conclusion

Of course, no group is monolithic. Some women in the Power Women group and the African diaspora community did panic at moments. I know I did at one point. And within the American Women in Dubai group, there are many global citizens and women from the African diaspora who remained incredibly balanced. The founder of that group is a perfect example. In the middle of managing news interviews, calming a community of nearly 900 women, caring for her family, and working a full-time job, she carried herself with remarkable steadiness. She is, without question, the real MVP.

Watching these communities respond side by side reminded me how important calm becomes in moments of uncertainty. It also reinforced two things that matter deeply in times like this: preparation and perspective.

And ultimately, it brought me back to two ideas that sit at the center of this entire reflection. Safety and global mobility.

In Part 3, I’ll share how living across the United States, the United Kingdom, and the UAE has changed how I personally think about safety and global mobility.