Our last full week in Milan was truly amazing. To start off the week, Sara and I went to the Coldplay concert at San Siro stadium which was so much fun. Coldplay has always been one of my favorite bands, so the opportunity to see them in Milan was once-in-a-lifetime. Chris Martin brought out Zucchero Fornaciari, a famous italian singer, and the crowd arguably cheered louder for him than they did during the entire Coldplay concert. The next day was Sara’s birthday, and following the IES networking event, we went to one of our favorite restaurants, Bodeguita. Thursday was Corrine’s birthday, and we celebrated by going to Chihuahua Tacos and then out to Old Fashioned, a popular club in Milan. On Friday, we made our way to Florence! This weekend, 22 of us stayed in a large villa in the countryside on Friday and Saturday night. We had a lot of laughs, and I will forever remember how much fun this weekend was. I can’t think of a better way to spend our last full weekend in Italy. On Sunday, since we had to leave the villa by 11 am, we went into the city and walked around all day. We went to Boboli gardens, and saw the Duomo. We went to Za Za for dinner, and me and Kat ordered the Florentine style tenderloin steak.

This last full week at my internship was also really special. I am so grateful to have worked at Simplifhy, and I have gained such valuable experience. On Monday, I again attended the weekly organizational meeting where they discussed their cash flow statements for the month. They discussed how much they should charge for their services, and they predicted the cash flows for the next few months based on various projects. On Tuesday, we went out to lunch as a group, and another friend of the business joined us. He was a company owner as well, and we discussed the lack of gender diversity in engineering, and how to best mitigate this gap. On Wednesday, Sergio had planned an Aperitivo as a thank you for the work I did for them. I was so surprised when they took me to Montevecchia, a beautiful town outside of Milan in the countryside. I didn’t know such a beautiful Tuscany-like town was so close to the city. We ate outside and enjoyed the view of the beautiful overlook. They got me flowers too which was really nice. To conclude the work week, Sergio and I met with an electrode supplier to see if they would be interested in supplying a part for the potential joint venture deal. The purpose of the meeting was to get more technical specifications on their part (an electrolyzer stack), so that I could better compare it with other options when choosing a supplier. They didn’t disclose this information, because in order to do so, they wanted more information from us that we were not prepared to share. They also discussed potentially signing an NDA in the future.

This week, while we did not meet in class, Ian, Brian, and I began working on our research paper and final presentation. I have always found the ambiguity of freedom of speech and conflicts surrounding the first amendment really interesting. I enjoyed looking at different cases where the first amendment comes into question. I also would like to note that I really have enjoyed reading the Wall Street Journal articles. Reading and sifting through these articles each week has inspired me to want to stay more updated with current events. It has also inspired me to want to talk more to my peers about political issues that are going on in our world. In the past, I have always been one to shy away from discussing potentially controversial topics/politically polarizing issues. Now, I feel more confident in forming, expressing, and defending my opinions. Thank you to professor Gupta for a wonderful six weeks, and for leading such thought provoking discussions.

The week started off strong in Barcelona. Sara, Sam, Neave, Lili, Sachi and I arrived on Friday night and had the most delicious tapas meal. Each dish at the table was better than the next, and this has been my number one favorite meal I’ve had so far. The next day we went to the Basílica de la Sagrada Família and explored some shops and then walked by one of the houses of Gaudi. A highlight of the night was seeing DJ, John Summit, perform at a club called Pacha, and seeing other Lehigh students. This weekend, some of us girls stayed in Rapallo on Saturday night, and enjoyed two beautiful beach days in Santa Margherita on Saturday and Sunday. I had no idea what to expect, as I hadn’t heard of this beach town or Rapallo before, but it blew away all of my expectations. The Airbnb we stayed at had an amazing view of the mountains and we spent the night exploring Rapallo, which we learned was a very lively  and authentic city.

A highlight of class this week was the case study regarding the ethical evaluation of Apple’s suppliers. After Apple was under fire for using Foxconn and Pegatron, who have both been criticized for unethical working conditions, the question was posed… if you were Tim Cook, how would you respond? In class we debated if Apple should hold all of their suppliers to the same ethical standards, or apply different standards for different suppliers. I enjoyed hearing different perspectives of the class, and can see both sides of the argument. Apple is an American company with American customers criticized by Americans, so one would think it should be held to American codes of ethics. However I understand that each country is different and there are nuances when it comes to what is acceptable in one country vs another. The WSJ article I read this week also related to this debate. Instead of Apple it was reevaluating Shein’s job of auditing its suppliers.

This week at work was shorter, as I did not work on Monday. Tuesday and Wednesday were spent in Sesto, and Thursday and Friday were spent in Villasanta. I started to make a PowerPoint presentation in order to present a business case to another company. There were some things I needed to add to my write up of the business plan. I did some research regarding the feasibility of the use of hydrogen for glass and metal heating and quenching. One thing I learned is that right now, the cost of using green, renewable hydrogen fuel for such things is 5x as expensive and therefore not worth it to make the switch at this point. In the future, the government may allocate funds and give incentives for companies to make this switch, so once that happens, the market will be larger.

Picking up from last week’s entry, on Sunday, Sara, Kat, Sachi, Lilly, Brian, Jimmy, Ian, Sylvia, Neave and I all traveled to Venice for the day. We didn’t go with any set plan in mind, but rather walked the streets and went into shops and restaurants that piqued our interest. I have always dreamed of going to Venice, and it was really a dream come true. The canals were beautiful, and it was fun to see the crowds at Saint Mark’s Basilica. My favorite part was just walking down little alleyways and side streets, as every turn we made brought a new picturesque view and a different vibe. Another highlight of the week was playing basketball against some other Aparto residents on Tuesday. It was fun to see how a sport like basketball can bring people together despite a language barrier/having a completely different life experience. This week, I discovered possibly my favorite pizza yet: Alice’s carbonara pizza. Alice is a chain, and after having their carbonara pizza once, I went back two other times to get it. I am looking forward to this weekend in which I will be traveling to Barcelona with some others.

This week at work, I really have gotten to know my boss Sergio. I can tell he is making an effort to include me and welcome me into their family-like office culture which I have greatly appreciated. On Wednesday, I went to lunch with the head technical director of the company, Mauro. Sergio and a client ended up coming to the same restaurant, so we moved to a larger table and all ate together. They asked me about what the universities were like in America, and about why I chose my specific major. On my way home that day, Sergio and I rode the metro together and talked about what AI will look like in the future. It was interesting to hear his take on the matter, and he said that the Italian government has talked about limiting these technological advancements. Before traveling to Italy, while I have never worked in an office environment before, I imagined it to be very individual and impersonal. When I think of an office, I think of everyone in their own cubicle focused on their own task. My view has since changed, as in this office, everyone works together, asks each other for help, meets regularly to discuss progress, and sits at one large table during the work day. I feel like I am gaining intercultural communication skills and learning how to express myself and my opinions in a clear manner understandable to those who may not speak English the best.

I really enjoyed our Monday and Wednesday classes this week. On Monday, I enjoyed hearing everyone’s take on the student loan forgiveness plan and discussing the expense associated with going to college and how that can be a barrier for many. The debate that followed regarding the business roundtable signed document was entertaining while also educational. I had not considered before that a document such as this, while it does not set specific goals, can at least start a conversation regarding ethical behavior. I like how this class has forced me to critically think as if I was a policy maker or corporation owner. With certain policies and commonly debated issues, I have had strong opinions and sometimes want to criticize business owners for their decisions. Now, I can see how most issues are not so black and white. I have learned that it is really easy to have an opinion as an outsider, but once you are the one making the decisions and have the potential to face major personal consequences it is not so easy. This kind ties into the movie, Civil Action, that we watched on Wednesday. In my opinion, the lawyer, Jan, did the honorable thing in seeing the trail all the way through, and fighting for justice. However, seeing the fallout of that decision proved that maybe his decision should not be respected, and he may have let his pride get the best of him. I am excited to talk further about this film in class, and would like to pose the question: Do you think Jan made an honorable decision in continuing to pursue the trial and try to take down the big corporations, or is this a case of one’s hubris getting the best of them?

Our second week in Milan began with a great dinner with Professor Gupta, and all of the 25 Lehigh students. We all managed to squeeze into a small room, and enjoyed an all you can eat sushi meal. This week, we also had our first IES cultural immersion class where we learned about some of the cultural differences between Milan and the United States. Something interesting we learned was that, in Italy, it is important to ask questions in the workplace to show that you care about learning and show your interest. On Tuesday, we enjoyed a visit to The Last Supper painting. The week ended with a class trip to Verona! It was a national holiday in Italy so we didn’t have work. We enjoyed a wine tasting, and a great tour of the arena. I loved our tour guide who inspired us to sing a song together at the top of the stairs. Finally, on Saturday, we took a day trip to Lugano, Switzerland. As I write this on the train ride back from the trip, I reflect on the great lunch we had, a nice boat trip led by our captains Jon and Sara, and finally a lovely dinner where I ate Gnocchi. 

In our two classes with Professor Gupta, we shifted the conversation away from shareholders vs stakeholders towards corporate governance. We talked about widely held corporations, and how that gives managers much more power. The large number of shareholders and liquid market are both factors in why the managers essentially can run the company at their own will. I really enjoyed the debates we had in class, and I liked how it helped me think about how I would formulate arguments and think on my feet quickly. I also enjoyed the discussion about the red dye present in US skittles, and hearing others thoughts about who should restrict these harmful chemicals. Is it the job of the state governments, or the FDA? 

Lastly, to discuss my internship, I have been working on researching the green hydrogen market. Simplifhy has other companies who are asking for their help to enter this market, so it is my job to research and find an industry that could be a great segway to allow these companies to start creating new products, and marketing them to the public. I have enjoyed learning about the science behind electrolysis, and the different types of methods that water can be separated into hydrogen and oxygen. On Thursday, my coworkers and I enjoyed a picnic outside in Villasanta. Here we ate pizza and walked around the park. We even saw a villa where a popular Italian baking show is filmed.