This week we did attend in person class, but rather we were assigned to watch “Erin Brockovich” as well as finish our final projects with our groups. I found the movie very interesting and enjoyed the storyline and dedication of Erin. It shows that there are people who are willing to go the distance to do right, no matter the cost. This movie was similar to “A Civil Action”, but I feel that the difference between these movies are in the personality of the main characters and that Erin didn’t really have anything o prove other than doing the right thing whereas the protagonist of A Civil Action had a large ego he had to combat. These movies were similar in the overarching issue, but handled different ways. I also enjoyed finishing up my final project and ensuring everything was ready to go for presentations.

For my internship this week I went back to previous assignments and redefined certain aspects and found meta data for all of the positions. I then went on to help reorganize data from a Covid survey given to Italian citizens to help prepare the day to be put in coding systems to look at correlations between answers. I also have begun drafting a proposal for how to incorporate the use of a microscope for digital devices in pollution collection. This proposal will go into a pollution program that is active in Southern California and be used to look at micro plastics in the water surrounding where pollutants are found on the beaches in Southern California. I am excited to finish up these tasks this upcoming week as I conclude my experience here.

This past weekend almost the entire group took a trip to Florence to stay together and have on last weekend together before we all venture home this upcoming week. This was a fun way to end this experience having us all together for one last weekend reminiscing on our experience. We enjoyed staying together in a villa for Friday and Saturday and then Sunday we ventured into Florence and enjoyed the city. I had never been to Florence before so it was fun to walk around the city and see the difference in architecture to Milan. Unfortunately since it was Sunday a lot of stores were closed, but I still enjoyed the city and the different stores we stopped into. We had a group dinner at a great restaurant and then ventured home to have our last week in Milan.

This week in class we read a case study done on Apple which shed light on human rights violations with some of their suppliers that they outsource to. After looking over the case study, we discussed with our groups and then two groups debated each other on if it was reasonable for Apple to apply different ethical standards to different countries based on the respective laws of that country. In my opinion I believe that if the individuals are being employed or providing a service to an American company, they should be treated under the same standards of that company. However, I found the debate very interesting and found the points that the group against Apple shared intriguing. With no class next week I am looking forward to perfecting my group project.

For my internship I worked again on the pollution data from Southern California and formatted a UML, which is stands for unified modeling language, for the data to better organize the different components. I did this by breaking up each section of data and determining specific attributes that related, this included position of the pollutant, item type, material type, and the link to the photos that were submitted by volunteers working on the assignment. I also went back to a project I worked on previously and fine tuned some of the data based on feedback from another correspondent of the company that is based in San Diego. This upcoming week I am shifting to look at Covid-19 data and taking a tour of the labs where my boss completed his PhD.

This past week some of us tried to take a day trip to Lake Garda to enjoy the nice weather but unfortunately there was a strike and our trip was cancelled. We turned the day around by getting a lovely brunch together and enjoying the nice weather in the backyard of our apartment. We then went out to dinner all together and had homemade pasta that was absolutely delicious. The next day some of us girls traveled to Rapallo & Santa Margherita and stayed overnight in an Airbnb. The location was amazing and the towns were stunning right up against the sea. We enjoyed the beach and a lovely dinner and roamed around the towns enjoying the locals out listening to music and dancing. It was one of my favorite weekends so far this trip and I cant wait to wrap up the trip with more fun to come.

This week in class, we looked at the two statements released by the Business Roundtable, one in 1997 and the other in 2019. We broke into our groups and discussed whether the revised version of the statement was an empty rhetoric or will it bring change. The main difference in the 2019 statement compared to 1997 was a specified revision to address the company’s stakeholders and how they will change from focusing on the bottom line when it comes to shareholders. This discussion was very interesting, and I enjoyed hearing my classmates’ opinions on the topic. Then we watched A Civil Action, a movie based on the real-life story of companies polluting the lake in Woburn, MA, and how the civil action lawsuit ensued. This movie was very insightful in how corporations act and their impact on others. I look forward to continuing to discuss this topic.

In my internship this week, my Boss and I met remotely, as he was in Germany participating in a conference for the UN. During our meeting, we went over the work I have been completing over the past few weeks and then discussed a new project. This new project focused on pollution rates from beaches in Southern California that volunteers cleaned up. This data was compiled in an unusable manner, and my boss asked me to reorganize the data to be easily computed into coding systems to compare values. I also went on a visit to Politecnico Milano University with a Ph.D. student at my company. She gave me a tour of the campus and talked to me about her research. It was very interesting to see the difference in universities compared to Lehigh. I continued my work by beginning to implement my cleaned-up data into coding servers to determine which layout would best organize and compare the data.

This week some of the group traveled to Venice for a quick day trip and then to Barcelona for the weekend. I thoroughly enjoyed walking through Venice and am glad to have checked it off my bucket list of places to visit. We walked through the entire city and stopped at many glass shops throughout, it was very cool to see all the different jewelry that had glass incorporated into it. Then another group of us traveled to Barcelona for the weekend, which was enjoyable although very quick. Barcelona is beautiful and very lively! We enjoyed the local foods (the tapas and paella were incredible) and took our time walking around the city and going out on a boat to enjoy the nice weather. Lili, Sachi, and I stayed in our first Hostel, but it was a success and we are excited to travel more over the next few weeks.

In class this week we watched the movie the corporation which gave me new insight into how corporations run and their tendencies in making decisions. I found this to be very interesting as it showed how corrupt corporations are and how they can be abusive, and how corporations can be classified as psychopaths based on the DSM-5 criteria. Watching this movie was very eye-opening in seeing how corporations truly are single-minded entities without concern for those being impacted by externalities caused by them. We also broke into our groups and discussed different questions about the accountability of corporations and management positions. This tied into our Wall Street Journal conversations that discussed backlash and expectations that companies receive from certain social issues and standings they either take or do not. I enjoyed this discussion and found my classmates opinions insightful when discussing how actions of companies are impactful to their consumers.

For my internship this week I met with my boss on Monday at the IES abroad office where we discussed the upcoming Ocean Week and continued working on the integration between the United Nation’s SDGs and The World Health Organization’s One Health approach. I specifically located and defined crossovers between these ideas throughout all seventeen SDGs and then went through and brainstormed potential data collections sources that could help us measure these indicators in the future. I found these data collections by looking at the indicators that the UN provided for the SDGs and then how they can relate to the One Health approach perspective. An example of a data collection would be in terms of the Zero Hunger SDG, measuring the number of individuals that die from malnourishment in a given year.

Last weekend we traveled to Lugano, Verona, and Lake Como and then this past weekend we did a hiking trip in the Alps and traveled to Genoa. I have loved getting to see the beauty of Italy and its neighboring countries, and have especially enjoyed how easy it is to travel. When we traveled to Lugano and Lake Como, some of us rented a boat to explore the lakes and enjoy the nice weather. It was very relaxing and I had a great time hanging out with the group and exploring new cities together. Then this past weekend we did our hike in the Alps which was absolutely breathtaking, It made me feel like I was back home in the mountains. Genoa was a little less busy than Monterosso, but it was still a nice break from Milan and I always love sitting on the beach and taking a swim in the Ocean, even if it was really cold. I am excited to continue to travel!

Internship: On Monday, I had my first real day of work and met my boss in person for the first time. My company, Metabolism of Cities, does not have a physical office in Milan, so my boss and I met at the IES abroad center. This was a good way for me to better understand my position and the project I have been assigned to. My task is to look at the Sustainable Development Goals that the United Nations developed to be met by 2030 and relate them to the One Health approach that was created by the World Health Organization. This will be my focus until Jun 12, 2023, when I will then shift my focus to pollution data from oceans around the world. I was remote the rest of the week allowing me to work on this project at my own pace and on my own time.

Academic: In class this week we discussed corporate governance and the different levels of regulation that corporation management levels face. I enjoyed these conversations because I have not taken many high-level business courses, so my understanding of these topics has grown exponentially in these past few classes. I never thought about how many problems can arise from different levels of power between stakeholders, board of directors, and management. I also enjoyed our discussions on current events in the news and hearing different perspectives on issues that are relevant to our lives. Ranging from Skittle bans to Florida and Disney, I have enjoyed learning about my classmates and hearing their opinions on topics. These discussions have been informative and respectful in many senses. I appreciate these types of conversations because I feel comfortable sharing my opinion and find that we end up discussing topics outside of the classroom as well.

Social: This past Saturday, we took a trip to Lake Maggiore with IES and traveled between the three islands in the lake to look at the architecture and Botanics. It was so beautiful, and I was shocked to see how intricate and well-preserved the architecture was. On Sunday, a group of us took the train to Cinque Terre and went to Monterosso. Visiting Monterosso was an amazing experience as we sat on the beach and relaxed after a busy first week. When we arrived in Monterosso, we walked through the town and got breakfast at a cute restaurant near the water. We then made our way to a beach club and rented chairs for the day. This allowed us to sit on the beach and relax, enjoying the water and the sun. Some people even invested in snorkel gear, and we took turns admiring the wildlife of the Mediterranean Sea.

This week we arrived in Milan and immediately jumped into meetings and classes, helping us better understand the city we will spend the next six weeks. In our first class on Corporate Social Responsibility, we finished up learning about Adam Smith and his revolutionary impact on Free Markets as well as his impact on the economies of governments around the world. As I am not a business student, I had little knowledge of Adam Smith, only an introductory basis from an econ class, and thoroughly enjoyed learning more about his theories. I was able to relate these topics to current news as we briefly discussed the debt crises occurring and how Adam Smith would have reacted based on his ideologies.

My internship in Milan is with a company named Metabolism of Cities which works closely with a lab at San Diego State University. My project includes looking over data from Italy during the Covid-19 pandemic and helping brainstorm ways to align the resources provided during this time with the Sustainability Development Goals of the United Nations. They also want me to look into the impacts of microplastics in the ocean and determine if there is a correlation between polluted water and the presence of these microplastics in local children. Since my company works with individuals in San Diego, they do not have an office in Milan. Due to this, I will be working remotely and meeting with them in the IES abroad office once a week. My internship will officially start on Monday.

After arriving in Milan only a few days ago, I have not had much time to explore the city, but as a whole group, we have gone out to dinner in the Canal district, which is very close to where we are staying. I have also opted to walk to our classes this week to see the city we are living in. I also have had the opportunity to see the Duomo, which is absolutely beautiful. We are traveling to Lake Maggiore tomorrow with IES, and then some of us are traveling to Cinque Terre on Sunday for a nice day trip to the beach. I look forward to seeing different regions of Italy and cannot wait to continue journeying around Milan.