For Professor Gupta’s Corporate Social Responsibility course, this week I read an article about OpenAI’s copyright issues for my WSJ post. I was previously not aware of the numerous copyright issues that OpenAI has been facing. They have been accused by numerous people and companies for using information without having full consent. I found this topic to be very interesting because although there were many accusations against OpenAI that seemed strong, OpenAI always seemed to have strong responses that made them seem not guilty. It did not seem clear as to whether OpenAI did break copyright laws or not. I had not thought about all the information that OpenAI needed to use to create their programs. There does not seem to be a clear line as to what existing information OpenAI can and cannot use. In addition to this article, I also enjoyed reading other articles and WSJ posts. Alexandra responded to a very interesting article about new Coca-Cola plastic bottle caps that are now connected to the bottle. I noticed that these new bottles are used in Milan, and I am not a fan. Although it is very ethical to be sustainable, the new bottles are not making customers happy which can hurt profits. I could see this as being an ethical dilemma for many companies as they have to choose whether to become more sustainable or make more profit. From my perspective, the new bottles scratch my face when I try to drink from them. As a customer, I would rather have companies find a different way to be sustainable. I will continue to watch what changes are made to this issue as I find it very intriguing. 

This Tuesday, we had Professor Swain and Gupta’s first Internship Seminar class. Before we had class, our homework assignment was to read about the Cultural Analysis Toolkit and complete a self assessment chart about the cultural features that we read about. It was very interesting to learn about some of the ways in which cultures differ. There are many attitudes, behaviors and beliefs that make cultures different from one another that I did not necessarily think about before this class. To integrate my learning outside of the classroom, I started paying more attention to the ways in which Italian culture may differ from American culture. One big difference that we talked about in class was the organization category. In the US, they have more of a schedule-oriented culture. This means that meetings start and end on time and events happen linearly. There is a commitment to following an agenda. However, in Italy, I have noticed that they have more of a flow-oriented culture. Even on my first day of work, my boss was running late. Although she was late, she did not seem to mind. Meetings may end early or late, and events occur simultaneously rather than linearly. After learning about the Cultural Analysis Toolkit, I have realized that there is not a right or wrong way of life and work, but different cultures have different practices. It is important to realize those differences rather than judge other cultures for how they do things. 

Although I have only been doing my internship for a week, I have really enjoyed it so far. I have worked from my boss, Emmanuela’s, home everyday. Working at her house has allowed me to engage even more with Italian culture. Emmanuela’s husband also works from home, and each day, I work next to him at the table. Both Emmanuela and her husband are always very nice and welcoming. Every morning they ask me if I would like a coffee, to which I have learned that I must say yes to. The first day, when I denied coffee that was offered by Emmanuela’s husband, he seemed offended even though I was just trying to be polite. For work this week, I first learned more about the company and the product by doing research. Then, I created TikTok transcripts that we will use in the future. Finally, I created about ten digital video clips on Canva that we will be inserting into the end of our videos. Something I have noticed is that Italians work at a much slower pace than Americans. I do not feel like I have completed that much work, but I do think that I do the work more thoroughly. There are pros and cons to both strategies, but it is interesting to notice the difference. 

The highlight of my week was being able to explore more of Milan. I tried new foods, drinks and of course did more shopping. My favorite meal so far was at a new restaurant that Emanuela, our Italian Bootcamp Teacher, recommended named Ai Balestrari. Not only was the pasta amazing, the restaurant itself is very cute and it has a great atmosphere. I will definitely be going back there. I also went to the Starbucks Reserve Roastery as part of my explorations in Milan. Although I realize that I should probably not be drinking Starbucks in Milan, I recommend the experience of going to the Reserve to all who visit Milan. It is a very cool experience and there are special drinks and food items that one could never get at a Starbucks in The States. On Saturday, our group took a trip to the Swiss Alps. It was definitely one of the prettiest mountain ranges that I have ever seen. Upon arriving after the three hour bus ride, the group first did a high-ropes course. While I have done high-ropes courses in the past, none have been as climactic as this one. The scenery around the course was beautiful and the action that went on was hilarious, like when people would zip-line straight into trees or get stuck on the course. After the ropes course, we took a long lunch break where we walked to a lookout sight. Then, we drove 20 minutes to start the hike. It was very cool to hike in snow, although it made the hike very slippery. We were supposed to hike to a lake; however, my group was not able to because Marta, the leader of IES, did not feel comfortable with us crossing a very steep and snowy path. It was a bummer that the hike got cut short, but I really enjoyed the trip and getting to spend more time with the group.