Corporate Social Responsibility
This past week, all the groups gave their final presentations in class. Originally, I was super nervous for my presentation, but after putting in a lot of time and effort into practice, I felt adequately prepared and delivered it well. I made sure to include a couple of the public speaking techniques we learned last week in the EY video, specifically the silent pause, the open face, and usage of hands, although I may have used my hands a little too much. Professor Gupta stumped our group with a question about why people don’t rise up more against corporations practicing harmful actions. I will be sure to look more into his question and address it in the final paper. One of the other presentations that I found particularly intriguing was the one about AI usage, specifically the deepfake section. I am fearful that history could be rewritten by people creating unidentifiable fake videos of the past.
Internship Seminar
This week in the Internship Seminar class, we all presented our final projects. My project focused on Italy’s sustainability efforts, specifically the improvements aimed at reducing carbon emissions. My team did a great job working together and delegating different aspects of the project. My main contribution was an interview I conducted with my Italian friend, Luca Prando, who was born and raised in Genova. I asked him various questions about recycling and cigarette usage. My main takeaway from the interview was that Italy has made significant strides in sustainability compared to the US, although cigarettes are ingrained in Italian culture and likely won’t go away. Our group’s presentation went satisfactorily. I must admit, the day was a bit monotonous because most of the presentations also focused on sustainability. The last thing I need to do for this class is the final paper, which I unfortunately haven’t started yet. I am excited to reflect upon my summer, seeing which cultural differences I embraced and which I pushed away.
Internship
My TurboCrowd internship is coming to an end, and it feels bittersweet. Livi and I have created our final questionnaire and will send it out in the next couple of days. It is satisfying to see our project come together with a tangible result. Working with the team has been wonderful, largely thanks to Claudio, who was an incredible boss. Throughout the summer, I learned many skills, both hard and soft. However, I am excited for the internship to be over. Near the end of the program, I lost much of my motivation and felt stuck in a lull. Despite this, I managed to push through and complete my tasks.
Travel and Cultural Immersion
This last weekend, a group of 14 of us traveled to Split, Croatia, for a two-night beach vacation. It was my first time traveling outside of Italy this summer, highlighting just how much there is to see within Italy itself. Our Airbnb was in a lively spot, only a few minutes’ walk from the water. The peculiar thing we all noticed immediately was that the bay area smelled like rotten eggs. After some research, we discovered it was due to sulfur baths used during the Roman era. On our first day in Split, we went to a beautiful beach club and spent the day rotating between swimming and roasting in the sun. On the second day, we embarked on a big five-hour boat trip around the coast of Croatia. We got to jump off the boat and swim in several gorgeous spots, including the stunning Blue Lagoon. That night, a group of us hung out and played cards for over five hours, staying up for our flight that departed at 8 AM. I felt absolutely delirious in the airport after the long weekend and lack of sleep. Overall, it was a fun weekend for the books and the perfect way to wrap up our summer travels.
