Living Entrepreneurship Blog / Global & Multicultural

BRIC Program August 2018

This blog post was written by BRIC participants, Shreya Shah and Yoni Bachar on August 24th, 2018…

After a long summer of interning, working, and finishing up summer readings, we all gathered back on campus before we headed off onto our unforgettable adventure to Russia, India, and China. Coming together with a group of 24 students whom we did not know well prior seemed intimidating at first, however, after a week of getting to know one another we knew that we will be long lasting friends! One of our cohort members Carly said that she “…learned an immense amount, bonded with the cohort, and was extremely excited to go on this transformative journey.”

That first week, we had a packed schedule as we learned about global mindsets, cultural awareness, and about one another through the encounters course. We were fortunate enough to have locals come into the classroom to break the fourth wall and teach us first-hand about their cultures. Furthermore, we were already able to watch local Russian films, learn Bhangra and Garba (Indian dances), and indulge in delicious Indian food! Other than experiencing the cultures we also began our Russia courses: Russia in Modernity and Business Environment of Russia. We were finally able to bring our summer readings to life! In the the first nine days preparing for our departure, we were also able to give two presentations, one being an ethnography report which we made by analyzing various activities in the heart of Boston. The second presentation was analyzing various characteristics of Nikolai Gogol’s famous book, Dead Souls.

The highly intellectual environment was shown through the curiosity and excitement of everyone in the cohort. Everyone comes from such unique cultures that brings together an unparalleled amount of perspectives. We had already learned so much about Russia and could not wait to finally arrive – so excited to finally embark on this journey and share our memories with our friends and family, along with making memories that will last a lifetime.