Thank you GPMBA, I fell in love!

Samba is not just a musical genre or dance. Yes, it entails the intense gyrating of the hips that spreads throughout every limb of the body emitting power, presence and energy. The women dance as if they are floating on air while the men pound the ground harmonious with the echoes of deep drumbeats. Yet, beyond physical movement and a hypnotic sound lies an important aspect of the Brazilian culture: samba crosses the socio-economic lines that divides the Brazilian society and unites them. Samba is so important to Brazil that it has dedicated an entire week, which they call Carnival, to showcase it.

I visited the Mangueira facility for one of their Samba School Nights. As I entered the place, beats were pounding, people were singing and energy filled the space. Everyone was happy and having a good time. But after an hour of mingling, I noticed something different that I had not seen since my arrival in Rio de Janeiro. Although Mangueira is located in a favela, there was more than local residents in attendance. People from all socio-economic levels were there and the crowd was not divided. The Brazilians in attendance sang and danced in unison with pride.

If you know me, you know I LOVEEE live music and atmospheres filled with energetic people. That night was truly spectacular.  Laughing, singing, and dancing…can’t beat that!

More importantly, that night I fell in love.  I’m totally having a love affair with Brazil and feel completely guilty for cheating on my first love, my home country. Home is home…but Brazil is Brazil and there is nothing like it! So thank you GPMBA for introducing me to this wonderful country.

View the Samba video I shot that night!

Powering a Greener Future

Today we visited Qingdao Xiaojianxi Waste-to-Energy Plant, a project of Wheelabrator. The plant uses the trash generated by the 3.5 million residents of Qingdao to create usable electricity. The visit continued the theme of many Chinas by showing the contrast between the high-tech, forward-thinking technology of the electric plant and the low-tech living conditions of the workers around the plant. Another striking feature was the speed of construction both of the plant and of the suburbs of Qingdao. It seems the cities in China are springing up out of nowhere, and in some cases they are.

The view from the second story of the plant

The plant has three incinerators, each capable of burning 500 tons of trash per day. After it is burned, only 15% of the 1500 tons of trash is left over as slag, which can be used in construction materials. Sadly, the city of Qingado produces 3,500 tons of garbage per day. It seemed from our visit that the city of Qingdao has plans to build another waste-conversion plant in the future to help make up this 2,000 ton difference.

The plant picks up garbage from the nearby landfill and transports it back to the plant where it is weighed and dumped into a garbage pit. It is then picked up as needed and fed into the incinerator where it is burned at 1000 degrees centigrade. The heat generated by the burning waste boils the water in the boilers, turning it into high pressure steam. The steam powers the turbines, which power the generators, which create electricity. The plant sells the electricity to the local power grid.

Interestingly, the crucial equipment for the plant was imported from Europe. This was surprising given our common theme of indigenous innovation and intellectual property rights. It will be interesting to see whether any IP cases stem from this transfer of equipment in the future.

What stood out the most to me was something our host said at the end: “The project is a waste management project first, then it is an electricity project.” It is true that trash burns less efficiently than other energy sources, but with a burgeoning population, waste management is a leading challenge for the government of China. Simultaneously, providing enough electricity for the new businesses and the rising middle class is another problem. This project presents a potential solution on two fronts.

For the rest of the day we are free and we will likely visit the May 4th Square, birthplace of the People’s Revolution, and Tsingtao Brewery. The poli sci major in me is most excited about… both.

Defining Moments

In a week, I will leave with 26 students for China.  For many it will be their first time in Asia – and China.  I expect — and hope — that it will be an experience that I call “a defining moment” — so impactful that it remains with them for the rest of their lives.   Defining moments occur when we are taken outside of our comfort zone.  I have experienced personally, and observed, that new international experiences can be just that – it is a stretching experiences, frequently pushing us outside our comfort zone. It may be as simple as challenging the palate.  Sometimes the real learning doesn’t take place until after the fact, upon reflection. 

I think of how we from the west may draw the world map.  As shown below, we see it as Americas-centric.  It’s human nature that we form our perceptions and expectations based on what we read, hear, see, experience, and it becomes our norm.      

And then our norm is challenged – sometimes the challenge sneaks up on you; other times it is a full, frontal attack.  The experience in China is hopefully more of later.  And we begin to see the world, and our experiences , through the lens of others.   This is a defining moment – something that shakes our thinking, reshapes our view – turns the world upside down, giving a whole different perspective. 

Time will tell to what extent the coming weeks will be a defining moment for the students.   Stay tuned to hear how our experiences, what we hear, and see – challenges our world-view and pushes us outside the comfort zone.

China Blog#1: Pre-Departure (Shalanna, Jeffrey, and Vahid)

In less than ten days, our Global Partners cohort will embark on a journey to one of the world’s oldest civilizations with 4000 years of continuous history – China.  Specifically, we’ll visit three major cities including the most populous city with over 19 million residents, Shanghai, one of the main industrial centers, Qingdao, and the capital city, Beijing.  According to the schedule, we’ll visit 15+ different companies.  In addition, we’ll attend several cultural sites such as The Greet Wall, and The Summer Palace.  Furthermore, we’ll meet students at Peking University from Guanghua School of Management.

During our visits, our three-member group, Shalanna Hill, Jeffrey Royal, and I (Vahid R. Ghabel), will be updating you with our own experiences and reflections based on our daily business and cultural visits.  We’ll have these updates posted after each visit.  One of our primary objectives is to predict the future of China whether if it will “lead the world or falter by the wayside”.

Our group is extremely excited about this intensive two-week field experience as it allows us to not only learn about the Chinese dynamic business environment, but also its cultural impacts on both local and global scale.  One of the main challenges that we as a group will be faced with is the language barrier especially in Qingdao.  Jeffrey has already been to China in recent years; however, Shalanna and I will be visiting China for the first time.  It’s difficult to predict the future, but we feel confident that our unique personal and professional background will help us to bring you a panoramic version of this experience.

What to expect on our next blog: Further information regarding our group members’ perspectives/expectations/interests prior to our departure (April 8^th).

Please feel free to share us with your comments, suggestions, recommendations, and feedbacks.

Classes and beaches and mountains and more!

“Be brave. Take risks. Nothing can substitute experience.” – Brazilian novelist Paulo Coelho

Bus 1 (the ladies) plus our wonderful bus driver Flavio

After spending over a month in Rio, it began to feel like home. The warm weather, nearby beaches, and laid-back attitude were all very easy to embrace. We had a wide variety of interesting courses (including organizational behavior, international finance, IT and logistics) as well as really fascinating corporate visits.

We had on-site corporate visits at: Nova America Shopping, part of a large (top); one of the largest media conglomerates in the world, Globo Studios (bottom left); and Bio-Rio, an incubator for new biological sciences companies (bottom right).

As the BRIC concept turns 10 years old this year, I think it important to reflect on this idea and what it means to both the US and the overall global economy. Seeing the lucrative, technologically advanced companies in Brazil reinforced thoughts that Brazil truly is growing into a major world economic power. Life in Ipanema Beach did not feel like living in an “emerging market” or a “third-world country”. We had the luxuries of internet, TV, and many nearby shops and restaurants that catered to local Brazilian consumers as much or more than tourists. Rather, as I mentioned already, Ipanema felt much like home. Clearly, Brazil still has more development to go and social obstacles to face, but as my first visit to a BRIC country, I am hopeful and optimistic about the future.

In fact, I close with a recommendation to read this recent column from Goldman Sach’s Jim O’Neil about future implications for the US and the BRIC countries: http://www.investmentweek.co.uk/investment-week/opinion/1938970/brics