Dear Students,
Today, the Chief Minister of the State of Gujarat recognized the Haas School of Business in a Special ceremony. A special award was issued by the Minister of Education on behalf of the Chief Minister to welcome future collaboration from UC Berkeley. At this ceremony the Haas Students who visited the smart city were acknowledged personally by the minister. The students were called to the podium by the minister for a photo shoot and the award was presented to Prof. Darwin to welcome future collaboration. Please write your thoughts about how Haas could leverage our brand given that we were recognized by the Government of Gujarat, the home of the first smart city in India.
Given a special award issued by the Minister of Education, we were honored to receive an award recognizing Haas’s involvement in the smart city dialogue with the Government of Gujarat, the home of the first smart city in India. With this award comes several potential partners that are interested in partnering with Haas to transform Bay Area cities at home, including the government, corporations, and field experts in sustainable technology in India. Partners will be the key to value creation in smart cities, and Haas students are excited to forge this partnership with our global counterparts. It’s inspirational and humbling to see just how far the Haas Network has come and how our status as a top business school has given us recognition worldwide.
With direct recognition from the Chief Minister of Education, Berkeley-Haas stands on a larger and a higher platform to serve as a consulting and an employing body in the building of smart cities. What it can provide with the Minister’s recognition is a creative space for students and smart city builders to exchange and disseminate ideas to come up with sustainable, human-friendly, equitable, innovative, and holistic designs for building smart cities that are digitally and technologically integrated with the urban environment.
Such recognition from the government allows Berkeley-Haas to more easily partner with public and private enterprises to make cities in America and India (and even other countries in the future) more efficient, sustainable, and livable, thereby improving the quality of life of rapidly urbanizing populations.
Respected and prestigious institutions like IIT and IIM are working directly with the Indian government, and the students of those schools enter companies that directly build smart cities (Cisco, Tyco, HCL, etc.). Now that Berkeley-Haas has received the trust and invitation to collaborate in the development of India through the research and development of smart cities, we will be able to have as much influence as, or even more influence than Indian prestigious institutions when designing smart cities not only at a national level, but also at an international level.
Given a special award issued by the Minister of Education, we were honored to receive an award recognizing Haas’s involvement in the smart city dialogue with the Government of Gujarat, the home of the first smart city in India. With this award comes several potential partners that are interested in partnering with Haas to transform Bay Area cities at home, including the government, corporations, and field experts in sustainable technology in India. Partners will be the key to value creation in smart cities, and Haas students are excited to forge this partnership with our global counterparts. It’s inspirational and humbling to see just how far the Haas Network has come and how our status as a top business school has given us recognition worldwide.
With a day to reflect on our learnings thus far and immerse ourselves in the day-to-day of Ahmedabad city residents, we boarded a bus to visit the Gandhi Ashram and the Heritage Walk. Although Gandhi Ashram was a sacred hub of Gandhi’s wisdoms and journey, I was only able to truly appreciate his philosophy after observing the lifestyles and behaviors of Ahmedabad citizens through the Heritage Walk.
After commuting in a tour bus for extended periods of time, only observing India’s streets and culture through a dusty glass window, it was refreshing to stroll down forgotten alleyways and narrow corridors where a large majority of city residents actually live—not the high-rise apartments and white-picket fences Americans are so familiar with. Our guide led us down cobblestone paths splattered with sewage water and residual rain, pointing out the intricate details in traditional Indian houses that used to shelter 60 people in a handful of rooms at a time and secret passageways that protected residents from crime outside. We also visited a bustling marketplace where small business owners stood outside hole-in-the-wall shops and pushed around carts and wagons full of food and accessories in hopes of drawing the attention of us foreigners walking by. Each of them was an entrepreneur by their own definition. Although living quarters were humble and sanitation was a privilege, it seemed as though every small alleyway bred a tight-knit community of neighbors who shared both pain and happiness with each other throughout the seasons. In the absence of the glitz and glamour of startup incubators and Silicon Valley aspirations, the poor must be the masterminds behind frugal innovations for everyday survival. I longed to be welcomed into one of their homes to see it for myself.
When Haas received recognition from the Chief Minister of Gujarat to welcome future collaboration, this was more than just a mere award. As Gujarat is the home of the first smart city in India, a country with some of the most technologically-intelligent people in the world, this served as international acknowledgement towards the Haas brand as a business school that embraces the best of both worlds (business and non-business). Haas has always prided itself as a brand with core values that has been ingrained in all of the students: Question the status quo, beyond yourself, confidence without attitude, and student always. Recognition from the Government of Gujarat emphasizes Haas’ brand identity that it doesn’t just churn out ‘regular’ business students, but students who are constantly questioning the status quo, looking to solve the world’s trending problems, and not just to make profit.
When I first entered Haas as a junior, I always assumed that these were just typical values that Haas would try to reaffirm within the community, faculty, classes, and the overall Haas experience. However especially after going on this India travel study, I realized how accurate the experience has been in aligning with the Haas core values and branding that it represents. Being thrown into a foreign country and learning about the concept of smart cities in India as a senior reminds me to be a student always, and that I’ll never stop learning as I grow older in life. Our professor always reminds us to be open to new experiences and that a positive attitude is ultimately what defines all of our experiences, and the lessons that we learn – since confidence not only results in a negative attitude, but also outcome. It is not easy to find a group of 20 business undergraduates to go beyond themselves – dedicating majority of their winter break in a completely unfamiliar culture to expand knowledge beyond the regular business curriculum in efforts to become the future leaders spearheading best practices to create effective smart cities in developing countries. This award serves as the starting point that Haas can leverage to prove that our brand is not one that anyone can simply emulate because we are students that fully embody the core values in our day-to-day activities. We are Haas.
Yesterday, the Haas School of Business students received recognition from Government of Gujarat’s very own Minister of Education. This award has opened up the potential for Haas to leverage its brand more successfully and effectively to groups such as current clients, future clients, potential partner and even other future Haas students interested in participating in such projects. First of all, Haas can use this award can help foster both domestic and international partnerships with parties that are interested in smart city projects. Partnering with entities such as governmental agencies, sustainability coalitions, and other powerful corporations can bring in a wealth of resources and expertise that will enhance the overall outcome of the smart city projects. By leveraging this award, these potential partners may be more inclined to join a project they know is highly supported and has great potential for success. In addition, this award is important because it may draw in future clients who are also be interested in receiving consultancy from the Haas School of business in their smart city endeavors leading to a long-term movement towards smarter, safer, and more sustainable cities. In addition, the award can also be used as a tool to market Haas to potential students interested in this project. After going through this experience in India, I strongly believe that this is a great way encourage a different type of immersive learning that are available for for students on the UC Berkeley campus. Showcasing the accomplishments of the smart city projects may peak the student interests on taking on challenging and solution-based projects. Finally, the award given by the Minister of Education can be used as a tool to further reiterate and enhance the Haas culture that revolve around the four defining principles. It can serve as a reminder to the Haas community that business has the potential to not only drive profits but also change the world. The award itself can be used as a symbol for Haas students’ dedication to going above and beyond their borders to make a difference.
After a long night of dancing and fun at the Parikh residence for New Years Eve and only 2 hours of sleep, our team rallied for a heritage walk through the old city of Ahmedabad. Today we learned so much about the place we had been staying, as we were able to see some of the old buildings and homes that had been around for many years. Our guide showed us secret passageways and historical detailing of the architecture and religious structures. After this, we headed to a presentation from the Minister of Education for Gujarat, where Professor Darwin was presented with a much deserved collaboration award from the minister. This token of gratitude from the state made me realize what a unique position for collaboration we have been given, and offered insight into what opportunities may be possible in the future between UC Berkeley and India for smart city innovation. Haas is in a unique position through this program, and I think it would be interesting to leverage this connection in the future to provide more hands-one, global programs for students. I feel that this course and experience has been invaluable to my Haas education, and it would be interesting to provide other study-related international experience, even in regards to internships and work experience. In our increasingly global world, it is very important for us to have opportunities such as these as we enter the workforce.
• Today was a rich day full of Indian history and culture. We began the day at a very feng-shui building that utilized its water in an efficient matter. I think that as we begin our smart city planning, we will be able to take away key components of the way they organize their water. As we finished out walk, we were able to see how the people of Gujarat live in the old road area through secret doors and pathways- all showing how well thought out the people planned their neighborhood. Seeing the minister of education give the award for collaboration as especially important because it shows how well Haas is connected. This vital connection will be utilized as India develops its smart cities and becomes leading financial and education in the world. An example could be that if a Haas student would like to collaborate on leading innovative research in India, this connection could allow for the student to study and research in a leading Indian education institute. Another takeaway from this trip has been that being smart is really understanding the community and people of the city to ultimately plan the right city for its people. We finished out day by visiting the Ghandi Ashram which was both beautiful and had a nice calm energy to it. It is an important place not only for the Indian people who were affected by Ghandi’s change but it is important for the world because of the way he helped India achieve independence, helping the world’s economy and taking a huge step forward for human rights in the world. I am so excited to take on Delhi now and to learn more about SMART cities and the people of Delhi.
Today, we received recognition by the Government of Gujarat to welcome future collaboration with UC Berkeley- Haas School of Business. This is an incredible opportunity to gain learning experience from on-the-ground interactions and also gives us the opportunity to grow the Haas network internationally. Now that we have recognition from the state of Gujarat, we can leverage the Haas brand to reach out to other countries implementing smart city proposals. We can establish relationships in which we share our resources, where the Haas community can offer its business perspective and students, and the parties involved in the smart cities can extend their research to us from which we can study the smart city model. On a more long term scale, Haas can leverage this recognition to establish its presence as a truly global institution that is able to provide hands-on, meaningful experiences and connections to students and alumni. I feel lucky to be able to represent the Haas community during this journey!
Today, New Years Day and our last day in Ahmedabad, we traveled to Gujarat College of Engineering where Professor Darwin and Haas were recognized by the Minister of Education for border-breaking collaboration. In his speech, the Minister of Education emphasized how cross-cultural understanding and interaction will allow for more innovative solutions to real world issues. As an internationally recognized business program, Haas can leverage its brand to more directly engage with companies, governments, and individuals on projects that we continue to research. Doing so will provide real-world, hands-on experience that contextualizes our education in the broader scope of our career and world.
After being given this award, I think it is our responsibility as ambassadors of Haas to follow through on the collaboration not only with educational connections but all of our partners in India. The only way we can add value back to them after they have given us the opportunity to meet and learn with them, is to ask what we can do for them. And then not only must we listen, but we must come back with solutions or we risk losing those partnerships. So now we must not ask what the education minister can do for Haas, but think of ways that Haas can help the education minister and his goals. One way we are already doing this is by marketing Haas’ international presence with this trip in India. By showing that we care about the award received on the Haas blog we are taking the first step in giving back to the education minister through appreciation of his effort. We as ambassadors have to be open to receiving those from India just the same as the minister received us, and I think this would be a great time to discuss exchange/study abroad partnerships in areas where Haas can add value for Indian students and where Indian universities can add value to Haas students.
Also, here are some thoughts I had as we left Ahmedabad:
For our last day in Ahmedabad, we had our culture day beginning with a heritage walk in Old Ahmedabad. We were taken to a restored house to exemplify the architecture and way of life of old Ahmedabad in its prime. The houses were actually designed as “smart” houses for the time — including antibacterial rainwater harvesting through copper and limestone and cooling by having an open courtyard in the middle of the house to let hot air rise and cool air to draft in from the streets. As we walked through the streets, the most memorable thing I saw was a family crowded around a fire. However this was not a wood fire or trash fire as we had previously seen driving through the poorer areas of Ahmedabad, but burning a piece of luggage (suitcase). The smoke from the luggage was thick and black, and the smell of burnt plastic and flame retardant in the fabric was extremely pungent. While it was almost unbearable for us as tourists, the family sat inches away crowded around the fire. Such levels of poverty and lack of health education made me rethink the idea of a smart city for India. While GIFT was beautiful and extremely efficient, it was only smart for the wealthy Indian tech and finance “crowd.” However, in poorer areas like old Ahmedabad it seems like nothing will change as these smart cities are developed. How will GIFT get people in poorer areas to stop burning trash and luggage and inefficient wood for heat? How can Ahmedabad become smart without proper waste management? One could use a “trickle-down” theory to justify GIFT, but it seems like the education and uplifting of those below the poverty line needs to come separately. For old Ahmedabad to become smart, it’s poorest citizens must have another option for heat than creating a fire and another option for waste management than burning trash. If these issues are addressed, all of Ahmedabad will benefit from reduced smoke pollution (as the particulate matter in the air is higher than many cities across the world) and decreased health care costs for all citizens. From our heritage tour, it became very clear to me that India must not only try to build new smart cities like GIFT, but it must make life for those below the poverty line smarter as well. I am thankful for the opportunity to see outside of our studies at India’s prime universities and learn more about the way Ahmedabad’s citizens live day to day on our heritage walk because a city can’t be smart if some of its citizens have to burn luggage and trash to make it day-to-day.
“My life is my message,” Gandhi. This quote set the tone for the atmosphere in the renowned spiritual and cultural center as we walked around Gandhi’s Ashram. Filled with historical anecdotes, photographs, and artwork, the ashram provided us with a historical context and background for the rich history of India. Additionally, the setting was alive with locals and visitors from all parts of the country and the world. Upon reflection, Gandhi not only epitomized a true leader but also fulfilled the defining principles of Haas: confidence without attitude, student always, question the status quo, and beyond yourself.
As representatives of the Haas community, I believe that our experience in India is integral in establishing a connection with India as a country and as an emerging hub for innovation and economic growth. Having been recognized by the government of Gujarat, Haas has the opportunity to further leverage its partnership with the region and expand to build more connections throughout the country and with more businesses. Personally, the experience has provided me with an invaluable experience to witness and interact firsthand with organizations at the forefront of innovation. In moving forward, Haas should continue to participate in this border-crossing, collaborative course to work towards building a more global and innovative education for its students.
My favorite part of today was going to Mahatma Gandhi’s ashram. It was a much-needed space of calm and peace amidst the hectic walk around the old city. At the ashram, there were displays of many of Gandhi’s quotes, one of my favorites is on culture. He says, “It is my firm opinion that no culture has measures so rich as out has, we have not recognized its value…If we do not follow our culture, we would be committing suicide as a people.” I think this quote is really applicable to SMART cities especially GIFT. The displays at GIFT had beautiful futuristic glass buildings but it didn’t retain remnants of India’s rich culture. The displays of the skylines could be for any city and looks more like HK or Singapore. Culture is a really part of India, and SMART cities need to find a way to incorporate a cultural component, as it is an asset that can enhance the success of GIFT. I think the other thing that might come into play is the authenticity of culture… this is something that I thought a lot about today coming from Ahmedabad to New Delhi. Although this hotel we are staying at is super nice, it caters to a western ideal of what authentic Indian culture is suppose to be like. It seems very separate from what I’ve seen of India so far (Mumbai and Ahmedabad) but then again authenticity is a social construct after all…. ?
As for the question that Professor Solomon posed, to be honest, I’m not quite sure how to approach this because there is a lot of potential in this new partnership. But ideally, I hope that this new connection can help bring many students (at the undergraduate/high school level) from India to experience Haas. I think that there is a lot of information that we can offer to make this a two-way dialogue. Innovation really happens when different groups merge and cross over. This way Haas will have an opportunity to give some input on SMART cities.
With the special award given to Haas by the Minster of Education of Gujurat, Haas can now access a wide network of potential partners in India. As India’s economy continues to grow, Haas can provide more than just expertise in business; because it is at one of the world’s premier universities, it can also bring other Berkeley schools such as the College of Engineering and the School of Law, which are among the best in their own right, into its conversations with partners in India. These schools will provide the technical expertise needed to build India’s physical and legal infrastructure, which will promote economic growth. Haas has a strong brand, but it is even stronger as a part of the UC Berkeley brand.
As we strolled through Ahmedabad during the Heritage Walk, we became completely immersed in the city’s culture and witnessed the vibrant lives of residents. A close-knit community, every person we passed was fully engaged in his or her daily activities, and they were still willing to spare a moment to give us a smile. We were welcomed into this community, and Berkeley-Haas was fortunate to be formally welcomed as a partner to the State of Gujarat on this day.
The award Haas received on this day is just the beginning of a long-term relationship that will continue to provide invaluable opportunities to undergraduate Haas students. This award by the State of Gujarat is not a mere formality, but rather recognition of the limitless possibilities resulting from a partnership between Haas and Gujarat. As students that have grown up during the digital era and learned to identify high-level solutions to business challenges, we are able to provide unique perspectives and solutions to India’s most pressing problems. In return, India offers us the opportunity to understand the complexity of business in a rapidly changing global environment.
At this stage, Haas needs to leverage its brand to continue to establish key connections within India. As a partner, Haas could provide Gujarati institutions and corporations with research and recommendations on the challenges they face, and students could get involved in these projects within or outside of classes. India could also share much of its knowledge and resources with students, and establishing regular communication will be a significant step towards shared information. As Dr. Gupta discussed, shared knowledge is one of the keys to progress and development, and this award is the first step towards a partnership that will allow for unprecedented transference of information across the world.
The Walter A. Haas brand name has enormous equity and positive reception as a top business institution. After being recognized by the Chief Minister of Education at an awards ceremony, my eyes were opened to the international recognition of Haas. I believe the best way for us to leverage our brand name is to create partnerships with corporations like Tyco, and other educational institutions like IIT and IIM. By creating these partnerships, we promise to share our insights of the “smart city” business model as we iterate and make recommendations to Bay Area mayors in April 2015. Professor Anil Gupta of IIM-Ahmedabad spoke of the Honeybee network, which is a website that facilitates knowledge transfer. We should fully utilize that resource and post our lessons learned, as well as learn from those at IIM-Ahmedabad by reading their posts. Today I learned that communication isn’t as easy as we often perceive it to be, and that without knowledge share—we limit our potential to create and capture value across the world.
Another day, another adventure.
The Heritage walk marked a great start to the New Year. The first portion of the heritage walk took place in a beautiful historic house in the old city. The wood carvings and design were not only beautiful, but also functional for Ahmedabad’s local conditions and spiritual significance. Similar to Chinese Feng Shui, the tour guide introduced the concept of Vastu Shastra which provides a framework for Indian architechture and construction. The construction of the home that we saw embodied design that maximized temperature control within the house and organization of communal space. These concepts and processes were some that I believe should be remembered and consider when building smart cities. This is frugal innovation at its finest.
Haas should incorporate the thoughtfulness of Vastu Shastra in considering to leverage our brand. While a hand shake with the Minister of Gujarat is a validating stamp of partnership, it does not improve the branding of Haas without the proper communication or education to Haas “stakeholders”. While continuing to partner and receive recognition from international governments can position Haas as not only international but involved in various scopes of impact, it is also important to recognize a return on these partnerships to capture the created brand value.
After a late night at our wonderful New Year’s Eve celebration, we got just a few hours of sleep and left MICA at 6:00 am for a “heritage walk” around Ahmedabad. Our first few days focused on the purpose of our trip; we heard from intellectuals and professionals as they explained the critical elements and technology of a smart city. However, this tight schedule meant that we were mostly indoors and visiting university campuses. It was eye-opening to finally witness firsthand the city we had learned so much about. Our guide on the heritage walk showed us around a typical neighborhood or “pol.” It was eye-opening and humbling to see what an everyday routine looks like in Ahmedabad. I was particularly intrigued when we saw chalk squares throughout the neighborhood. These spaces were designed for community announcements such as birthdays and anniversaries. It caused me to question the boundaries of the definition of “smart city” that we have been using. Perhaps the term smart city doesn’t have to refer only to the futuristic technology hub of GIFT City, but rather it implies the unique practices that make everyday life and community building simpler.
We were also privileged to visit the Gandhi Ashram. As the first day of the new year, it was satisfying to take some time to reflect on Gandhi’s life, work, and influence. My favorite quote in the museum was the following: “Recall the face of the poorest and weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him.” I plan to apply this frame of mind when making smart city recommendations in the Bay Area. After Professor Darwin received the award for collaboration from the Gujarat Minister of Education, I feel that we can use the teachings of Ghandi and the Haas pillar of “beyond yourself” throughout our semester-long projects. In employing the mindset of going beyond one’s self, we can leverage the Haas brand to further collaborate with other countries, governments, and education systems to not only implement cutting edge technologies in cities, but to also be proactive in creating a safer, healthier, and more fulfilling life for the less fortunate.