Extraordinary Year 2020
What has changed for the Focus India Team in 2020 and what could be learned from it?
The year 2020 will go down in history. We have been tested and challenged as individuals, but also as a society. We have all experienced and learned a lot and hope for a less turbulent 2021. In these last days of 2020, it is now time to look back and review this extraordinary year.
At the beginning of the year, no one probably thought that so much would change with the new coronavirus. Due to the virus, last year’s Focus India Team 2020 unfortunately had to cancel its on-site seminar and closing event.
There were also some changes in the recruitment of the project and PR team for Focus India 2021. Interviews were conducted online instead of face-to-face as usual. Nevertheless, the new team was able to successfully start the new project year in July 2020.
Motivated and full of confidence that the situation will change and improve, the whole team got to work and started directly with many (online) meetings, a photo shoot and partner acquisition. We were able to resume cooperation with some long-standing partners and at the same time we were able to acquire some new partners.
The recruitment of the delegation was also challenged by Corona. Normally, the team goes from class to class, distributing flyers and organizing a culinary event to raise awareness about the Focus India project. Since all classes were held virtually, there was a cross-project promotional video and online Q&A and increased postings on social media channels.
From today’s perspective, the effort was worth it. We have an excellent Focus India 2021 team, were able to attract great partners to the project and have a motivated delegation. We also continued to develop our skills through the international project during Corona. We were able to demonstrate how resilient, flexible and open to the unexpected we are through effective risk management. These skills can help us in the further course of the project, but also in other life situations.
We are looking forward to the new year 2021, in which we will all learn and experience a lot together.
– Written by Michelle Teuscher