We look back on a successful and glorious week which was filled with talented and inspiring speakers. It was an honour to welcome His Excellency Ambassador Sanjay Bhattacharyya as well as outstanding speakers who gave us some outlooks about our topics, history, and culture of India.
Also, this year the preparation for the seminar in Switzerland was not easy due to the current Covid-19 situation. Several plans for different scenarios had to be worked out so that the seminar could run smoothly. Thanks to the flexibility of every team member, this worked very well. Many talented and inspiring speakers contributed to the seminar in Switzerland providing us with important information and insights into our topics of “building trust – integrating technology and acting sustainably” as well as on the history and culture in India. After concluding this interesting week, we are now looking forward to the onsite seminar in India.
Ambassador of India to Switzerland
The Focus India project team, delegation, and staff were honoured to welcome His Excellency Ambassador Sanjay Bhattacharyya at the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland. After updating the participants on India’s successful Covid-19 response, the Ambassador, emphasised on the Indo-Swiss collaboration. Furthermore, India sees Switzerland as a long-term partner which is supported by universities and projects such as Focus India. The cultural heritage, assimilation, diversity, change as well as the aspiration to inspire have all contributed to the transformation in India today.
Delegation exchange with the Ambassador
Insight’s about Indian culture by Suki Dusanj
Cultural aspect
“Namaste” – Indian greeting by putting the hands together and saying “namaste”.
India is a large country and therefore there is a big variety in written and spoken languages. People in the north do not necessarily understand people from the south. It can be compared to Europe or also Switzerland where different languages are spoken. If you are aware of all these cultural differences and open to new experiences, you will enjoy traveling around India, discovering its beautiful landscapes and trying the delicious food.
Suki Dusanj told us that Indians are famous for Bollywood films and the sport cricket. Going to the cinema can be a really nice experience as you never know what happens. The locals do really “dig” the movie material and begin to dance to the music or even use fireworks indoors. Highly recommended is also a visit to a cricket game. Indian culture is very open-minded, so they would like to explain the cricket game to foreigners.
– Written by Eliana Felice and Stella Bongiovanni