Takeaways from a Transformative Experience: SIPA, and How this Class was an Extraordinary Closure to My MIA

Last Wednesday marked the end of my MIA journey. We had the final meeting with our client, which was a fantastic opportunity to showcase the key insights and findings from our comprehensive research over the past semester.

As I reflect on this experience, several highlights come to mind that also encapsulate what SIPA has meant to me:

Firstly, be open. Overall, it is an amazing opportunity to be able to work with different people with a wide variety of backgrounds on a new project. It is extremely rewarding to be able to have different perspectives from people all over the world that have done so many things, that I both admire and look forward to for myself. This project has been eye-opening in many ways, one being, one can give and receive so much when others – and themselves – are open to it. I am indeed truly grateful for having learned so much from my client and my teammates, which has certainly enriched my perspective. In this context, don’t fly solo. Being capable of making decisions as a team will make you grow both personally and professionally.

Secondly, be committed. In every project, one should strive to engage with compromise and commitment, be willing to give the best of themselves and be eager to learn. This is certainly true for one to be able to fully enjoy the learning experience. This is not to say that one should overcommit to things that they know will not be able to deliver. It is not worth it to seem complacent at first and end up giving a bad impression. Rather, it is best to set certain limits and be able to fully deliver something great. It is of utmost importance to always set clear expectations with the client and within the team of what everyone is looking forward to and how everyone understands the aim of the project. For this, communication is vital, as well as constant check-ins and follow-ups with the client, to properly loop them in, in decision-making. Of course, one would want to suggest their own insights to gain from the experience, but adequate engagement will ensure that this is possible while meeting client objectives.

Finally, be challenging. In both the context of this project and SIPA, and having been certainly involved with the topic for the past two years, I have asked myself, are these efforts of “ESG integration” really triggering effective change? We all know that several steps are being taken both at an industry level, but also in terms of regulation to prevent greenwashing practices. But I have asked myself, is this enough? Is the commitment that companies are disclosing really showing a change in the industry’s mindset or is it overall mere compliance with investors’ raising demands and recent regulations? For us to be able to answer these questions, time is of relevance. It is certainly soon to understand whether the commitments are specific enough, will have a significant impact or partnerships with internationally renowned organizations in the ESG arena really mean something to big corporates. Regardless, having done significant research across industries toward the climate change fight, I can say one thing: while it is true that there are industries that are still laggards, frameworks are not yet standardized, leading to the ESG alphabet soup that many talk about, overall, people are noticing the struggles occurring in the planet because of climate change and it will not be enough for only certain leaders to carry the whole weight to prevent this catastrophe. ESG integration and performance will certainly be a weapon to hold companies accountable and it is a matter of time to be able to see if recent efforts are actually leading to change.

I would like to finish this reflection with a quote that I live by: things are not how they are, they are how we are. Although in Spanish it definitely sounds better, give it a thought and it might eventually make sense. Do we really care about enabling a better future for both the planet and generations to come? The fact is that the answer to this question – and the beginning to a solution – starts with us: aim to change things locally to impact things globally. I myself am looking forward to at least trying.