I had been trying to write a post on the St Gallen Symposium , but I had so many things to say that it was hard to write anything at all. I think whatever I remember right now is what will stay with me for a long time. Everything else is either lost or hidden in my memory. First about the symposium.
It brought together students from 68 countries along with a couple of hundred high quality business delegates and university professors. The idea is to create an atmosphere for debate and exchange of ideas between qualified and important stakeholders on an important world theme.
The organizers pay for all the expenses of the traveling students. It is a free trip to Switzerland with no strings attached. Just write the essay. Most students were accommodated in apartments of University of St Gallen students or in a youth hostel.
My host was exceptionally accommodating and that made my experience very pleasant. I really loved the internationalism of the entire conference. The student participants all hailed from different backgrounds which created opportunities for lively dinner table discussions and debates, in addition to learning more about different cultures.
And all of them had qualified through an essay competition which meant they were very smart, especially when it came to economics and business, which was the major focus of the symposium.
