MBA students enjoy Italian culture, history, and food

EDITOR’S NOTE: Ashley Roderick is an MBA student at UNLV. She is traveling to Italy as part of the program’s international seminar which allows MBA students to take what they are learning in the classroom and see how it applies in the real world. Follow along as Ashley and a few of her classmates share their experiences as part of a student travel series.

Ciao from Torino, the fourth largest city here in Italia! For the 48 hours we spent in Torino, we were able to cover a lot of ground and enjoy many sights and tastes of the city. After taking the train from our last destination, we checked into the Hotel Roma right in the heart of downtown. From there our journey began by exploring the historic district of the town. As we meandered through the many piazzas, statues, and fountains, we learned from our USAC travel guide, Eliana, more about the events that had transpired here in both ancient and modern times.

In 1861, Torino was dubbed the first capital of Italy where the king and queen could often be found at the Royal Palace of Turin, which was one of our stops on our walking tour. As we kept on, we were able to see the well-preserved Porta Palatina which was built way back in the first century B.C.! Being able to see all these sights, touch the walls of these buildings, and feel the energy of the relics was truly so exciting, particularly for me considering my undergrad minor in history.

TOURING THE LAVAZZA COFFEE FACTORY
Our main activity in Torino was to visit the coffee factory, Lavazza Coffee, and explore the ways they implement sustainability strategy into their production and operations. First, we were welcomed into their training center, or their Innovation Center as they refer to it, where we were able to see how they take things from “bean to cup.” Because Lavazza was able to self-automate the majority of their production process, they could focus their attention more so on holding their suppliers to a higher standard and creating a more inclusive work environment for their employees across the company. And of course, we couldn’t dare to leave without trying a sample! While we were lucky enough to enjoy ours on location, anyone in the Las Vegas area can find Lavazza coffee at my favorite breakfast chain, Rise and Grind – A Steak and Egg Place, and have their own taste of Torino!

EATING THEIR WAY THROUGH EATALY
Our last stops in Torino were at the Green Pea and the original Eataly where we were able to see sustainability in action. First, we visited Green Pea which had several examples to interact with that helped us to understand how they are implementing sustainable technologies into the very foundations of the building. Some examples of these were geothermal heating and cooling, and floor tiles that generate electricity through kinetic energy. On one of the many floors of the building, there was a retail shop that resembled what we thought to be a “sustainable Ikea.” In this store, items from home goods to clothing made of repurposed materials could be found. Next, we enjoyed a tour and tasting of the many different foods produced and sold at Eataly, which was all about spreading the message of the sustainable “slow food movement” across Italy and beyond and even the U.S. As you may have already guessed, we are talking about the very same Eataly brand you can find inside the Park MGM Hotel back home in Las Vegas!

NEXT UP
The next stop on our trip will be in the beautiful City of Love, Verona, in which we will explore the ways fashion and business are sustainable across the northern Italian region. Zane, an MSA major, will be the next one to tell you all about our activities in Verona and all we’ve experienced while there. Until we meet again, ciao bella!

UNLV’s MBA program is a hybrid, part-time program that gives students the flexibility to earn their Master of Business Administration while still working full-time. Our program is consistently ranked in the top 100 by U.S. News and World Report, is taught by our accomplished faculty, and class sizes are small to encourage engagement between faculty and students.