ALUMNI

YES Program Alumni Engagement

The U.S Consulate General Chennai organized a session to present the YES Program to the general public in the American Center Booth at the Chennai Book Fair. The session was organized to spread awareness about the program and get more diverse applications for the next year The session was scheduled on 15 January, 2023 between 5:00 pm to 7:00 pm.

In Tamil Nadu, January 15 was also the Pongal festival, therefore the alumni came in their traditional outfits for the event They conducted three sessions for different audiences which were productive. They got an opportunity to speak about hosting students from the USA as well.

The following people from the AFS community participated in the event:

● Ms Christiana Rathnavathy, President AFS Chennai Chapter

● Saravanan Rajan, YES Alumnus 2012-13

● Abdul Salam, YES Alumnus 2014-15

● Shahbaz Khan, YES Alumnus 2017-18

● Akash Babu, YES Alumnus 2017-18

● Mohan Arul Raj, YES Alumnus 2018-2019

They also got an opportunity to meet a couple of U.S Marine Corps personnel who were volunteering at the American Center Booth Mr Scott, Cultural Affairs Officer of U S Consulate General and Seema Massot, American Center Director were also present during the session.

Introducing Brinda Somaya, who is an AFS alumna from the batch of 1966, an architect and urban conservationist. Upon completion of her Bachelor of Architecture from Mumbai University and Master of Arts from Smith College in Northampton, MA, USA, over four decades, Brinda has merged architecture, conservation and social equity in her projects.

Excerpts from her recent speech at Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University, Hyderabad where she was conferred Honorary Doctorate.

‘India is a nation of young people. Your aspirations and dreams are naturally different from the older generations. Architecture, like civilisation, is dynamic and evolving. It is inherently interdisciplinary, but today the field is much more comprehensive for better opportunities and a multiplicity of practices. The next few decades will unfold many social, cultural, and environmental changes that will transform the look and feel of our cities.

Creativity flourishes when new ways of looking at the same problem are brought together, when people from different backgrounds, training, and experiences, bring together their perspectives Therefore, the motivation for inclusion and diversity should come not only from the desire to create a just society, but also because it leads to better, more creative, and more powerful processes and solutions.’