Theme: 'Utopia: Not Just a Dream'
Dates: 2nd October to 5th October 2016
Six students from Dhirubhai Ambani International School were welcomed warmly by the SaraIa Birla Academy, Bangalore on the evening of 2nd of October 2016. This was followed by an ice breaking session where the students interacted with schools from all over the country and learnt about their interests too.
3rd October was the first day of the conference. The theme was 'Utopia: Not Just a Dream' and the IDEAL it was focused on 'Internationalism'. An enlightening speech given by the keynote speaker, Mr. Vaibhav Natu was a real kick-start to the conference. His speech revolved around how everyone could make a difference to bring out a spirit of cooperation and make society progress. It ignited a spark in young minds as to how all cultural barriers can be broken to promote brotherhood among all counties. During the entire conference, there were two baraza sessions in different groups where the students discussed the theme: 'Utopia' and how it would be possible to change the mind set in the future. It was interesting to know how students of the same age group, from different parts of the country, had varied opinions. It was a great opportunity to interact with them better and learn about their viewpoints. Besides these intense discussions, a number of fun-filled activities were lined up for the students. One of these was the language workshop where the students were divided into 6 groups, each group enjoyed learning a new language! It stressed on the fact as to how important communication skills are, to promote fraternity among nations.
Some of the activities also included a trip to the nearby art museum and science centre and an early-morning zumba session. Everyone got a chance to shake a leg in the jam session where we danced and enjoyed to the fullest! In the evening, participants went trekking, climbed a hill-top to get an aerial view of the city.Overall, it was an enriching as well as a fun-filled experience which has had an impact on all round development of participants.
On a final note, the students were certain that it was a golden opportunity to have visited this Round Square conference which has taught everyone a lot about the world around us!
‘It was my first Round Square Conference and was indeed very helpful as it gave us an exposure of how international conferences would be held. The interactive Barazas were very informative where we learnt about Utopia and about others’ views on the same.’
- Prisha Punjabi
‘This conference has truly taught me a lot. My favourite part was the Baraza as it included some interesting debating! I personally enjoyed the trek and the treasure hunt to a great extent. Overall, it was an experience I’d never forget.'
- Rohan Cowasji
‘The conference was an overwhelming experience for me. I thoroughly enjoyed activities like trekking and dancing. It was a great opportunity to interact with various schools and learn about their cultures.’
- Aarushi Agarwal
‘The Round Square Conference was a great learning experience for us. The sessions were well-organized and the three-day event was scheduled well. I’m sure it will be a memory cherished by us for a lifetime.’
-Siddhant Mukherjee
‘The conference was a fantastic event which we were lucky to be a part of. It definitely contradicted the saying ‘All Work and No Play’ as the activities were