82 Shoboraj in South Wales

Team 92 Poster

Team Reflection

A lively Indian restaurant, Shoboraj combines classic flavors with a modern eating experience. Thankfully, this restaurant was willing to be interviewed and participate in our AIM2Flourish story. Getting an understanding of how Shoboraj intends to strive toward Zero Hunger (SDG2) was an impactful experience. The owner of Shoboraj broke down what it means to be a strong competitor in the food industry and how to use their kitchen to help those who are struggling to make ends meet for a meal.

Our team’s engagement with Shoboraj provides insightful information about sustainability and cross-cultural interaction in the restaurant business by emphasizing how crucial it is to understand the needs of the local community and the difficulties they encounter, particularly with relation to food insecurity. This demonstrates how businesses may be crucial in tackling societal concerns and is in line with SDG2 (Zero Hunger).

It was difficult to gather enough information about the establishment before our meeting to talk about how this restaurant is openly involved with its community and giving back to the neighborhoods that support it. Figuring out the best ways to phrase our questions in a way that will make sense to someone who is not aware he is actively working on sustainability. We made an effort to try and uplift the company’s esteem by acknowledging their efforts that we researched beforehand and implemented into our questions. It gave us a better reaction from the owner, and we felt like he was pleased to share more with us after that. Building a real connection. The experience made it clear how important it is to establish a good connection with the individual being interviewed. Sincere admiration and regard for their efforts can result in more productive discussions, which will improve the educational process as a whole.

As far as our team working together, I think we did well in overcoming the obstacle of accommodating to different time zones and matching each other’s efforts by meeting at least once a week through video calls. Texting was a better form of communicating and determining how we could split up the work. We stuck with our school partners to discuss and tackle each assignment. If someone had high qualitative skills in a certain area where needed, they took charge and went head-on at any dilemma we had as a team. Checking in on each other was vital to make sure we hit every target that was asked of us. Adding onto each other’s work and adjusting whatever seemed could add value to our activity.

As a whole, we could all agree on what worked best for us and what did not. We all would agree on splitting up the work every week and determining who would be submitting the weekly minutes reports. Texting in the group chat we made on Instagram was a better form of meeting with each other than actually having to call for a Facetime meeting. In a sense, some members were just told what to do rather than putting in some effort of their own to improvise ideas. It worked for the better though, since everyone completed their part rather than being left out and confused. There were some misunderstandings between us as well, having the uncertainty about what the assignments required us to accomplish and having different due dates too.

Individual Reflections

Saul Guzman’s reflection: 

Working with students from different countries was a great experience. It was a new challenge I participated in, and I am proud of this team for overcoming the communication challenges we encountered. Having to meet with each other while respecting everyone’s work and personal lives was a bit rough, but we pulled through. It was essential for our team to keep texting each other and reminding us of due dates so everyone could get a chance to work ahead. We had figured out the difference in our time zones so I would make the effort to meet early mornings and chat throughout everyone’s daytime hours so we could collaborate. Doing this activity gave me the opportunity to prepare and interview a business owner who has a well-grounded restaurant business. This experience has become a motivating factor for me to see that being an entrepreneur can become a reality, and I can make a big impact on my community.

Brandon’s reflection: 

Being part of a virtual team with international students was a rewarding and enriching experience. The process was surprisingly smooth, thanks to our commitment to weekly meetings where we reviewed upcoming deadlines and outlined our action plans. Our communication flowed constantly through an Instagram group chat, where we shared updates, clarified doubts, and kept each other updated of due dates. The group chat was also used to help others throughout the project if needed regarding clarification or how to do something. This consistent dialogue ensured that everyone felt engaged and well-informed, regardless of where they were in the world. Remarkably, the cultural dynamic of our team posed no issues, as everyone was respectful and open to different perspectives. However, navigating time zones was a challenge, particularly for those of us in Eastern Standard Time (Guelph) and Central Standard Time (Chicago). Coordinating schedules required flexibility, and not everyone could attend a key interview because it took place very early in the morning for those time zones. Despite these logistical hurdles, our shared dedication and adaptability kept our collaboration productive and enjoyable, demonstrating how teamwork can thrive across the world with the right positive approach.

Elijah’s reflection: 

Working with an international team was an insightful experience. This project allowed me to expand my knowledge and experience of intercultural group work and communication over a virtual space. Our team was able to work through communication barriers and find solutions to issues as they came about. Everyone in the group made an effort to contribute in a meaningful way. Our greatest barrier was time zone differences. Being able to overcome this has been a vital experience for working in an international setting. The work done here will help me and give me guidance on future group settings in which I must communicate with several different people to create solutions and reach goals. My team members and I have all gained valuable experience in collaboration and coordination of objectives. This project has given me confidence that I will be a more effective leader in the future since I will be able to use the experience I have gained here to communicate more effectively and create and take charge of initiatives and reach goals.

Ethan’s Reflection

Working on this AIM2Flourish project with students from different schools in different countries was very unique and interesting. It felt rewarding to come together and work towards a common goal despite our different backgrounds. The biggest challenge in my opinion was communication, setting up times for meetings/interviews. Trying to set up meetings with 3 unique time zones was very challenging, and we found it very difficult to find times that worked for all 6 of us. We navigated this by communicating consistently and using our group chat to stay connected, which helped us work effectively when live meetings were not possible.

This experience was truly one-of-a-kind. I enjoyed collaborating across borders and learning a little about each of my group members, and the interesting sustainable practices that they presented to the group at the start of the project. I would like to work on a similar project again, as I believe it taught me a lot about teamwork, and flexibility.

Burhan Miah’s reflection:

Shoboraj restaurant is one of the famous restaurants in Newport, South Wales. According to the interview of this restaurant, we could know, how they have developed  their sustainable development goal which is zero hunger. And working in a society of people.  It was a great experience to interview any professional person by myself.  And understanding about sustainable development goal , how important is  for world and business. Also, great team work. specially meet with international people by online. Although it was a difficult task to time management, we did it. Once in week meeting discuss about topic  and minutes.  In the team work sometime stressful issue is  people not attending in the meeting on time,  due to work, study and waiting for them. Making them alarm it was really difficult. From this group task I could learn how to handle an international team. Also, we  made some mistake from that we learn, how to overcome an international problem. In the future we need to more focus on time management and also engagement in meeting. Respect people opinion and making decision together. Overall, it was a great experience.

Work Cited

About Us – Shoboraj. (2024). Shoboraj.co.uk. https://www.shoboraj.co.uk/about-us

Tripadvisor. (2024). Tripadvisor. https://www.tripadvisor.com/Restaurant_Review-g186463-d2339841-Reviews-Shoboraj-Newport_South_Wales_Wales.html