By Aadil F. | Manager – Communications, Branding & Volunteer Development, AFS Intercultural Programs India
What makes AFS special is the pure dedication and commitment towards creating a just and peaceful world. Our volunteers are always on active-global-citizenship-mode where they are constantly thinking of improving their ways of bringing positive change in the community they live in – and by and large, creating a ripple effect that inspires many others. AFS always pushes for a world that propagates the philosophy of ‘learning to live together’ and to make that happen, new initiatives or projects are always taken forward in various countries where AFS is present. In the month of September and October, AFS at an international and AFS in India worked on two major initiatives which are highlighted in this edition of the newsletter.
The first initiative that is highlighted in the newsletter Garba for Global Peace, a fundraising initiative by AFS India during the month of October that focused on promoting world peace. This mega-event brought 45+ young AFS exchange students from 15+ countries together in Ahmedabad where they experienced and become part of traditional Gujarati Garba. The event was presented by AFS India and hosted by Ahmedabad Chapter. It goes without saying that Ahmedabad chapter’s commitment to this event was commendable and noteworthy. Each of the volunteers opened their home and hearts to the hosted students from pan-India. The core-committee members organized a flawless event from the scratch and made this a memorable one. This event was aligned with the organization’s vision of 2020 which focuses on growing its programs for the underserved. The fund raised in this program with the help of amazing donors and sponsors will focus on growing its programs for the underserved communities in India. This will help transform the lives of millions of AFS participants, families and individuals that share the commitment to help build international understanding by helping people from different parts of the world live and intercultural learning experience.
The second initiative that is highlighted in the newsletter is AFS Global Conference which took place in the month of September in Budapest, Hungary. The 21st Century needs to push to build a world where global competence education is valued and given the importance it deserves. To make this a priority, AFS recently convened more than 450 leading and prominent educators, leaders, policymakers and researcher to advocate for global competence education at the time ‘when ‘globalism’ is under attack, and nationalism in on the rise’ through AFS Global Conference in Budapest, Hungary in September.
At the AFS Conference, AFS announced four major initiatives that advance the global education worldwide: AFS Center for Intercultural Learning and Global Competence; AFS Global Competence Readiness Index for Schools; Effect+: Empowering and Activating Global Citizens through Youth-Led Workshops; and New $10,000 Award: The AFS Global Citizen Prize for Young Leaders. Also, five awards were presented to individuals, organizations and institutions whose worthy initiatives exhibit an outstanding commitment to championing global competence.
We hope you get inspired by reading this month’s newsletter. AFS is creating blueprints for a better sustainable tomorrow. Each of the actions and initiatives is there to create a maximized impact to develop active global citizens, globalize schools & institutions; and expand access to intercultural education. Join AFS, be part of the #AFSeffect!