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2014/2015 ANNUAL REPORT
COLOMBO SOUTH
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TABLE OF
CONTENTS ABOUT AIESEC 6 ABOUT AIESEC IN SRI LANKA 7 ABOUT AIESEC COLOMBO SOUTH 8 AIESEC COLOMBO SOUTH EXECUTIVE BOARD
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STAFF ADVISOR 13 GLOBAL CITIZEN - INCOMING EXCHANGE 14 GLOBAL CITIZEN - OUTGOING EXCHANGE 18 GLOBAL TALENT - INCOMING EXCHANGE 20 GLOBAL TALENT - OUTGOING EXCHANGE 22 EXCHANGE ANALYSIS 23 EXCHANGE SUMMARY 24 IMPACT STORIES 26 HUMAN RESOURCES 28 MARKETING 29 EVENTS 30 LEAD CS 31 TEAM LEADERS 32 AWARDS 33 PARTNERS 34
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DANULA ERANJITH
“When you start off with huge expectations and failures, halfway through the journey you suddenly realize stakes are high and there is no turning back�
MESSAGE FROM THE
PRESIDENT It is with great honour, I write this message as the Local Committee President of AIESEC Colombo South. This has certainly been the experience of my life. AIESEC Colombo South has been delivering beyond the expectation within past few terms and we, as a team had to fill in the shoes of giants. At the very begging of the term, AIESEC in Sri Lanka was facing one of the biggest external threats. So the journey has been filled with challenges and disasters. But amidst all these, we defied the odds and strived to deliver what we promised. At the end of the term 2014/15, we delivered 281 life changing experiences and initiated the first ever leadership conference for the local committee. None of these gallant feats would have been possible without the untiring efforts and selfless sacrifices of the membership of AIESEC Colombo South. I would like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to each and every member and all the stakeholders who were with us through this journey. Finally, I am extremely grateful to my wonderful executive board. They never knew excuses and it was a rare privilege to work with such a dedicated and a spirited team. CS HOT TO GO!
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ABOUT
AIESEC AIESEC is a global platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential. We are a non-political, independent, not-for-profit organisation run by students and recent graduates of institutions of higher education. Its members are interested in world issues, leadership and management. AIESEC does not discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion or national / social origin. Since we were founded in 1948, we have engaged and developed over 1,000,000 young people who have been through an AIESEC experience. The impact of our organisation can be seen through our alumni who represent business, NGO and world leaders,
AIESEC in numbers 126 countries and territories 70,000 active members 2,400 universities represented 5,000+ partner organisations 1,000,000+ AIESEC alumni
including one Nobel Peace Prize laureate, Martti Atisaari of Finland. We are in consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), affiliated with the UN DPI, member of ICMYO, and is recognised by UNESCO. Every aspect of AIESEC’s operations are managed by students and recent graduates. We have operated in this way since our inception, making us uniquely “by students, for students”, for over 65 years. The global leadership teams are elected by the membership annually.
Our Values Activating Leadership Demonstrating Integrity Living Diversity Enjoying Participation Striving for Excellence Acting Sustainably
“The
United Nations has long recognised that the imagination, ideals and energies of young men and women are vital for the continuing development of the societies in which they live. AIESEC has contribuited to this development by serving as an agent of positive change through education and cultural exchange to develop a broader understanding of cultural, socio-economic and business management issues
”
Kofi Annan Former Secretary-General United Nations
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ABOUT AIESEC IN
SRI LANKA Inaugurated in 1995, AIESEC in Sri Lanka has currently expanded to four (04) local committees based in four universities, namely, Colombo Central Local Committee (University of Colombo) Colombo North Local Committee (University of Kelaniya) Colombo South Local Committee (University of Moratuwa) Jayawardenapura Local Committee (University of Sri Jayawardenapura)
During 2014/15 term, AIESEC in Sri Lanka delivered 731 exchanges, being one of the highest growing entities in the global AIESEC network. This was largely
due to the growth in Incoming exchanges under Global Citizen Programme. AIESEC in Sri Lanka is in the process of expanding its operations to other universities such as University of Peradeniya, University of Ruhuna, SLIIT and Informatics Institue of Technology with the aim of establishing a solid membership base to sustain its operations. The Member Committee President of AIESEC in Sri Lanka for the 2014/15 term was Mr. Tharidha Muhandiramge.
“AIESEC in Sri Lanka ranked number 7 globally in terms of incoming exchanges under Global Citizen Programme within the first two quaters of the year 2015�
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ABOUT AIESEC
COLOMBO SOUTH Based on University of Moratuwa, AIESEC Colombo South was established in 1995 along with AIESEC in Sri Lanka. Currently exceeding a membership of 175, it has been the best performing local committee of AIESEC in Sri Lanka over the past three years. Paving the way for under-
graduates of University of Moratuwa to develop their leadership skills, AIESEC is recognized as one of the largest student bodies within the university. We are currently present in Faculty of Engineering and Faculty of Information Technology. The university student community gets the op-
portunity of involving with issue-based projects, international internships and national / international conferences through AIESEC. The Executive Board of AIESEC in Colombo South acts as the managerial body of the entity.
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With the strong foundation laid by past leadership bodies, AIESEC Colombo South has been growing massively within last few years. We have achived remarkable milestones in terms of operations, member development as well as financial sustainability. AIESEC Colombo South is the only local committe to enjoy the luxury of a local committe office in AIESEC in Sri Lanka. During the term 2014/15 AIESEC Colombo South became the first local commitee in the history of AIESEC in Sri Lanka to deliver more than 250 exchanges securing the highest number of exchanges in all three exchange functions among local committees of AIESEC in Sri Lanka. We also initiated ‘LEAD CS‘, a leadership conference dedicated to the development of the membership of AIESEC Colombo South.
Presidents of AIESEC Colombo South 1999/00 2000/01 2001/02 2002/03 2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
Rukshan Jayaratna Damitha Samarakoon Chanura Wijeratne Dhanushka Tennakoon Thushara Karunaratne Suchith Abeyewickreme Sapumal Thibbotuwawa Buddi Heendeniya Sudheera Gunatilake Ashan Jenabdeen Niradh Perera Inas Jenabdeen Praveen Gunaratne Poorna Molligoda Charitha Lokuge Danula Eranjith Dehan Vithana
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AIESEC COLOMBO SOUTH
EXECUTIVE BOA VP Talent Management
VP Information Management & Communications
VP Operations - Outgoing
CHATHURA VIDANAPATHIRANA
DANANJAYA WEERAWANSA
DEHAN VITHANA
If there is a place where you can learn and experience what the real team work is, it is the Executive Board of AIESEC Colombo South. Getting selected to this team and working together with these amazing people is one of the best learnings that I have ever had throughout my life.
Back in middle of 2013 I started this journey with AIESEC Colombo South. At the beginning I didn’t even think this journey gives me this much experience, emotions, friends and confidence to my life. EB team is the best team experience I have had so far. It’s not easy to survive inside a high performing team. Handling IM&COM function was a very tough task for me at the very beginning. The satisfaction I got by contributing to this wonderful LC motivates me to give the best each and every time and I never get fed up of contributing to CS. For the past two years, I have seen number of people who develop. Even I developed a lot. This is the place where I challenged myself and reached beyond my limits. Finally I want to thank the awesome membership for the hardships you took. Thank you for my wonderful EB team who was with me in this journey.
There are many things that I have learnt this past year, some of them about leading a team better, others about just getting things done. I have had the pleasure of working with different people and have also had the opportunity to do this in a completely different environment than the one I had grown up in. These experiences are irreplaceable. Though it has been nothing short of challenging, I appreciate every moment, every frustration, every heartache, every achievement, every moment of happiness.
We started the term with lots of external issues and the journey we had during this one year was not that easy. Every tough situation we faced was personally a learning for me. Every mistake we made taught us a lesson. The person who I am today is not the person who I was a year ago. I have developed a lot and I have gained many things by being a part this organization. I’m really grateful for my team and I will cherish every memory that I have with them.
The drive to contribute to a better society does not end with the end of my time this position. The road to a better world is tough but the one thing we cannot falter in is our dedication; keep moving forward.
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ARD VP Business Development
VP Finance
VP Operations - Global Citizen
HARINDU KORALA
JANITH DUSHYANTHA
PIUMAL TENNAKOON
Past 12 months have been both challenging and wonderful time with a set of amazing people. Without a doubt, it has been the best team experience I have ever had in my life and this experience really helped me to identify my inner potential. We had to face tough situations continuously at the beginning of our term. We were able to encounter all these situations and problems as one team and were able to overcome them successfully. Personally , I was able to improve a lot of skills in myself such as strategic decision making, team management and negotiation skills. Working in the AIESEC Colombo South Executive Board gave me the opportunity to have a life changing experience that only a handful of undergraduates will experience in their undergraduate period.
AIESEC Colombo South is an entity engulfed with potential & the motivation for growth. With an entity such as this financial sustainability comes at a greater perspective along with many investment opportunities and if not analysed well, many losses. As an LCVP Finance, the experience I had is irreplaceable. AIESEC Colombo South is a place where you can learn many things in many forms, may it be a project, place or people. The experience you gain is immeasurable. The values taught by this great place will never be forgotten. It is more than an organization. It changes people, the way we think, the way we believe, the way we inspire and most importantly the way we perceive life. To borrow from well renowned author Arundhati Roy, “On a quiet day, I can hear her breathing�. So as it has always been, do something for CS, get something from CS.
The term 14/15 was a huge challenge for me. Personally I learnt lot of new things and specially got developed mostly with the soft skills. I had to use my problem solving skills, decision making skills, negotiation skills, project planning skills and so on practically to deal with the situations occurred which we could not expect from anywhere else in the current context for a typical undergraduate. There were tons of ups and downs, though each and every incident taught me atleast a new thing which lifted me to the place where I am today. Finally, getting the opportunity to work with this wonderful team was one amazing thing that has ever happened to me.
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VP Operations - Global Citizen
VP Operations - Global Talent
VP Operations - Global Talent
PULASTHI HARASGAMA
SAMEERA WEERAKOON
VAJIRA LASANTHA
This past year has been the most eventful and the most colourful year of my life. It taught me leadership, teamwork, pressure handling, project management and a lot more experiences which I would never have encountered had I not had the courage to apply to the Executive Board of Colombo South. I had the pleasure of working with people coming from different backgrounds with diverse experiences and I had the opportunity to learn something new from each of these encounters. True it was an immensely challenging experience, but looking back I am proud to say that every endeavour I faced during the past year, has inflicted on me the will to move forward against all odds. I shall savour every little moment of the past year but the task that has been entrusted to me shall not end here. I will continue to drive myself to make this world a better place.
In simplest terms, this world is messed up, which was the reason I joined AIESEC. After a term, it is still messed up but I was a part of an amazing group of people who try very best to make this world a better. Indeed, what matters is the journey and the effort that we put every day to make this happen. This term was a challenge for me in terms of stress management, work life balance and has changed myself completely after one year. I have been able to have the best team experience ever in my life thanks to the amazing friends in the team who went through ups and downs during the term. Personally, I developed my skill set considerably when it comes to achieving targets which solidifies the idea that AIESEC youth is the most result driven youth in the world. At the end of the term, I am proud to say that I am a year wiser and is ready to change the world.
Last year in AIESEC CS EB has been a phenomenal experience for me. It was the most intense team experience I have had and the amazing individuals that shared that experience with me were the best I could ask for. The legacy of our predecessors and the expectations of our members, exchange participants and corporate partners, demanded a lot of dedication from us. Driving the iGIP function was a challenging feat and unless for Sameera, my co-VP, this would not have been simply possible. Working with corporates and the bureaucracy and managing the expectations of exchange participants was an enriching experience for me. All the hardships and sacrifices made for this is easily outweighed by the impact made on the lives of our exchange participants and our own members.
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STAFF
ADVISOR Dr. Chandana Gamage is a senior lecturer and the former head of the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Moratuwa. His research interests include network security.
Being the staff advisor of AIESEC in Colombo South from the beginning of the year 2014, he had given really valuable inputs towards the betterment of the organization. His contribution could be especially highlighted at a time AIESEC in Sri Lanka was facing a tough situation with regard to maintaining its exchange growth amidst external challenges.
Lt. Col. Dr. Chandana Gamage Senior Lecturer Department of Computer Science and Engineering University of Moratuwa
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INCOMING EXCHANGE
GLOBAL CITIZEN Our Incoming Global Citizen Programme is one of the main experiences we offer to foreign undergraduates. Last year alone, we facilitated the learning and development of a total of 236 foreign undergraduates to experience Sri Lanka and volunteer in community development projects. Our projects are carefully aligned such that they address some common issue that the world is facing at present. Some of these issues include, Literacy, Cultural understand-
ing, Health and Lifestyle and Environment. We provide the exchange participants with an opportunity to engage with these projects and to join us in implementing solutions to face these issues from a Sri Lankan context. As a new initiative we implemented a programme named “Project Hunt� in which our members were given the opportunity to develop and design new projects covering other issue segments. With the output from the programme,
we initiated three novel projects in the winter peak each of these projects was a resounding success. We were able to partner with Radicalz, in delivering a project assisting local startups secure funding and European College of English in delivering a teaching project. The feedback from the exchange participants and the members was impressive and we were able to capitalize on their suggestions to implement initiatives to continuously improve the programme.
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EXCHANGE ANALYSIS GLOBAL CITIZEN - INCOMING 250
200
200
150
150
100
100
50
50
Number
250
0
2010/11
2011/12
2012/13
2013/14
2014/15
Q2
2
3
25
10
58
Q1
13
47
82
88
121
Q4
1
4
21
12
18
Q3
9
1
22
63
39
Total
25
55
150
173
236
Term
“Highest number of exchanges within a term in the history of AIESEC in Sri Lanka”
100%
Target Achieved
63
Absolute Growth
0
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RIPPLE EFFECT
Ripple Effect is a project with the vision of enhancing the lives of Sri Lankan underdeveloped communities. This project mainly focused on identifying problems in rural areas and finding solutions, educating children on health problems, interacting with local communities, organizing events for disabled soldiers and organizing campaigns to find the solutions to problems.
FEEL LANKA
The goal of this project is to promote Sri Lankan Tourism Industry and also to promote hospitality service industry among the tourists. The final output of the project was a documentary video on a selected theme which was chosen before the start of the project. Interns maintained blogs throughout the project duration as well.
YOUTH EMPOWERMENT PROJECT
Youth Empowerment Project aims to develop local undergraduates and students of higher educational institues through a series of leadership and skill development sessions. Exchange participants planed and delivered these sessions with the help of experts.
FUEGOSTICKA
Being in a Technical era, CS iGCDP provided Sri Lankan young generation a whole new experience and a unique opportunity to experience games with the latest technology. The project aimed to widen the knowledge on Android game development and put forward a platform for young people to showcase their talents.
GURUGEDARA
Project “Gurugedara� was initiated in order to enhance knowledge in English and Information Technology in local students. Interns engage in a traineeship in teaching students English and basic IT who are in the ages of 8-14 years and this creates a unique learning environment for the local students.
TUNE OF HARMONY
Covering the Issue Segment of Cultural Understating, Tune of Harmony aimed to make the ultimate song of world peace. A music group consisting of young interns from around the globe worked with renowned local artists to compose and sing the ultimate song of world peace.
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HODIYA
Hodiya was initiated with the main objective enabling the gradual improvement of preschools in Sri Lanka. Interns taught preschoolers English and at the end of the project Interns did a gap analysis and submitted a report on the things they have observed and the preschools implemented the best suggestion given by them.
THE ART PROJECT
Purpose of the project was to promote traditional arts to the globe and inspire local and foreign designing students to incorporate such elements in future projects. Number of workshops and sessions were delivered for designing students throughout the project. Project events were managed by interns and they got a chance to explore traditional arts of thousands of years old civilization.
AQUA
Project AQUA aims to make the society aware of the importance of protecting water, aquatic environment and water resources. The project was based on series of events such as training sessions at water treatment plants, researches, seminars and workshops for students in schools, tree planting events at rain forests, beach cleanups and designing and distributing leaflets to the public.
RESPECT
A new initiative of AIESEC Colombo South together with one of Sri Lanka’s prominent corporate profiles, Millennium IT, with the objective of creating awareness on Social Issues that goes unnoticed and ignored in the society. The project mainly focused on areas such as Gender Based Legal Rights, Gender Equality, Gender Based Violence and Discrimination.
HEAL A NATION
Project Heal a Nation was involved in creating awareness campaigns and conducting sessions to local undergraduates and students on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights. Identifying the current cultural barriers in the country and the need for awareness on STD, heal a nation reached the public in a more effective way and created a documentary to be used further in the cause.
HEAL A NATION SWITCH OFF
Switch off is an awareness creation campaign for the importance of conserving electricity. Interns conducted session and workshops to the public on the need for conservation of energy and how it can be done.
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OUTGOING EXCHANGE
GLOBAL CITIZEN Our volunteering programme sees many undergraduates from University of Moratuwa help to deliver a sustainable change and positive impact each year. Global Citizen is the key step for young people in Sri Lanka to discover the world and what really matters to them. We provide the youth their first experience in becoming globally aware and provide opportunities for students to develop and empower communities around the world. Building on the past years of
consecutive growth of Global Citizen, AIESEC Colombo South has chosen to make a paradigm shift from explosive growth to maximizing the relevance of the projects in the overseas local communities. In the term 14/15 we segmented the programme in three major world issues; Cultural Understanding, Literacy and Environment. Based on our research, these three segments are perceived as most important by Sri Lankan students. At the same time these issues are
most relevant to the local communities overseas as well. We successfully sent 25 students to Malaysia, Vietnam, India and Poland. As a result, the satisfaction of our volunteers increased and we enabled more powerful experience. In terms of member experience, we implemented the competition named “EP Hunt� and it was a huge success in number of realizations also.
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EXCHANGE ANALYSIS GLOBAL CITIZEN - OUTGOING 30
25
Number
20
15
10
5
0
2010/11
2011/12
2012/13
2013/14
2014/15
Q2
2
1
4
1
5
Q1
0
0
0
0
2
Q4
0
10
2
12
3
Q3
10
0
0
1
15
Total
12
11
6
14
25
Term
“Highest number of exchanges within a term in the history of AIESEC in Sri Lanka”
78.6%
Relative Growth
11
Absolute Growth
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INCOMING EXCHANGE
GLOBAL TALENT Incoming Global Talent Programme has been the stronghold of AIESEC Colombo South for the last few years and had the maximum number of exchanges facilitated in Sri Lanka. This programme offers foreign undergraduates and recent graduates to undergo a professional internship in a local company to develop their professional and leadership skills. One of the key achievements of the term was the improved partnership between AIESEC Colombo South and AIESEC in
Mainland of China which was facilitated by strong business partnerships that enabled us to facilitate more Chinese internships. The key partnership for the term was with Exotic Global Holidays who facilitated nine exchanges. AIESEC Colombo South was able to upgrade this local partnership to a national partnership with an exclusive requirement for Chinese interns. With process modifications, we were able to significantly reduce the cost structure for the partner-
ship also and was able to raise Exotic Global Holidays as the first ever Local Mass Exchange Partner for AIESEC Colombo South.
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EXCHANGE ANALYSIS
Number
GLOBAL TALENT - INCOMING 35
35
30
30
25
25
20
20
15
15
10
10
5
5
0
2010/11
2011/12
2012/13
2013/14
2014/15
Q2
1
4
8
4
5
Q1
8
6
7
13
7
Q4
3
5
7
6
1
Q3
1
1
5
10
5
Total
13
16
27
33
18
Term
“Highest number of exchanges in the term 2014/2015 in AIESEC in Sri Lanka”
18
5 Exchanges
Partners
0
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OUTGOING EXCHANGE
GLOBAL TALENT This programme enables businesses to provide meaningful professional experiences to a global network of youth talent who want to make a difference. We believe that Global Talent can create amazing, young leaders through intense internship experiences abroad. This term we restructured the process and goals for the programme to better fit with the needs of local undergraduates in Sri Lanka. The process is more flexible than ever before.
Additionally, we initiated to provide more opportunities for our students in Japan. For that purpose, we invited an AIESEC member from Japan to come to Sri Lanka and promote high class traineeships across Japan.
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EXCHANGE ANALYSIS
Number
Number
AIESEC COLOMBO SOUTH LOCAL COMMITTEE 300
300
250
250
200
200
150
150
100
100
50
50
0
0 2010/11
2011/12 2010/11
2012/13 2011/12
2013/14 2012/13
2014/15 2013/14
2014/15
Global Talent -Global Outgoing Talent - Outgoing 5
52
24
40
02
2
Global Citizen -Global Outgoing Citizen - Outgoing 12
11 12
6 11
14 6
25 14
25
Global Talent -Global Incoming Talent - Incoming 13
16 13
27 16
33 27
18 33
18
Global Citizen- Global Incoming Citizen- Incoming 25
55 25
150 55
173 150
236 173
236
Total
84 55
187 84
220 187
281 220
281
Term
Term
Total
55
281
27.7% Exchanges
Relative Growth
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EXCHANGE
SUMMARY “Within the term 2014/15, AIESEC Colombo South has fascilitated 281 life changing experiences for young students representing 37 countries�
This map illustrates the number of exchanges AIESEC Colombo South has done with AIESEC entities around the world.
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China, Germany, Taiwan, Brazil, Russia and Ukraine account for more than 50% of total incoming exchanges. Malaysia, Poland and Vietnam are the most popular destinations for sri lankan undergraduates who are taking part in our exchange programmes.
236 GLOBAL CITIZEN INCOMING EXCHANGE
18
GLOBAL TALENT INCOMING EXCHANGE
25
GLOBAL CITIZEN OUTGOING EXCHANGE
2
GLOBAL TALENT OUTGOING EXCHANGE
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IMPACT
STORIES JUN RUI
MALAYSIA
G
oing for an exchange had always been a dream to me but what really strikes me was the whole exchange experience in Sri Lanka which had been something I never imagined of. I never thought I could learn so many things by just making a decision – to go for an exchange. Every single incident, experience and people I met in Sri Lanka inspired me, they have grown me so much more than I could even realised it. It doesn’t matter that race you are or how rich you are, it is all about being true and welcome everyone with your heart, that’s the priceless lesson that Sri Lankan have taught me in live. On top of that, being part of the project Gurugedara was another add on point that completed my exchange journey. I believe all the kids deserve a better education, as an educated person, if it’s not us to contribute back what we have learnt then who else? Thank you AIESEC in Colombo South for making this happen, for delivering another life changing experience.
ARTUR MAYORAL BRAZIL
I
spent 2 months in Sri Lanka, and I can say that I really wanted to have more time there. I had the pleasure to be a part of Fuegosticka 2.0, and interact with lots of students of Moratuwa University, along with my fellow interns. The project was a real challenge and demanded a lot in terms of responsibility, commitment and leadership. But we faced those challenges with the great help and support of the OC and delivered a great project! The experience was amazing, the share of thoughts, ideas and culture affected me a lot; more than I can even imagine. I can say that I found myself in Sri Lanka, the project showed me that I really love marketing and now I can pursue this passion with much more confidence! It’s unbelievable how much I miss those days and the friends I made there. The culture, language, people, places and tuktuks seem like a dream now that I am back in Brazil; so again, I really wanted to have had more time there.
“There is a wonderful story behind every single exchange we facilitated throughout the term”
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EIRIK NIELSON NORWAY
S
o here I am, almost nine months after I arrived. It’s been the fastest nine months of my life by far, but the time I’ve spent here feels rewarding. In fact, I don’t want to leave, that’s how good it’s been. Of course, I’ve had difficult days or periods, but those periods sure show up desipte whether you’re situated in Sri Lanka, Norway or Peru. It’s life basically, and I’ve learned to live it in Sri Lanka. For me, it doesn’t help to be surrounded by sun and palm trees if your job suck. At Embla, I’ve been lucky enough to run a small business (Embla Norsk Familiehistorie) almost entirely by myself. I felt excitement I haven’t felt for a ages. I was also panicking, asking what the heck I was doing with my life. The answer? I was taking responsibility for myself and not just following the stream of students going through the mill.
INDUNIL HERATH VIETNAM
I
had my internship in the city of Ho-Chi-Minh in Vietnam. I worked on a project called SELF which focused on improving leadership skills of Vietnamese university students. This experience was a great new challenge for me. I experienced so many diverse cultures from people from various parts of the world and learnt how to work with them. The “cultural shock” I got and how I adapted to it was one of the greatest learning challenges in my life. My experience in Vietnam was life changing as I was helping others in becoming leaders as well as I was learning from them to become my own leader. AIESEC is what brought me to here as, if it wasn’t for AIESEC I wouldn’t be able to meet such amazing people and learn from their own experiences as well as make new experiences for me as well. I experienced things in 6 weeks that would take years for some people to experience and each experience was a new learning point for me.
CHARANA UDUGAMA MALAYSIA
T
he best part of my internship experience was mixing with the culture. I learned some phrases in Bhasha Malaysia and it was fun using them with local people. Actually I learned a lot about people of different cultures. How they talk, eat, dress, behave etc. It was truly a life changing experience. I was a different man when I was leaving Malaysia. I’ve developed my skills in handling a workshop, delivering presentations, working with a team etc. I took a step from my comfort zone. And it wasn’t easy. But I made it through. Even though almost all the people I worked with are younger than me I learned a lot from them. Relating to the profession and also relating to life. Above all I gained some good friends from different countries. At last but not least, Thank you AIESEC for delivering me this experience. Best of luck AIESEC Colombo South for your future goals and aspects. I will not hesitate to recommend your LC for my fellow AIESECers for an internship in future.
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TALENT MANAGEMENT
HUMAN RESOURCES Colombo South Local Committee was sustainable with human resources throughout the term 14/15. At the beginning of the term, Colombo South had more than 140 active AIESECers working under every function. This is the largest member base AIESEC Colombo South ever had in the history and it is the highest number of members possessed by a single local committee in the history of AIESEC in Sri Lanka. This includes a total number of 120 Team Member Programme experiences and 66 Team Leader Programme experiences. With two successful recruitments, Colombo South man-
aged to broaden the membership and get a blend of vivid talents into the local committee. In previous years, our members were mostly from Colombo or nearby areas. Now there is a good representation from every part of the country as well as from both Engineering faculty and Information Technology faculty. During this term, not only for the exchange functions but also for the back office functions we had teams working under the respective vice president. Members were motivated to work under back office functions while contributing to exchange functions. Colombo
South members got valuable opportunities like being a part of a conference organizing committee, a national event organizing committee and etc. At the end of the term, the local committee was left with a strong leadership body for the next term including a wellstructured Panel. Middle management and the below levels were well established ensuring a smooth and efficient operation system in the organization.
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INFORMATION MANAGEMENT & COMMUNICATIONS
MARKETING Communications team played a major role in local committee operations by ensuring the internal and external visibility for AIESEC Colombo South across all platforms. In each and every Global Citizen project, there was a sound knowledge management process. We showcased lots of EP experiences on our YouTube channel, Blog and Facebook. The first ever reception booklet was introduced and it was very useful for the incoming exchange participants. In outgoing exchanges we ran an innovative online campaign with a separate brand called “Exchange to Change�. It was a huge success and we were able to reach the highest number of Exchange participants from the level one engineering batch of University of Moratuwa.
We planned good marketing campaigns for the local conference LEAD CS and all major events such as Hackanix, Dragon De Danza and Global Village. We got more than 60 teams representing 6 universities registered for Hackanix through our strong marketing campaign which included videos from university staff members. For the recruitments we had in last term we managed to get the people we want. One of the good case practices that we continued is going for off line promotions for our mass recruitments. AIESEC International introduced a new Global Information System (GIS) during the term. AIESEC Colombo South got that opportunity to participate the test run of GIS.
Throughout the term we maintained well updated online platforms and maintained proper branding. We got a good number of hits for our online promotions on YouTube, Facebook and Blog. We managed to reestablish the Colombo South website at the end of the term. Through the Paparazzi team we were able create people who have knowledge and motivation to do Information Management & Communications. Information Management & Communications function has given the fullest support to all operations to achieve their targets. There are lots of improvement in our marketing campaigns and our online platforms which would largely benefit the growth of the local committee.
Website www.aieseccs.lk Facebook Fan Page
www.facebook.com/AIESECCS
YouTube Channel
www.youtube.com/user/AIESECCOLOMBOSOUTHLC
Blog: www.aieseccolombosouth.blogspot.com
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ABOUT
EVENTS HACKANIX
15 teams from top universities and ICT Institutes from across the island competed in ‘Hackanix 2015’ a grand 2 day hackathon organized by AIESEC Colombo South in collaboration with Microsoft Sri Lanka. The event held at Trace City, Maradana had the teams from education institutions such as the Universities of Colombo, Moratuwa and Ruhuna, SLIIT, Esoft Metro Campus etc., working overnight on their projects which were to be presented to an elite panel of judges the day following.
DRAGON DE DANZA Dragon de Danza is an event to celebrate Chinese new year with over 50 Chinese interns and local AIESECers. Event was held at National Youth Serivices Council, Maharagama with traditional songs,dances,games and foods.
GLOBAL VILLAGE Global Village is an annual event organized by AIESEC Colombo South which celebrates cultural diversity,multi ethnicity and global citizenship. Interns from different countries showcased their nations in this festival through singing, dancing, food, customs, costumes, music and traditions.
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CONFERENCES
LEAD CS Value proposition of AIESEC to its members is leadership development. Our leadership development model has unique features which makes us different from other organizations with similar objectives. Through AIESEC exchange programmes we deliver a firsthand experience on responsible leadership. Another unique element, AIESEC Conferences, are an active and collaborative learning environment where the participants are offered a practical learning on leadership development. AIESEC in University of Moratuwa, having grown significantly in the number of members during past couple of years, widened its scope to cater the requirements of its membership. LEAD CS is an initiative taken in that sense.
The inaugural Leadership Development Seminar of AIESEC Colombo South Local Committee - ‘LEAD CS 2015’ was held at Sanctuary House, Pamunugama with a delegation of more than hundred including 20 international delegates. Conference lasted for three days in a different learning environment with lots of joy and excitement. Mr. Sakitha Kumarage, the organizing committe president and his team delivered one of the best conferences Colombo South AIESECers have ever experienced. Ms. Sveta Nikolaeva, President 2014/15 of AIESEC in Nepal was the chair of the conference.
“My experience with LEAD CS and with LC CS definitely was one of the most adorable and colorful times in my life. I’m really grateful for all inspiration, warm welcome, high quality conference, given to me by AIESEC CS, and I love you all, crazy people. Stay as awesome as you are and grow fast! CS HOT TO GO!” Sveta Nikolaeva President, AIESEC in Nepal (Chair of LEAD CS)
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TEAM
LEADERS From 1st of July 2014 to 30th of June 2015. Global Citizen - Incoming
Organizing Committee Presidents
Finance & ER Manager Gayan Indeera Matching Manager Vishma Dias IM & Com Manager Bhagya Weliwita Logistics Manager Isuru Weerawardhana
LEAD CS Hackanix Dragon de Danza Induction Day Induction Day
Summer Peak 2014 and Off Peak Gurugedara Harshani Sumanasekara Hodiya Amil Shanaka Feel Lanka Ishan Silva ART Project Sachintha Gunawardena Ripple Effect Amith Mudugamuwa Winter Peak 2014/2015 Gurugedara 1 Shanika Ediriweera Gurugedara 2 Bhanuka Viduranga Hodiya Binura Anthony Feel Lanka Buddhi Abeysuriya Ripple Effect Kaushalya Batawala Heal a Nation Isuru Chathuranga Switch Off Dinusha Dissanayake Tune Of Harmony Indika Wijessoriya Fuegosticka Sehan Rathnayake YEP Adiesha Liyanage Off Peak Ripple Effect
Diluksha Fernando
Summer 2015 Gurugedara 1 Chandima Kohombage Gurugedara 2 Kasun Eraj Hodiya Pasindu Kanchana Ripple Effect Kushan Lakmal Heal a Nation Madhawa Vidanapathirana I Respect You Chathusha Wijenayake
Sakitha Kumarage Malmee Weerasinghe Isuru Ramawickrama Dulitha Dabare Chehara Pathmabandu
Global Citizen - Outgoing Ishan Chathuranga Sajith Edirisinghe Dinushan Vishwajith Adeesha Liyanage Vikum wijesinghe Chamil Praboda Sandaru Suranjaya Sithira Weeratunga Chathusha Wijenayake Finance Manager Savindu Herath Preparation Manager Achintha Iroshan Account Manager Budmika Chamath Global Talent - Incoming Niranga Pathirana Thathsara Radeeka Kasun Rosa Dulitha Dabare Visaka Weerasinghe Chathuri Weerakoon Theja Thileka Chehara Pathmabandu Charith Dharmabandu Yoshitha Kaushalya Pubudu Fernando Sandesha Weerasinghe Managers Rahal Indrachapa Sandesha Weerasinghe
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ABOUT
AWARDS Recognition at National Awards Ceremonies of AIESEC in Sri Lanka
Contribution of the membership towards the success of the local committee was recognized at the the inaugural Local Committee Awards Ceremony held in January 2015.
National Leadership Development Seminar 2014
Best GCDPi Team Ripple Effect 2.0 Best GIPi Team Marketing and IT Team Best OGX Team Team UoM Most Innovative Team Business Development Team Best Experience Team Member Hasini De Silva Best Experience Project / Event OC LEAD CS Organizing Committee Best Young Leader Gayan Indeera Best Emerging Leader Savindu Herath Charith Dharmabandu Best Comm Member Indika Wijesooriya Bhagya Weliwita Emerging Comm Member Rahal Indrachapa Best Corperate Partner Microsoft Sri Lanka Best EP expereince - Out going Sandaru Karunasiri Best EP expereince - Incoming Santiago Manso,Colombia Most contrubuting alumnus Asiri Weerathunga Corp Hunt 3 winner Team Zylon
Most Outstanding Local Committee Most Sustainable Local Committee Best iGCDP programme Best iGIP programme iGIP programme with the highest growth OGX function with the highest growth Bi annual excellence award for iGIP Best EP Expereince incoming Maggie Twidale Best Young Leader - Chathura Vidanapathirana NatCon 2015 Bi Annual Excellence Award for iGCDP Bi Annual Excellence Award for OGX Best Young Leader - Piumal Tennakoon
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ABOUT
PARTNERS During the term 14/15 as AIESEC Colombo South we were able to launch new sustainable partnerships with leading organizations such as Microsoft Sri Lanka, Dell, Eco Team Pvt Ltd, Dialog Ideamart etc. Mainly the partnerships were categorized under 3 schemes. Local Committee Partnerships, Exchange Partnerships and Event Partnerships. By Partnering with Microsoft Sri Lanka and 99X Technologies we were able to deliver an eventful Hackathon which was named as HackaniX -The Ultimate Code Party, which was one of the biggest events AIESEC Colombo South had ever done. The first ever Leadership Development Seminar of AIESEC CS was mainly sponsored by Dell Sri Lanka and Virtusa Pvt LTD. Apart from that
a lot of other organizations also partnered with us as our exchange partners. Few notable mentions are Dialog- Ideamart Partnership with Project Fuegostica 2.0 , Eco Team Pvt Ltd partnership with Project FEEL Lanka 6.0 and Millennium ITs partnership with newly initiated project I Respect You. One of the most important changes we did in this term was to form the first Business Development Team of AIESEC CS . The main focus of this team was to develop products by customizing AIESEC’s core products in a way which they can be marketable to external organizations to fulfill those organization’s requirements. The team was consisted of 5 members and were given an extensive train-
ing on product development and product bundling. The key element which was practised during the tenure of this team was “Innovation” and that led them to become the Most Innovative team of the Year 2014. One of the key products initiated by this team is the “Knowledge Partner” product which is still in its early stages. The main objective of this product is to fill the gap between undergraduates and industry by allowing industry to identify the best talent in the market in a very early stage while giving the young undergraduates the opportunity to explore the industry while learning and enhancing their network.
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LOCAL COMMITTEE PARTNERS
EXCHANGE PARTNERS
CONFERENCE AND EVENT PARTNERS
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MESSAGES FROM PARTNERS
JANAKIE KARUNARATNE Manager - Community Affairs Microsoft Sri Lanka Microsoft Sri Lanka is on a journey to train and equip youth in the latest technology. To this end we have partnered with Governments, Private sector, Civil Society & the community at large. Microsoft was very happy to partner with AIESEC for the 2nd year. This year the event took on the shape of a 24 hour Hackathon. The energy and creativity shown by the AIESEC team was contagious and it was a fun, innovative and successful event. I wish AIESEC all the very best in the future.
SHAFRAZ RAHIM Developer Relations & Platform Evangelist Dialog Axiata PLC Fugosticka is one of the unique concepts and initiative by AIESEC Colombo South. This competition encourage teams build competitive Android based games, critically analyze users experience with the game, market an application, application monetization, working with stakeholders, building team spirit, enrich and empower tech entrepreneurship. This time we had 16 teams competing for one title and the games which were produced encouraged to market within two months’ time. Dialog Ideamart is proud to be the main sponsor of this event since we provide support for app development life cycle to taking application production live to funding. We would like to wish all the very best for future endeavors of AIESEC Colombo South.
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AIESEC Colombo South extends its sincere gratitude towards all the stakeholders who contributed towards the growth and betterment of the entity during the term 2014/15 Thank you!