Who Are We?

AIESEC is a global youth leadership organization founded in 1948 in seven European countries, including Belgium. It was founded by Jean Choplin (France), Bengt Sjøstrand (Sweden), and Dr. Albert Kaltenthaler (Germany). AIESEC was founded after the Second World War when young people from seven countries came together in Europe. They had a dream: they wanted to avoid worldwide conflicts by developing more people with cross-cultural understanding. Their goal was and still is big: AIESEC strives to engage and develop every young person in the world, to achieve “Peace & Fulfilment of Humankind’s Potential”. By 1977 it already existed in 50 countries, with more than 40,000 young people participating in a leadership development experience.

The organization aims to develop the leadership potential of youth from 18 to 30 years old. That is why AIESECers send youth abroad on professional traineeships and volunteer exchanges, as well as welcoming trainees in Belgium. AIESEC is present in over 110 countries on all continents, with more than 30,000 active members worldwide. It is a non-political, independent, not-for-profit organization run by students and recent graduates of institutions of higher education. The organization is open to anyone who wants to join and does not discriminate based on ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or national/social origin.

AIESEC was thus developed as a platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential and cross-cultural understanding. The founders concluded that to create cross-cultural understanding in the world, the key was to start with the youth. Young people are the voices and leaders of tomorrow, and they carry the responsibility for the future by choosing who they will be today. That is why the organization states that it places confidence in youth as the key to unlocking a better future, with leadership as the fundamental solution.