VOL. 1 ISSUE VI
The Student Series
ACTING SUSTAINABLY: MOVING LAURIER FORWARD The international platform for young people to explore and
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
ACTING SUSTAINABLY: MOVING LAURIER FORWARD
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ACTING SUSTAINABLY: MOVING LAURIER FORWARD
CONTENTS 4
A I ES EC H O N G KO N G ’S D I SC OV ER 2012 I N T ER N AT I O N A L C O N F ER EN C E
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E XC H A N G E PA R T I C I PA N T I N I N D I A: M A RGA R ET YU
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A I ES EC A LU M N I: B R EN DA SC H RO ED ER
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M A BUH AY A N G PI LI PI N AS: FLY TO T H E PH I L I PPI N ES!
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PERSO N A L D E V ELO PM EN T: TOO LBOX TU ES DAYS
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LC P- EL EC T M I C H A EL F R AG I S K ATOS: SH A PI N G A I ES EC L AU R I ER ’S FUTU R E
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E X PLO R E O PP O R TUN I T I ES W I T H A I ES EC: POLAND & INDIA G R E EC E & B R A Z I L
V P O F C O M M U N I C AT I O N S C H U N G S O O N H AW
DESIGN LEAD T I F FA N Y C H A N
EDITOR IN CHIEF ISHA AN KUKREJA
DESIGN LEAD CAROLINE IP D E S I G N C O N S U LTA N T M AV I S L I U D E S I G N C O N S U LTA N T C L E V E R LU U
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
AIESEC HONG KONG’S DISCOVER 2012 INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ISHAAN KUKREJA
For me, ‘Acting Sustainably’ meant thinking beyond family vacations and all-inclusive resorts to an experience much more meaningful and long lasting. AIESEC is that experience. In today’s world, there is seldom a platform to encourage experiential learning, hence keeping creativity and passion on a plateau. As an AIESECer, there is always something to look forward to – community projects, internships and conferences in the local region. Personally, it was an international conference.
AIESEC in Hong Kong hosts a 3-day conference every year that focuses on developing fresh AIESECers into the leaders of tomorrow.
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This inaugural conference for the students in the Pacific Asian region is designed to introduce the idea of internationalism and the immense functionality of AIESEC in their university careers. This year’s conference, AIESEC Hong Kong’s Discover 2012, meant discovering yourself, discovering others and discovering AIESEC. I was fortunate enough to be selected amongst 28 other facilitators to be the backbone of this conference and bring our individuality and energy to the conference. Being the only AIESECer from the Western hemisphere, it was an honour to represent Canadian culture, ideals and spirit to students who seldom get to interact with internationals because of their fresh AIESEC status. That of course will change because of the potential they have realized in AIESEC and the hundreds of opportunities that lay in front of them.
HONG KONG When it comes to an international AIESEC conference, the journey to the destination is as exhilarating as anything else – traveling to the Pacific Asia region has always been my dream. Hong Kong, being the home to Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan, the iconic Avenue of Stars truly displays the finesse of the glowing night sky above the city centre landscape. It’s as if the skyscrapers are reaching for the moon – one of the highlights of my trip indeed and a visual image to resonate forever. The people in Hong Kong really made it feel like home with their respect towards internationals as the ‘east meets west’ culture is eminent throughout – it felt like the perfect combination of New York, London, Paris and the Pacific East! Another common question that comes up, is how did I even hear about this conference? Finding out about international AIESEC opportunities all start with your Local Committee. Personally, I came across my first conference opportunity in Germany on a Facebook group affiliated with AIESEC – being a fresh AIESECer at the time, I didn’t know what to expect so I applied hoping for the best. Although I had no previous international AIESEC experience my passion
to explore AIESEC internationally resonated through my application and I was granted the opportunity. Here is where I met Stephanie Sze Ting Yeung from AIESEC Hong Kong and followed up over this past summer to learn that AIESEC Hong Kong’s Discover 2012 would be taking place! This is the beauty of AIESEC, your first interaction will lead to endless windows of opportunities – it’s the best way to internationally network!
This is what I call, ‘Acting Sustainably.’ Putting yourself in positions where it will only let you expand your horizon and allow you to make connections with AIESECers from all around the world. Every person has a story – this was my story. Start yours with AIESEC today and call every country, home. - Ishaan Kukreja 5 c
The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
Last summer I was lucky enough to go on an AIESEC internship in Baroda, India for 6 weeks.The experience was beyond anything I’d imagined. It was truly a unique and lifealtering journey in which I was able to learn a lot about my work (a Microfinance project) and the country, but more importantly about myself as an individual. When you are half-way around the world in a country where you are a distinctive minority, living with 11 international students whom you have never met, and sometimes going days without internet, phones, and even water, you’d be surprised
MARGARET YU Exchange Participant: India to know how many things you will discover about yourself. Things like how independent you can be, flying on your own and making your own travel plans which often involved spur-of-the-moment excursions. I also realized how easily I could make friends, as I almost instantly developed meaningful friendships with students from Germany, Kenya, and India of course. It was fascinating to see the similarities we all shared, but even more intriguing to uncover our differences. For example, it was easy to compare and contrast the spontaneous and outgoing nature of an American girl from Nashville, Tennessee to the reserved and cultured nature of a girl from Zurich, Switzerland. For many of us, English was a second language, and some of the Europeans were equally eloquent in French and German. There were also an array of different religious beliefs, some were Catholic and few were Muslim.
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“It’s about more than simply learning and understanding each other’s cultures and values...” Living with these “strangers” for over a month made me realize what AIESEC was truly about. It’s about more than simply learning and understanding each other’s cultures and values, but accepting all of those things and seeing each other as individuals rather than the places we come from. In doing so, we realized that we are all university students, trying to expand our knowledge and horizons and figuring out the right paths to our future. Initially, AIESEC offered us the chance to take on a project we were interested in – Microfinance in the developing world – and it offered it on an international platform. That was reason enough for us to jump at the opportunity. But throughout our time in India, I realized that I was obtaining skills and experiences that I would not have been able to gain anywhere else. I’d be lying if I said there weren’t any hiccups on the road, and
the different ways that we dealt with those hiccups was a true revelation of our problem solving skills and individual personalities. My best friend on the trip told me always follow-through, and despite every nerve in my body not wanting this, I listened. It wasn’t until much later that I realized that my determination and perseverance to accomplish my duties and responsibilities as an intern was the best decision I’ve ever made. I am forever thankful for the experience AIESEC offered me, and I am currently a team leader at AIESEC Laurier, hoping that students in Laurier can also take on a life-changing experience such as mine.
- Margaret Yu
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
Alumni BRENDA SCHROEDER 8
I’ve always considered myself as having more of an activist spirit than one for business, so I am a little surprised that today I am working in the corporate sector. But after having spent eight years in AIESEC, I learned to consider opportunities in a different light. Looking back, it all makes sense.I am probably one of the few alumni who learned about AIESEC even before entering University. I attended a private high school in Saskatchewan and at a career fair, stopped by an AIESEC booth. After joining, I was interested but skeptical because I was studying International Development and it seemed to me the organization at the time was all about business! After a few months of making the trek from the social sciences side of campus to the business faculty and back again, I began to see AIESEC as complimentary to my studies and met many members who had the same questions about the world that I did.
“I now believe that it is not imperative to “save the world”, but rather that we appreciate the constant state of change, nature’s balance, and that it is how we effect this change for a positive outcome that matters.” Thinking that my term on the National Committee would be my last and that I would soon be returning to University, I headed for Slovenia to attend Euro Expo 2000, my first and ‘last’ international conference. A life changing moment is rarely known to be so significant to the people involved until you look at it in hindsight. During a break on day three of the conference, I was talking with a newfound friend from Portugal about how there was so much more to AIESEC than I had experienced. In that same moment, another new friend from Ireland passed behind us and casually commented “You should talk to Brenda about Italy”. Five days later, I was boarding a plane trying to put some logic behind the pull I felt to move to a country I had never been to and spend a year working with two people I had barely met. Thus began the second phase of my AIESEC experience – a year leading the National Committee in Italy, followed by two years at AIESEC International as Vice-President of Exchange, 15 countries and countless friends more.
year off: “This is not a year off of your education, but a part of it.” I can attest that my father was right! AIESEC gave me a mental model of the world that I don’t otherwise think I would carry with me today. For example, I now believe that it is not imperative to “save the world”, but rather that we appreciate the constant state of change, nature’s balance, and that it is how we effect this change for a positive outcome that matters. I learned to be more resilient, as being exposed to different ideas made me much more grounded in my own principles and ready to go with changing circumstances. And I knew that while helping others experience AIESEC, I was living my own AIESEC experience and learning lessons that will only be revealed to me as I continue on my journey.
As my father said to me when I promised I would go back to University after this second
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
: s a n i p i l i P g n a y a h M a bu ! s e n i p p i l i h P e Th o t Fl y L
ooking at the world map, the Philippines, a Southeast Asian country composed of 7,107 islands, may only look like scattered pieces of land across the ocean, but, if you give this unique country a chance, you will certainly find that despite the geographical division, the Filipinos are one in spirit, heart, and mind. One of the many names the Philippines had received is “the land of smiles”. This name definitely captures the heart of the Filipino characteristic. It is because of the Filipino’s admirable optimistic attitude and persistent smiles that the country never stopped moving or looking forward to a better tomorrow. Moreover, many do not know that, regardless of status and class, Filipinos possess a minimum of Basic English speaking skills, hence, making the stay of foreign visitors easier and more convenient. This is a Filipino attribute that is usually overlooked.
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In line with being hailed as “the land of smiles” is the Filipinos’ love for festivals! In a year, there are numerous festivals and traditions that are celebrated in the three main regions of the Philippines – Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. Luzon is the northern region of the Philippines. It includes major cities such as Manila, Makati and Quezon City. Luzon consists of different special provinces such as Pampanga which, is wellknown for its local cuisine, Bicol which, is popular for its spices, and Sagada which, is situated in the mountain areas and often tourists, or even the Filipinos pay Sagada a visit to see the famous tradition and sight of Sagada – the hanging coffins. Moving downwards from Luzon, you will encounter the middle region – Visayas. In this region, there is already a huge difference from Luzon and Mindanao in terms of culture, tradition and celebrations. Some of the festivals that many Filipinos, even Filipinos from Luzon and Mindanao wish to attend are the annually held on every third weekend of October is Masskara Festival and yearly held on every third Sunday of January.
The Masskara festival came about during a time of agricultural crisis. With such a depressing time, the local government decided to hold a festival to uplift the Filipinos. Furthermore, during this cheerful season, participants of the festival are highly encouraged to wear a mask and make-merry. On the other hand, the Sinulog festival always engross colourful costumes, hyper music and with a wide array of food to choose from. The best part about both festivals is they are celebrated out in the open streets with parades, native dances and of course, smiles from different people – tourists, locals from Luzon or Mindanao, locals from Visayas, and more!
Lastly, the culture in AIESEC in the Philippines is very much affected by the Filipino culture. However, the beauty of having AIESEC in the Philippines is diversity among the Filipino AIESECers, but we all have one common goal – to provide quality and life changing experiences. With this, you can expect non-stop smiles from a Filipino AIESECer and definitely, warm, friendly and accommodating personalities as well as a colorful culture that will surely brighten up your exchange experience! Mabuhay ang Pilipinas!
Mindanao is located at the southernmost part of the country with an entirely different but still Filipino culture. In this part of the Philippines, there are some provinces that are Islamic in religion and in practice. Yet, these Filipino Muslims still possess common Filipino habits particularly, the never failing positivity in them! Overall, diversity aside, there is always that one characteristic that ties the Filipinos together.
“Internship. It’s more fun in the Philippines.”
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
personal development
career development
professional speakers
TOOLBOX TUESDAY GAIN TOOLS FOR SUCCESS... IN HALF AN HOUR OR LESS... 12
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PAST SPEAKERS Every student tends to have trouble defining their career and what exactly they would like to do in the future. These students are called Creatives. Lois Raats was able to provide students a 30 minute session to help them envisions their future and where they were meant to live. A very big thank you to Lois Raats for coming out to discuss to students about their future!
LOIS RAATS
GREG SCHOTT
Once entered in the professional world, countless meetings will be faced. But what counts as an effective meeting? Greg Schott was able to provide a 30 minute session to guide students how to have effective meetings. In his presentation, he included tips on what should be done before, during and after meetings. A very big thank you to Greg Schott for coming and providing Laurier students tips!
INTERESTED? Toolbox Tuesdays will begin in Winter Term on January 22nd, 2013. Please look out for facebook events and television ads for more informtion on upcoming sessions!
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
LCP-Elect
Michael Fragiskatos:
Shaping AIESEC Laurier’s Future
Living sustainably is a value I hold dearly to. When it comes to the environment, we must be sustainable with our resources and not to waste anything, hence why we do things like recycling. The same goes for AIESEC. Our members are very valuable and are not to be taken for granted. In order to keep our member retention high every year, we need to make sure they are getting what they want out of AIESEC. That they are not being ignored and that they know what they are doing is an asset to the organization. That is why we hold personal development talks. That is why we invite all members to every event. Sustainability does not only refer to the AIESECers themselves. It’s the practices and actions we take that must remain consistent yet strong.
Our recruitment cycle is a cycle that has been successful and that is why we continue with it, instead of finding a new method. That is why a recruitment portfolio is being open during my LCP term, so we can capitalize on the recruitment procedure and bring in more fantastic members and exchange participants. This will leave our communications, talent management, and outgoing exchange portfolios with more time and space to focus more on their projects, as in the past the portfolios had to put everything on hold during recruitment periods.
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We must also act sustainably in both our incoming and outgoing exchange procedures. That each and every exchange participant both entering and leaving the country are followed through the same process of being raised, matched, and realized. Even if we face some obstacles in any of these processes, scrapping it and tossing them in the garbage is not an option. We learn from those obstacles from the cycles and so when the cycle starts again, we are more ready than ever. And each cycle gets better and stronger. Some people may think sticking to the same routine can be repetitive and boring, but if we constantly change our methods and processes and members, it leaves people very confused and makes it difficult to keep up with everything going on.
With the start of my LCP term just around the corner, sustainably is very crucial now more than ever as I am in the midst of transitioning with my soon-to-be predecessor, and that everything lesson he learned during his LCP term is passed on to me that I can continue to pass to future generations of LCPs. This transition also goes for the incoming and outgoing VPs. All the knowledge, skills, and mistakes we as VPs went through the past through will be passed on to our successors so they are fully prepared for the role and that there are no surprises. With our Executive Body transition retreat coming up, plus National Congress at the end of the year, I have no doubts that our transition will be smooth and we will maintain that sustainability during the new term because of it.
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
Being the capital of Poland and its rich historical background, Warsaw is one of the best tourist cities in Europe. PEACE Cross-Cultural Understanding 02/02/2013 03/17/2013 (6 weeks) Warsaw, Poland Core job: Presenting to high school classes about tolerance and understandings of other culture. Intern will present from small town high school to communities. Preparation: Training will administered by Amnesty International, AIESEC, and professional companies. The intern shall prepare a presentation of their home country and bring souvenirs. Working conditions: Interns will have access to their own workspace and internet. Food and living will be provided by host family in Warsaw
POLAND
Warsaw, Poland
International Opportunities
GDANSK, POLAND Being one of the top ten metropolitan cities of Poland, Gdansk holds many of its own prized spots. Some of them surviving from the 17th century. Word of knowledge 07/01/2013 ~ 09/04/2013 (6-7 weeks) Gdansk, Poland Core job: Presenting to various junior high and high schools about a pre-determined topic. Leading discussion about future opportunities with young people. Preparation: Preparing presentation about one’s own country, in association with project partners of 3. Bringing items from one’s country . Working condition: Interns will have access to their own work space via the AIESEC office, including computer and internet access. Accommodations will be provided along with 1 meal per day.
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INDIA
International Opportunities
AHMEDABAD, INDIA Rural Development Project About internship: The Rural Development Project is a movement which encourages people and organizations to “spend one day per week for nation building”. The program educates children in villages to close the gap between urban and rural families. Healthcare, hygiene and employment are also key issues which the program targets. Job description: o Support the educational program, improving childrens welfare according to NGO guidelines. o Women Empowerment Program: Working to uplift the welfare of women to NGO guidelines. o Helping to set up a manufacturing base to create jobs in the area o Fundraising and working with the local AIESEC community
Date and duration: Jan 10 2013 – Feb 28, 2013 Other information: o Intern will be working 3 days/week for the organization and 3 days a week working for AIESEC (Working Saturdays) o Pay is $100. Free food and accommodations can be negotiated. Intern will be required to travel throughout the village.
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
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Brazil
INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
Interested in . . .
Global Citizenship? Human Rights Issues?
Children Education?
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Go on an AIESEC Intership and teach English, Spanish and Computer Skills to the NGO Kids. trainees are going to work in groups of 4 people attending classes for children from 06 to 18 years old. Make Workshops about cultural diversity, personal development, drug prenvention and human rights which has the intention of showing to the childrens a global view of the world and life issues.
INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
Cross-cultural Expeience?
Active Citizenship? Ancient History?
Greece
The interns are going to deliver trainings upon country presentation, cross-cultural shock, global citizen. Participation in other activities in school. Accommodation and food is provided. Greece has many temples and ruins to visit and sightsee. There are lots of museums to visit. It’s also Home of Greek Gods and Goddesses, Greek Myths!
Time to go on an AIESEC internship and gain awesome expeience when meeting lots of
interesting people from all over the world! For more info, visit www.facebook.com/AIESEClaurier 19 c
The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential
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The international platform for young people to explore and develop their leadership potential