Attending International Congress in Egypt – A young leader’s perspective

As we have indicated in our first blog post, this past August AIESEC hosted International Congress – a conference of 800 youth delegates – in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. Hosting such a large event in a country going through an intense political situation proved to be challenging but rewarding for the organisation, giving us a renewed sense of purpose.

The Local Committee President of AIESEC Michigan, Domenic Smith, was lucky enough to attend International Congress in Egypt in August. He was able to share his experience on the AIESEC Unites States Alumni Association blog this week. Here are some of his thoughts:

“Flying into Cairo for AIESEC’s 65th International Congress is an experience that I will never forget. I did not go to the pyramids and I did not get to see the cradle of society like many who traveled to Egypt before me. Instead, I witnessed something far more profound.

I saw a country that was truly in chaos, a country that was starving for new leadership. AIESEC’s presence of over 800 delegates from 124 countries at IC, at such a volatile time in Egypt’s history, showed me the true passion and dedication that this organization and its members have toward developing globally minded leaders to try and make the world a better place. AIESEC did not give up on Egypt and cancel the conference, which would have been very easy to do. We did not boycott the conference because it endangered us or because our governments warned against it. Instead, as an international plenary, we demonstrated the support that we have for AIESEC Egypt and the belief that we, the AIESEC community, have that one day the members of AIESEC Egypt will become the leaders that their country needs to restore peace and prosperity.

The world came together at IC for the 65th time to show that we believe in the impact that young people can have on creating a brighter and more accepting future. Experiencing 124 countries, united by a mission, working together to fulfill AIESEC’s 2015 goals was an incredibly powerful experience. When do you ever have the chance to see 124 countries work together towards one common goal?”

To read more about Domenic’s experience, check out the rest of the post here.  

Did you attend International Congress 2013 in Egypt? What was your experience like?

Be Your own Superhero

A Leader? The man in the spotlight. The speaker. The big guy everyone listens to.

When I asked around what a ‘leader’ meant to the people, this is the response I got. ‘Leadership’ got a longer, more diverse definition, almost one too many. To a girl, leadership was the quality to stand up against injustice and inspire people to protest. To someone else, leadership was having the guts to be the spearhead of something unusual but undoubtedly required.

The action of leading people. This is, at its most basic, what leadership is. But this is a generalised idea, and this generation is not fond of generalisations anymore. Leadership could be an idea. Leadership could be a psychology. Leadership could be a philosophy. Many a times, Philosophy is swept aside as the business of the old thinkers. Not true, folks, not true.

Aristotle once said, everyone adheres to a philosophy whether he is aware of it or not. A general pattern of behaviour is followed by every individual, which is conscious or unconscious, consistent and adequate, more or less. This guiding pattern in a person’s life is his philosophy. And the philosophy of a leader is to take the first step. Leaders are the game changers. They are the ones who begin the revolutions, they are the ones who initiate changes, and they are the ones who actually make a difference. They are, then, the people who make history.

Rulers and governments declare wars. But it is the youth that revolutionises the state. It is the youth that brings back the balance. And hence, being the youth of today, it is our duty to pull this world from the dark abyss of decay that it is catapulting towards.

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Becoming a leader is not impossible. It requires only an honest will to initiate. Leadership is an act. It is an act as pure as a poet composing a verse, or a painter painting the Tuscan sun. You only have to take action. As simple as the stroke of a brush, all you need to do is take a step. Yes, the path might be tough and the sky tempestuous, but have you never thought, that if the world remains as it is, and still keep growing, then how much worse it can get? With our zeal, our vigour, and our curiosity, we can change the world. So why wait for someone else to be our guardian angel? Why not become the superhero yourself? Let them old people make a movie on us. Just us normal people, without the cape and the mask, ready to save the world.

The one question that arises is: how? How do we become the leader, how do we come to know what’s happening around the world? People, this is where AIESEC comes in. It provides with a platform where you can stand and call to your fellow human beings to take action. An organisation which was formed when the world was damaged and bleeding, AIESEC is your answer to all questions. Step up and join in. It will change your life.

Written By: Tanuf Khan

That Extra Edge

Imagine a world where we are all functioned to do the same things – starting off from a morning walk to graduating from universities in the same way. In fact we can put our imagination away and get our realities checked. Millions of students join colleges with similar dreams. The world today is inundated with numerous engineers, aspiring doctors and competent lawyers, all in the making. How easy or difficult is it to stand out? With all the extra credits showing up with pride on assessment or grade cards, placements cells, corporate offices and law firms have the fundamental limitation of fewer openings. Even the world of business is not very welcoming of new entrants, it is all about competition.

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Robert Frost poetically put us all into the dilemma of choice-making – the road less travelled or the road that was worn out by the footsteps of experience? It is risky business – we are unsure of the places we might go and we fear the possibility of bad consequences. Yes, the beauty of ‘follow your instincts’ is a bygone overthrown by ‘don’t bother’. After all, what is that extra edge the youth have set out to search for?

Personal development: What is being is implied is the need for activities that enhance the awareness, knowledge and identity of an individual undergoing the process, develop human potential and facilitate competence, confidence and even employability. And all of this is garnished with an enriched quality of life by contributing to personal targets’, or in fairy-tale terms, dreams’ achievement. Complex? Not really. The idea is to challenge ourselves with situations or doings that will directly push us into our zone of ‘learning’ and awareness. It is said that the vibrancy of the young and the experience of the old together can make magic. Why wait for the age to wither, when now is the time?

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Experiential learning is solution to the all those questions up here. Just how as children we always understood the science of inertia better while experiencing that jerk on a moving bus, experiential learning carves us new niches to explore. We have found ours at AIESEC. What are you waiting for? We will be back with more food for thought, until then, just EwA! Engage with AIESEC!

Written By: Priyadarshini Kumar

AIESEC finds itself surrounded by brilliant leaders at the Social Good Summit

Happy Monday everyone!

This week I have been given the fantastic opportunity by our lovely UN representatives, Tami and Eliane, to attend Mashable’s Social Good Summit at the 92Y in New York City.

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The Social Good Summit is a three-day conference where big ideas meet new media to create innovative solutions. Held during UN Week from 22-24 September, the Social Good Summit unites a dynamic community of global leaders to discuss a big idea: the power of innovative thinking and technology to solve our greatest challenges.

I started off the day in the Digital Media Lounge, where hundreds of journalists and bloggers gathered to watch the day’s events and surrounded themselves with camera equipment and gadgets. It really felt like the “blogger-sphere” for me. I have never seen anything like it!

The organisers at Mashable and the United Nations Foundation have really done a great job bringing the right profile of speakers – previous heads of state, current United Nations representatives, entrepreneurs, activists and celebrities – to speak about development, the world we live in and how we need to act to eradicate poverty.

I spent most of the day absorbing the knowledge in the room, meeting fantastic social entrepreneurs and even meeting some AIESEC alumni!

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You may recognise this amazing and approachable fellow – the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations – Jan Eliasson, whom is an AIESEC alum and supporter from AIESEC Sweden. I spoke to him after his keynote around the Human Right of Water and Sanitation for all. He remembers his AIESEC years with joy and sends his regards and support to AIESEC’s entire network.

One of the main themes of the day seemed to be around young people and development, and their push for a better world.  Some of the most high-profile speakers – from HRH Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway and Paul Polman, CEO of Unilever, to Ben Keesey of Invisible Children Inc. and Helen Clark, the administrator of the UNDP – spoke about this generations ability to speak up and act swiftly to create the change they want to see. They even brought people in who demonstrated these actions; one of the most impressive for me being Jessica O. Matthews of Unchartered Play, Inc. who created a soccer ball that when played with generates electricity.

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If there is a lesson I have learned from the first days of Social Good Summit, it’s that there are a lot of young people that are trying to take action and are doing some pretty cool things. There are also a lot of platforms – like Ryot.org and Change.org – that help young people to take action when they don’t know how. What we need to make sure happens, is that all groups – from youth and corporate to government and civil society – come together to put in all efforts for the last 900 days of the 2015 Millennium Development Goals so that whatever comes next does not seem so difficult.

Social Good Events are happening all over the world in conjunction with the Social Good Summit. AIESEC in Brazil has been supporting the creation and organization of Social Good Brazil Seminar on the 24th of September that will be available via livestream with English translation.

Check out their website for more information (www.socialgoodbrasil.org.br/2013/live) or follow the conversation on twitter by using @socialgoodbr, #socialgood and #2030NOW

The end of the IANYD and ICMYO Meetings – just the start of AIESEC’s involvement with the United Nations

Hello again everyone.

I have been quite absent over the last few days, I know. I actually have been running around from meeting to meeting to event to meeting, and it has been an amazing experience.

I have taken part in the IANYD – Inter-Agency Network for Youth Development- Meeting as well as the ICMYO – International Coordination Meeting of Youth Organizations- Meeting over the last four days. As I indicated in my last post, this is the first time AIESEC has participated actively in these types of United Nations affiliated events in a very long time, so this week has been very informative for myself and for AIESEC as an organisation.

We are much more aware of the strategic focuses of the United Nations when it comes to youth, and specifically what the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth Ahmed Alhendawi is trying to push within the United Nations. Even more importantly, we have identified points of collaboration with other youth organisations; something AIESEC has been very happy to do for a few years now.

I really believe that AIESEC now can see many more ways we can contribute to the United Nations work, and how we can continue to fight for the World We Want with other youth organisations around the world. Working with other youth groups to make sure that the youth agenda is pushed, is listened to, and is committed to by member states is how we will make it happen. Youth have spoken up, and have already started taking action – it is time for our leaders to help us make it happen.