As an organisation of 24 AFS member organisations in Europe and beyond, we support our members in their work and provide them with valuable opportunities and resources. We support and empower them in their advocacy efforts at national level, in diversifying and improving their intercultural learning offer and in developing their volunteer networks.
Our work
We work to expand access to inclusive and high-quality intercultural mobility by increasing inclusivity, diversification and quality of intercultural learning opportunities and fostering active citizenship through volunteerism and intercultural learning experiences, while supporting our member organisations and creating partnerships with like-minded organisations.
Our areas of impact
Volunteer network
We foster active participation of volunteers through active citizenship education, intercultural learning, and mobility opportunities. We aim at providing them with opportunities to share, learn and network with other volunteers from all over Europe and beyond, and to build a solid European network of volunteers that support each other and work together towards the advancement of the AFS mission.
Internationalisation of schools
We help schools and teachers boost their skills in intercultural learning and advance in internationalisation of schools. We offer our expertise as a leading non-profit to help schools implement high quality Erasmus+ activities and we organise teacher trainings to prepare and support schools in promoting Individual Pupil Mobility. At AFS, we believe that education is the cornerstone of creating a more just, equitable, peaceful, and sustainable world. By engaging with AFS, schools, and educators get the tools and support they need to integrate intercultural learning and global citizenship education into their classrooms.
PEACE - Active citizenship
We work to promote active citizenship and young people’s sense of initiative as well as intercultural dialogue, recognition of diversity and promotion of tolerance. With that purpose, EFIL organises the PEACE Programme (Peace through Exchange and Active Citizenship Education Programme), a secondary school trimester exchange programme which aims at empowering and enabling young people to become active citizens.
EU-funded projects
We are part of impactful EU-funded projects in collaboration with external partners with the aim of advancing in the fields of intercultural learning, global competences, internationalisation of schools and active citizenship through learning mobility.
From local to European: a Trainers Network for Active Global Citizenship
A Trainers Network for Active Global Citizenship from local to European (TAC), is an Erasmus+ co-funded project that seeks to increase the quality and capacity of volunteer youth work by offering training and structured learning paths based on Active Global Citizenship.
Empowering teachers for automatic recognition
Following up on the work carried out by the “Expert Network on Recognition of outcomes of learning periods abroad in general secondary education” in 2020-2021, the ETAR project aimed at implementing the European Council’s recommendation on automatic recognition for learning periods abroad.
Expanding Learning Mobility
Erasmus+ funded project to explore cooperation between schools and pupil mobility organisations within Erasmus+ to make mobility more inclusive.
Global Competence for Teacher Education
Erasmus+ funded project to develop future teachers who are globally competent and have the skills to develop global competence in their students.
Intercultural Learning for Pupils and Teachers
Providing teachers and youth workers offering activities in schools new methods and tools to promote intercultural dialogue in order to prepare pupils for living in diverse societies and working in a global labour market.
Youth Mobility in the Euro‑Mediterranean
Supporting youth workers and organisations to develop and run mobility opportunities between Europe and the South Mediterranean — promoting common EU values and helping to challenge stereotypes and xenophobia through learning and exchange.