Working with a dynamic, motivated, value driven, globally minded and talented group of students, endowed with so much potential, is a natural way for ebbf to project its values into the future, assuring their application in the next generation.


Mahmud Samandari - ebbf chair

George Starcher is Founder and President of EBBF. He has initiated the partnership with AIESEC and promoted it with a high level of personal commitment.

Emanuel Gavert, a Swedish student, was member of AIESEC International, the Governing Body of AIESEC, in 2007/2008. Here are their views on the significance and future of the partnership.

 

The mission of EBBF is to promote its seven core values as a means to enhance the well-being and prosperity of humankind. How does the partnership with AIESEC relate to this mission?

George Starcher: For these values to have an effective and lasting impact it is necessary that they be understood, shared, and adhered to by as large an audience as possible. Our experience has shown that youth and young professionals respond very positively to these values. They are more idealistic and open to new concepts and freer to define how they relate to society. Among the youth there are associations and organizations that help their members to define their values, to put them into practice, and, in the case of AIESEC, “to build the future instead of waiting for it.”

 

One of your responsibilities at AI during this past year has been to manage AIESEC’s relationship with EBBF. What value does AIESEC, as a student association, see in a partnership with a value-driven organisation like EBBF?

Emanuel Gavert: When I think about the pressing issues of the world today, ethics, values and beliefs become even more important. They may well be the core long term solution to the prosperity of the world. It's no longer valid to work in isolation or to compete with each other. We must realize the value of partnerships and collaboration on all levels: national, organizational and individual, to really achieve profound and enduring change.

 

How do AIESEC and EBBF fit together?

George Starcher: AIESEC, the largest student-run association in the world, engages over 28,000 young people in over 100 countries in a journey to become responsible citizens of the world. During the past twelve years, EBBF has found AIESEC to be an excellent platform to reach a select audience which is eager to learn, ready to adopt values, and capable of putting them into practice.

Emanuel Gavert: AIESEC has a tradition of enabling the development of change agents, individuals who have the knowledge, network and the drive to really make a difference – this wouldn't have been possible without the evolving partnership that we have developed with EBBF. It's hard to imagine the impact that the 12 years' relationship has had on AIESEC globally.

 

What makes EBBF a choice partner for AIESEC?

Emanuel Gavert: The knowledge and the embodied values of the EBBF members who interact with AIESECers around the world is an invaluable contribution in helping AIESEC achieve our vision.

George Starcher: What EBBF can contribute is an articulation of its values and our disinterested efforts to help these students realize their dream by sharing our success stories with them and by showing them that it is worth trying.

 

Several EBBF members have contributed to AIESEC over the years, as keynote speakers, workshop leaders or advisers. What motivates these busy personalities to give time to AIESEC?

George Starcher: Many EBBF members have found this collaboration to be personally rewarding, an enriching experience, and a way to put their own values into practice.

 

How do you see the future of this partnership?

George Starcher: The Governing Board of EBBF considers its relationship with AIESEC to be one of its most important external activities. We would like to increase this collaboration both at the international and national levels. We are also interested in contacts with alumni of AIESEC which might contribute to reinforcing these same values which they embraced as members of AIESEC.

Emanuel Gavert: The key challenge going forward is to ensure that our partnership continues to evolve and that we manage to connect with the change agents after they leave AIESEC. I believe a natural step – for me and for our new alumni - could be a membership in EBBF because through that we can connect with value driven individuals who really believe in the beauty of this world.