AFS Intercultural Programs

AFS wins CANIE Climate Award for reaching young sustainability changemakers in 125 countries! AFS has brought climate and sustainability education to thousands of young people while widening access to international learning and incorporating lower-carbon approaches to their program delivery. The Global STEM Changemakers Initiative, running since 2022, has given fully funded STEM, sustainability and intercultural learning to more than 5,100 young people from 125 countries. Its reach is remarkable. The initiative’s three concentrations of their program are STEM, sustainability, and intercultural education.

AFS offers the incredible opportunity for full scholarships to cover travel, visas, accommodation and connectivity, making their programs more accessible, and encouraging participation in their program. They are also included in partnerships with SPARK and Teach For All. Their goals are to bring in refugee, displaced and Indigenous learners who are usually left out of international education. The programme’s emphasis on inclusion, making sure this kind of education is accessible to all, is what makes this particular programme unique, and worth celebrating. Climate education is integrated into the core of the programme with AFS. Additionally, virtual orientations and facilitated virtual exchange replace travel where they can. When travel is needed, AFS uses public and shared transport. The programme shows substantial reach and a deliberate effort to make international education accessible to young people who might otherwise be excluded.

Giving students the opportunity to learn from peers from a cross-cultural perspective, is perfect for inspiring them to develop similar actions in their own communities. The domino effect will continue on as more people are included in programmes like these where they can learn by observing one another. People learn by example, and AFS shows how sharing positive practices can inspire others to make meaningful changes across the sector. Scholars learn from peers in other countries, then use design thinking to build capstone projects on problems within their own communities. AFS empowers young people to feel capable of developing locally relevant sustainability solutions, in turn impacting the greater field of sustainability beyond their own surroundings.

CANIE judges were impressed by AFS’ programme making climate education “a core part of the curriculum, not just an add-on.” One judge said the model "can be scaled and transferred to other contexts without the need to increase carbon emissions." There is great potential for this programme to be implemented on even broader scales, and adopted by other institutions. Bringing climate education into institutions can be daunting, but AFS sets an incredible example of how programmes can make it happen.

AFS reports more than 2,000 tonnes of participant-travel CO2 offset. The combination of climate education, virtual exchange and lower-carbon travel seen in their programme is clearly relevant to CANIE’s goals, making the initiative align directly with the actions in the CANIE Accord. CANIE’s vision is to embed climate literacy across international education, and AFS’ Global STEM Changemakers initiative does just that. This programme’s scale, accessibility, and intercultural learning opportunities make this initiative stand out. Congratulations to AFS for bringing climate education into the hands of students and young people worldwide!

Congratulations to AFS Intercultural Programs. Would your organisation like to join them as a CANIE Accord signatory?