In 2016, the European Federation for Intercultural Learning (EFIL) and AFS Asia and the Pacific Initiative (AAI) worked together in developing a program proposal referred to as Global Citizenship Trimester Program (GCTP), which obtained the approval and funding support of the European Commission Erasmus+ program following a two-phase execution—planning and program development (2017) and program launch with exchanges between select EFIL and AAI countries (2018).
After series of meetings involving the steering committee and program participants from eight European (Austria, Germany, Portugal, Iceland, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Italy) and seven Asian (Philippines, Indonesia, India, Malaysia, Thailand, Japan, and China) countries, the GCTP program evolved into a trimester program that highlights an upgraded AFS program with the addition of carefully curated content on global citizenship education and active projects. Participants of the program are expected to carry out research on current global issues whilst tackling them with their host communities (GC in You), as well as render ten-hour community service with final report to be presented during their end-of-stay camp (ACTIVE Project) in Brussels (for Asian participants) and Kuala Lumpur (for European participants). These valuable additions led to the retitling of the program as Peace in Europe and Asia through Global Citizenship Education (PEACE).
This year, with a program content developed and prepared, the pilot group of participants will be exchanged between the participating EFIL and AAI countries with final camps in Brussels in April for Asian participants hosted in European partners, and Kuala Lumpur in September for European participants hosted in Asian partners. In both camps, external organizations interested in learning about the outcome of the program are welcome to meet the participants.
The PEACE program is inspired from the success of the European Citizenship Trimester Program (ECTP), which has been implemented by EFIL for almost a decade with an average number of participants reaching up to 250 annually.