Ever since I heard about this quality in AIESEC, I was always intrigued to it. Always wanted to strengthen it and valued it the most. Even when I went on my volunteer experience in Egypt, World Citizen was the quality I mostly wanted to develop. But what was is it so cool about this leadership quality?

I asked five people, who went on an exchange, about what in their exchange was so empowering and how it made them feel World Citizens, and this is what they answered:

What made me feel Ι am a world citizen was being with those disabled children from the NGO in Egypt. Even if we were just spending time together, that was one of the most empowering moments for me which made me realize that this world is so diverse and unique, and I, as a human being, I can get involved in so many things to make a contribution in someone’s life, from any country in this world.

                                                                                                                                                                   Simina, Romania

Being a World Citizen means to be interested in global issues and act upon them. It means that I believe in my ability to change the world; and this project made it happen. Even if I wasn’t able to grant these people the desired asylum, I really believed that I contributed a bit to their integration in the Finnish society, making them smile and get carried away by their constant worry that they might be deported. Now I definitely know more about refugees’ crisis, its causes and repercussions.

                                                                                                                                                                    Ilias, Greece

For 21 years I was sure that Poland is my only home in the world. I was born and I grew up in this beautiful country in Europe. If you would ask me if Poland is my only home country now, I would say no. After going on exchange to Sri Lanka and then to India I found my 2 more homes in the world. Living more than 6 weeks in each of this countries gave me my new places. During this time I could learn about new culture. My day wasn’t starting from a sandwich with cheese like in Poland, instead of this, I was eating rice. My life was looking different in my new homes. Going for Global Volunteer isn’t only about participating in a project but living in a new place too. Thanks to this you can feel like World Citizen and have more places in the world as a home.

                                                                                                                                                                   Annie, Poland

I think the fact that I”m part of a community of interns from all over the world working for almost the same goals was what empowered me more so it’s kinda related to the world citizen part because working with people from different nationalities and getting along with them and working together to achieve something is what empowered me and what made me feel a world citizen also .                                                                                                              

                                                                                                                                                                   Ali, Morroco

As you can see above, whether it was contributing to a bigger cause, expanding your horizons and understanding more than one culture, all these people experienced a new culture that was eye-opening. What I understand after these narrating and my personal experience is that the coolest thing about being a World Citizen is that experiences like these change your status quo and make you more aware of the world you live in holistically.

If you want to taste the awesomeness of being a World Citizen, grab the chance and go to one of our opportunities through aiesec.org