How to organize your own trip!

Have you thought of organizing an intercultural study trip with IFIL? Organizing your own trip comes with great responsibility and entails quite a bit of work. In return you will get an unforgettable experience by leading a group of interested young people to your chosen destination. IFIL will support you and help you to organize your trip. The interveiw below shall demonstrate that although at first organizing a trip might seem an insurmountable task, it is absolutely doable. And will be a lot of fun at the same time!

Please find below an interview with the co-organizer of the last year's trip to Brazil, Séverine Erismann.

Hi Sevi! You organized this year’s intercultural study trip to Brazil. What do you do when you’re not working for IFIL?
I am 24 and currently doing a Masters in Development Studies with a focus on sustainable development in Geneva. I love to travel, to experience other cultures and to be active in life.

How did you get to know about IFIL? What was your motivation when you decided to organize the intercultural study trip to Brazil?
I have known IFIL for a couple of years, but never thought of organizing a study trip myself. However, on a sunny winter morning in February, I got a phone call from a long lost friend from high school – Adrian Mahlstein - asking me if I was interested in co-organizing this trip with him. That was it, I was in. The idea behind the IFIL study trips plus the possibility of putting together a program, getting a group together, organizing the meetings and at the end being part of it, were very appealing to me.

What where the biggest challenges before and during the study trip?
One of the biggest challenges in the preparation phase of the trip was recruiting enough participants for the study trip to take place. We also organized a number of movie screenings, rented rooms for events, sent out emails, and did a lot of preparatory work.
Our main challenges during the trip were more of an organizational kind: due to our very multifaceted program, we had a couple of meetings per day which was challenging in terms of transportation – getting to different places and being there on time. Furthermore, Brazilian time interpretation did not make it easier- our bus drivers often took it quite easy, came a couple of hours late or even spontaneously decided to take a day off.

Would you recommend someone to organize an intercultural study trip with IFIL?
Yes! It is like having your own little project. You can choose the destinations, put together a program, contact interesting people, organize encounters and finally, you can show the participants “your” country, in all a sweet experience!

Anything you would warn people from?
Organizing a trip involves many aspects, in the preparation phase, but also many responsibilities during the trip. At times, it is quite time consuming and exhausting, but at the end, it is very rewarding, thus absolutely worth it.

Why was it such a good experience?
It is a unique opportunity to give the participants the opportunity to look behind closed doors, and to be able to organize high panel meetings with representatives from the government, companies, and civil society.
The group composition is also exceptional – motivated young people/students, who are curious about the country, show interest in the current issues, participate,… This all adds up to a great group dynamic and an amazing experience.

Please describe with three words your feeling before, during, and after the trip.
Curious, excited, and happy!