On the brink of the 21st century, the AFS looks to the future with optimism, confident in the ideals, the enthusiasm and energy of its flourishing worldwide network of Partners.

The ambulance drivers of the old American Field Service in World War II---so very long ago now---were all volunteers. We were there because we felt a duty to serve. Steve Galatti, who had been an American Field Service driver in World War I, joined with other veterans of that era to organize AFS in 1939, 1940. He recruited capable commanders and attracted young volunteer drivers. (I was 19 and my brother 18 when we went overseas in 1943.)

Galatti and his friends set up a network of supporters and local chapters in the United States to raise money for ambulances and running expenses. He and others persuaded Allied governments to allow the ambulance units to be attached to active military units, and to serve. So serve we did: in France, the Middle East, Italy, India-Burma, and western Europe. The enthusiasm, the determination to contribute, the improvisation of those days are the very features of the AFS exchange organization we know today.

AFS---the student exchange organization, the idealistic movement, the blend of energetic managers and volunteers, the extraordinary rallying point for an adventurous education of 10,000 young people every year---has everything ahead of it. It is a minor irony that this talk of the 50th Anniversary may cause some of the loyal older members to doze off into a sentimental millennial nap! Better to look at the open hearts of the skillful and generous people all over the world who make this young experiment work, and the open minds of the students whose new cultural experiences are the reason why AFS matters so much.

AFS communications run now on Global Link, our very own piece of Internet gear. It is cheap, instantaneous and perhaps a bit homogenizing; computer networks press us toward a certain procedural uniformity.

Trade, finance, and much education are already more or less global, and worldwide competition will accelerate these trends. An understanding of how to operate in the interdependent global scene will be crucial, and those who have had the intense early experience of living across cultures will be able to enjoy a significant advantage. Even as the world grows smaller, the differences of culture, language and attitude will be important.

Language, history, cultural style, and politics are great preservers of cultural uniqueness. The AFS message, "Walk Together, Talk Together," is not at all a plea for homogeneity. Quite the opposite. We intend it as a way to gain an understanding of others, but also to stand with them in their efforts to hold onto and enhance their identities of origin.

From the first years of AFS student exchanges right up to the present (and, we must promise ourselves, well into the future), it has been our aim to honor individual and cultural differences, not to diminish them or scrub them away. That is what I mean by the notion that we will be living in the Global Crazy-Quilt.

The Partnership system puts operational and financial responsibilities squarely on each of the 50-odd Partners. At the same time, each Partner counts on all the others to adhere to the basic values of AFS and maintain the high standards of care and service to the students who are entrusted to us each year by their proud and anxious parents. Further, we have to be efficient managers of this process at every point, from selection to placement to eventual return home. As we are more aware than ever, international student exchanges are available through many organizations, both for-profit and not-for-profit. If we are at all slack, or wasteful of resources, competition will do us in.

In the early years of student exchange beginning in 1947, AFS was an organization of "bilateral" exchanges, with every student either coming to the United States from another country or being sent from the U.S. to another country. Administration from New York was centralized, and with Steve Galatti as the leader, it was highly personal. The idea of student exchange proved irresistibly attractive in the postwar years as a way to promote international understanding and to give young people a new, peaceable adventure. As a result the AFS grew steadily.

Later we invented multilateral exchanges, in which the United States was not necessarily the sender or the host country. AFS has since become a truly international organization not only in operations but in its governance. It became evident that the AFS administration and trustees should reflect more fully the international character of the organization. Recruiting able staff who were members of other nationalities was easy, especially because of the growing number of offices in various countries and the growing number of AFS returnees who wanted to help manage the expanding organization.

Changing the trustees was more complicated. In the early 1970s, I served on a committee that came up with a plan whereby new trustees of other nationalities would be appointed so that in a few years about half of them would be from countries other than the United States. From there, the big steps in administration and governance were the invention of Partnership, and the election of trustees a matter of annual vote of the Partners. Each national AFS organization, as a Partner, is responsible for its own management and finances, and it participates in student exchanges with many initiatives of its own. Each Partner has a vote in annual balloting to elect trustees.

What we find, so far, is that we are able to make this system work, but that a great deal of goodwill and energy is required to overcome inevitable differences of perspective and interests. Some AFS Partners are much larger than others. Some are much richer than others. Some manage their activities more skillfully than others. Adjustments in financial formulas and policies and procedures for sending and hosting, or problems of the viability of exchanges in a particular country, can cause minor or major crises. So issues are resolved partly by goodwill, partly by problem-solving (innumerable task forces on this and that) and partly by politics.

It is no easy matter to gain active consensus in such a thoroughly decentralized framework. In microcosm, we are an organization much like the United Nations, except that we have no Security Council or peacekeeping forces!

To have a worthwhile mission, AFS would not necessarily have to grow remarkably in numbers of students exchanged or in numbers of country partners, but most of us who believe in what we are doing think that year-by-year growth is indeed a good idea. More exciting and more difficult is spotting new opportunities. Here, individual partner initiatives may help to point the way.

AFS should not and will not doze off into nostalgia! We have much to offer, and a highly varied world to work in. I find it immensely gratifying to look to our future, as we discover new ways to volunteer and to serve.

In 1997 AFS is launching a year-long high school student exchange program in China. This will be the first time that the government of the People's Republic of China has approved sending students in the 16- to 18year age bracket on long-term programs. In this start-up year over 40 students from China will sojourn in at least five countries around the world.

AFS originally had a program with China in 1948-1949, but not until recently have there been further student exchanges. In the early 1980s, however, AFS strengthened its ties with China by starting the Visiting Teachers Program (VTP) in coordination with the Chinese Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE). The CEAIE is a branch of the State Education Commission handling international initiatives.

AFS has been developing its new year-long student program through contacts with CEAIE, local schools and former Chinese participants from the VTP. While the main objective of the initiative is to set up student exchanges, AFS also hopes to build a Partner organization based on Chinese volunteer participation. Development strategy will focus on schools that have been involved in AFS programs over the past 16 years and on former VTP participants.

AFS Partners have responded enthusiastically to the initiative. Following a recent visit to Beijing, the international administration contacted a number of them to relate what progress had been made and to see if they could assist. Within a matter of days, five Partners had agreed to host 25 students on the Northern Hemisphere cycle and to raise the necessary funds to cover hosting. Richard Spencer commented: "This very positive response from Partners illustrates how, when we work together on major new initiatives, we can bring together resources and expertise from around the AFS world to make important breakthroughs in our programs."

Given the vast population and size of China, the AFS program will be targeted in the first year to a few provinces where there are returnee teachers and CEAIE has a good relationship with local schools-Beijing, Tianjin and Shanghai. These areas are Mandarin-speaking, which increases the appeal for Partners, and limited AFS programs for students and adults have been hosted previously in China. The most critical factor in selecting schools to participate in the new program will be whether they have Visiting Teachers Programs returnees. This is crucial for developing a volunteer network.

There have already been bilateral programs linking southern China with AFS Partners Australia and Hong Kong. Another bilateral program is the student program PRCYPJPN sponsored by the Sasagawa Foundation. Ten students will participate in 1998-1999 from provinces in China (inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang Province, Jilin).

The topic of hosting in China is already under study. It is anticipated that the first students from abroad to participate in the Year Program will probably be placed in dormitories, going weekends to families in the Beijing and Tianjin areas.

In a letter to Richard Spencer, Mr. Li Tao, the President of CEAIE wrote: "...our two organizations have made successful cooperation for a long time." Mr. Tao went on to express an interest in further discussing the possibility of expanding future exchanges between CEAIE and AFS, CEAIE, like AFS, has a tradition of commitment to the development of education and to the promotion of world peace and progress. It is AFS's hope to contribute not only to the growth but also the quality of interaction between China and other countries.

As it was conceived more than 50 years ago by AFSs founders, the simple act of placing a young person with a fresh, open mind in a completely different cultural context is still relevant and full of impact today.

For students, AFS is an adventure in learning that far outlasts the program itself. Living with a host family, attending school and socializing in another culture enhances their understanding of the differences and similarities which unite all humankind. They come to realize the connection they share with their global neighbors.

It is not always easy. Participants are confronted with values, habits, and beliefs that they may initially perceive to be in conflict with their own. Through the home-stay experience and daily life in another culture, students begin to understand, respect and even embrace the differences. They also learn that the problems and triumphs of their own societies are not so different from those of their host culture.

The breakthrough occurs when students begin to acknowledge and respect the value of different approaches to problem-solving. Through the challenges of being confronted with new ideas and attitudes, participants come to understand that many different perspectives may exist on the same issue. They also begin to understand that peoples of the world are interdependent for their very survival. They see the importance of their individual responsibilities to have a positive effect that reaches beyond their own community or nation. Seeing themselves as members of a global community, their notion of citizenship takes on new meaning.

AFS has always recognized the unique potential of young people as a force for change. But when students realize that they can work in solidarity with peoples from other walks of life, their efforts and commitment are elevated even further. They approach issues, globally and locally, with the skills and attitudes that are a direct result of their heightened empathy and mutual respect.

Bridging the gulf between global issues and local action has become a new priority for AFS. The aim is to deepen the awareness among participants that global citizenship requires more than simply learning another language and understanding culturally diverse traditions. It requires commitment to action at the community level. To understand the prejudices, abuses and injustices abroad is to look critically at one's own culture and community and take action. The blight of bigotry, intolerance, inequality and environmental degradation are all issues which, when addressed locally, have a global impact.

Numerous programs are being developed throughout the AFS world that institutionalize the notion of "Think globally. Act locally," For example, AFS USA and AFS Costa Rica have launched an Intensive Program that focuses on environmental studies in Costa Rica's national parks. Participants gain an in-depth understanding of the fragile ecological balance which knows no national borders. Students learn that what they do, positively or negatively, has an impact on the environment elsewhere in the world.

Regardless of program content or the country where students are placed, the hallmark of the AFS experience is still the thorough orientation and support of participants. AFS believes that students stand to gain far more from the experience when their minds are prepared to cope with the stress and challenges of an intercultural experience. Then, once the experience is underway, AFS offers ongoing support throughout the duration of the program.

It is the rare combination of volunteer support, schools, host families, community involvement, orientations and sound program content that makes the AFS experience far more than simply a sojourn abroad. The AFS formula for intercultural learning is changing the lives of the people who are changing our world.

With 50 successful years now behind our organization, AFS looks confidently to the coming of the new millennium and our place in it. As technology, travel and communication make the world an ever smaller place, AFS and its mission remains as relevant as ever. What might the next decade bring?

Exciting new developments will always be a part of such a vibrant, dynamic organization as AFS. The current program expansion in Africa and Eastern Europe is poised to continue. New national links will expand in both regions to meet the needs of young people, families and professionals who seek to explore wider horizons. Similarly, the recent active re-entry into our programs of the People's Republic of China will provide a springboard for AFS to touch new parts of this vast country and to explore new types of program options. And, in other regions, small states like those in the South Pacific might enter our network; perhaps as outlying chapters of larger partners. It is quite likely that the programs of the 21st century will burgeon beyond long programs into specialized experiences of shorter duration-experiences which, for instance, might be highly focused on professional, vocational or cultural activities in shorter, more intensive and structured situations.

Our programs of the future will bring new meanings to the concept of intercultural learning. Perhaps AFS might provide opportunities for intercultural professionals to sharpen their knowledge, skills and attitudes in ways which can be rewarded with specialized qualifications that will be valued in an increasingly global workforce. And, certainly, young people---more and more---will undertake AFS assignments which will directly involve them in learning about and helping to solve local issues in such fields as social work and human service, education and development. The AFSers of the next decade might find themselves, too, in placements in some of the world's trouble spots with the opportunity to meet the intercultural demands which arise from conflict and difference, tension and poverty.

Our finances in the next decade are likely to come from quite different sources than is the case today as AFS forges not just new links with other organizations but also develops new strategic alliances with foundations, public organizations and NGOs which seek to impact in a global world and whose resources, combined with the AFS networks and skills, will become available to foster new fields of intercultural learning activity. Hopefully, the AFS of the next half-century will be perceived worldwide as a significant educational organization---one which provides participants with learning experiences that will be recognized as being as equally valid as those provided by schools and colleges.

Many of the things we do well now will stand us in good stead in the future, although we will have to continue to do them even more successfully. In a world of changing work patterns, being a volunteer is likely to become even more important and demanding as people find this type of "work" to be more meaningful and rewarding than ever. In a world of hi-tech communications, AFS has been quick to implement electronic communications systems---a move which will both expand and lessen in cost in the coming years. However, in a world which seeks human understanding, it is unlikely that "virtual exchange" will ever take the place of an AFS experience in whatever shape it may occur. And, in a world which emphasizes quality, our efforts must continue to be diligent as we strive to provide the best possible program experiences without compromise as we seek to remain ahead of the competition.

Organizations which survive in the next five decades will need to be flexible and adaptable as they respond to rapidly changing world and local scenes. They will need to be innovative and creative as they strive to solve problems which they have never faced before. In fact, these were the very qualities which gave birth to AFS a half-century ago. The former drivers, at that time, had such qualities in abundance. Their concern was not with the trauma of the past but with the possibilities of the future.

As the first 50 years draws to a close, AFS people around the globe should celebrate the occasion. They should, too, feel confident of an organization which is in good shape; an organization which has contributed in a unique way on the world stage over a sustained period of time without ever losing sight of its roots, its traditions and its vision for a better world. We have a proud history of successfully responding to the needs of our societies and of ensuring our survival into the future. There is every reason to have confidence in the AFS network of partners as, together, we face the next 50 years!

AFS Intercultural Programs, Inc., is a participating member of the following international organizations:

Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) of the United
Nations, Category II Consultative Status
Department of Public Information, United Nations
International Exchange Association
The International Society for Intercultural Education,
Training and Research (SIETAR)

AFS Partner organizations in many countries maintain affiliations with their respective national youth councils and other national or regional governmental and non-governmental organizations.

The European Federation for Intercultural Learning (EFIL) is the umbrella organization for the AFS Partners in Europe, has consultative status with the Council of Europe and with UNESCO, and is a member of the European Youth Forum. EFIL co-operates with and is a member of many European education and youth organizations.

Additional Information Concerning Student Programs Sources Further Reading Photo Credits Calling All Collectors Acknowledgments

STUDENT PROGRAMS

(incl. YP96/97, SEM+SP/IP96)

		Year Program		Short Programs		Semester Prg.		ALL	ALL
		sending	hosting	sending	hosting	sending	hosting	SENDING	HOSTING	TOTAL
NORTH AMERICA
Canada	1976-current	2'763	3139	260	529	33	0	3'056	3'668	6'724
United States	1947-current	26'028	110'640	57'558	3'142	876	62	84'462	113'844	198'306
C. AMERICA & CARIBBEAN
Belize	1977-78	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1
Costa Rica	1955-current	2'513	1'249	71	1'554	0	182	2'584	2'985	5'569
Dominican Republic	1962-current	716	466	134	344	4	0	854	810	1'664
Eastern Caribbean	1984-current	267	253	0	67	0	0	267	320	587
Barbados	1961-84	275	13	0	99	0	0	275	112	387
El Salvador	1969-80	81	1	0	22	0	0	81	23	104
Guatemala	1956-81, 1987-current	662	239	0	75	0	0	662	314	976
Honduras	1963-current	1'001	644	1	303	0	73	1'002	1'020	2'022
Jamaica	1982-current	438	492	38	71	1	0	477	563	1'040
Mexico	1976-current	1'016	1'229	39	367	0	2	1'055	1'598	2'653
Nicaragua	1955-56, 1963-79	37	0	0	13	0	0	37	13	50
Panama	1959-current	712	398	14	278	0	1	726	677	1'403
Puerto Rico	1983-current	202	325	14	0	1	1	217	326	543
SOUTH AMERICA
Argentina	1955-current	3'535	1'413	133	1'865	168	133	3'836	3'411	7'247
Bolivia	1956-current	1'237	764	0	482	0	40	1'237	1'286	2'523
Brazil	1956-current	7'225	3'123	80	3'296	0	169	7'305	6'588	13'893
Chile	1958-current	3'291	1'205	18	1'118	23	106	3'332	2'429	5'761
Colombia	1959-current	2'120	478	3	1'007	0	11	2'123	1'496	3'619
Ecuador	1948-current	2'350	11090	29	1'063	7	1	2'386	2'154	4'540
Paraguay	1963-current	1'179	648	28	735	0	68	1'207	1'451	2'658
Peru	1959-current	1'445	404	0	934	0	2	1'445	1'340	2'785
Uruguay	1952-90	886	230	12	446	0	0	898	676	1'574
Venezuela	1959-current	1'744	1'369	53	493	0	6	1'797	1'868	3'665
EUROPE
Andorra	1960-61	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1
Austria	1949-current	3'1166	1'422	0	1'403	96	1	3'262	2'826	6'088
Belgium	1948-92	3'099	1'772	15	1'233	0	0	3'114	3'005	6'119
Flanders	1992-current	742	430	5	22	25	0	772	452	1'224
French	1992-current	446	288	4	67	18	0	468	355	823
Cyprus	1963-90	311	15	0	73	0	0	311	88	399
Czechoslovakia	1947-49, 1990-92	34	45	27	23	0	0	61	68	129
Czech Republic	1992-current	109	121	1	18	0	0	110	139	249
Slovakia	1992-current	124	125	30	9	0	0	154	134	288
Denmark	1948-current	5'430	2'491	0	1'257	1	11	5'431	3'759	9'1190
Estonia	1947-49	4	0	0	0	0	0	4	0	4
Finland	1948-current	4'530	1'236	33	2'319	0	24	4'563	3'579	8142
France	1947-current	6156	2'717	214	3'076	0	56	6'370	5'849	12'2119
Germany	1948-current	12'190	4'652	23	7'1159	0	152	12'213	11'963	24'176
Greece	1947-1992	1'162 62	174	55	1'510 0	0	0	1'217	1'684	2'901
Hungary	1947-49, 1990-current	219	237	35	26	0	0	254	263	517
Iceland	1957-current	1'693	418	374	414	0	0	2'067	832	2'899
Ireland	1975-89, 1997-current	207	64	0	141	0	0	207	205	412
Italy	1948-current	6'919	2'690	1'042	2'840	217	149	8'178	5'679	13'857
Latvia	1992-current	161	140	0	21	0	0	161	161	322
Luxemburg	1953-89	324	131	8	80	0	0	332	211	543
Malta	1983-84	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	2	2
Monaco	1966-67	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1
Netherlands	1947-current	2'977	1'777	0	1'245	15	1	2'992	3'023	6'015
Norway	1947-current	6'571	2'080	0	1'267	0	2	6'571	3'349	9'920
Poland	1948-49	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1
Portugal	1955-current	1'304	711	4	638	0	12	1'308	1'361	2'669
Russia	1992-current	248	266	0	52	15	21	263	339	602
Soviet Union	1989-1992	232	148	0	83	0	0	232	231	463
Spain	1953-current	3'651	1'377	367	1'641	0	1	4'018	3'019	7'037
Sweden	1948-current	5'610	1'942	9	1'133	6	0	5'625	3'075	8'700
Switzerland	1953-current	5'549	2'015	51	1'938	4	0	5'604	3'953	9'557
Turkey	1952-current	2'812	552	203	3'265	0	0	3'015	3'817	6'832
United Kingdom	1947-current	2'528	874	1	1'410	2	0	2'531	2'284	4'815
Yugoslavia	1948-49, 1967-93	822	268	0	340	3	0	825	608	1'433
AFRICA
Algeria	1962-73	6	0	0	0	0	0	6	0	6
Egypt	1960-68, 1979-current	458	150	20	86	0	0	478	236	714
Ethiopia	1960-75	347	0	0	11	0	0	347	11	358
Ghana	1967-89, 1996-current	410	35	0	128	0	0	410	163	573
Kenya	1960-63, 1971-90	271	195	0	306	0	0	271	501	772
Liberia	1979-89	116	0	0	44	0	0	116	44	160
Malagasy Republic	1962-72	37	0	0	14	0	0	37	14	51
Morocco	1960-77, 1984-91	122	13	13	52	0	0	135	65	200
Rhodesia	1959-79	129	3	0	0	0	0	129	3	132
South Africa	1958-90, 1995-current	2'323	949	58	547	0	0	2'381	1'496	3'877
Swaziland	1962-80	55	3	0	37	0	0	55	40	95
Tunisia	1968-89	179	133	22	305	0	0	201	438	639
Uganda	1959-74	278	0	0	48	0	0	278	48	326
NEAR & MIDDLE EAST
Bahrain	1964-65	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1
Iraq	1965-66	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0	3
Iran	1958-79	516	3	0	286	0	0	516	289	805
Israel	1976-89	422	153	0	388	0	0	422	541	963
Jordan	1963-89	325	41	22	51	0	0	347	92	439
Lebanon	1948-49, 1957-76	111	0	0	87	0	0	111	87	198
Saudi Arabia	1963-68	8	0	0	0	0	0	8	0	8
Syria	1947-49, 1958-67	23	0	0	11	0	0	23	11	34
ASIA
Afghanistan	1963-74	213	0	0	61	0	0	213	61	274
Cambodia	1959-63	21	0	0	1	0	0	21	1	22
China	1948-49, 1995-current	1	0	0	20	0	0	1	20	21
Hong Kong	1983-current	788	163	98	24	0	0	886	187	1'073
India	1962-77, 1988	236	0	2	465	0	0	238	465	703
Indonesia	1956-current	1'366	909	170	502	0	0	1'536	1'411	2'947
Japan	1949-current	7'317	2'840	2'786	2'344	0	6	10'103	5'190	15'293
Laos	1959-74	149	0	0	18	0	0	149	18	167
Malaysia	1958-current	912	611	55	584	0	0	967	1'195	2'162
Pakistan	1955-65	176	0	0	90	0	0	176	90	266
Philippines	1956-80	1'047	65	0	544	0	0	1'047	609	1'656
Singapore	1957-72	66	0	0	11	0	0	66	11	77
South Korea	1988-91	0	0	54	0	0	0	54	0	54
Sri Lanka (Ceylon)	1966-90	596	179	5	425	0	0	601	604	1'205
Thailand	1962-current	4'030	1'757	1'496	839	0	44	5'526	2'640	8'166
Vietnam	1959-75	266	0	0	0	0	0	266	0	266
PACIFIC
Australia	1948-49, 1959-current	8'529	5'742	676	3'131	192	369	9'397	9'242	18'639
Fiji	1984-89	24	0	0	0	0	0	24	0	24
Micronesia /N. Marianas	1967-80, 1984-88	154	0	0	27	0	0	154	27	181
New Zealand	1947-current	5'891	4'045	910	2'878	13	14	6'814	6'937	13'751
TOTAL		178'979	178'979	67'373	67'373	1'720	1'720	248'072	248'072

18-APR-97/MM

The following articles in this book were adapted, or reprinted in their entirety, from existing AFS materials or other publications:

AFS in the World War I; Between the Wars; History Repeats Itself, The Founding of the AFS Exchange Programs; The First Bus Trip: Our World, summer, autumn and winter issues, 1966, and Our Little World, The American Field Service Magazine, spring 1967.

An Open Letter to a German Hero: Collier's, 1940.

From the Ashes of Bergen-Belsen: AFS What's New newsletter AFS Intercultural Programs, July 1995, compiled from two articles by Kristine Anderson.

Reaching a Better Understanding; Peace as a Bridge: Memories From Our Little World, The American Field Service Magazine 1960-1970, compiled and edited by William P. Orrick.

Imperative for Peace: AFS World, The Magazine of the American Field Service, 1991, article by Scott Ramey and Alan Williams.

The Host School and Community: AFS Intercultural Programs, Annual Report.

Arief Rachmann, Educator: AFS Intercultural Programs, Annual Report.

Behind the Door, Recollections of Jara Moserova: AFS World, The Magazine of the American Field Service, May 1995.

Russian Roulette: IMAGE, No. 1, 1995, published by Nycomed ASA, Norway, article by Nancy Thingstad.

The Value of Host Families: AFS Intercultural Programs, Annual Report.

Volunteers, the Backbone of AFS: AFS Intercultural Programs, Annual Report.

Saga of a Sea-Going Mama: Our World, No. 2, 1968.

Saying Goodbye: A Parent's Perspective: Darling Downs & South-West Region (Australia) Newsletter, February 1996.

The AFS Experience: Changing the World by Changing People: AFS Intercultural Programs, Annual Report.

Other sources for articles are as follows,

AFS Archives and Museum, New York, USA.

AFS at Blérancourt, Alan Albright, Paris, 1994.

The First Thirty Years of the AFS Programs, AFS International Scholarships 1947-1976, William P Orrick, AFS Archives, New York, 1991.

Gentlemen Volunteers, Arlen J. Hansen, Arcade Publishing, Inc., New York, distributed by Little, Brown and Company, 1996.

The History of The American Field Service 1920-1955, George Rock, The Platen Press, New York, 1956.

The History of The American Field Service in France, Volumes I, II and III, Houghton Mifflin Company, The Riverside Press Cambridge, 1920.

The Janus, AFS Archives, New York.

Letters and Diaries of David T. Nelson 1914-1919, compiled and edited by John P. Nelson, The Anundsen Publishing Co., Decorah, Iowa 52101, 1996.

Passport to Manhood, an Autobiography by Joseph Desloge, Jr., 1995.

The AFS Heritage, Vivre sans Frontière, Paris, May, 1988.

The AFS School Relations Handbook, AFS CSlL, New York, 1990.

The American Field Service, Andrew Gray, AFS, New York, 1989.

The American Field Service Archives of World War I, 1914,1917, Lawrence D. Geller, Greenwood Press, New York, 1989.

Bring Home the World, Stephen H. Rhinesmith, AMACOM, New York, 1975.

The Cauldron---1943-1945: Recollections and Letters of a Field Service Driver, Thomas Hale, Hine's Point, 1990.

Everyone Has a Story to Tell; Forty Years of AFS, M. E. Eiseman, The M Press, Milwaukee, 1987.

The Exchange Student Survival Kit, Bettina Hansel, Intercultural Press, Yarmouth, 1993.

The Field Service: From Assistance to the War Wounded to Educating World Citizens, Alan Albright, AFS Archives, New York, 1991.

The Frankel Hotel, Sora. Frankel, self-published, 1993.

Friends of France; The American Field Service with the French Armies 1914-1917 - 1939-1945, Laurence D. Geller. AFS Archives, New York, 1990.

Memorial Volume of the American Field Service in France, James W. D. Seymour, AFS, Boston, 1921.

Orientation Handbook for Youth Exchange Programs, Cornelius Grove, Intercultural Press, Yarmouth, 1989.

A Rose by Any Other Name and Other Stories About Host Families, Neal Grove, AFS CSIL, New York, 1991.

The Saga of Section Six, by Driver #6 thereof, AFS Archives, New York, 1994.

They're Talking About Me and Other Stories, Kenneth Cushner, AFS CSIL, New York, 1990.

Workin' for Galatti's Lira: An AFS Driver's Recollections of Cross-Cultural Encounters in World War II, Willard Walker, AFS Archives, New York, 1996.

World War II Tributes to AFS, AFS Archives and Museum, October 1995.

All photos and documents contained in this book have been supplied by the various AFS organizations, with the exception of the following which were provided by courtesy of:

Finn Søhol, pp. 7, 67 (top), 75, 92, 96

Houghton Mifflin Company, pp. 17 (above), 21, 3 1, 111

Gérard Blot, Blérancourt Musée de la Coopération franco-américaine, pp. 17 (below), 25

John P. Nelson, p. 20 (above)

Bernard Naudin, p. 20 (right)

Lauros-Giraudon, p. 63

IMAGE, Nycomed ASA Magazine and Jo Grim Gullvåg, pp. 64, 65

Claude Hubert, p. 68

Eric Jaquier, p. 85

The information for the map on the endpapers at the beginning and end of the book was furnished by Marianne Meyer of the International Board of Trustees.

The posters on pages 16, 26, 42 and 56 were produced from a series of eight panels exhibited at the World Congress in Murten, Switzerland, in October 1993. The panels were made up by Alan Albright of Paris and Marianne Meyer from collages of photos, documents and memorabilia culled from the rich historical collection of the AFS Archives and Museum, New York.

The purpose of the panels was to increase the awareness of the cultural wealth of AFS, and to illustrate the history and development of the organization over the years.

Page 17 features the side panel of a Section One ambulance bearing the original Indian head insignia. It was adapted for the AFS from a U.S. copper penny design by World War I artist, Tardieu.

The graphs on pages 45, 46 and 47 were produced from statistics produced by Marianne Meyer.

Page 48 features the AFS New York International Headquarters at 313 East 43rd Street. The site was purchased in October 1959 and the ground broken at a ceremony on November 5. The building was officially opened on February 8, 1961 and called Galatti House. As AFS exchange programs expanded, so more space was required and the adjacent Keys Building was subsequently purchased.

The facade of Galatti House was adorned with a sculpture entitled The Spirit of International Understanding by Pierre Bourdelle, and symbolized the enlightenment which AFS gave to the youth of the world. The 26-foot statue, weighing two tons, was said to be the largest piece of hand-hammered pickled aluminum ever to be made into a sculpture in the United States.

The offices were sold in 1993 when AFS moved to the Daily News Building on 42nd Street, New York.

The statistics concerning student programs on pages 106 and 107 were supplied by Marianne Meyer. The map on page 107 was produced by Rajni Chavda of AFS Norway.

To prepare this book we had to delve into hundreds of archive documents, sifting through cherished photograph albums and boxes of memorabilia, lovingly preserved and donated by members of the AFS community. We realized just how invaluable these items are for bringing the history of AFS to life.

Do you have any precious AFS souvenirs gathering dust on your shelves or stashed away in your attic? Could you bear to part with them? If so, we will gladly find space in our collections for any photographs or letters (originals or copies), medals, insignia, items of clothing or other objects relevant to past AFS activities. Please get in touch with your nearest AFS Partner organization, whose address is given in this book, or send the articles directly to either AFS Norway or AFS International. On behalf of the future generations of AFSers, thank you.

This book was compiled by AFS Norway with the desire to create a lasting and memorable record of the rich history of the American Field Service, while at the same time commemorating 50 years of student exchange programs. Our most grateful thanks are extended to all who have helped realize us this ambition.

Editorial
Georg Broch and Kari Amdam, AFS Norway

Coordination
Dóra Sigurdardóttir, AFS Norway

Research
Eleanora Golobic, AFS Archives and Museum, New York

Layout and Design
Otto Allgöwer, Corseaux

Production and Editorial Assistance
Angela C. Dear and the Staff of JPM Publications,
Lausanne

Photolithography
Photolitho Ducommun, Ecublens

Printing
Weber S.A., Bienne

Binding
Schumacher, Schmitten

Table of Contents