The Ivy Council, a nonprofit organization of students from all eight Ivy League schools, will send about 20 students to Brussels, Geneva and Istanbul to participate in the Ivy-Europe-Middle East Summit.
The summit, which runs from May 22 to June 1, will bring together Ivy League students with those from the European Students' Union and Istanbul to establish an open dialogue on political and economic issues and to promote cultural exchange, according to Columbia sophomore
Taimur Malik, one of the event's co-chairs.
The participants "are very likely to be the people that are leading the world sooner rather than later," said co-chair Amelia Mango, a Harvard junior. "The idea behind this is to set up a really great tone for any sort of diplomacy in the future."
Participants will visit several institutions, including the United Nations office in Geneva, governmental offices in Istanbul and local universities, and will have the opportunity to interact with political and economic leaders and academics.
Mango said the summit provides "a very unique opportunity" for undergraduates to get a firsthand experience of "international government."
The application for the summit is due today and includes several short essay questions and a proposal for a project to be completed during the trip. Two or three applicants who demonstrate leadership skills, commitment and a strong interest in international issues will be selected from each school, depending on funding, the organizers said.
Student representatives on the council will try to acquire funding from each Ivy to send its students to the summit, according to the organizers.
"We want it to be accessible to everyone regardless of their financial situation," Malik said, "but it's been very arduous for us to get funding because of the economic times."
Though the Brown chapter of Ivy Council is not involved in organizing the summit, it is publicizing the event on campus.
"What Brown is doing is mainly helping to publicize this event for the community here," said Aaron Foo '11, chair of external affairs at Brown Ivy Council.
Foo said he was unsure whether any Brown students are applying to the summit.
To promote international exchange, in years past the Ivy Council previuosly organized the 2008 Ivy-China Summit, when more than 20 Ivy League students visited China to hold a dialogue with their Chinese peers and meet with Chinese political leaders.
Malik said the council is looking to build bridges with other Middle East countries and Latin America in the future.