"I had an idea once, while I was in New York.  At the time I was living in Cincinnati, and when I got home the idea just wouldn't go away.  But I wondered, 'What shall I do with it?  Will anyone understand?

Finally, I found the courage to tell a few people about this idea... and somehow these people did understand, did see the vision, and it began to take form.  The idea lived and demanded expression...." (Dr. Doris Allen's remarks, 1995 International CISV Board Meeting, Waterloo, Canada)  

Following the devastating effects of World War II and the hope generated by the creation of the United Nations, Dr. Doris Twitchell Allen, a psychologist at the University of Cincinnati (USA), founded CISV.  She saw CISV as a way to prevent the horrors of World War II in the future.  By bringing together young people from different countries and cultures she hoped to “sow the seeds” for personal bonds and for an appreciation of cultural differences.  In this way she wanted to prevent the development of prejudices as these youngsters would grow up.  Her long-range goal was a better, more peaceful future.  Now, many years later, these thoughts still take up a central position in CISV’s philosophy.

 In 1951 the first CISV Village, a unique program for pre-adolescents, was conducted in Cincinnati, Ohio.  By 1956 a constitution for the International Association of CISV was adopted at the annual meeting in Sweden.  Soon members and past participants were demanding additional international programs.  The Interchange Program was established in 1962 and reunion villages were reorganized into the Seminar Camp Program in 1971.  Local Work designed to promote orientation and “follow-up” work at the Local Chapter level achieved co-equal program status in 1980.

 CISV’s premise is that individuals can best build peace when they have learned to live amicably, regardless of race, creed, culture or nationality.  Thus cooperation, peace education, global thinking, respect for other points of view, non-violent conflict management and cross-cultural communication are important ingredients of CISV programs.  Learning by doing and sharing responsibility in the daily process of decision-making are elements that can be found in all CISV activities.  Education in CISV is a process where all can contribute, where everyone can gain through the talents of others and where an open mind is as important as one’s experience.

 CISV has grown from 55 participants representing 9 nations in 1951 to more than 100,000 program participants from 93 nations in 1992.  Today over 9,000 participants learn to live and work together in peace and friendship in approximately 200 multi-national CISV programs each year.

Dr. Allen developed the following 12 principles of CISV when she was formulating her vision of the CISV Village:

1. To give children a face-to-face international experience before adolescence.

2. To give children the opportunity to grow up with a World point-of-view. This is why we set up a miniature world of 10 to 12 countries in a single Village. It is not sufficient to relate to only one other country. This is an age in which all countries are inextricably interrelated. The demand of the times is to view the wholeness of the World.

3. To give children the opportunity to grow from around the world and to learn that it is possible to be friends irrespective of color, nationality, religion, language or any other aspect of culture.

4. To give children the opportunity to get personally acquainted by limiting the Village to 40 to 48 children. Indeed the children say, "It was like a family."

5. To give the children time to build deep friendships. Villages are four weeks long.

6. To keep the program simple, in order for the 11-year old to assimilate the experience: giving time to be quiet; for writing in a diary or writing letters home; time to exchange and compare stamps and coins of other countries; time to be alone, if desired; time to look at the photos of the families of other Villagers -- in short, ample free time to balance the scheduled hours.

7. To give the children the opportunity to engage in the activities of other cultures: singing songs of other countries in other languages; learning dances of other countries; trying on costumes of other countries; and, actually exchanging items of costume at the end of the Village.

8. To give the children the opportunity to work jointly with other nationalities on committees -- for example: to set the dining room tables for meals; to sweep the dining room floor; to pickup paper from the yard; to plan an evening's entertainment; to plan an open house bazaar, etc.

9. To give the children the opportunity to experience a oneness with nature wherever in the world: climbing a mountain; taking a birdwalk; discovering the flowers and trees of the region; exploring life in a small stream, and so on.

10. To give the children an opportunity to learn some skills of governance: through the children's assemblies; the parliamentary sessions; learning how to elect a president and a secretary; how to formulate any problems that may exist in the group; how to listen to different points-of-view and discuss alternative ways of solving problems; learning what is fair for the individual and at the same time for the whole group, and so on.

11. To give the children an opportunity to become acquainted with the culture of the host country: spending a weekend in a home with a same-sex, same-age child; having open-house for the public to visit the Village and for the Villagers to meet people of the community; visiting the local zoo, farm, factory or historical site. (Not more than one excursion per week).

12. To give the children the opportunity to work with many nationalities and languages, to say thank you to the host community for the privilege of the Village: plant a tree on the site of the Village; building a foot bridge across a stream; painting parts of the main buildings of a Village.

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