{"id":7978,"date":"2022-09-15T12:26:30","date_gmt":"2022-09-15T10:26:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cei-voyage.fr\/who-are-we\/"},"modified":"2025-08-19T16:16:12","modified_gmt":"2025-08-19T14:16:12","slug":"who-are-we","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.cei-voyage.fr\/en\/who-are-we\/","title":{"rendered":"Who are we ?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Our history<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The CEI is a 1901 association created in 1947 to bring together young people from all over the world through linguistic and intercultural sharing.
The association was set up at this pivotal time by a group of men convinced that peace could only be achieved by strengthening mutual understanding between young people from different countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Since then, the CEI has been involved in a variety of missions for young people aged 6 to 25, promoting education through language teaching, learning to live in a community, professional integration and travel. The aim of all our programs is to create a real educational project.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1947<\/h2>\n

Creation of the CEI<\/h3>\n

Building : daring and humanism<\/h3>\n

1947<\/strong> : a pivotal year. The Marshall Plan would make Jean Monnet’s modernization plan a reality. It was against this backdrop that men and women of strong character, aged between 25 and 30, were to launch a formidable adventure. Learning the lessons of the past, they realized the absolute necessity of creating and recreating bridges between France and Germany.<\/p>\n

Participating in the Franco-German rapprochement of young people was a real challenge, and the founders of the CEI took it up.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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1954<\/h2>\n

Opening of the first International Centers in France<\/h3>\n

Opening of language courses abroad<\/h3>\n

1954<\/strong>
\nOpening of the Centre International du Port Blanc in Dinard, Brittany. A new concept and the first of its kind in France. This was followed by the Centre International du Manoir in Boulouris on the C\u00f4te d’Azur, the Centre de la Hercerie in La Croix en Touraine and, later, the Centre Pierre Monestier on the banks of the Gorges du Tarn in 1981 (pictured).
\nFrom 1963 to 1978<\/strong>
\nEurope was being built, offering incredible hope of fraternity to the young people of the 6 countries involved. At the same time, decolonization profoundly transformed the attitudes of this generation.
\nThe various teams at the CEI would never cease to apply the 3 Ds – relaxation, entertainment and development – with a clear determination to oppose the obvious consumerism of Club Med’. 68 would open the floodgates to all kinds of utopias, and the centers would be the perfect testing ground.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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1983<\/h2>\n

Takeover of Centre Charles P\u00e9guy and creation of CEI London<\/h3>\n

In 1981<\/strong>, Guillaume Dufresne was recruited by the Board of Directors, who entrusted him with the management of the CEI, with the mission of finding new avenues of development.
\nIn 1981<\/strong>, after two years in London, he was able to set up the first permanent CEI delegation in the UK: the Centre Fran\u00e7ais de Londres.
\nThen, from 1987 to 1989<\/strong>, the centers were renovated to become truly international, year-round holiday centers, and the Centre Pierre Monestier was created in the village of St-Rome-de-Dolan.<\/p>\n

From 1990 to 1996<\/strong>
\nCreation of the Paris Langues French as a Foreign Language (FLE) school in 1991.
\nAlso in 1991<\/strong>, our traditional vacation activities continued to develop, culminating in the takeover of Club des 4 Vents.
\nFinally, in 1996<\/strong>, with the support of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the CEI was awarded the project that would lead to the creation of the Centre Fran\u00e7ais de Berlin. The CEI then became a valued player in the establishment of new youth exchange partnerships with Central and Eastern European countries.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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1996<\/h2>\n

Opening of the Centre Fran\u00e7ais de Berlin<\/h3>\n

Following the opening of the Berlin Wall, under the impetus of Guillaume Dufresne, the CEI created the Centre Fran\u00e7ais de Berlin with the support of the German and French authorities. The task of the CEI and its German partner SPI was to develop a place conducive to the consolidation and development of Franco-German youth exchanges. Today, the Center is headed by Florian Fangmann, and administered by a Beirat (Steering Committee) with equal Franco-German representation, co-chaired by the French Ambassador and the Mayor of Mitte (the district in which the Center is located). The City of Paris and the Berlin Senate are also members. With its hotel, restaurant, theater and cinema, and activity rooms, the Centre’s many activities have enabled it to occupy a leading position in the field of Franco-German youth exchanges.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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2003<\/h2>\n

Opening of CEI St-Malo, CEI Dublin, and English school in Hastings.<\/h3>\n

From 1997 to 2007<\/strong>
\nThe Internet, cell phones and a host of structural changes in the global economy triggered a number of changes in the way companies operated and in consumer behavior. The CEI reacted swiftly, giving itself the means to invest by spinning off certain centers and taking original decisions:
\nThe PELICAN program was set up in 1999<\/strong>, followed by the opening of the CEI Paris branch in 2000, the Saint-Malo branch in 2002, and the CEI Dublin branch in 2003.
\nIn 2005<\/strong>, a partnership agreement was signed with Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut.
\nIn 2006<\/strong>, Langues & Cultures was taken over by CEI, along with its language school, Cambridge Gardens College in Hastings, south-east England.
\nFinally, 2007<\/strong> will see the publication of an illustrated book on the Centre d’Echanges Internationaux to mark its 60th anniversary.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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2008<\/h2>\n

The CEI becomes a member of UNSE and certifies its Paris Langues school.<\/h3>\n

From 2008 to 2010<\/strong>
\nIn 2008, CEI became a member of UNSE (Union Nationale des Organisations de S\u00e9jours de longue dur\u00e9e en France et \u00e0 l’\u00c9tranger).
\nThen in 2009, the Paris Langues French language school was awarded a quality label: the French Ministry’s “Centre d’Enseignement du Fran\u00e7ais Langue \u00c9trang\u00e8re” label.
\nFinally, in 2010, the visual identity of the CEI will change, and the name “Club des 4 Vents” will be absorbed.
\nFrom 2010 to 2012<\/p>\n

2010<\/strong> : following the overhaul of the Group’s main commercial websites, the CEI offers its customers a secure website designed to enable parents to prepare and monitor their child(ren)’s stay: the Visiocolo website.
\nThe CEI’s Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest pages have also been set up to exchange information with participants, who are constantly connected to several social networks.
\nDespite all this constant information, travel and international encounters are as topical as ever. It was with this in mind that, at the end of 2010, the CEI integrated the Echanges Franco-Irlandais association and the Irish company Newchange into its teams.
\nIn 2012<\/strong>, some 92 nationalities were involved in its programs.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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2013<\/h2>\n

Acquisition of Envol Espace agency<\/h3>\n

Envol Espace: France’s leading provider of educational school trips<\/p>\n

From 2013 to 2015<\/strong><\/p>\n

In 2013<\/strong>, the CEI Group opens up new programs with the takeover of one of the leaders in the field of educational school trips, the “Envol Espace” agency, created over 30 years ago by a teacher.
\nIn 2013<\/strong>, more than 75,000 young people will benefit from CEI Group services.
\nIn 2015<\/strong>, 6 new websites adapted to the new practices of internet users (mobiles and tablets) are created and new programs developed: volunteering, ecotourism and working vacation programs for CEI’s student and adult clientele.
\nAt the end of 2017<\/strong>, the CEI Group integrates tailor-made language stays into its activities with the takeover of the Atout Linguistique organization. Opening of our Lyon office.
\nIn 2018<\/strong>, opening of a travel blog: ouvrirlemonde.com<\/p>\n

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2022<\/h2>\n

CEI’s new visual identity and website<\/h3>\n

After years of growth, the CEI Group, like all players in its sector, is almost brought to a standstill by the Covid 19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.<\/p>\n

CEI is adopting a new visual identity, along with a new website and a renovation of its Paris headquarters, in order to modernize its image and reflect the dynamism of its staff and the variety of our offering.<\/p>\n

The CEI’s raison d’\u00eatre remains unchanged: to give you the desire to go elsewhere and to meet “the other”. Our mission remains the same: “To open young people to the world”.<\/p>\n

From this extraordinary and unexpected period, the CEI is rising with a new organization, a more centralized and selective offer to propose unique experiences to its young participants.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

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Our governance<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Today, the CEI association has 45 permanent employees and employs nearly 700 temporary staff each year to supervise its programs. Its office is at 1 rue Gozlin 75006 Paris. It is administered by a Board of Directors, which meets 4 times a year and is made up of 14 directors elected for 4 years by the Annual General Assembly. The Board of Directors has appointed Thibault Dufresne as Chief Executive Officer in January 2020. Under the authority and control of the Board of Directors, the Managing Director defines the company’s strategy and ensures its implementation, in line with the policy defined by the Board of Directors at the Annual General Meeting. In order to meet the Group’s objectives and strategic priorities, he is supported by a management committee made up of the CEI’s key executives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Members of the Board of Directors<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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