A BRIEF HISTORY OF AEDE

July 1956: The Creation of AEDE

On 30th August 1954 the French National Assembly adopted the preliminary motion "Aumeran", which involved the refection of the EDC (European Defence Community) project.
Shortly afterwards a number of teachers from Germany, Belgium, France and Italy met in Paris for a short course organized by the International Centre for European Training (CIFE) at the instigation of its President Alexandre Marc.
While on this course they conceived the idea of creating an association whose aim would be to develop among teachers and pupils a better understanding of the problems that faced Europe.

This project became a reality on 8th July 1956 at a Congress, which was also held in Paris, and attended by teachers who came not only from the member countries of ECSC (European Coal and Steel community) but also from countries which had not signed ECSC Treaty.
These teachers realized that the road leading to European Union would be long and that it was therefore important to set in train a movement requiring a clear, patient but determined commitment over several generations.

A European association...

The founders wanted AEDE to be a "European Association" and not a federation of national associations. Hence, the European President and the members of the Executive Bureau are elected by the European Congress.
Article 1 of the Statutes stipulates that the aim of AEDE is to bring together all those teachers anxious to cooperate in the creation of a European Federation.

AIMS

AEDE pursues the aim of its founders, which is that it should be a network of European contacts, ideas and activities, working towards giving the younger generations an education that will equip them to grow into a European society capable of tackling with clear heads and stout hearts the formidable and complex problems that it will have to resolve.
AEDE has a network of more than 25,000 teachers, heads, inspectors and officials, from nursery to university level. AEDE welcomes teachers and schools throughout Europe who wish to work together to build the European society of the future.
AEDE collaborates with: 

• the European Commission, 
• the Council of Europe and UNESCO as a Non Governmental Organization, 
• other organisations pursuing the same objectives. 

AEDE functions on two levels: 

• at a European level through its congress, its committee structures and a programme of international activities 
• at a national level through its national sections and regional groups. 

At both these levels an important aspect is participating in European projects in the wide field of education, initiated by AEDE or by others.