License to Thrive

Iman Belali

Iman, at age 12, founded the American Morrocan International Exchange. Disturbed by the negative stereotyping of Arabs in American media and of Americans in Arab media, she decided to become an instrument of change.  Iman used a portion of her college fund to provide school supplies for 80 students in Chefchaouen, Morocco, where her grandparents were born.  Impressed by the young women she met, she decided to start AMIE.

The American Moroccan International Exchange is dedicated to promoting peace, understanding and academic excellence by fostering cultural awareness through student exchange programs, one host family and one student at a time.  The objective of AMIE is to use home stays and cross-cultural visits to faciltate peace and understanding among the next generation of female leaders. 

Each year, AMIE brings students together for a two-week program. AMIE alternates host countries annually. In 2007, AMIE sent 14 Moroccan students to the US where they experienced American culture in the Pacific Northwest with 14 American students.

Iman was recently honored by Women's eNews as one of the "21 Leaders for the 21st Century" for 2008.