Fair Internship Initiative

What Fair Internship Initiative does

Fair Internship Initiative (FII) is a global advocacy network, founded in 2015 and headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, that lobbies for fair and quality internships across the United Nations system. The organization collects data on UN internships, disseminates information, organizes institutional and media outreach, holds public events, and regularly meets with representatives of Permanent Missions in Geneva and New York. It is staffed by a small team of approximately 5 and operates with a volunteer-driven, non-profit governance model, with no external investors, parent company, or commercial revenue streams identified.

FII's core offerings are research and convening products rather than software. Its principal product is the UN Internships Quality Index, a benchmarking tool that draws on intern survey data to score and rank UN organizations on the quality and inclusiveness of their internship programmes. The organization also publishes annual UN Internship Survey reports (2023, 2025) and operates the annual International Interns' Day event, held around 10 November since 2015, as a recurring advocacy platform. An affiliated Intern Board Congress connects intern representatives across the UN system for collaboration on internship reform.

The organization's business model is that of a non-profit advocacy network rather than a commercial enterprise. It does not sell products or services, has no pricing model, and derives support from member participation and collaborative partnerships with other advocacy organizations such as the European Youth Forum. FII's primary stakeholder groups are young people seeking UN internships (who face financial barriers to unpaid or underpaid positions) and UN system organizations (which are the targets of policy reform advocacy). Its value proposition centers on institutional influence through evidence-based research, coalition-building, and direct engagement with UN leadership and Permanent Missions.

Name

Fair Internship Initiative

Legal name

Fair Internship Initiative

Website

https://fairinternshipinitiative.wordpress.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Fair Internship Initiative is a volunteer-led, non-profit advocacy network founded in 2015 that lobbies for fair, paid, and accessible internships across the UN system, serving young prospective interns and UN organizations through research, events, and institutional outreach.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Advocacy and Policy Research

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Civic and Social Organizations (813410), Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Government/IGO/NGO & Public Sector International Internships (EDAIAFAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sector-Specific Internship Programs (e.g., STEM, Business, Health, Arts) (EDAIAFAI)

Keywords

• Internship advocacy
• Fair labor practices
• Youth employment policy
• Internship quality research
• United Nations reform

Headquarters

HQ city

Geneva

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Advocacy and Awareness Activities: As a nonprofit advocacy network, FII raises awareness about fair internships through events like International Interns' Day, reports, and institutional outreach. The organization likely relies on volunteer contributions and institutional support rather than commercial revenue streams.

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Fair Internship Initiative is a global advocacy network that lobbies for fair and quality internships at the UN system. It collects data on UN internships through annual surveys, disseminates research and benchmarking outputs (the UN Internships Quality Index and internship survey reports), organizes the annual International Interns' Day event, runs media and institutional outreach, and regularly meets with representatives of Permanent Missions in Geneva and New York to push policy reforms.

Product overview

Fair Internship Initiative (FII) is a global advocacy network that lobbies for fair and quality internships at the UN system. Rather than a software product company, FII operates as an advocacy organization that collects data on UN internships, disseminates information, organizes institutional and media outreach activities and public events, and regularly meets with representatives of Permanent Missions. Its core offerings include the UN Internships Quality Index (a benchmarking tool that scores and ranks UN organizations by internship quality), the annual International Interns' Day event, and periodic UN Internship Survey reports documenting the state of UN internship programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• International Interns' Day (IID): Annual awareness day celebrated around 10 November since 2015 to raise awareness about ensuring accessibility and quality of internships across the UN system
• UN Internships Quality Index
• Intern Board Congress

Products and services

• UN Internships Quality Index A fairness index published by FII that uses data collected from interns across the UN system to transparently and systematically score and rank UN organizations on the quality and inclusiveness of their internship programmes.
• International Interns' Day An annual awareness-raising event organized by FII, celebrated around 10 November since 2015, to highlight the importance of ensuring the accessibility and quality of internships to improve young people's employment prospects across the UN system.
• UN Internship Survey An annual survey conducted by FII to collect data on UN internships, assessing stipend levels, accessibility, and quality of internship experiences across the UN system, with results published as research reports.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 70 permanent missions engaged

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• European Youth ForumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe European Youth Forum partnered with FII to organize the annual International Interns' Day 2023 event. The collaboration brings together youth advocacy organizations to drive discussions about promoting fair internships and improve young people's employment prospects.
• Affiliated Intern BoardscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFII has affiliated Intern Boards across the UN system that provide a platform for interns across the UN system to get to know each other, share best practices and talk about possible collaborations to improve internship programs.
• UN Agencies and OrganizationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFII partners with different UN agencies and organizations annually for International Interns' Day events to recognize the role interns play and drive discussions about promoting fair internships.
• Permanent MissionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFII regularly meets with representatives of Permanent Missions in Geneva and New York to gather support for the cause of fair internships in the UN, having met with more than 70 missions.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Intern Aware: UK-based campaign focused on ending unpaid internships and improving access to the profession. Comparable as a peer advocacy organization targeting unpaid-internship reform, though with a national rather than UN-system focus.
• European Youth Forum: European umbrella of youth organizations that already partners with FII on International Interns' Day. Comparable as a youth-led advocacy network focused on policy reforms affecting young people's employment and labor conditions, including internship quality across European institutions.
• Global Intern Coalition: International coalition advocating for fair, paid, and meaningful internships across sectors. Comparable as a direct peer in unpaid-internship advocacy with a similar mission of pushing institutional employers to adopt minimum standards.
• Generation Employable: Organization focused on youth employment and fairer access to labor market entry points, including internship standards. Comparable as a peer in youth-led advocacy for fair work-integrated learning opportunities.

Broad incumbents

• International Labour Organization (ILO): UN specialized agency setting international labor standards, including work on youth employment and quality internships. Comparable as the overarching policy authority whose standards FII's advocacy ultimately seeks to influence.
• AIESEC: Large global youth organization running international internship and volunteering programs across many countries. Comparable as a much larger incumbent in the international internship space, though operating as a provider rather than an advocacy network.
• IAESTE: International Association for the Exchange of Students for Technical Experience, operating paid traineeships across 80+ countries. Comparable as a long-standing international work-placement organization, though focused on STEM traineeships rather than UN-system advocacy.

Emerging players

• Restless Development: Youth-led development agency focused on youth employment and leadership in emerging economies. Comparable as a peer organization advocating for youth labor inclusion, with overlapping UN engagement but a broader development mandate.
• UN Youth Delegate Programme: UN initiative enabling young people to represent their countries at the UN General Assembly. Comparable as a UN-system program that channels youth voices into multilateral policy, overlapping with FII's mission of youth representation at the UN.

Others

• Transparency International: Global civil society organization that publishes indices and rankings on institutional integrity (e.g., Corruption Perceptions Index). Comparable as a peer organization that publishes benchmarking indices on institutional behavior, offering a model for how FII's Quality Index could be institutionalized over time.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/FII_Geneva
• Facebookfacebook.com/fairinternshipinitiative
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fairinternshipinitiative
• Instagraminstagram.com/fairinternshipinitiative

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fair Internship Initiative