Karibu Leuven

Karibu Leuven is a student association founded by students of the African diaspora. It was founded, because of the lack of visibility of African Students in the Leuven student landscape. Many young people with a migration background don’t associate themselves with the ‘typical’ student life, or don’t see themselves represented within higher education. They see few students who look like them. We want to encourage those students to participate in the student life and thrive in higher education. Leuven is known for being a student city and we want to make sure that students with African roots have more visibility and a safe space where they can grow, relax and have fun. Why the name ‘Karibu’? Karibu means ‘welcome’ in Swahili. With this name, we want to emphasize that we welcome everyone with open arms, love and joy in our association. Who can become a member? Everyone that agrees and complies with the internal rules of Karibu can become a member. All students from Leuven, students outside of Leuven, Erasmus students and international students are welcome in our association. You do not need a student baptism to join us, nor do we organize one. Which activities do we organize? We organize a variety of activities: from cultural evenings to sports activities, from debates to study sessions. Some past events we have hosted: open mics, poetry evenings, painting events, movie screenings, debates on various topics, barbecues, info evenings, football tournaments, game nights, a prom… We are a growing organization that is trying to create a network in which members can connect and benefit from each other. We are always open for collaborations and new ideas. We currently have fantastic recurring collaborations with: Johnson&Johnson and the AALC (African Ancestory Lineage Council), Trill vzw, STAD Leuven, Burn Leuven, Afrika Film Festival, KULeuven, AVANSA Leuven among others. If you have any questions or want to collaborate, feel free to contact us.