Patricia Brunner, International Au Pair Association (IAPA)

In February 2023, we talked with Patricia Brunner, Managing Director of the International Au Pair Association – “IAPA”. Patricia is based in Munich, Germany and has been working in cultural exchange and travel for many years. Before taking on her current role with IAPA, she operated her own au pair agency in Munich. 

IAPA and WYSE Travel Confederation together host the annual Work Experience Travel Market and IAPA Annual Conference. “WETM-IAC” as it is known, will take place in Athens, Greece this year from March 18th to 20th. The conference attracts cultural exchange professionals from across the globe for two and a half days of business, networking and education, and as you’ll hear Patricia say “happy moments”.  

In our conversation, Patricia explains the most important reasons professionals working in au pair and other cultural exchange programmes should attend the conference. We also talked about some of the major shifts in youth travel and cultural exchange during Patricia’s career, and more recently as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and Brexit. 

We also discussed what a utopian au pair visa scheme could look like and Patricia highlights a potentially major “game changer” for cultural exchange and youth mobility. 

Recorded February 2023.

Learn more about WYSE Travel Confederation, the international travel trade association for organisations specialised in youth, student and educational travel.