Wendi Aylward has worked in the youth tourism sector for the past 25 years, including senior management roles with DFAT and CIEE and more recently as the Managing Director of AIFS Australia since 2005. She has lived and worked in Boston, London and Tokyo and speaks Japanese. In an industry capacity Wendi has been a panel member of the youth tourism industry association, BYTAP (Backpacker & Youth Tourism Advisory Panel) for the past 6 years, was a founding member of the Australian Internship Industry Association (AIIA) and co-founder of the Cultural Au Pair in Australia Association (CAPAA) – serving as its chair and media spokesperson until 2019. Wendi has been an active advocate for the au pair industry, successfully lobbying for the extension of the visa. More recently she has been closely involved in industry discussions with government in relation to the sector and the impacts of the pandemic.