Being a member of AEGEE-Moskva since 2007, I joined AEGEE-Valencia and later became Public Relations (PR) Responsible of the Spanish antenna but 
continued to travel between Russia and Spain.
One evening, having a nice time with my friends in Moscow I got an idea from the ex-fundraising responsible (FR) of AEGEE-Moskva, Alexander Orekhov, to create an agreement where both antennae would be able to have more opportunities to develop themselves and to motivate our members. Next day I sent an e-mail to my board in Valencia and Alexander contacted the board in Moscow. Our Network Commissioner Olga Iatsyna helped us to design the agreement on paper. In less than two months our agreement was signed and it was the first experience of such international cooperation for AEGEE-Valencia and AEGEE-Moskva. Along with this agreement we created a plan of events where members of our antennae would have a possibility to get to know each other better, exchange ideas and thoughts. Not everything came true, but it was a good step to develop our antennae and a new challenge for all of us.
Based on the experience of AEGEE-Valencia I would like to share with you some thoughts on how to get as much as possible from the twin agreement:
– Your antenna should be a strong group of friends where everybody can take responsibility and support this agreement any time needed. It is a long-term commitment.
– Members should be interested in exploring a new culture, be able to take part in the common events and travel to the country of your twin.
– Before making an agreement be sure you know someone from this antenna very well and that s/he is still active and can help you in case of some problems.
– Be ready to encounter problems since you are going to work with people from a different culture for a long period of time. But do not be afraid, you will find a lot of fun behind it, get a new experience and find many new friends.
Board of AEGEE-Valencia.
Alexander Orekhov, FR of AEGEE-Moskva (2010-2011) says: “Having a twin antenna is, in my opinion, one of the most effective ways to share experience, solve visa problems and inform people about your projects. Therefore, “to find a twin” was my goal for several months. I told about it to Ekaterina Malysheva and some time later, AEGEE-Moskva and AEGEE-Valencia officially became twin antennae.”
Ekaterina Kudryavtseva, project coordinator of AEGEE-Moskva, gives her opinion: “The agreement with AEGEE-Valencia brought a breath of fresh air to AEGEE-Moskva. The event in Pamplona became the most vivid impression of this summer. My friends and I went to Valencia some days before the event to get to know our twin antenna better and to see how they prepare for an event and interact with each other. I was impressed by their patience, perseverance and solidarity. To see the real work of another antenna was a good experience, impossible to get from e-mails or Facebook and is usually hidden from the participants. This event left an overall impression – we have a lot to learn! That is why I was so happy to see those guys again in our Travelling Summer University Transsiberian Dream! We still keep in touch and, of course, it would be great to do more exchanges with our twina ntenna, maybe in spring because we do not want to freeze them in winter.”
Written by Ekaterina Malysheva, AEGEE-Valencia