The digital gender divide will not close by itself: we must act in order to make the digital revolution for all, with all, by all.

Societies are becoming increasingly digital. Over 90% of jobs worldwide have a digital component, which has made it essential for people to have digital literacy skills in order to engage with, and function and participate fully in a digital world. Regrettably there exists inequality in access to technology and digital training. Girls and women are limited in their usage and adoption of technology, their ownership of digital devices and ability to make meaningful use of access to technology. Globally, they use the Internet 12.5% less compared to men and boys. These disparities limit women’s and girls’ opportunities in the digital world.

This technology gap is referred to as the gender digital divide, and has been growing from 11% to 17% from 2013 to 2019 and continues to expand in many developing countries. It will not close by itself, we must act in order to close it. If we do not try and ensure that women and girls have equal access to digital tools and teach them how to use them, we will not only hamper the development of economies, but we will further perpetuate gender inequality in many other areas including financial inclusion and inclusion in the labour markets. It will essentially lead us further away from achieving the United Nations Sustainable Goals (SDGs).

That is why it is essential to ensure that young people can take an active role in society and be provided the same opportunities regardless of their gender. Teaching girls and women on digital literacy can empower them and offer them the opportunity to overcome hurdles in the physical world, including those they face in employment and the workforce.

Our Contribution

The gender digital divide is real – and it spans from access and to and usage of the Internet to digital jobs and skills. This inequality and exclusion gap is visible all over the world and across generations. To make the digital revolution for all, with all, by all, we must address gender inequality as a whole. Exactly for this reason AEGEE-Europe and the Plan International EU Office worked together on a human library to show and address the digital gender divide and how this further perpetuates gender inequality, in line with the theme of the International Day of the Girl 2021.

A human library is an activity based on a project that started in Denmark in 2000. It uses the analogy of a library where instead of books, there are people (“human books”) and participants, instead of reading stories, listening to them. These people have “experienced prejudice, social exclusion or stigma, or are leaders and drivers of change in their community”. The participants have a chance to listen to their story and ask questions so as to “learn about the other person and also challenge their own prejudices”.

Our joint newsletter will offer the chance to learn more about the human library and hear about the stories that were shared there.

Dear Aegeeans, you didn’t need to vote that strongly, but you did anyway (AEGEE Spirit right there)! And with a landslide victory – really, sooo many votes – here you have your Local of the Month: AEGEE-Gdańsk. Their victory is well deserved, for they truly fought until they were down to their last men – literally, they were at the minimum – and now they stand strong with 15! Read the article to know more about this awesome local! 

Question: Congratulations on being awarded the Local of the Month! We’d like to hear more about you!

Answer: Thank you very much! We really appreciate that! About us… We have 15 active members. Our main project in April was Getting Ready to Travel in cooperation with the Language Interest Group. During seven weeks, Aegeeans from different countries showed us the beauty of their country, where and when to travel, what delicacies to try, and the basics of the languages. The best part of this project was that, even though the meetings were taking place online, we could still feel the AEGEE Spirit, because we could meet new Aegeeans. Also, after every main meeting, we had a discussion about Focus Areas correlated topics. Every member had a space to share their thoughts. We also had a workshop about Mental Health. From time to time, we brainstorm so that everyone can share their ideas for the projects. A big advantage of the fact that we are a small local is that everyone can find some challenging tasks to do, get experience and develop. I am really proud of our Local because last year we thought we would have to close the antenna, but actually, after some time, we found our chance in the pandemic situation and we used it. I think now AEGEE-Gdańsk will keep on rising and surprise everyone with how prosperous it becomes. That’s also why it means so much that we are chosen as the Local of the Month.

Q: What are some of the most memorable moments you’ve had in your Local? 

A: I have been in AEGEE for four years and the most memorable moment of mine is when I coordinated Summer University in 2018 in cooperation with Monika Mojak from AEGEE-Warsaw. It was amazing to be part of it. I also appreciate that AEGEE-Gdańsk organised LTC’s and regular workshops. I need to say that I definitely did develop in AEGEE. As the current president of AEGEE-Gdańsk, I will also definitely remember the success of the last recruitment and meeting new, great people – our new members.

Q: What has been the key to your success? Which areas have you found challenging and how did you overcome them?  

A: The key to success was not giving up. I know it sounds really cliché but it’s true in our case. Also, creating a team out of a few creative people has power! Brainstorms where everyone can share ideas and leaders listen to those ideas. In AEGEE we have a variety of people with different experiences and ideas. The key is to combine them into something great! The most challenging thing was not to lose hope when the pandemic started but when you are on board and you have at least one new person in the antenna you just do your best to show how great AEGEE is. I think that was the biggest motivation.

Q: Some words of wisdom to other locals?

A: Adaptation to a new reality is difficult but is really important for success. With a team, you can do more and better. Don’t give up and remember that if you have any problems you can ask other Aegeeans and other antennae for help; either a piece of advice or a joint event. We are in it together and that is what makes AEGEE so amazing!

Q: Any closing remarks?

A:  I would like to say thank you to everyone who voted for us! And we hope to see you at the next events we’ll organise. Go Gdańsk! Go Gdańsk! Go Gdańsk, go Gdańsk, go Gdańsk! :D

And this member sure stuck to her word. An Aegeean for 6 years, she really has had the time to try everything: from Summer University and Agora organising to being president of her Local, and still with time for a bachelor thesis in the middle! Without further ado, let’s meet April’s Member of the Month Iulia Simion from AEGEE-Buçaresti! 

Question: Congratulations on being awarded the Member of the Month! We are all eager to hear your AEGEE story.

Answer: First of all, I really want to thank you for this awesome nomination. It is exciting and encouraging to realise that what you are doing is noticed by others and your work is appreciated.

My journey in AEGEE started in November 2016. My first interaction with the AEGEE-București family took place in my first year of student life when I decided that my life should not be limited to college, and volunteering seemed like a good starting point. After the NGOs’ night (a well-known event dedicated for students who want to be involved in the volunteering world) I realized that AEGEE was a perfect fit for me due to the learning and evolution opportunities it offers.

For four and a half years I was very involved at local level, being part of the organising team in most of the AEGEE-București projects – Travel Summer University (2017), New Year event (2017, 2019), Europe on Track (2018), Spring Agora București 2019 and many local ones too. When the pandemic started we were quite disoriented by the sudden change of situation, but with a lot of teamwork and organisation, we succeeded in the fight with Covid19 and managed to organise many online projects, including Christmas Advent Calendar, PR Masters, Urban Jungle, Europolis and, of course, how could we forget about Foreign Voices?

What motivates me? It’s simple: our strong team, with whom I can create a path of evolution and growth – and have fun too. A team with whom I strongly believe that we’ll achieve all the goals we set for this year.

Q: What has been the highlight of your time in AEGEE?

A: I think that one of the highlights in AEGEE-București was my Treasurer experience during Spring Agora București 2019. It was the biggest challenge of my life and full of responsibilities. Since October 2018, I have been involved on the financial side but also on the HR and Graphic Design sides too. I had to learn to handle all of them, all whilst doing my bachelor thesis.  

A second highlight is my experience as President of AEGEE-București that started 6 months ago. As president, I have tried (and hopefully succeeded) to build a strong and well-knit team that is always ready for new challenges and new projects. A team which could organise and stabilise 5 projects – three at the local level (PR Masters, Urban Jungle and Europolis) and two at the international level (AEGEE Advent Calendar and Foreign Voices, of which we reached the third edition this month: German Month, coming after Greek and Spanish).

Q: What are some of the most memorable moments you’ve had in AEGEE?

A: During my time in AEGEE, I have gathered many memorable moments: live meetings before the pandemic, recruiting sessions, crazy brainstorming meetings, just working, and having fun together. One of the main objectives for the future, after the pandemic is over, is to create more memories with beautiful, energetic and awesome people.

Q: What are some ways in which AEGEE helped you in your life?

A: I think that my AEGEE experience helped me in many ways. Firstly, I practiced public speaking as a day-to-day activity. Before AEGEE I was very shy, emotive and afraid to talk to strangers, but now I don’t have any problems talking with people I don’t know. Secondly, my experience in the HR department as HR Coordinator helped me get a job in the IT Recruiting Area because I already had some basis in the recruitment process. And last but not least, AEGEE helped me to discover that I love Graphic Design because I was pushed to try this side too and use my creativity as much as possible.

Q: What are your words of wisdom to your fellow AEGEEans?

A: Allow yourself to make mistakes because they are the main engine of evolution and development. During your experience in AEGEE, accept the challenge and be the best version of yourself. Dare to try everything that AEGEE can offer you and discover every corner of this magical and awesome world.

Q: Any closing remarks?

A: Hope to see you somewhere in Europe soon!

The year 2020 has been a weird, upsetting and unprecedented one, for the AEGEE community as much as for the rest of the world. The pandemic of Covid-19 has forced us to adapt and find new and innovative ways to still stay connected, both locally and globally.

AEGEE has proven nothing can stop it and that its members are a resourceful bunch! We survived, we adapted and we overcame! The proof is in the activities both at local and at the European level. It is true that we lost our signature events – no awesome activities and exchanges – but that doesn’t mean we stayed still. 

The motivation and the AEGEEan spirit we showed in the last live event – European Planning Meeting 2020 (EPM), Barcelona, 5-9th February – accompanied us though the rest of this peculiar year. With our new Action Agenda drafted and our new focus areas established – Climate Emergency, Mental Health, Political Activism and Social Equity – we set course to the turbulent waters of 2020!

First stop: the very first ever Online General Assembly in the history of AEGEE, Spring Agora Yerevan! Though we did not have the chance to discover “the sunniest city in Europe” and its country, Armenia, we did see the spirit of their people. And we liked it so much that they were selected once again for a remake of the event! May 2021 will take us to the country in the middle of the Caucasus mountain range! 

New people were elected for the positions in Europe during the online event (members did heartily follow the event’s motto “you decide”) and new steps were taken towards the progress of our association and its role in the Union. 

Europe on Track (EoT) also decided to join the online craze and we got: 20 online sessions, 52 hours of workshops and participants from 30 different countries, most of them in Europe, but also in Africa and Asia. It was challenging, but they did deliver, and raised awareness on the topics of mental health and gender equality. Thank you so much to the team for all your hard work, you guys outshined adversities!

AEGEE became a proud member of Citizens Take Over Europe Coalition (www.citizenstakeover.eu) It isn’t only our organization – as we’re one of the 50 that came together amidst the recent pandemic of the spring of 2020 – that roots for a borderless Europe and believes we have a say in the design of our “continent”. It is a step forward, and towards new directions. 

The year 2020 was also a year without our Summer University program. We waited for the Sun as much as we could, but finally, though it broke our hearts, we decided to do what was better and cancelled it. As devastating as it was, we are certain this will only mean that the next one (we know it’s going to happen) is going to be doubly spectacular. Summer 2021, don’t let us down! 

Not content with only one online Agora, we got another one in Autumn, and an Extraordinary one soon after. Yes, this year has been one of adversities, and was not gonna let us go so easily – it even took Agora Moscow 2020 from us. But what can we say, in AEGEE, we laugh at misfortunes and transform them into growth opportunities. There’s still much road ahead, but we are ready to take on the task. As the saying goes, “one step at a time” and we have many (new) bodies – FRC, SPC, DPC, StC, SC – and its spirited members to take those steps, and Moscow is ready to host the event again! Agora Moscow 2021 here we come! 

Veronika Chmelárová was chosen as a board member to represent AEGEE in the European Movement International. With her vote, she represented our organization in the annual Federal Assembly, where member organizations deliberated policy and the direction the organization would take in the upcoming year. The biggest challenge: retaining and promoting our shared European values. 

And, of course, we cannot make a true summary of this year without mentioning our awesome locals! Despite all adversities, you stood strong and kept organizing so many activities – physical and online – and did not even let a pandemic stop you from spreading the AEGEE-spirit. What can we say? You make it all seem possible! And you do make it all possible. 

Here’s to hoping the next year will be much more different from this one! Stay healthy and safe, and may we may all meet somewhere in Europe!

We wish you Happy New Year 2021!

Hey Leonardo, thank you so much for your time. How did you end up becoming involved in AEGEE?

Actually it’s kind of a weird series of events, I had met an AEGEEan (without knowing that she was) at a Model United Nations. The week after I met her, I saw her helping at a Pulse of Europe Demonstration and I offered to help with the little things. Through that I was introduced to the existence of AEGEE and the rest is history.

You have been quite active in AEGEE, being on the board of AEGEE-Frankfurt am Main and being a part of a lot of European bodies, what are some of the most important things you’ve learned? 

I have indeed been active in quite a lot of bodies, one might in fact say too many. If my memory serves me right overall it has been AEGEE-Frankfurt a.M., Y Vote, EoT 7, POLIG, PRC and Netcom(subcommie). I don’t think you’d even have enough space to write down everything I’ve learned throughout these past years, especially considering how I essentially went from 0 to 100 really fast. However, if I were to take the top 3 learning points then it would be the following:

i) I learned what my limitations are. When I first joined AEGEE I was so extremely motivated to join every body I could, but I soon realised how unproductive that is. One cannot be a one-man army in AEGEE. It’s not good for the network and it’s not good for one’s mental health either. 

ii) No team is similar to the other, you cannot expect group dynamics to be the same by doing similar things you’ve done in other teams. In the same way in which everyone brings a new set of skills, they bring a new set of reactions to various things.

iii) Everyone in AEGEE has the potential to become active, you just need to push the right button.

You want to be the coordinator of the newly established Political Activism Working Group of AEGEE, why do you think AEGEE has a need for this Working Group? 

When I first joined, it was in a local whose main aim was to be thematic, putting a focus on self-development and content. That’s what I liked about AEGEE, this potential of becoming active and essentially promoting anything as long as you have a concrete plan. However, when I got to the European level, I first felt that AEGEEans being actively engaged in society was rather the exception than the norm and in my opinion this needed to change. It’s one of the reasons why I applied to join Y Vote before anything else (which was also lucky timing I could say).

During the project I realised that my assumption on activism was correct but that I had misjudged the reason for it. I initially thought that people didn’t engage because they didn’t care or that they didn’t have time, but I now see that I was wrong. I observed several reasons why people don’t engage, examples being:

i) People don’t know how to be active in society

ii) People are not inspired by the current topics that AEGEE promotes

iii) Some people are scared that increasing activism will lead to increased fraction in AEGEE.

So these are all very different problems but all things that need to change, AEGEEans need to know how they can represent themselves. They need to know that if they are not inspired by something that already exists that they can be the ones who start it. They need to know that being an activist and standing up for what you believe doesn’t mean that it is going to create division. Personally I have a lot of friends I disagree with politically but that’s not stopping us from going for drinks on Fridays, so I know it’s possible. So this very simplified explanation is why AEGEE needs this working group.

What is the biggest thing you want to achieve with this Working Group and how are you planning to reach this? 

Impact, take the motto which we established for Y Vote “Develop, Empower, Involve” I think this could in fact be the leading thought for anything activism based in AEGEE and it could be considered as the best target.

What use is a position paper written by one expert inside of AEGEE if there aren’t people ready to stand behind it, are able to civilly discuss it and promote it ? I can tell you, it’s useless because as I stated before one person can only do so much on their own.  

Do you see yourself as a political activist? Why? 

(Laughs) Would I be applying if I didn’t? Yes! Of course. I’m no super activist though, I don’t go actively campaigning for every single issue. As to why, I have a vision of what society should be and I will work with every tool accessible to me to realize it. Seeing as I am not a decision maker, I’m no bureaucrat, state actor or CEO of a company, if I want to enforce change I must be an activist.

It seems as if young people are less and less able and willing to advocate for their rights. How would you like to change this? 

I don’t think I can fully agree with that statement. Young people are surely less willing to advocate things that don’t seemingly impact them as much as other things but once they realise that it is important for them, it’s a whole different story. In a sense that’s also something we’ll need to tackle.

I generally think that convincing people to be active is not harder than inviting them out for a drink. However, if Y Vote and Europe on Track have taught me anything it is that the hardest part is finding the niche interest, from there in fact it goes rather smoothly and quickly. So essentially we will need to show people how politics is connected to everything we do, one cannot be above politics because inevitably in one way or the other politics is going to affect them. 

How do you want to get members of AEGEE to get politically active and informed? 

We’ll need to play around a bit with archetypes of AEGEEans, as I previously mentioned, people get motivated by different things, this means that you can’t just have one strict plan to approach this issue. It is of course extremely important to know one’s history when it comes to politics so we will also try to incorporate important events that occurred in civil society to kind of motivate people, showing how change is in fact possible in every society. 

Of course there’s nothing better than in person training, ideally we’ll have at least one “Academy” if corona permits, where we will get to train people in this. All the materials we create should then of course be publicly accessible after they are tested and refined allowing the people who participated to become multipliers to increase the effect of the Working Group on the local level

With regards to social media, providing information will most likely be the focus. I have a few ideas but they’ll need to be tested for efficacy before I can truly say that they are plausible. One idea is to create a short video every month with all the most important events that have happened in Europe, this will of course require a lot of help from the network but I think that it should be possible, otherwise a comprehensive post should do it too.

What are your next objectives in case you will not be chosen for the Political Activism Working Group? 

I am going to apply for Europe on Track 8, I will definitely also apply to become a team member of the working group anyway. If those don’t work out I will take a little break from AEGEE and focus on personal projects for a while, unless I come up with a fantastic idea which I can implement. 

Mental health, a topic that is extremely relevant in today’s fast paced world but seldom talked about. It is one that is still often stigmatised and considered not an actual disease. AEGEE decided to acknowledge the elephant in the room and proposed it as a possible working group at the Strategic Planning Meeting held in June 2019 in Köln. Having been accepted by the Agora at Salerno, it is now one of the four new thematic focus areas of AEGEE. Laura Miranda from AEGEE Valencia, a passionate voice in the field mental health with several years of volunteering experience in and outside AEGEE, submitted her candidature as the coordinator of this working group. We interviewed her to get a better insight behind her motivation and her plans for the term of the working group.

Hi Laura, thank you for taking the time for this interview. To start off, could you tell us a bit about yourself?

Sure, where to start? I was born in the Basque Country in Spain, in 1994, and when I was 9 years old my parents decided to move to Valencia, a city to which I feel I belong. I started Industrial Engineering in 2012 because I didn’t know what to do with my life and my parents pushed me to go to the Polytechnic University because of its good fame. I turned out to be an activist more than an engineer and I plan to study Psychology in the near future. I love art in all its forms, now I’m starting to paint with watercolour and play the ukulele, and I live with my cat, called Gordo (fat cat in English, yes, he’s fat). 

You gained experience through training sessions and volunteering in and outside AEGEE. What are some important takeaways?

I learned a lot. If I had to point out some, I would say that now I’m more aware of what I’m capable of, I gained self-confidence in the process. I also developed many management skills, I am more organised in my studies and my volunteer work. I manage my time better and also my emotions, especially frustration. This was a very important learning point for me, as I’m a perfectionist and my expectations used to be over the reality, now I learned to minimise them and keep on with the unexpected, embracing ambiguity. For this, I like the motto: be stubborn about your goals but flexible about your methods.

As you mentioned in your application, mental health is a topic close to you. In what way can you leverage your knowledge and experiences towards the working group?

This topic has always interested me somehow, but it became very relevant in my life when I was diagnosed with my depression. I had to explain my situation to my friends and colleges, and that wasn’t always easy. So I started to look for extra information and resources accessible to everybody to share with them so they could understand me better. The more I found the more interested I was, and now, years later, I have a good collection of resources and information and a better understanding of its complexity. In the working group, I can share these resources and clarify any confusion that might pop-up, and I have different reliable sources where we can also look for answers. All of these materials can be used as a base to create new ones for the Network, to develop workshops or just as learning tools to share with anyone that asks for them. 

You mentioned a very elaborate program. What’s the first thing you’d like to tackle should you be elected to the position?

The first thing for me in any WG or project is to create a team, getting to know each other, doing team building activities and establishing a supportive network within the group, taking care of our own mental health. Then it’s important to understand the interests and preferences of each one of the group members and then distribute the tasks based on this. At that point, we will know our ‘resources’ and we will develop our Action Plan based on that. Within my priorities are to make a good social media strategy to raise awareness and fight the stigma, and I would also like to start making a survey to the network on their wellbeing within the association, so we can have a picture in our minds of the current situation of AEGEEans mental health. But we’ll see after the group is completely formed, I can’t make any promises.  

The current situation with COVID-19 poses challenges with mental health, often with people stuck at home with people that act as triggers. How would you or the working group tackle this situation?

First I have to say that we’re neither therapists nor social workers, so in any case, we should interfere, the only thing we can do is to express our opinion on what can be done. Answering the question, this is a very common situation, and every case is different. If you’re talking about a bad relationship with your flatmates in a student shared flat, the solution would be to talk about the rules of living together. But this changes if we’re talking about violent situations. If a woman is trapped with her perpetrator, then it should be reported and the police should intervene. If the case is about an LGBTQ+ teenager/young person living with homophobic/transphobic parents, the best we can do is to try to support this person via online, phone or video call to make that person see that is not alone and connecting them to LGBTQ+ associations. In some cases, it might help to directly talk with the people you’re living with, express your emotions and possible solutions, but sometimes this can unleash violent reactions and make the situation worse. It’s very important to analyse the situation first with an expert on Social Work. 

What would be your plan in the chance that you aren’t elected?

I would for sure apply to join the WG as a member. 

One of the most difficult challenges that our society urges to face nowadays is climate change. AEGEE is quite aware of this concern, thus this environmental topic has been set as one of the focus areas of our association for the period of 2020-2023. When it comes to Climate Emergency Working Group Coordinator applications, Laura García from AEGEE-A Coruña introduces herself as a  highly motivated and prepared candidate. 

García has a Degree in Oceanography and Master in Environmental Management and has also done internships in Oceanographic institutes, an animal conservation place and environmental consultant company; as well as taking part in the European Solidarity Corps (Erasmus+) about Marine Conservation and Environmental Education. 

Regarding her AEGEE experience, Laura García joined our association back in 2016, and she has been quite active ever since. She went from becoming secretary, vice-president and afterwards president of A-A Coruña to being one of the organisers of Autumn Agora Salerno 2019. Laura has also been a member of the Sustainability Committee of AEGEE since 2019 where she got to organise the Earth Day and spread awareness of the topic through articles and webinars.

In your application, you state the fact that you have a Degree in Oceanography and a Master in Environmental Management. How could you apply this knowledge to the CEWG position?

My studies gave me the knowledge to understand and to transmit in a technical way the problematics at an environmental level. For example, I have a piece of deep knowledge about the status of several marine species and their danger of extinction or the level of migrations due to temperature variations in the water. I also understand a bit about the atmosphere and its dynamics. In my master, I also studied energy consumption. So, I think I can apply all this knowledge to the work that we will do in the Focus Area.

Climate emergency has been set as one of the focus areas for the Strategic Plan 2020-2023, and during the last months, we have also seen some events and social media campaigns regarding this topic. Do you think that AEGEEans awareness of the environment has increased during these years?

Yes. Fortunately, in recent years AEGEE started to take action on this topic, starting with the Society & Environmental Interest Group, The Manifesto, green guidelines, workshops, events, The Sustainability Committee and so on. Finally, we arrive at the point of having a Focus Area about Climate. We have many AEGEEans aware of the topic, but we still need to do a lot of work to reach more people and reach them deeper.

Your program states the importance of better communication between CEWG and locals. This issue seems to appear in other working groups as well. Why do you consider this to happen and how would you improve it?

I think sometimes there is not enough proactivity on both sides – locals and WGs, so is very common this hole between both. Also, locals are sometimes afraid to contact European Bodies and they think they can handle it themselves. I planned to collaborate with other WGs and establish a direct channel, so locals can approach us in a more informal way, so maybe they will be “less shy” to come to us.

Another interesting point that you have made is the importance of collaborating with external partners. Do you have any particular association in mind? How would you improve local activism?

Regarding the first question, there are many associations around Europe that are working on this topic and that we and those associations can promote each other. For example, we have already promoted activities from associations such as UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme). Any other association which is not focused on environmental issues but is interested in the Climate Change topic will be very welcome to establish a collaboration with BEST, EGEA green, IFMSA, IAAS (among others) on the promotion of several online events and providing materials.

Regarding the second question, what makes an antenna not active in a certain topic? (In this case, doing activities regarding sustainability management).

1. “I don’t know”. We will inform about different campaigns or activities that can be done in a city.
2. “I can’t”. If you don’t have enough active members or if you don’t have time for organizing activity, you can contact local associations or the city councils and join their initiatives.
3. “I don’t want to”. It would be interesting to do research and understand why those people don’t want to take part.

From time to time, I will send a survey and make a measurement of the local’s performance on this topic.

You seem to be very keen on writing articles and being active on social media in order to strengthen your reach to AEGEEans. Can you tell us some ideas?

I think writing is a really efficient way to approach people and transfer information to them. My strategy is to use very simple vocabulary and not too long articles, with the obvious message, always along with pictures with explanations, graphics, and so on. Nowadays, almost everyone is inside of any social media, so it is a really fast way to approach and to make people be interested in the content.

When it comes to COVID-19, which actions could CEWG take to help AEGEE and its members?

There are many things we can do for the environment even if we are in a total quarantine. When it comes to a situation of 100% quarantine, CEWG can help to share material and deliver online workshops. Fortunately, right now, it seems that the situation is getting better and we can go more outside, so we will be able to organise other kinds of activities, at least at a local level (+ all the things you could already do at your home). And hopefully, during my year of coordinator, we will be able to organize an event at Network Level. With or without live activities, we will anyway provide Guidelines, Workshops and Webinars and a lot of information in our social media, to keep people updated and informed.

In 2001, AEGEE started the journey to celebrate the linguistic richness of our continent and to promote language learning. The European Day of Languages (EDL) was also celebrated last year by AEGEE, in order to encourage all of us to continue learning languages, to praise the beauty of each language, and to remind us of the importance and necessity of linguistic diversity. The date chosen by the EDL coordination team was the 14^th of November, but each antennae chose the most convenient day around that date.

The different local EDL events showed participants that languages can become the key to intercultural dialogue and mutual understanding. Languages open doors, allow for a different viewpoint of the world, and they can help to improve job opportunities. In addition, multilingualism breaks language barriers, brings people together and it is essential for a diverse and borderless Europe. 

A total of 17 antennae organised a local EDL event in 2019. For example, AEGEE Bilbao organised an interactive language quiz and a public speaking workshop. In addition, AEGEE Praha had a nice after-Agora meeting, at which participants learned about the advantages of multilingualism and tried learning daily sentences from Russian, Czech , German and Greek from native speakers. Besides, the participants of the EDL event of AEGEE-Valladolid played an exciting language quiz, discussed the advantages of learning languages, and learned about the role of LIG. Furthermore, AEGEE-Zagreb organized a local EDL event in collaboration with ESN, where participants had the chance to learn new words in other languages, play a language quiz and go to a karaoke to sing international songs with Erasmus students.

In Romania, AEGEE-Iasi organised a variety of language-related activities for the participants of their local EDL event. From the language speed dating game to a discussion about the use of English and a poetry translation in five different languages, the enthusiastic participants and organisers enjoyed an amazing event. Moreover, in AEGEE-Koln, participants had a lot of fun during a Dialect Night, which featured various dialects of German language, such as Badisch, Münsterländer Platt and Kölsch. In contrast, AEGEE-Alicante had fun playing a trivial pursuit with questions about languages, in cooperation with the youth council of that city. 

In the west of Europe, AEGEE-A Coruña organised a language tandem and a multicultural dinner, where participants had the opportunity to taste various snacks, dishes and desserts from other countries. Before the dinner, international students gave presentations about their language, tradition, festivities, stereotypes and cuisine. In Delft, the Dutch Speaking Night took place, where international students who live in Delft had the chance to speak Dutch with the help of native speakers in a casual atmosphere.

All these EDL events remind us that AEGEE is an active multilingual organisation, which spreads language love and strives for a diverse and borderless Europe based on intercultural dialogue and peaceful international cooperation. If you also love languages or you want to learn more about the EDL and other ongoing projects of LIG, don’t forget to visit LIG’s website or write to lig@aegee.org.

The AEGEEan starts a collaboration with the AEGEE Eastern Partnership Plus project. This year, the Eastern Partnership bloc celebrates its 10th anniversary. The six-member countries plus Russia have been very active during the last decade, organising and hosting a lot of events within AEGEE and raising awareness about the EU in their respective countries. In order to show what has been done so far and where our EaP+ antennas are heading to, we interviewed them on their activities and plans. Our next antennae is AEGEE-Kyiv.

Let’s get to know each other first: Tell us a bit about your local?

Our local is situated in the heart of Ukraine – its capital: Kyiv. So far we have 60 members but there are plans to become an even bigger family. We regularly organise Summer Universities and New Years Events. Also, we participate in different international projects and organise thematic and entertaining local events.

Please tell us something about the history of your local. How did it develop?

We were created in 1995 and already had a lot of fun being a part of AEGEE-Europe. We were taking part in different projects like Europe on Track, Summer University, doing several exchanges and growing as a community. 

What do you consider your biggest achievement so far? In your viewpoint, what’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced?

Our biggest challenge and the biggest event was organising the Agora in 2015. We faced a lot of difficulties which we had to overcome all together but we built an even stronger team and had fun having so many people from all over Europe in our home city. And that also became our greatest achievement so far.

Do you do a lot on the topic of sustainability? What are you doing exactly? Can you tell us more about it?

The topic of sustainability and environmental protection became very urgent in the whole world and in AEGEE-Kyiv as well. This year the topic of our SU is nature and environment. We are going to hike in the mountains for a couple of days, do a lot of sports, enjoy nature and encourage people to care more about ecological issues. Also, we have a project called ‘EcoVesna’ which includes regular workshops and lectures on this topic.

What are your plans for the future? Would you like to organise a big event? What activities do you have in mind?

In future we want to stay as one family with our current members and our newbies whom we always welcome to join us and help each other in self-development, realising ideas and dreams and being a current place for young people to come to. And maybe in a couple of years, AEGEE-Kyiv will hold another Agora.

For EaP locals: This year the Eastern Partnership Project is celebrating its 10th year of existence. What did it change in your lives, personally and as an AEGEE local? What do you think about the partnership between your country and the EU in this context?

We started to cooperate and communicate between members of AEGEE-Europe even more. We were following interesting events which were taking place. We were meeting new people and finding new ways for further projects. And we consider this to be extremely important. The partnership between Ukraine and the EU should become even bigger and stronger and we are really looking forward to it.

In your opinion, what should EaP+ as an AEGEE project concentrate on? How can we help you to grow and develop? How could it interact with you?

Uniting the locals as the main priority of AEGEE-Europe and EaP+ in particular. In behalf of AEGEE-Kyiv, I can say that we are open for any kind of cooperation.

The AEGEEan starts a collaboration with the AEGEE Eastern Partnership Plus project. This year, the Eastern Partnership bloc celebrates its 10th anniversary. The six member countries plus Russia have been very active during the last decade, organizing and hosting a lot of events within AEGEE and raising awareness about the EU in their respective countries. In order to show what has been done so far and where our EaP+ antennas are heading to, we interviewed them on their activities and plans. Our first antennae will be AEGEE-Moskva.

Let’s get to know each other first. Can you tell us a bit about your local?

Media

AEGEE-Moskva is the local of the Russian capital which is in the centre of the European part of Russia. We have about 180 members and we are growing bigger and bigger. This year we set the goal to concentrate on our members and develop their skills in any field that AEGEE provides. In this regard, each month we organise different workshops (on PR, Sustainability, Eco-friendly behaviour, AEGEE in your CV and so on), thematic LTCs, European Day of Languages, the best SU- Transsiberian Dream and also NYE Meanwhile in Siberia where we had an international ball for the first time in the history of our local! What is more, this year we’ve organised our brand new activity which is called ACE – language parties, where people can practice their languages in a nice informal atmosphere, play games in different languages, meet natives from all over Europe and get to know more about the different cultures. Also, we have an informal members’ meeting almost every week and co-operate with our nearest locals, e.g. in February, we spent a weekend with AEGEE Sankt-Peterburg in Tver sharing the best practice and experience within two boards.

Please tell us something about the history of your local. How did it develop?

AEGEE-Moskva was founded in 1991. It was mentioned as a contact, International Discussion Club. In 1992 they organized their first events: a congress, a Scientific Seminar, a Summer University and some local events. Later, in 1996 they hosted a Security Policy in Europe Forum at Moscow State University. After a decade-long break, the antenna revived its activity and has held numerous events since then. Here are some of them. 2009 was a year when members of AEGEE-Sankt-Peterburg and AEGEE-Moskva cooperated to organise their first-ever edition of Transsiberian DREAM Travelling Summer University. That was a daring move but they not only brought AEGEEans to Lake Baikal but also continued to work on this Summer University for the next 10 years. Their dedication was rewarded in 2018 when the 10th edition of Transsiberian Dream, travelling from Moscow to Vladivostok, won the best prize – taking the 1st place among more than 60 other SUs. AEGEE-Moskva has organised every edition until now in cooperation with different locals, such as AEGEE-Tyumen, AEGEE-Ryazan, AEGEE-Samara and AEGEE-Sankt-Peterburg, developing stronger bonds between the Russian antennas. In 2014, when the clouds over Russian-Ukrainian relations got darker, members of AEGEE-Moskva and AEGEE-Kyiv, who had been friends for quite some time, went against all odds to organise an event. They made a trip between two rivalling countries possible because of their strong spirit and a deep belief that the youth can achieve what they aspire to. The event was called Capital Cities and was held 3 times during 2014-2016 for New Year‘s and Orthodox Christmas Eves. When Autumn Agora Kyiv 2015 was about to take place, AEGEE-Moskva already knew what to do; to organise a pre-event (Moscow Tea Time, with a strong cultural topic) and show more Europeans what it feels like when you cross borders on a train. NetWork Meetings were not neglected either. In a period of 5 years, the antenna hosted it twice: in 2012 (Let’s do EAT Together) and 2016 – Deal with it! AEGEE-Moskva has had 3 twinning contracts with AEGEE-Valencia, AEGEE-Izmir and AEGEE-Bergamo. Among other highlights of their history are: 2009 – an international event to visit the Eurovision Song Contest in Moscow, 2016-2017 – New Year’s Event Meanwhile in Siberia in cooperation with AEGEE-Tyumen, 2017 – in cooperation with their twin-antenna AEGEE-Bergamo they organised a travelling pre-event for Autumn Agora Catania, it was called Transsitalian DREAM Also, despite all possible visa issues, AEGEE-Moskva has sent 3 of its members to Comite Directeur: – Marianna Kuperman, as VP/Network Director in 1996-1997,  Denis Maksimov, as European Institutions Director in 2009-2010, Ksenia Lupanova as Communications Director in 2018

What do you consider your biggest achievement so far? In your viewpoint, what’s the biggest challenge you’ve faced?

As far as you might know, last year our Summer University “Transsiberian Dream. Vol.10” ranked number one among all 57 Summer Universities. It was a great reward for us and we have worked for 10 years to get it. Each year we transferred all knowledge from the previous generations of Transsib family to make it better, more meaningful and unique. Last year we also decided to extend the Transsiberian route and go to Vladivostok, that was the first time in Transsib history! What is more, to make Transsib more informative and substantial we decided to focus not only on the cultural part but also added ecological content, holding workshops on Sustainability and Eco-friendly Behaviour. Thus we can safely say that our Summer University was not just about having fun on the train or admiring Russian sights, it was also about education, awareness and mindfulness that each participant obtained after Transsib. Talking about the biggest challenge, we believe it was the decision to organise an Agora in Moscow to which we have prepared for, for the last 3 or 4 years. There were many discussions on this topic and we were always eager to hold it but only this year we have realised that we have all the potential, resources, strengths and power to make it real and possible! And even though we were rejected the last time when we applied for the host of Spring Agora 2020 we do not give up and right now we are investing all our energy and time to apply once again and make this Agora happen!

What are your plans for the future? Would you like to organise a big event? What activities do you have in mind?

First of all, right now we are working very hard on our Summer University “Transsiberian DREAM. Vol.11” which will be held in one month’s time. We do our best to make it legendary, unique and mind-blowing like previous years! Secondly, as we already mentioned our big goal and plan for the next several months is to apply for the next Agora Autumn 2020. We already chose our Coordinator Ekaterina Nemova, recruited the Working Group, distributed the responsibilities and duties and are working on the application together. Besides that, we still have some local meetings with members and develop new plans for the upcoming hot Autumn season! Stay tuned

This year the Eastern Partnership Project is celebrating its 10th year of existence. What did it change in your lives, personally and as an AEGEE local? What do you think about the partnership between your country and the EU in this context?

Since United Europe is one of the basic concepts of AEGEE we are directly influenced by relations between Russia and the EU. PCA helps us to develop Russian locals and to improve relations with locals from the EU providing better communication between countries in the different spheres. Unfortunately, the situation is strongly connected to political actions and there are no global changes at the moment. Before 2014 several steps were already made. For instance, the law on special regulation on visa issues is in force already, we actively use the provisions of the named act for youth projects and explain it to our members. The dialogue on visa-free regime between our country and Schengen area was started and we hope that we will see a positive result soon. Additionally, the closer cooperation between the EU and Russian government institutions will allow us to organise more international projects on a better level by institutional and financial support.

How would you improve the work of the EaP? Are there any needs that haven’t been addressed by the Project?

First of all, we find it crucial to mention the overall visa situation between the EU and Russia. Fortunately, it is to change dramatically within a couple of years in terms of the newly developed project which simplifies visiting Russia with electronic visas, yet the lack of general awareness about the visa procedures and difficulties tied up with this is still holding back the development of mobility for both sides. The second thing to mention would be a legendary Erasmus programme which has helped thousands of students and youngsters from pretty much all over the world to travel and study with minimal financial expenses. We are convinced this program should be constantly improved, extended and geographically broadened alongside with the budget being increased. This would help programme countries’ participants boost up their travelling experience.

In your opinion, what should EaP+ as an AEGEE project concentrate on? How can they help you  grow and develop? How could it interact with you?

For a start, on the local level, it is necessary to raise the level of awareness among the youth and motivate them to become more active. We have strong relations on a human to human level thanks to the successful implementation of our organisation’s objectives, however, only a small percentage of the members could share their opinion about the situation on a global level in politics. Due to the fact that members’ generations are changing fast, it is important to provide workshops and activities in general on a regular basis. After, we will have a community to start the serious discussion. Secondly, EaP+ support would be helpful for the organisation of international projects with Russian locals’ participation. It is about a formal and informal level, providing the information about opportunities on the international scene, inspiring for participation in different projects, etc. More active members from Russian locals will lead and inspire more members by real example. Of course, we wish one-day EaP+ resources will allow AEGEE to share members’ opinion directly to decision-makers.