Hello again aegeeans, and welcome to the presentation of the unique RTC happening in Napoli. Not just because we are just having one —well, technically yes, but that’s not why we’re saying it! It’s because it sure looks amazing (we got a little peak on the program). “From Ideas to Reality!” is the third RTC organised by AEGEE-Napoli, so you KNOW they KNOW what they are doing. Wanna know more about this training event about ‘event management’? Read this article to find out!

Welcome organisers of the RTC 2022 in Napoli. Can you quickly introduce yourself —and your antenna—, and tell us what the RTC you are hosting is going to focus on?

Hello everyone! We are the organisers of the event “From Ideas to Reality!” from AEGEE-Napoli. From the moment of its foundation in 1993 until today, AEGEE-Napoli has hosted many young foreigners, through a series of events both educational and recreational, showing them the charm of our region and enhancing the value of our culture, too often a victim of prejudice and bad publicity. This is the third RTC the antenna has hosted in its history.

“From Ideas to Reality!” will focus on event management, following all the necessary steps. In particular it will address 3 themes: 

• the planning of the idea, 
• the management of the group,
• and how to deal with crises if they arise. 

This all is going to take advantage of the experience of the Academy trainers at our headquarters in the historic centre of the city.

What made you say “yup, we’re organising a RTC!”? 

The idea of organising a training event was in our plans since the beginning of the new board’s term. We thought that an event management training was the best, not only for our board team —made of pretty new members—, but also for every antenna who wants to strengthen its skills. Organising a RTC is also an opportunity to bring together different members from across the network to share our knowledge and experiences. 

How long did the planning for the RTC take, how many people were involved, and how excited are you for it to finally start?

The planning took about 3 months, and it involved the six people of the core team plus two members of the antenna. We are looking forward to hosting the trainers, learning new skills and meeting the participants!

Are you taking special precautions because of the pandemic? 

We are taking all the COVID-19 safety measures like hand sanitizer, infrared thermometer to measure the temperature and swabs to identify and isolate eventual positive cases. On top of that, all participants are asked to be in possession of the green pass and of a negative swab done 24 hours before arrival. Of course face masks must be worn always, especially in closed spaces. In case of positive participants, AEGEE-Napoli has prepared a large room for isolation.

What would the ideal participant look like for you? 

The ideal participant must be a young and ambitious member of AEGEE, who wants to make the difference in the association, who is anxious to learn from trainers and from the other participants. It would be great if he/she already has ideas for brand new events that he/she can share and discuss with experts.

What can the participants expect to learn during the RTC? Have you also planned social activities? Can we get a little peak on the program? 

Prepare yourself for the two nights in Napoli! An amazing social program has been planned that includes a street crawl and, let’s say, some singing. We’ve already said too much though. 

We are looking forward to seeing you in our headquarters!

It is Network Meeting season again: Spring has sure brought them back! Five to be exact. And since we are sure you’d love to get to know more about them —if you’re half as curious as us, it’s a certainty ;)—, we bring them to you fellow aegeeans. Starting with one full of magic: NWM Castelló: Never Without Magic. Happening in Viver, Spain from the 14th to the 17th of April, it’s an event organised by La Nave Area (Tripu 14.2) and AEGEE-Castelló that sure will be the stuff of fairytales. 

Wanna know more about it? All your questions shall be answered below: 

Welcome organisers of the Network Meeting 2022 in Castelló. Can you quickly introduce yourself —and your antenna—, and tell us what the NWM you are hosting is going to focus on? 

Hello, hello! We are Castelló, an antenna located in the Mediterranean coast of Spain, with great weather and some of the best villages in Europe. We are very excited to present to you the event of the year, the NWM Castelló: Never Without Magic. As you may guess, it is all about magic, isn’t it? So be ready to introduce yourself into a world full of fantasy… But it is not all about fairy tales, since we want to see, from another perspective, the famous films we have all known since we were children. 

This event wouldn’t be possible without the work of our FANTASTIC team:

• Lorena Navarro (Main Organiser)
• Lore Aznar (treasurer)
• Oriol Sánchez, Alicia García and Roser Negre (Social program responsibles)
• Cristina Fábrega and Paula Ginés (Incomings)
• Carlos Pascual (Cooking responsible)
• Jorge Moreno (Advisor)

What made you say “yup, we’re organising a NWM”? 

We have been wanting to organise one for so many years and this, finally, is our year. We started to settle things up back in October and, since then, we are kicking it. As you know from the previous question, we are about ten people fully organising, and about five other people that will help during the event. 

You can’t imagine how excited and motivated we are to prepare a great and different NWM.

Are you taking special precautions because of the pandemic? 

For sure. We will ask for a COVID certificate and a negative pharmacy test before the event starts. During it, we will be very cautious about open spaces, ventilation, masks, and hydroalcoholic gel.

What would the ideal participant look like for you? 

Someone who is full of energy, ready to learn new things, who is funny, and wants to explore the incredible world of magic.

What can the participants expect to learn during the NWM? 

As every NWM, there is a more “formal” programme, in which participants will learn how to organise an event, strengthen their teamwork, and realise their abilities. We also want to approach the films we all know about heroes and fairy tales from a gender/LGBTQ+ perspective. We also have a social programme, full of surprises, magic, and fun.

Have you also planned social activities? 

Yes, of course. We have a lot of surprises prepared for all of you. We don’t want to give anything away but, if you love Disney, you won’t forget this event.

Can we get a little peak on the programm? 

To prepare a really enjoyable event we can’t share much information so you will have to imagine what is coming. See you soon! :)

If this sounds exciting, remember that you’re still on time for applying. 

Here is the link in myaegee: https://my.aegee.eu/events/nwm-castello-2022-never-without-magic

Network Meetings are an important part of AEGEE. They teach our members new skills and bring the network closer together. Our journalist Jovana took part in the NWM Zagreb and is telling us about her amazing experience. Are you getting curious about these events now? Then don’t worry: There are new NWM happening this spring, the applications are already open. So what are you waiting for? Go to MyAEGEE and apply!

On the 9th of December, I was graciously chosen to be one of the participants for Aegee-Zagreb’s NWM. This particular NWM taught us a lot about fundraising, recruiting new members and about AEGEE’s European Bodies, as well as introducing us to Zagreb’s  culture, history, and nightlife.

This being my first ever AEGEE experience outside my local, I had a lots of fun, and was not disappointed! The people I met were fantastic, and the organisers and facilitators were very informative and helpful. With me there was also a girl named Nanda from Aegee-Nijmegen, who was just as me  was new to this type of event. I had the opportunity to interview her and she had some pretty interesting things to say.

Jovana: “What did you think the NWM would be like? And has it met your expectations?”

Nanda: “I thought that it would have been more formal in the sense that we would get a lot of information.And in fact, I think that it was informal social wise talking with the others doing nice things such as a city tour and a pub crawl. So basically it was what I thought it would be which is nice. And it was better than expected!

J: “Which AEGEE event do you wanna go to next?”

N: “The Agora! I really want to go to that one because I like the formal part, because I study politics, and I think it would be nice, and I really like meeting a lot of new people! Also I would definitely either like to organise or participate in a SU!”

J: “Would you say the NWM taught you a lot?”

N: “Yesterday not so much, like about theory. However, I learned a lot from the other participants when they were sharing their experiences.Today yes, about fundraising. I didn’t know much about that… just a few basic things…and that is why today I learned a lot.”

I’m going to be honest and say my favourite workshop was the fundraising one, because it taught me how to provide my local with new sponsors. While having all these different workshops, a person would think that they might be boring and only focus on the learning part, but it was actually pretty fun since the team tried using energizers to make us pumped for every session. And then I wondered… is every NWM like this? Alexander from AEGEE-Kaiserslautern-Saarbrücken (already 5 NMWs under his belt), and the lovely facilitators Timo from AEGEE-Enschede, and Zoi from Aegee-Thessaloniki gave some interesting information.

J: “Has the NWM met your expectations?”

Alexander: “After a long period of not being able to do many events, it was nice seeing the live-NWMs get going again. NWM Zagreb was really fun and it definitely met my expectations.”

J: “Does this NWM compare to others you went to?”

A: “All the NWMs I have attended so far have been very different from each other. In terms of the number of participants as well as their focus and the distribution between the sessions and the social activities. The number of sessions in Zagreb was a bit less than usual, but it also left a lot of room for networking and conversations about what is going on in the network, for discussions about recent happenings as well as sharing experiences, and best practices from different locals.”

Next we have one of our wonderful facilitators Timo from Aegee-Enschede:

J: “Has it met your expectations?”

Timo: “Yes, this NWM has definitely met my expectations. I think a few of the most important pillars of a NWM are networking, sharing best practices and learning from each other in general to get a fresh perspective on AEGEE again. By finally being able to meet physically again, I have the feeling that many of the participants went home with a good dose of new energy to organise things for their AEGEE locals. Besides that, the sessions of the NWM gave a lot of space for sharing best practices and we touched on the topics that are important to most of the locals that were attending.”

J: “Does this NWM compare to others you went to?”

T: “I think there is one common truth about AEGEE events, and that is that even though every NWM follows the same main vision, it is still an event that can be really adapted to the current needs of the network. Looking at it from that way, this NWM definitely compares to the previous NWMs, but of course, because of the group of participants and the choice of sessions, it was a very unique experience again. As the group wasn’t too big, I think the general connection between all participants was also really good.”

And finally we have one of the organisers/facilitators Zoi Gavresi President and member of Aegee-Thessaloniki, speaking about his experiences during the NWM Zagreb:

J: “Has it met your expectations?”

Zoi: “I was part of the organising/facilitators team, so we tried to make our ideas and expectations come true, and I believe it worked out pretty well. The atmosphere was refreshing, there was a variety from newbie’s to very experienced members so at the same time an opportunity for reunions and meeting new people. Thus, a nice balance between the educational part and the fun aspect.”

J: “How does this NWM compare to the others you went to?

Z: “I’d say it’s rather unfair to compare online with offline events for obvious reasons, like technical problems or the chance to get to know each other better & even bond or explore a little a new city/culture. Personally, if I think about it as an overall picture, I’d say it was the best of the NWM I have attended, keeping in mind, though, that it was a great combination of different factors which one cannot have in the online ones. I’d only point out that during some sessions in particular people were less talkative than in the respective online version – maybe it’s easier to take the floor in front of a screen, maybe the less sleeping hours are to blame…”

While exploring Croatia’s beautiful capital, Zagreb, I learned a lot about their history and culture while also interacting with different people from all around Europe, which had always been something I had been looking forward to. We had fun evening activities such as the pub crawl, my favourite part was the Rakija bar of course, and even a karaoke party. But unfortunately due to corona we had to cut our time short, so I wondered whether or not these Aegee events were different pre-covid? Again Alexander, Timo and Zoi gave absolute satisfactory answers: 

Alexander: “Of course, especially for the organising local, the uncertainty has become much greater whether a planned event can take place due to the situation or even restrictions coming into force. However, we as AEGEE have to act flexibly to this and I am firmly convinced that, despite all precautionary measures, certain risks have to be accepted. These meetings and the exchange with other locals and fellow AEGEEans, are a very important part of what AEGEE is all about.”

Timo: “Of course in a practical way, some things concerning organising and executing the event are a bit more complicated and different than before, but in general the basic concepts around the functioning of a NWM didn’t change that much. For me it actually felt a bit like a flashback to pre-Covid times.”

Zoi:  “Circumstances change and we need to adapt to them. I believe the pandemic also offered some good input. In brief, more events could take place as the cost was significantly less or even zero, more people had the opportunity to participate as otherwise because of various reasons they might wouldn’t be able to attend an offline event instead. NWM in Zagreb was entirely offline, we chose not to follow the hybrid version as it would be complicated. My verdict is that people really enjoyed it and it was more than apparent that they missed the in person events. On the other hand, for the more introverted personalities maybe offline events are slightly more challenging at the beginning.”

Finally,this could not have been made possible without our organisers. They tried their hardest to provide us with great accommodation, great partying and fantastic learning experiences. One of the organisers, Juraj Persut, gave some wonderful statements:

J: Is this your first time organising a NWM?

Juraj Persut: From the perspective of a local, yes. We also organised one in 2019, but this is the first time I was a part of an organisation team. Every event has its own charm, and it is special in its own way, you can have everything prepared from previous years, and still every event will be completely different from others. It is never about an event, it’s always about the people.

J: Would you say that you had fun organising it or was it a bit stressful?

J.P: It was really stressful but we also had fun doing it and in the end, it felt really rewarding. 

J: Do you have anything to add to your fellow aegeeans?

J.P: Always follow the AEGEE spirit!

I would like to thank Aegee-Zagreb for the lovely experience, and new knowledge I have received during my stay, and also to the participants who I met, befriended and those who gave me a chance to ask them some questions.

See you somewhere in Europe!

Did you know the next European Planning Meeting is happening from the 24th to the 27th of February 2022? No? Then you really should read the following article to learn what it is all about, and why these kinds of meetings are so important for  all us Aegeeans! Teddy van Amelsvoort, the President of AEGEE Europe and Teodora Panus, the Vice-President are answering all of the important questions for us in the following.

Hey Teddy, and first of all thank you for answering some questions for us. Can you introduce yourself, and tell us what an ‘European Planning Meeting’ is?

Teddy: Of course! So, for those of you who do not know me, I am currently the President of AEGEE-Europe and a member of the Comité Directeur responsible for Strategic Planning and Action Agenda drafting. Together with the rest of the Comité Directeur and the Strategy Committee, we are working on this year’s European Planning Meeting (EPM). In the second part about the topic of the EPM, you will hear Teodora, the current Vice-President and External Relations Director as that is part of her portfolio.

So now, let’s get back to the topic at hand: the EPM. The European Planning Meeting is the largest thematic conference AEGEE has, and it takes place each year. Essentially, it has two parts: a thematic and a planning one. During the thematic part, there are numerous sessions, workshops and discussions about a topic. This year the topic is Innovation in Democracy. The planning part is to draft the Action Agenda for the following year.

What kind of AEGEEans usually participate in ‘European Planning Meetings’, and what are the goals they are working towards during these meetings?

Teddy: There is a mix of AEGEEans that take part in EPMs. In general, there are either members who want to share their ideas and experience about the Focus Areas we have and the direction AEGEE should take, or those that are not yet experienced but wish to learn more about the different topics.

Can you explain to our readers what the ‘Action Agenda’ is and how it is created? Why is it important?
Teddy: The Action Agenda is the yearly implementation plan for the Focus Areas we have. It consists essentially of short-term realistic and measurable goals for AEGEE as a whole to achieve (by both Locals and European Bodies) that are needed to realize the long-term aims of AEGEE as mentioned in our Strategic Plan.

Creating the Action Agenda is quite a long process, with the European Planning Meeting being at the heart of it. Before the EPM, we gather input from the Network and our members about what they would like AEGEE to work on the following year and what they find important. Like this, we make sure that it is as representative of our entire Network as possible. 

During the EPM we start drafting the Action Agenda based on the input of the participants and the Network gathered before the EPM. After the EPM, the draft Action Agenda is finalised by the Comité Directeur and the Strategy Committee before it gets feedbacked once again by the Network. And finally, we come to the Spring Agora where we discuss the proposed Action Agenda and ratify it. 

How important do you think ‘European Planning Meetings’ are in general for AEGEE? 

Teddy: The ‘European Planning Meetings’ are very important, as it is the way to plan short-term goals that move us from our current state to our desired future one. The opinions of our members are essential, as they are the ones who are working on helping us to reach that state.

The ‘European Planning Meeting 2022’ is another event that will be held online because of the pandemic. By now, are you and AEGEE-Europe already used to these kinds of events, or do you believe that an actual in-person event somewhere would be more productive and fun?

Teddy: Online and offline events are of course very different, but it always depends on the participants on how productive and fun the event will be. Eitherway, we try to do our best to make sure the AEGEE spirit is there in whatever format we have our events. The disadvantage with ‘online’ is that it is not as easy to keep the discussion going as you normally would have with offline events. But we work with what we have, while trying to keep our members safe —that is the important thing in our eyes. Likely as you, we keep our fingers crossed that the next EPM will be offline. If you want that, do not hesitate to apply during the next Open Call!

Teodora, thank you for taking over the part of answering now! The specific topic of the meeting this year is ‘Innovation in Democracy’. What exactly is meant by this? What can the participants expect to learn, and what are the specific areas to be discussed?

Teodora: ‘Innovation in democracy’ is a very broad topic to discuss. This is why we are trying to divide it into three categories to guide people through it:

1.    General – What is democracy? How do participatory structures work, and how can young people be involved?

2.  Current situation – How is the current situation worldwide affecting the democratic developments? What can be considered as an innovation in terms of democratic processes? How does social media and forced digitalisation impact the process? (Little spoiler, we have a fun session prepared that a lot of you might enjoy!)

3.  Future of democracy – How can we impact the current situation, and what innovations today can be considered the normality of tomorrow?

Why is ‘Innovation in Democracy’ important and necessary nowadays? Which are the aspects of democracy that can be improved especially in Europe?

Teodora: This is a very interesting question, but I’m afraid if I answer it here there will be nothing to be discussed during EPM. :D

AEGEE is a network full of young people with innovative minds. What would be the best outcome from the ‘European Planning Meeting 2022’? What can we all do to improve Europe’s democracy?

Teodora: Stand up against the inequalities and shortcomings that you see.  If the thematic side of the EPM can help our AEGEEans to broaden their views on how we can innovate and leave a mark —at least in our small communities—, then we can consider it a success. 

The change starts with us and our actions, so the moment you have an idea, share it, work on it and see how far you can go with it. This might sound very cliche, but it is true. 

The 1st of August is a historic day for AEGEE: our new Strategic Plan 2020-2023 enters into force. You might be wondering now: what exactly is the Strategic Plan? 

To keep it short: the aim of our strategy is to streamline the actions of all our members towards goals we have given ourselves democratically during the past year, providing us with an opportunity to achieve our mission in an effective way. For further reading, we would like to refer you to the Strategic Plan 2020-2023 (download here) where you can get to know everything about this topic.

To celebrate this important milestone for AEGEE, we would like to step back and have a look at how the identity and strategy of our organisation evolved since the very beginning in 1985. Let’s dive right into our journey through time!

This article has been updated on 13 of August 2020 by including Ideas Factory Leon 2016, the proposal in Agora Enschede 2017 and Honorary membership of Philipp von Klitzing

1985-1991: Foundation and the first structure

AEGEE was founded on 16th of April 1985 as a result of a conference called EGEE (États Généraux des Étudiants de l’Europe). It was organised by the five “Grand Ecoles de Paris” (~colleges of Paris) on the initiative of Franck Biancheri and aimed at overcoming the paralysis of the European integration process. At first local groups, today called antennae, were formed in different European cities aiming to promote European integration.

Then, in 1988 some of the most important entities of AEGEE’s structure were established which remain until the current day:  the General Assembly (Agora), the first Board of Directors of AEGEE-Europe (Comité Directeur), the President’s meeting (known today as European Planning Meeting), and the first European Bodies like commissions as well as a first form of the working groups. After that, the network continued to expand with more antennae being formed across Europe.

1992-1999: Year Plan, Long-Term-Programme and the KeyToEurope

1992 marked an important year for strategy in AEGEE. For the first time, the identity and overall goal, as well as the values of the organisation, were written down as the Statement of Principles. In the same year, the first edition of KeyToEurope – AEGEE’s yearly magazine which summarizes the most important work, changes and plans of the organisation – was published. 

1992 was also the year in which the Comitè Directeur created the very first Strategic Plan of AEGEE: The Year Plan 1993 “Towards a better European society” (see Picture 1 below). It listed five fields of action for AEGEE and list of events that were going to be organised to tackle these fields within the following year. It was created to better coordinate the work of all AEGEE members across the continent, a task especially difficult without modern means of communication like the Internet. Not to forget, the aim also was to better represent the organisation towards European institutions.

Since 1994 the planning with a longer perspective was introduced in the form of the Long-Term Programme. Every year at the Spring Agora the Comitè Directeur was presenting one or several topics with a time frame of three years to the network which was to be ratified. From this time on, the Year Plan served as a more short-term, concrete plan to reach the goals of the Long-Term-Programme.

Philipp von Klitzing, who was the driving force behind introducing these strategic concepts in AEGEE, received the honorary membership of AEGEE-Europe in 1996 for his pioneering work in this field. In the following years, until 2000, the Long Term Programme and the Year Plan continued to play the most important role in strategic planning in AEGEE.

2000-2004: Main Fields of Action & 3-year Strategy Plan

In 2000,  the Comitè Directeur issued a proposal to change the “Long Term Programme” into “Main Fields of Action”, which would determine, at most, five areas AEGEE should focus on. Alongside with it the “Strategy Plan” would define AEGEE’s actions for the next three years. Thus, at the Autumn Agora Udine in 2000, AEGEE-Europe introduced four Main Fields of Action: Education, Peace and Stability, Cultural Exchanges and Active Citizenship. 

At the same time, the President’s Meeting was changed into the Planning Meeting, where several hundreds of members would discuss the future direction of AEGEE. The name was again changed into European Boards Meeting in 2004, as it was intended to specifically involve the boards of antennas in the process.

2005-2012: Planning Working Format & ACT

The Planning Working Format was the section of the Corpus Iuridicum AEGEEnse (CIA) that described in detail the structure of AEGEE’s Strategy. It was first created at the Autumn Agora Izmir in 2005 to replace the former “Main Fields of Action, Year Plan, Strategy Plan”.

At the Spring Agora Valletta in 2007, the Planning Working Format was reformed with the introduction of Focus Areas in the scope of a 3-year Strategic Plan. The new set of six Focus Areas was clearly divided into two groups – the first three were thematic, the last three organisational. Together with them, Action Agenda was added and the Year Plan had finally been deleted (Picture 2).

In 2008 a five-months-long drafting process for the new Strategic Plan took place, which included two Progress Sessions and a Strategic Planning Meeting in Brussels. As a result, the Strategic Plan 2009-2011 was approved at the Autumn Agora Aachen in 2008. It was the first one to be drafted according to the new Planning Working Format from 2007.

In order to facilitate the implementation of the Action Agenda by the network, the Action Agenda Coordination Committee (ACT) was created at the Spring Agora Enschede 2012. Its task was to spread knowledge about AEGEE’s Thematic Focus Areas within the Network and to work closely with the Network Commission in organising work on the topics at the local level.

2013: The Identity Reform

The Comité Directeur, which entered office in August 2012, decided to focus their efforts on reforming AEGEE’s identity. After a year of consultations, an Identity meeting took place in Brussels in July 2013, where the current version of Vision, Mission and Means of AEGEE was drafted. The results were ratified by the network at the Autumn Agora 2013 in Zaragoza.

In the same year the “Main Fields of Action” was finally abolished to emphasise the importance of the Strategic Plan.

2014-2015: Fulfilment Problems,  Working Groups Reform & European Planning Meeting

Between the proposal in Autumn Agora Zaragoza in 2013 and the Spring Agora Asturias in 2015, there were no dedicated teams working on the Focus Areas of AEGEE. This meant that it was a difficult task to focus and reach any measurable progress on the defined goals. 

At the Spring Agora Asturias 2015, a proposal to have one Working Group per Focus Area was accepted. The intent was to ensure a greater precision of AEGEE’s strategy and making the work on it more efficient. Former Working Groups, not connected to the Strategic Plan, were renamed to Interest groups, but continued to serve the same purpose as before. 

Also in 2015, the European Boards Meeting made its third and so far the last change of name, and was now named European Planning Meeting. This was done to explicitly include all members of AEGEE in the discussion about the future of the organisation.

2016-2017: Planning Meeting becomes a Statutory Event

The Planning Meeting “Ideas Factory Leon” that was held in 2016 for drafting the strategy 2017-2019 was the first one to involve even AEGEEans that couldn’t attend it via live-streaming and online-polls.
At Agora Enschede 2017 the Planning Meeting was officially added to the CIA as a statutory event for drafting the Strategic Plan.

2019-2020: Strategic Framework & Strategy Committee (StC)

In 2019, there were still many issues related to the coordination, distribution of responsibilities and promotion of the strategy towards the network, resulting in problems with reaching the desired goals. On advice of the Planning Team 2019, which was responsible for the preparation and facilitation of the drafting of the new Strategic Plan 2020-2023, the Comité Directeur proposed two new reforms.

The first one was to restructure the documents related to the Strategic Plan and incorporate them into the Strategic Framework. The second one was to create the Strategy Committee (StC). Previously, Agenda Coordination Committee (ACT) had focused on the implementation of the Action Agenda on the local level. StC, as opposed to ACT, has the goal of overviewing the whole Strategic Process, encouraging and facilitating communication between different Bodies and individuals who are working on the implementation of the Strategic Plan. Additionally, it creates, maintains and evaluates the effectiveness of the structure of all documents related to the Strategic Framework. 

Those two reforms were done based on research, consultations of the network and feedback gathered on the Strategic Planning Meeting Köln 2019 and ratified by the Autumn Agora Salerno 2019.

At this point, we have reached the present. During the last 35 years, AEGEE has changed and evolved, remaining updated to the needs and dreams of young Europeans. Today it is a place to share ideas, develop oneself and to bring change for Europe. This generation, like the ones before us, has now the opportunity to continue shaping AEGEE, to contribute to its mission and to remain at the forefront of European integration. 

In case you would like to get to know more about strategy in AEGEE and/or help with its implementation feel free to contact strategy@aegee.eu. 

Sources:

This article has presented a brief summary of all the events which have happened during the 35 years of AEGEE’s existence. You can find all the sources for this article here in case you want to further research certain parts.

The content of this article has been carefully researched by the Strategy Committee using official sources like various editions of KeyToEurope, the CIA as well as Agora minutes & proposals. Due to the long historic time-span and sometimes scarce data, it is still possible that the text contains mistakes, especially of how certain things were carried out in practice in AEGEE. In case you have any corrections or additions please contact us at strategy@aegee.eu. 

• Foundation phase:
  • KeyToEurope 1991/1992 Page 8,
  •  KeyToEurope 20 Page 10
• First structure
  • KeyToEurope 1994/1995 Page 8
• Statement of Principles
  • KeyToEurope 1993/1994 Page 8
• Year plan 1993
  • KeyToEurope 1991/1992 Page 31

• Long-Term-Programme
  • CIA 6.0, 1994, page 39
  • Key 2 Europe 2018-2019, page 37

• Main Fields of Action & 3-year Strategy Plan
  • Key2Europe 2000-2001, page 59
  • Key2Europe 2000-2001, page 62
  • Key2Europe 2000-2001, page 5

• Planning Working Format
  • CIA 16.1, 2005, page 4
  • Spring Agora Valletta 2007 Proposals booklet, pages 5-10
  • Minutes of the Spring Agora Valletta 2007, page 32
  • Key2Europe 2008-2009, p. 11
  • AEGEE Strategic Plan 2009‐2011
  • AEGEE Strategic Plan 2009‐2011

• ACT
  • CIA 23.1, page 83
• Identity Reform
  • KeyToEurope, 2012-2013, page 26
  • CIA 24.1, Article 2 and 3, page 5 
  • Minutes of Autumn Agora Zaragoza, page 36
• Working Groups Reform
  • Proposals booklet, Agora Asturias, page 19-32 
  • KeyToEurope 2014-2015, page 17
• Ideas Factory Leon
  • Key to Europe 2016-2017, page 57
• Planning Meeting as a Statutory Event
  • Proposals Booklet of Spring Agora Enschede, page 9
  • CIA 28.0, Article 2, p. 75
• Strategic Framework & Strategy Committee
  • Strategic Plan 2020-2023
  • Proposals Booklet of Autumn Agora Salerno 2019

We thank the whole Strategy Committee for their support in creating this article.

Hello again, AEGEEans, we continue discovering the hidden Network! As we mentioned in the last article, it seems that the situation of the pandemic problem due to COVID-19 is starting to get controlled in the majority of the countries in the world but during the year there will be a lot of restrictions to travel. So, we thought of making these two posts with the aim of promoting local, regional and national travelling in order to help our economy and avoid any kind of problems or restrictions in other countries due to the COVID-19. 

A hidden adventure in the East of Germany: Zentendorf! (Antonia von Richthofen, AEGEE-Brussels)

Zentendorf is a small village close to the German/Polish border (and to the AEGEE local in Dresden). But behind the residential area there is a true treasure isle: the “cultural island of hermits” (rough translation). This colorful park consists of a large range of creative, wooden creations. Houses, labyrinths and crazy climbing contraptions offer a day full of exploration and fun for everyone of any age! Go, visit Zentendorf and experience the mad architecture of some crazy germans.

Malvern Hills United Kingdom. (Macarena Escobar, AEGEE-Salerno). 

We know them as the inspiration for the Lord of the Rings trilogy but this area has been designated as a biological and geological site of Special Scientific Interest, and by Natural England as National Character Area 103 and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Malvern Hills are home to a wide range of outdoor sports and leisure activities, including walking, mountain biking, horse riding, orienteering, hang-gliding, paragliding, model aircraft flying, fishing, climbing and diving. 

Mare Chiaro, Posillipo (Naples). (Tullio Pacelli, AEGEE-Napoli)

Mare Chiaro is a wonderful old fisherman’s village situated on the coast of Posillipo. This area in origin was outside the urban area of Naples but in the time had been included in the city and currently it’s one of its neighborhoods. Thanks to the morphology of this area it was not possible to build too many structures and due to this reason all the coast has preserved all its natural beauty. The coast offers many places to visit: You can go for a nice walk in Virgiliano park, the second big park in the city and enjoy the view of the Gulf of Naples and Bagnoli; you can visit the National park of Gaiola where there are the old ruins of the Greek’s settlement of Pausilipon. 

Sazova park. (Selin ünen, AEGEE-Eskişehir.)

Welcome to one of the most peaceful place in Eskişehir. This is Sazova park, we can say it’s the Turkish version of Disneyland. You can relax here with the sounds of swans and watch this perfect view. In addition to this you can find science parks across this dream land. We would really love to see you in Eskişehir. 

Kazimierz Dolny (Poland) . (Monika Mojak, AEGEE-Warszawa)

Kazimierz Dolny is a little town in Eastern Poland, located along Vistula River and is considered as one of the most charming places in Poland through beautiful square and streets with historical townhouses, Romanesque castle ruins, romantic atmosphere of this place, long history and rich nature, which makes it a perfect travel destination for everyone that enjoys places with aura of mystery.

The town is known for its strong connection with art and as a center of art activities for many artists, who came to Kazimierz Dolny to find inspiration for their artwork. You can see small galleries and art studios in almost every corner of the town. 

Moreover, every year in August, Kazimierz Dolny hosts a famous Film and Art Festival- “Two” Riversides (“Dwa Brzegi”), which is artistic and cultural event drawing all cinema lovers and promoting movies and other forms of art activities. Due to unique landscapes and architecture, the town and its surroundings have been a background for numerous movies and tv series.

Izmir. (Melis Kılıç, AEGEE-Izmir)

Places to visit around Izmir have great richness in nature, culture, history, and gastronomy. The history of İzmir dates back to 8,500 years ago. At the same time, it carries the traces of different civilizations, nature and peace with the city center as well as its surroundings.

Karaburun is one of the quietest and most peaceful resorts of Izmir and is located on the peninsula that bears its name. In the Karaburun, which has dozens of unspoiled beaches and coves with its crystal clear ice-cold sea, the Aquarium Bay, Boğabağı Bay, Kaynarpinar, Mordoğan, Ayıbalığı and Ardıç beaches are among the holidaymakers’ route. If you come in the harvest of daffodil flower, do not forget to smell the flower.

Pink Lake, Grigorieva (Ukraine)  (Ruslan Kvitnevyi, AEGEE-Lviv)

The Pink Lake is located in Grygorivka village, Kherson Region in Ukraine. Locals call this lake the Ukrainian Dead Sea. It is truly a natural miracle as the waters of the lake have a tender pink color. The percentage of sea salt in the water reaches 35%. Rich in sulfur and an array of other minerals, these waters are considered to have endless health and beauty benefits. This is also a popular summer destination for many Ukrainians, that is why it’s better to visit this lake in mid or late spring or early fall to avoid the crowds of tourists and enjoy the beauty of this natural miracle. The Tunnel of love is a section of an industrial railway located near the city of Klevan. It is a railway surrounded by green arches and is 4.9 km in length. It is known for being a favorite place for couples to take walks and a super Instagram-able place.

And that’s all! Thank you everyone for collaborating with this beautiful article and that some of you shared more places we couldn’t fit in this article. As you see, there are many many amazing places to visit closer from you than you think, so this SUmmer, discover the hidden Network, and visit your country!

A Summery University is a unique experience also because participants can discover “hidden” places thanks to the local organisers. We asked some AEGEEans to share their favourite landscapes that are not so far from the place where they live. Read on and discover the hidden network!

It seems that the situation of the pandemic problem due to COVID-19 is starting to get controlled in the majority of the countries in the world. But the fight against the virus is not over and we still need to put a lot of effort in order to continue in this good line. We all know that some of the consequences will remain at least until the end of the year. This year is going to be difficult and is going to take time to increase the possibility of travelling to other countries. Borders probably will be closed or there will be a lot of restrictions.

When someone asks you about where you have been travelling, how many times did you answer “Actually I have travelled more around other countries than around my own one”. It’s really easy, sometimes it seems easier or more interesting going outside of your country or region. But, if we think about it, there are many amazing places closer to us than we think. So, this article is going to be about this topic, awesome places that are very close to our members and that are worth visiting. Let’s promote this year’s local/regional/national travelling! Not just because of the possible restrictions of international travelling, if not, also, as a way to help the local/regional/national tourism economy that is going to be really affected during this period without almost any international tourists. 

Let’s travel first to Castilla y León, one of the biggest regions in Spain. Full of history. In Leon, one of the cities, there are lots of caves dug by the water millions of years ago. Valporquero is the most famous, but Llamazares and Valdelajo are also worth the visit. In Valporquero, there’s also the possibility of practicing underground canyoning. (Pablo Gutierrez, AEGEE-León) 

Combarro: it is a small little neighbourhood within the galician village of Poio (In Spain). It’s famous for all its horreos, which is a typical Galician building in which the farmers used to store the wheat and corn safe from rats. It’s totally by the sea and it’s also full of cruceiros, which are a symbol of Galician culture in relation to fishermen’s traditions. (Asier Rodríguez AEGEE-Bilbao)

Sanabria Natural Park, in the Northern region of Zamora is considered one of the richest environments on the iberian peninsula due to its diverse nature and fauna. Sanabria is the place where you can also find the largest lake glacial origin of Spain and third in Europe and altogether belong to the Meseta Iberica Biosphere Reserve, a unique space that extends to Portugal as well. (Saúl Furones AEGEE-Burgos). 

Marie-Claire from the AEGEE Sustainability Committee took advantage of the current situation to explore the forest and hilly area in her neighborhood during all different day and night times. This is in Switzerland, Olten. 

The Skopje Aqueduct is an aqueduct and archaeological site located in the neighbourhood of Vizbegovo 2 km northwest of central Skopje, North Macedonia. The Skopje Aqueduct is the only aqueduct in the country, and one of three largest and well preserved in the former Yugoslavia. The aqueduct was used to bring water to the center of Skopje and it was in use until the eighteenth century. (Marijana Asprovska, AEGEE-Skopje).

Juliya Gospodinova from the Sustainability Committee and AEGEE-Stuttgart sent us some pictures from a Region of Vratza in Bulgaria. 

Pitigliano (Italy): Tuscan Treasures. Carved from volcanic stone, the town of Pitigliano is located south of Montepulciano, and not too far from the thermal mineral waters of Bagno San Filippo. The cliffs of Pitigliano, Sovana and Sorano protected the remains of the many peoples who called the Fiora Valley, and its protective peaks, their homes since 2300 BC. (Stefano Morini-AEGEE Torino). 

Parc des Buttes-Chaumont is one of the public gardens in Paris. It’s located in the north east of the city. Even though the garden is quite known by the Parisians, it’s still a preserved place from the tourists. It was created in 1867 by Jean-Charles Alphand, under Napoléon III. One of the particularities of the park is the beautiful artificial lake overhung by the Gazebos Island. The geography of the park is totally artificial and was created by Alphand to please the romantic souls of the 19th century. It’s a perfect illustration of the Romantic Movement. (Lila Quaile, AEGEE-Paris)

The Pont du Gard is a roman aqueduct located in the South of France, near Nîmes. It was built in the 1st century to bring water to the city of Nîmes. It’s the one of the only parts remaining from a 52km in length aqueduct. Nowaday you can take a walk on it and admire the view. You will see a typical landscape from the region called “Garrigue” which is a mix of small trees like olive trees, bushes and limestone rocks. It overhangs a river called “Gardon”. During the summer you can swim and rent kayaks or canoes. There is also a museum that goes along with the monument, describing the construction of the aqueduct and the roman civilization in the region. (Lila Quaile, AEGEE-Paris)

Koufonisia are the islands of Pano and Kato Koufonisi, which belong to the Small Eastern Cyclades. Pano Koufonisi is characterized by picturesque Cycladic streets, freshly paved houses and the characteristic white windmill to the left of the waterfront. A place suitable for hiking, as all distances can be easily covered on foot. It takes about two hours to walk all over the island and return, which makes the car unnecessary. Kato Koufonisi is uninhabited, ideal for camping and alternative holidays. Koufonisia is the ideal place to recharge your batteries, eat good food, enjoy the Cycladic tradition and beautiful beaches! (Erifyli Evangelou, AEGEE-Athina)

We would like to thank all the persons who collaborated in this article and sent their special places. Some of you people sent that many places that we couldn’t put all of them, but we are so grateful for your enthusiasm! Actually, we will make a second part mentioning other places!

This is just a short view that we have amazing places really close to us, so if this summer you can not travel to other countries, just take a map, and see the amazing beauty you have around you. See you in part two of this article! 

In March 2020, the world started to be in a State of Emergency due to the pandemic problem, COVID-19, also known as “Coronavirus”. It’s a big rate of contagion and danger, putting almost all the world in quarantine, being at home, not going outside at all except for things like buying groceries and medicine.

It has never happened before, like…really never!

All our lives have changed: kids, youngsters, adults and elder generation..all generations have to adapt their normal lives into a new routine, basically into 4 walls. “What am I going to do that many hours at home?” “Will I get crazy?” Those are some of the questions that probably everybody asked themselves at least once during the lockdown. 

To answer those, we have asked around our AEGEEan friends, how they are going to spend so many days “locked-in”. And actually, what we have seen so far, people are not changing their habits that much even though they have to stay at home. Most of them shifted to their jobs or studies to the home office and studies as well: they are still being engaged with online lessons, homework and course assignments, so at least part of the day is covered by those things. 

Digital drinking is a new trend!

Thanks to the era of technology, we can have a lot of things closer than we think: starting with our friends, all the people we have interviewed are doing a video call with their friends or family almost every day. For example, Edoardo Giordano (AEGEE-Torino) meets with his friends to take some drinks as they used to do in person.

Work hard – play hard

Also, you can have an entire workout “in-house”: many people are keeping their fit lives, followed by online live tutorials and videos. For instance, Esther Rodríguez from AEGEE-León does a small workout every day to get out the stress of being at home and in front of a computer all day long. Or take an example of Edoardo Giordano (AEGEE-Torino), who started to follow an Instagram account where the person persistently displays cool full-body workouts and meditation practices.

Pick up some cool hobbies! Come on in!

This situation is also an opportunity for many people to start learning cooking, try out a variety of dishes and different diets from all over the globe. You should not restrict yourself only with more healthy ones, but also allow yourself to chillax and have some sweet teeth. As a matter of fact, after this quarantine, many people will have better cooking skills. For example, Francesca Albanese (AEGEE – Salerno) is cooking fresh pasta, pizza and all kinds of desserts with her parents. Buon appetito!

Head Held High!!!

So, as you can see, it is not an easy situation, and of course, there is no comparison with the life outside, people are keeping a routine and a quiet normal life. Many activities that we can not do, many places that we are eager to visit, many projects we are passionate to do, many people we craving to see, hug and kiss. Again, we have asked our fellow AEGEEans, which things they are dreaming to do after the quarantine. 

In general, as young people, we all agree on the same thing: hanging out with friends, as for example Zeynep Ozan (AEGEE-Ankara), Maide Özcan (AEGEE-Isparta), Isabel Santos (AEGEE-Valladolid), Can Aydoğan (AEGEE-İzmir) answered. Julian Van Loo (AEGEE-Delft) promised to throw a big party and Laura García (AEGEE A-Coruña) who will definitely go to the restaurant and grab some the Spanish tapas. 

We have many people who are missing nature, like Isabel (AEGEE-Valladolid) who wants to see a sunset in the wild and Dani Cervera (AEGEE-Las Palmas) who after lockdown will run his way down to the beach. Antonio Castiello (SUCT, AEGEE-Salerno) will be going also to the beach with his guitar and friends or Pablo Guitierrez (AEGEE-León) and Sara Bordonado (AEGEE-Valencia) would like to go to the mountains for hiking and spend some time up there. Zografia Lepoura (AEGEE-Athina) wants to go somewhere into the woods or to the beach alone and lie in the grass with the sun on her face. 

Of course, we can not miss the thing we like to do the most in AEGEE: Travelling! We have the example of Federico Melella (AEGEE-Salerno) that will make a trip to Milano to visit some friends or Maide Özcan (AEGEE-Isparta) that is thinking about planning a trip to the UK. Kaan Sertok (AEGEE-İzmir) wants to go camping and is planning a trip around Turkey wherever his legs will lead him to! Jessica Kurzawa (AEGEE-Amsterdam) is hoping she could her flight to Indonesia and surprise her old friend. 

All in all, we will go through this together!

We all agree on one fact, that is, during this quarantine, we realise the importance of the small things, the importance of the bonds we have with our friends and family. How much we actually miss them, and to appreciate the time we have them in our lives. For example, Vicente Rerades (AEGEE-Alicante) and Hannah Sonntag (AEGEE-Nijmegen) have said that they will hug more the people they care about. Most of us have come into the realization that with the smallest things of life, we also can survive and find some happiness even behind the curtain of isolation.

This time the future of AEGEE takes place in Yerevan, the capital city of Armenia, a small country in the middle of the Caucasus mountain range. As with every spring, AEGEE will choose new people to be in elected positions in Europe and new steps will be taken towards the progress of Europe. Participants following the motto of the event, “You Decide”, will make important decisions that will affect AEGEE for the rest of the year. 

What do we in AEGEE know about this former USSR country at the end of Europe? We had to wait until 2010 to see the only antenna in Armenia, established in Yerevan which is known as “The sunniest city in Europe”. A pearl to be discovered, their members want to get closer to the rest of Europe despite the historical and geographical barriers preventing it. In this event, AEGEE-Yerevan will show, through the amazing organising team, what they can do and we’ll get to know them better through this interview!

Hello, good evening, and thank you so much for this interview. As an introduction, can you please tell us about yourselves?

Բարև(Barev) – Hi! We are Kalipso Bznuni, the President of AEGEE-Yerevan and Armenak Minasyants, the Main Organiser of Spring Agora Yerevan. We are honoured and also very excited to be sharing the wonderful vibes of the upcoming Agora, so let’s dive in!

Before talking about the Spring Agora of May 2020 maybe you can tell us about the history of AEGEE-Yerevan. What important events have organised the antenna since its foundation in 2010?

Being established in 2010 by a group of like-minded Erasmus alumni, AEGEE-Yerevan has grown to become one of the leading youth organisations in Armenia and one of the strongest in the AEGEE network. The broader mission of AEGEE-Yerevan on the local level is to promote European integration, active citizenship and youth mobility in education in Armenia and beyond. By encouraging traveling and mobility, stimulating open discussion and organising common projects, AEGEE-Yerevan aims to overcome national, cultural and ethnic divisions often seen in society and to help in creating a society that matches the youth’s vision of Europe.

As of right now more than 100 young people a year with various educational backgrounds, interests are coming from all over Armenia to be active members or volunteers of the organisation. In recent years AEGEE-Yerevan has organised more than 60 local youth projects, international conferences, as well as Erasmus Capacity Building trainings, allowing for more than 5000 students and young people from both Yerevan and other regions of Armenia (as well as other European countries) to take part in youth empowerment, civic education and leadership events. Among those projects, we would like to highlight a few.
Every year since 2011, AEGEE-Yerevan has organised an event known as the Armenian Model EU Conference, which typically brings 130 participants from various European countries to Yerevan to participate in a political simulation alongside their local counterparts. The event takes place on an annual basis and serves as a platform for young people to network not only with peers but also with experts in the field. The political simulation is preceded by sessions with representatives of Armenian state bodies and CSOs, journalists and youth workers, who participate in panel discussions and working sessions with the young participants on topics related to current political trends in Armenia, the Caucasus, and the broader region. As an AEGEE local, we are obviously, very proud of being the host of AEGEE’s first-ever statutory event in the South Caucasus and the biggest ever European youth event in Armenia – European Planning Meeting Yerevan 2018. The event gathered around 200 AEGEEans and is considered to be one of the highest-level events in the recent history of AEGEE-Europe, receiving the patronage of Ms. Federica Mogherini, Vice President of the European Commission. Another highlight is the Euroclubs in Armenia which with the objective to promote and develop European values among youth were founded in 2016 by AEGEE-Yerevan and funded by the Delegation of the European Union in Armenia. In the period, 2016-2018, 11 Euroclubs were established, one in each region of Armenia, in the course of the 2 years since their establishment, the Euroclubs have involved over 900 youngsters in more than 40 different trainings and events on civic education, gender equality, youth opportunities and more. Afterwards, in late 2018, AEGEE-Yerevan hosted a specially outlined training camp titled “Youth: Trends & Leaders”, which was organised in partnership with the Prague Civil Society Centre and brought an experience-sharing and study visit of 60 leading civic and political activists from the former-Soviet Union space (including all Central Asian countries) and Eastern Europe with the aim of training them with the knowledge and experience of developing civic education and active citizenship concepts.
And now we are looking forward to our next milestone – Spring Agora Yerevan 2020. 

How did the idea of organising an Agora start and why did you want to make this project real?

Agora is a huge project for any local, including us, even though we have had a very successful experience in hosting statutory events, namely EPM Yerevan 2018, which eventually brought together one of the biggest numbers of participants (178) in the most recent editions of the EPM. While applying for Agora, we were also motivated by the rapid democratic changes happening in our country as a result of the Velvet Revolution of 2018, which has completely changed the landscape in our society. AEGEE-Yerevan also has passed through its generational change and we have now much younger and new faces. So we want to capitalise on this, and having now a huge team of volunteers, being led by the experienced and proven AEGEEans – the local is more than ready to host not only Agora but anything else you can ever dream about! So for us hosting the agora is not that much of a motivational thing, rather than a normal process of organisational growth, let’s say, the logical next step for our local’s development.  

Do you expect participants to come from all over Europe? And what kind of activities can they expect during the event?

The short answer is why not? As local organisers, we are working our hardest to ensure the making of the best Agora ever is a reality and we hope that our motivation coupled with a curiosity to explore Armenia will transpire into potential participants. Especially now when there are dozens of affordable connections via RyanAir and WizzAir to regional airports literally from anywhere, no visa requirement to travel to the region to almost all nationalities, amazing logistics and accommodation at agora, a hospitable host nation, rich European culture and tasty food! The momentum continues to build around Agora Yerevan; which is really exciting for us.
The upcoming Spring Agora Yerevan 2020 will be highlighted with the big amount of thematic content and thematic activities. As the general theme of we have selected digitalisation and youth work and as a thematic agora, the upcoming event will focus on developing AEGEE’s members’ skills and competences through non-formal learning and civic education, enhance their digital and media literacy skills. In addition to the traditional workshops and progress meetings, this agora will also offer a variety of thematic panel discussions and workshops, which will be attended by high level national and European officials, known youth workers and enthusiasts as well as supported by various known IT companies and agencies. We are confident people would respond to the event once they got to know the conditions and terms of it. In recent years, sadly, the numbers of participants for all AEGEE activities are in decline. This is a bit of an institutional and systemic problem, but for us, it’s quality over quantity. Honestly, sometimes, we hear this where AEGEEans work on a project to reach a certain number of participants but we don’t want to organise an Agora just to chase numbers! Stay tuned, it’s going to be a great event with even greater participants, regardless of the numbers! 

Because this is an important event in the AEGEE calendar and the opinion of different members will count, what is the situation of the organisation nowadays and what is the solution to its problems?

As promised back in May in Bucuresti, we have started working on the Agora since the day we were back and in that time have already managed to secure the fundraising of the event, establish all key local and international partnerships and launch effective communication within the broader AEGEE network. Still, any AEGEEan who has organised any type of event throughout their AEGEE career, or outside of it, be it small or big, can definitely understand the unique challenges the event management can present. We are very lucky to have an amazingly strong and qualified team which makes the whole process with all of its challenges to be an exciting one. The Agora Yerevan 2020 team – both the local and international core teams, is a dream to work with and we are honored to be doing it this year! 

Ok, so let’s finish with this question: what will AEGEE-Yerevan do in the future after this Spring Agora?

Well, the team will have a well-deserved staff retreat trip to a yet undecided destination and afterwards back into action! 

Tomorrow, hundreds of people will gather in Barcelona pursuing their dream of building a better, more inclusive Europe. During AEGEE’s second biggest event, the European Planning Meeting, all AEGEEans will work together to develop the Action Agenda for the upcoming year. Social Inclusion will be the main topic to work on, approaching three different perspectives. The AEGEEan Magazine has had the opportunity to talk to the Content Managers who have been taking care of the topics for this to be a fulfilling experience; Viktorya Muradyan in charge of Youth Participation, Laura Miranda in Mental Health, and Marga Arbina managing Gender Equality.

EPM Barcelona is expected not only to teach new knowledge and empower young Europeans but also to tackle their feelings and encourage them to share and respect with others. “The topic of this year creates a more intimate, familiar ambiance. I consider that people who come to EPM have that feeling too. They come to share their personal stories, to hear other people’s stories and try to find ways to improve social inclusion through teamwork and collaboration”, explains Muradyan.

These aims will be achieved through panels, debates, and workshops, which result in a mix of critical planning and outward critical thinking. Some of the people in charge of the lectures are well-known organizations such as Mental Health Europe or UNED, but also syndicates like the sex workers of OTRAS or attention and recovery services for sexist violence victims like SARA. “I think the amount of experts invited to this EPM is really impressive and I hope the participants appreciate it”, says Arbina. A feeling that shares with her colleague Miranda, who remarks that “the experience of these people can give us empathy and understanding, for me the key is to keep working for a more inclusive AEGEE and for a more inclusive society”.

In fact, it seems that the skill of empathy is going to be widely developed and strengthened during the event since participants have been willing to share their personal vision from the very application period, showing special interest in the topic of Mental Health. “I am sure that it is going to be the star of the show”, puntualizes Muradyan: “First of all, we have seen a huge amount of interest toward this topic in the application process. We were amazed how people shared their personal stories and expressed willingness to come to EPM and share it with others”.

This also states as a challenge for the Content Managers, who want to make sure that everything goes as planned: “I hope that the informal debates that might pop up will go in a constructive way, taking into account the stories that people might have behind and respecting each other’s times and emotions”, expresses Laura Miranda.

Anyway, Content Managers are excited that participants will be amazed by the three perspectives of the event, which are open for everyone to attend and learn about them. “I’d like participants to be active and participate in the sessions with their knowledge, experiences and proposing new ideas. Everyone can contribute to this event, from the oldest and most experienced members to the newly incorporated ones”, explains Arbina.

As we can see, starting 2020 with EPM Barcelona is AEGEE’s first step of the decade towards social inclusion, a goal that will be achieved following a soon-to-be-build Action Agenda.

Know a bit more the Content Mangers

Viktorya Muradyan joined AEGEE-Yerevan five years ago. Since then, she has organized two Armenian Model EU conferences and EPM Yerevan 2018, as well as worked as a journalist for The AEGEEan Magazine. Her network and knowledge of youth participation is what makes her great for the position of Content Manager. “Throughout many years of travelling and working with youth workers, social activists, researchers, journalists and international organisations, I was able to create a network of ambitious, inspiring people, who bring change in their communities”, says Muradyan.

Laura Miranda became part of the AEGEE family two years ago when she entered AEGEE-Valencia, although before that she worked in the youth field as a volunteer for over 7 years. Miranda has attended SUPS, LTCs, different training events, organised and participated in the first Mental Health ES, attended both Agorae Bucuresti and Salerno and the SPM. She affirms some values to provide to the event are her passion for the topic and her organizational skills, contacting experts, and giving support to the team.

Marga Arbina began her AEGEE adventure three years ago along with AEGEE-Oviedo. Starting as the HR responsible of the antenna and then as part of the local board, last year she made it to the Equal Rights Working Group, approaching a European level of activism. She points to her knowledge and passion for the EPM’s main topic to be a part of its well development, and expects to attend the sessions in order to continue learning and sharing.