AEGEE-Warszawa has been elected as ACTive Local of the month because of the activities that they organized for the European Day of Languages and the Week of Global Education, and also as recognition for their more than famous Christmas postcrossing. We talked with Mariana Gasparska and Vladyslav Obushko, two members of the Polish local, to know more about the activities they carried out.

Which emotions did you have when you know that AEGEE-Warszawa was chosen as ACTive local of November?
Marianna Gasparska: We were very surprised, but also excited. For us the thematic events related to Focus Areas and fulfill the objectives of Action Agenda are very important and valuable. We strongly believe in that and by organizing such activities like Global Education Workshop,  European Day of Languages and Christmas Postcrossing we can help in fulfilling the Action Agenda and contribute to the mission and vision of AEGEE. We are also delighted  to hear that our work has been recognised and we can share with the network more info about our initiatives.

Why did you decide to organise these activities?
Marianna Gasparska: For the 7th time in a row we decided to involved AEGEE members in our Christmas Postcrossing initiative. People from all over Europe made friendships through sending each other postcards and little gifts. We wanted to prove that distances and borders don’t matter and we can spread easily the multicultural christmas joy. Through Global Education Workshop we wanted to educate our members on the importance of using natural resources and how to use mobile phones in a smart way. Lastly, we decided to organise the European Day of Languages event, because we think, that sharing information about the culture and language of a foreign country is very important and can ease the understanding of other people.

Vladyslav Obushko: On this regard, I love to share information about my country, and this event helped Polish people to understand better their neighbour – Ukraine.

What was the result of your activity? (I.e.: how many people participated, what were the opinions about it, etc.)
Marianna Gasparska: Around 20 people participated in the Global Education Workshop. They actively took part in the discussion on how can we decrease our negative influence on the environment. Christmas Postcrossing is very popular among all AEGEE members. This year over 900 people took part in it, so it means that 900 participants have made new friends around Europe, what is another step in building united Europe. 20 participant took part in the European Day of Languages event and they really loved it, because they could learn more about Ukraine and had a possibility to try some Ukrainian sweets, which were delicious.

Vladyslav Obushko: This event broke some myths about Ukraine people  and culture. It also brought basic information about living and environment in Ukraine.

How do you inform your members of the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?
Marianna Gasparska: In every LTC we organise a workshop about AEGEE where our members learn about the structure of the organisation and its aims. Participants are also informed about Focus Areas, Action Agenda and Strategic Plan brainstorming on possible projects that can contribute to the mission of AEGEE. Before every Agora we organiase a meeting for our members too, where they can learn about it and be more prepared for the statutory event.

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan plan?
Marianna Gasparska: Our antenna also organised workshops about Excel and contracts on employment, which are connected to Youth Development. In March, AEGEE-Warszawa and European Citizenship Working Group organised the conference Citizenship at its Grassroots about the state of democracy in Europe. Another activity related to the Action Agenda was the Mini European School on self development as an Agora Kraków pre-event.

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?
Marianna Gasparska: Activities related to the Action Agenda/ Strategic Plan are very important for AEGEE’s values. If every local organises an event, which is connected with Action Agenda/Strategic Plan, AEGEE could have even a bigger impact on the European Environment and fighting against the anti EU-movements, which are gaining some strength.

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?
Marianna Gasparska: Organising local thematic activities is a great way to develop members’ leadership skills and contribute to the AEGEE’s vision. If a local wants to organise a thematic activity, it should gather people who are interested in this specific area. The Board should also support them by giving some guidelines.

Can you tell us a bit more about your local? (Founded in, members, active members, committees you have, etc.)
Marianna Gasparska: AEGEE-Warszawa was founded in 1992. We have around 60 members and 20 active ones, regularly involved in local activities. We have also a few members being part of European Bodies, that help us even more to stay connected with AEGEE-Europe.

When it comes to the way we organise our work. Members are divided into project groups responsible for specific events. They usually meet every second Tuesday during Projects’ Meeting. We have bigger events plan in advance but we also welcome new initiatives coming from our members that can make them happen with the support of other members.

Written by Cristina de la Parte, Action Agenda Coordination Committee

Last October, AEGEE Salerno organised an Erasmus+ project that contributed to the Focus Areas of Civic Education and European Citizenship. As recognition for such a wonderful project, they have been elected as ACTive Local of October. We talked to Sonia Della Sala, HR responsible of AEGEE-Salerno and co-coordinator of the project named “Erasmus nei Picentini”. She was the co-coordinator because the project was idealised, finalised, and delivered by Coordinamento Provinciale dei Forum dei Giovani di Salerno and AEGEE-Salerno.

ACT: Which emotions did you have when you knew that AEGEE-Salerno was chosen as ACTive local of October?

Sonia: Well, happy will be too reductive! I remember we were at our AEGEE-Salerno office at Università degli Studi di Salerno when we read the communication. Our first reaction was silence, then the President moved his eyes from the computer screen and looked at us with a big pirate smile on his Jack Sparrow’s face and we hugged each other. For sure we felt proud of our hard work, sleepless nights and early wakings.

Why did you decide to organise this activity?

There was more than one motivation to be honest. I will try to be as brief as possible, promised! After we signed our agreement on mutual cooperation with Coordinamento Provinciale dei Forum dei Giovani di Salerno during our Summer University “Non Solo Sole -XXIX Edition- InSpiring eUrope” we decided to start official cooperation with “Erasmus nei Picentini”. It took place right after “Erasmus Welcome Days” (that AEGEE-Salerno organises twice a year to welcome incoming Erasmus and International students). We wanted to introduce our local European history and international visions to foreign students with AEGEE flavor. Ideas came during long talks between Forum Giovani and AEGEE-Salerno. I was content manager of our Summer University and a member of CEWG and together with Francesco Barbarito, who is Coordinamento Provinciale Forum Giovani di Salerno External Relations Responsible and AEGEE-Salerno member, “Erasmus nei Picentini” happened!

The idea was to combine history, science, arts and beauty with AEGEE’s Civic Education and European Citizenship Focus Areas. Three cities of the province of Salerno were selected for this project to come true, each one of them selected for a specific reason. Montecorvino Rovella -known as “Science City” because it hosts the astronomical observatory dedicated to the famous local astronomer Gian Camillo Gloriosi, which in 1989, for the 20th anniversary of the Moon landing, held an international initiative where among the guests there were Micheal Collins (Apollo11), astronauts Cristiano Cosmovici and Patrick Baudry, and cosmonaut Yuri Romanenko. The observatory received numerous awards from famous national and international bodies for its research (especially on the extragalactic supernovae and the photometry of the minor bodies of the solar system). Now the Technological and Environmental Multimedia Centre European Planetarium San Pietro is under construction. San Cipriano Picentino because it had the privilege to host Benedetto Croce who was one the founders of “Liberal Italian Party”, which is the founder party of the world federation of liberal and progressive democratic political parties “Liberal International” and party member of the “European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party”, now known as “Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe”. Giffoni Valle Piana because it is the venue of the “Giffoni Film Festival”, now known as “Giffoni Experience”, which aims at promoting the knowledge and circulation of products of high artistic value which contribute to the formation and cultural growth of a mature critical conscience in young people.

Throughout this project, our main goal was to sow intercultural learning among foreign students on the importance of active citizenship, so to foster a stronger European culture.

Participants spent one full day at each venue and had workshops, conferences, debates and city tours. Pretty cool, huh? I bet you are thinking to apply next year…

What was the result of your activity?

When we opened the Open Calls for Erasmus students in Salerno the response was surprising. We reached more than 60 applications. Only 50 have been selected based on motivations given. The feedbacks we received were positive. Both AEGEE-Salerno members, international students and Forum Giovani were participative to workshops.

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Usually, we inform members about the Action Agenda on several occasions: during general members meetings, for instance, when the board presents the activities planned for the upcoming month. We also have a Whatsapp and Facebook group in which we spam OCs for EBs, Task Forces, AEGEE-Europe Projects and so on with a general introduction on the topic. During LTCs and Agorae Preparation, we go into more detail on the Strategic Plan and Action Agenda. Anyways, every members meeting is a good occasion to recap on AEGEE’s mission and vision. Too much info is hard to store all at once!

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Of course we do!! Action Months are approaching fast and we are looking forward to it. We have already planned February according to the guidelines YDWG sent. In March we are going to focus on our Internal Project “Civica Civitas”, while in April we are going to host the prestigious conference for the Franck Biancheri Award. Stay tuned because you are going to hear about it soon!!!

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Personally, as Vice-speaker of the Human Resources Committee of AEGEE-Europe, I would say that organising activities related to Action Agenda/Strategic Plan could be a good recruiting strategy. It is the best way to show to externals what AEGEE really is and does. The impact that it can have on youngsters. The purest motivation to join AEGEE comes with participation, without having to explain what AEGEE is and does in a few minutes -because it will still look ridiculously impossible after a few hours!!

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?

Quite a few, actually. Planning beforehand is definitely one. Download and store guidelines is for sure a start, especially if you will eventually read them. Co-operation with a close or twinn antenna is another tip. Keep a constant eye on OCs, especially on projects and try possible combinations. I do not feel to go much into details because every local has separate needs, but for sure thematic activities could come in handy to solve attendances at events, as in make sure to organise a thematic activity as part of a general local assembly (or members meetings to sound less Dutch).

Can you tell us a bit more about your local?

AEGEE-Salerno was founded in 1989 by Fabrizio Moscati. As soon as AEGEE-Salerno was founded, in the same year we hosted “Autumn Agora Salerno 1989” and “Non Solo Sole – Summer University”. In 2003 we have been awarded “Best Summer University” and this year we are going to host our 30th edition of “Non Solo Sole – The Show mUst go on”, so stay tuned! Currently, we count 50 members of which 20 are active (but 10 are super active-productive). Our board is composed by six members, two of which are active on the European level: Federico Melella, AEGEE-Salerno IT responsible, and IT team of Europe on Track 5; and Sonia Della Sala, former vice-President and AEGEE-Salerno HR responsible, also vice-speaker of Human Resources Committee of AEGEE-Europe, member of Civic Education Working Group and Migration Interest Group of AEGEE-Europe, as well as sub-commissioner of Francesca Zorcolo for the Rainbow Locals. We do not have any committees, we prefer working groups. According to the specific needs we create a WG. One that has been going on for a while now is the “Translations Working Group” which has worked on the translation of the Statute of AEGEE-Salerno (currently under approval of the JC) and on the translation of events descriptions in different languages. We also have WGs according to the European events we host, at the moment we have FBA WG and SU WG.

Written by Cristina de la Parte, Action Agenda Coordination Committee

AEGEE Sofia has been chosen as ACTive Local of the Month, because during August they organised an Erasmus+ Youth Exchange, and a SU that matters in collaboration with the Civic Education Working Group. We interviewed Elitsa Hadzhieva, president of AEGEE Sofia to know more about those wonderful activities and the local.

ACT: Which emotions did you have when you knew that AEGEE-Sofia was chosen as ACTive local of August?

Elitsa: Total and complete joy! It was a very hard working month for our very small and compact team, so you can only imagine how surprised we were that everything went very good with our events and we even got recognised for it. [she smiles, ed.]

Why did you decide to organise this activity?

We wanted to organise our own Erasmus+ exchange for some time and basically driven by the motivation of one of our members – Ivaylo Bogomilov, we decided to try with the deadline for project proposals in February and luckily it got approved. It was a project that his previous board wrote two years ago but then it was put on the waiting list and we improved it a little bit and applied again. About the Summer University, I have to say that we were very hooked up by the idea of making a SU that matters and from the start when we saw the booklets from SUCT about possible cooperations with some of the AEGEE bodies, we started thinking about doing something more special this summer. And we chose the topic and contacted the Civic Education Working Group because civic education has been a very hot topic in Bulgaria for the last few years. We as a local in Bulgaria feel that it’s a really important issue and of course we should get involved as much as possible, and also our board was very keen on the idea. After we decided the topic and that we would do it with CEWG we were like “Maybe we should make it a summer course+”. So, we took the challenge. We decide to have a meaningful topic, our SU to be an SC+ and at the same time to be a travelling one. It was a big challenge, but it was worth it.

What was the result of your activity? 

We had 50 participants from eight different countries in our Erasmus+ project, which is a big challenge because there are tons of different bureaucratic things you have to do. The topic was about healthy lifestyle and youth empowerment and I have to say that three months after the project our participants are still sharing their experience, like how they challenge themselves, what kind of events they participate to because they were motivated to do so after our project, etc. During our SU we had 25 participants and we did more than 20 workshops about civic education, active participation, European citizenship, politics and policy-making and about Structured Dialogue, which is my personal favourite, about how young people can get active in policy making on a national and European level. Also, we received feedback from some of our participants that have been active in AEGEE for the past few years, they said most of the workshops had very good content, diverse and different from what they had seen until then and they marked it as something positive.

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We mainly use our LTCs as informative mediums, where we are telling our members what it is. We are planning to get better at this in the future.

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We will have a project about social inclusion of young people from marginalised groups. And also we have some ideas for organising some training sessions/workshops connected with the four focus areas for students and pupils (that are 17/18 years old).

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

It’s easier to organise an event when you know that you have four focus areas and some guidelines with them that can help you with coming up with an idea that you would like to put into practice. Also, as cheesy as it may sound, it’s always better to have in mind the bigger picture of the whole network when you organise or execute a project.

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?

People, just make our network great again! Joke aside, if you think that thematic activities are what your antenna or what you members need – do not hesitate to organise something. Also, the feeling of what you have accomplished can motivate your board and your members to do more and more activities not only related to the Action Agenda.

Can you tell us a bit more about your local? 

AEGEE-Sofia is not a big local, but it is like a family for most of its members. The antenna was established at the beginning of the 90s. In 1992 the local became part of the Network of AEGEE-Europe and ever since that moment, the number of members varies between 15 and 50 people. This mostly depends on the time of the year. Usually, the peak period in the past when most of the members were extremely active was just before the Summer Universities started. We have around five-six active members. Nevertheless, this year we managed to overcome a lot of challenges and we organised a few big events despite the lack of active people but in that way, we had the chance to work with some of the older members who were active two years ago and were our biggest help this year.

Written by Cristina de la Parte, Action Agenda Coordination Committee

Last May, AEGEE-Lublin organised the Aktywator project (Youth Employment Focus Area) and First Aid training (Civic Education Focus Area). For this reason, they were chosen as an ACTive Local of the Month. We spoke with Martyna Jarosz – Advisory Board, Honorary Member and previous Secretary of AEGEE- Lublin, to find out more!

ACT: Which emotions did you have when you know that AEGEE-Lublin was chosen as ACTive local of May?

Martyna: Thank you so much for the nomination! We still can’t believe it. We were very excited by knowing that AEGEE- Lublin was chosen for this designation. We’re pleased that our whole effort is noticed. This gives us even more motivation to act.

Why did you decide to organise Aktywator project and First Aid training?

We decided to organise First Aid training for many reasons. Firstly, I always wanted to promote civic education, so I was the originator and the main organiser of the First Aid training, because is there anything more important in the world than human life? However, there may be situations in which it is threatened. We should all acquire practical first aid skills so that, in difficult situations, we can respond quickly and effectively to save lives. That is why we organised a pre-medical First Aid training to make Lublin’s society aware of the importance of stopping and saving someone’s life. Secondly, there are many such training available but little practiced. Our training was practical, practical and much more practical. [she laughs, ed.]

Aktywator project is a training event aimed at young residents of Lublin, whose main idea is motivation for various types of extracurricular activities and self-improvement. We decided to organise Aktywator project because it is already at its 10th edition. This project was held every year for several years, after which it had a three-year break. A year ago, it got another chance and was reinstated. We hope we succeeded! In addition, it is a good opportunity to promote our antenna in the community of Lublin.

What was the result of your activities?

The First Aid workshop was attended by 25 people. We heard only very good opinions in evaluation from the workshop participants. They liked the practical nature of the course, so I think our assumptions have been achieved. People learnt how important is First Aid thanks to this workshop. And most importantly – they can do it!

This year’s edition Aktywator project didn’t have a lot of participants, but the opinions about this project were very interesting and they want to participate in subsequent editions. Trainers received comments that they conducted very professional training. What’s more, we achieve new partners for cooperation, including a bakery, a cinema, a restaurant and a gym.

In the organisers’ opinion both projects were one of the best decisions we made. And from the results we are proud of it!

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Our members have been informed about the Action Agenda and Strategic Plan during main meetings, Local Training Courses and the general meetings just before both Agorae. We constantly encourage all the members to explore all of AEGEE’s communication channels and we inform them about every local activity. Furthermore, we talk about European events and inform new members about AEGEE-Europe.

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Recently, we organised a few Action Agenda activities, such as self-presentation workshops, workshops on how to effectively train, First Aid training etc. We love to talk about it during our weekly meetings. We strongly want to encourage everyone in Lublin to participate in Network Meetings, Agorae or European Planning Meetings, where you can learn more about the Action Agenda or Strategic Plan. In addition to this, you can meet amazing people with whom we develop exciting relationships and make an exchange of experiences which help us grow even further. I see that this year our members are even more interested in active activities, they have a lot of innovative ideas. I hope we will surprise you again soon!

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

The Action Agenda and Strategic Plan help us to build a better Europe, because they set out an action plan.  These activities motivate members to actively engage in projects for common success and development. A Strategic Plan shouldn’t be understood as a restriction or an obstacle. We should all use it, since it is a help for us to work effectively. It’s our inspiration for our ideas to be realised. Every action is beneficial, even the smallest, because it will always leave its sign and will be an inspiration to others. In addition, thanks to the Action Agenda and the Strategic Plan, we can be described as a stronger local, we have goals and we set the course of action.

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?

The key is to take action -capital A! Most people do nothing because they are afraid of the problems or challenges that they will face or they are just lazy to do anything. But the way to organise activity is to make one decision. This decision is to ACT! The most important thing is to move on from one place to another without thinking about this as another obstacle to overcome. Then it’s just getting better and better!!!

You should also cooperate according to your plan, which will help you not to get lost during the organisation of a project. We should be open to help others, work with them, listen to ideas, activate and motivate them. This makes work more easier and enjoyable.

Remember! In organising activities, it’s not about being successful but even about getting the satisfaction of what you do, having pleasure and get to know fascinating people. 

Can you tell us a bit more about your local?

AEGEE- Lublin was founded in 1993, so this year we celebrated our 24th birthday. Every week we try to spend time together, both preparing projects and having fun. For us every new member is a new idea. However, every new idea can turn into a fascinating project. We get to know each other better organising such projects, and this creates a great atmosphere between us and generates a lot of positive energy. We learn from each other’s experience and work.

That’s what AEGEE- Lublin is all about.

We currently have about 15 very active members. That doesn’t stop us from doing brilliant things. We create this small Polish Antenna, but we have a lot of passion to work and new ideas to involve. We try to participate to events like Network Meetings and Agorae. The projects that we implement are based on the needs of our members and their ideas. We have a few events which have a continuation. We will not let them die. In May we prepare the Aktywator. This is one more edition of the training project – a few days of practice, workshops and training. Moreover, we want to repeat the First Aid training.

In a small but well-integrated TEAM there is power to work! That’s us!

Characterise your local in one sentence.

We’re the local of inspiration. Just like Lublin has a motto – the city of inspiration. You don’t feel it, unless you come to us.

Written by Elena Efremova, behalf of the Action Agenda Coordination Committee.

Last April, AEGEE-Barcelona organised the Youth Employment Conference. The event was directly connected with the Action Agenda (Youth Employment Focus Area). For this reason, they were chosen as the ACTive Local of the Month. We spoke to Néstor Saura Torres, president of antenna, to find out more!

Which emotions did you have when you knew that AEGEE-Barcelona was chosen as ACTive local of April?

We were all amazed about it! Also receiving the news all together during our Summer University has been very special! We are really happy to see that all our effort is being recognised. Thank you!

Why did you decide to organise the Youth Employment Conference?

We decided to organise this conference for many reasons. On one hand, we thought that it would be really interesting for many people, as unemployment here is a big problem now for young Spanish people. On the other hand it was a good opportunity to show all the work that we do in AEGEE, as this topic is part of the Strategic plan 2014-17, and also to strengthen our relation with the university.

Also, it has been a good opportunity to organise something different that we hadn’t done before.

What was the result of the conference?

The reality is that we did not have an extraordinary big amount of attendants, but the general opinion from most of the people who came was that the conference has been really interesting.

Also, we received positive comments about the quality of the speakers. They were representatives of the European Commission, the regional government of Catalonia and the University of Barcelona, and they all offered great speeches explaining the roots of the problem and the solutions proposed by the institutions.

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We have some key moments to inform about it during the year: the Local Training Course and in the general meetings just before both Agorae. We constantly encourage all the members to explore all the communication channels and we inform the new joiners personally.

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We try to introduce some sessions about the Action Agenda in every event we do. We are really active on this point, as we have organised three events in the last nine months including a Network Meeting! Sometimes we like to discuss about the Focus Areas during our weekly meetings.

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

They should organise as much as possible because the Action Agenda and the Strategic Plan are the reasons why AEGEE exist. We cannot forget that apart from cultural exchange and some other general ideas, we are involved in this organisation for building a better Europe, and we already have those guidelines to do it. Also, organising this kind of activities can motivate their members to become more active and also willing to give a hand in the European level.

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?

It may seem too obvious, but it’s important to focus on one single topic and not touching softly many. It would make everything easier and the results would also be better.

Another important tip is asking for advice to other people. For example, we received much help from some ACTies as Borja and Juragis, as they are always willing to help motivate members. Also external help is always important: without the support of the university this conference couldn’t have been possible.

Can you tell us a bit more about your local?

AEGEE-Barcelona was founded in 1986, so it’s one of the oldest in all the Network! Last October we celebrated the 30th anniversary with a great party where we were able to meet old members from the last decades, and of course many interesting stories about the ancient AEGEE!

Nowadays we have around 60 members and around 15-20 are active. We try to do at least one activity every week and this last course was highly intensive. Now we are just finishing our Summer University, organised together with our twins from AEGEE-Thessaloniki.

The next steps are getting new active and motivate members and continue having fun with the current ones. Of course we are also thinking about interesting events and activities for the next months! We are willing to meet you all in Barcelona!

Characterise your local in one sentence.

We are unstoppable! That’s our definitive motto since some months ago, when some members from other antennae were trying to make fun of us.

Written by Elena Efremova, on behalf of the Action Agenda Coordination Committee.

Last March, AEGEE-Torino organised Europe Café about Populism. For this reason, they has been chosen as the ACTive Local of the Month. We spoke to Roberto, Gulia and Luca to find out more!

ACT: Which emotions did you have when you know that AEGEE-Torino has been chosen as ACTive local of March?  

Roberto: We were very excited and honored by knowing that our Antenna was chosen for this recognition. We put a steady effort on this activity and I am glad to see that it has been recognized as useful to the objectives our organisation!

Why did you decide to organise that activity?  

Roberto: Actually, this activity as such dates back to some years ago from an idea of Sergio Genovesi. Despite the activity was a little bit neglected, this year, when we had to decide whether to stop it or not, we just gave it another chance and revitalised it because we thought it was worth having also a cultural side in our local!   

What was the result of your activity?

Roberto: We organise the Europe Café on a monthly basis with an average attendance of 15-20 people coming from various parts of Europe (France, Germany, Romania, Poland, to name a few). As mentioned, it is a talk in English open to all those who want to discuss in an international environment. We deal every month with the “hot” topic of the moment: just to give a few examples, we talked about Brexit, the crisis of Schengen, the rise of populist movements,  the impact of terrorism on everyday life. In addition, each time we also have a little focus on the electoral moments in the European countries (General Elections, Referenda, and so on).  We had many good feedbacks: making available a space for relaxed and thoughtful talking gives a real opportunity for free expression to the international (but also Italian) students in our city.

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic plan?  

Giulia: We’re keeping them updated about every activity/news regarding the AA or the SP through our social channels, during our weekly meetings and LTCs.  We are also quite lucky because we can boast the presence of three ACTies in our local, Gabriele Scollo was in ACT in 2015/2016, Marco Daniele will finish his term at the end of July when I will start with mine for the next year.   

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?  

Giulia: As Roberto said the Europe Café isn’t a sporadic activity, but is a regular spot that every month changes its topic taking into account news reports and participants’ interests. This means that a new challenge is waiting for us each month and this is the strength of the event: its flexibility and constant innovation. Besides, this year’s experience increased and stimulated the interest of our members about thematic activities, so maybe we have something on our plate for the next year!  You will see!

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?  

Roberto: The Strategic Plan is sometimes read as a sort of top-down set of orders and, even worst, generally organising activities related to the Action Agenda is too often seen as a constraint. We need to change that! We should take the Strategic Plan as an inspiration for our activities and the AA as an instrument which can help us to put into practice our ideas and to measure their impact. We have the chance to make a real and measurable impact on society, no matter how little or big, and it shouldn’t be wasted. This is the reason why we should all organise this kind of activities.   

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?  

Three fast tips!

First: KEEP IT SIMPLE. If you overdo with the organisation, you will probably not be able to carry out all the details and be disappointed. If you start from the little things however, you will have a lot of room for improvement and development. After all, Europe Café is simply a nice talk with some international friends and it works because it is simple.  

Second: INVOLVE PEOPLE. It is really important to have people involved, not only for the impact itself, but because when people are with you, they help you and your job becomes far easier and effective. In Europe Café, the participants are those who make the discussion great for everybody, our job is just to make it work.

Third: YOU NEED TO BELIEVE IN YOUR PROJECT. Always think on why you want to organise your activity and make your cause your landmark. Organising something only because you have to is just not worth it.

In any case, feel free to contact us if you want help and tips about how to organise a Europe Café in your local, we will be glad to help you! You can contact us on our Facebook page or send us an email! (aegeetoboard@gmail.com  or  giulia.melis@aegee.org)

Can you tell us a bit more about your local?

Giulia: AEGEE-Torino was founded in 1992, so this year we celebrate our 25th birthday. We have a long history behind us and among all moments coming from the past we cannot forget 2004, with the Autumn Agora and one of our members, Nicola Rega, as AEGEE-Europe’s President.  Now AEGEE-Torino can count on around one hundred members, forty of them really active. Since three years we’re working hard with the aim of growing up, starting from the local level and now focusing on the European one.  Our efforts led to two strong and stable local events, the “Europe Cafè” and of course the great “Aperitivo linguistico: USE YOUR TONGUE” that attracts each month almost eight hundred students and Erasmus people. In addition six of us are currently involved in European bodies, committees, commissions, interest and working groups.  

Are we tired? Absolutely not! We still have a lot of new ideas and projects in progress. To be continued…

Characterise your local in one sentence.   

Luca: Organised mess brings great results and happy people!

Written by Elena Efremova behalf of Action Agenda Committee.

Last January, AEGEE-Nijmegen organised a workshop about Sign Language (Civic Education Focus Area). For this reason, they were chosen as ACTive Local of the Month of January. We spoke with Daisy Brugman, President of AEGEE-Nijmegen, to find out more!

ACT: Which emotions did you have when you knew that AEGEE-Nijmegen was chosen as ACTive local of January?

Daisy: We couldn’t believe it actually! We were overwhelmed with joy after re-reading the e-mail. Thank you for the title, it makes us even more determined and enthusiastic to organise more activities!

Why did you decide to organise a workshop about Sign Language?

Every year our committee Formal Activities organises different formal activities varying from language workshops to lectures. After brainstorming they came up with a workshop about sign language. One of the members of that committee was following that subject for her studies, so she contacted her lecturer who gave the sign language workshop.

What was the result of the workshop?

We invited a teacher who gives the course ‘sign language’ at our university. During the workshop he first explained what sign language actually was and how it is in practice. Then we started off with learning some basic signs. In the end we even translated parts from our website! So the members who remember the signs can now promote AEGEE in sign language.

There were around 14 members of AEGEE-Nijmegen attending the workshop. We heard only good things about the workshop from the members and the committee was really content with the results! I think that thanks to this workshop more people realise how different it is for a deaf person to communicate.

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We tell our new members about the Action Agenda and Strategic Plan during our introductory period. During every introduction we always have one information evening about AEGEE-Europe! We also inform our members by our newsletter, Facebook page and website as well as by face to face talks.

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We organised a few Action Agenda activities this past year. For example we had an improvisation workshop, a first aid workshop and a Dutch course. Our highlight of the year was the Network Meeting in April, which included multiple topics related to the Action Agenda and Strategic plan. I hope we can organise even more activities in the upcoming months!

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Because the Strategic Plan gives locals a goal to aim and the Action Agenda gives locals a path to follow. It makes us stronger as an association if we have the same goals!

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?

You should see the guidelines as a help and try to think outside of the box! It always leads to the most interesting and creative activities! Also, don’t forget to organise something that is close to the interest of your members.

Can you tell us a bit more about your local? 

AEGEE-Nijmegen was founded in 1986 by Bart Kruitwagen. Every now and then he still drops by at our weekly social drink. Currently we have our 31st board, called ‘Infinito’, running the local. We are very active in and around Nijmegen. Last April we welcomed our 200th member and we have about 50 active members spread over 13 different committees this year, who made it possible to organise a lot of amazing activities varying from members’ weekends to lectures about gender equality. Besides these activities we also organise different trips, exchanges and hitchhiking competitions. This year we already went to Brescia, Dublin, Prague, Cluj-Napoca and Sofia!

Characterise your local in one sentence. 

We go to infinity and beyond, we are limitless!

Written by Elena Efremova, on behalf of the Action Agenda Coordination Committee

Agora Enschede is approaching and as the past Agora, the AEGEEan will try to help you to understand more the Proposals which will be discussed during the Prytania. These four are about the Locals and how they function.

Improving Regulations on Contracts

Proposed by Jorge Sánchez Hernández on behalf of AEGEE-Dresden. During Autumn Agora Cagliari 2014 the denomination given to a contact was changed from “Contact of AEGEE-Europe in cityname” to “AEGEE Contact in cityname”. This was decided to make PR easier for Contacts. At that time this change was not included in the CIA, so this is the case.

Furthermore, the proposer would like to allow Contacts to send more than two observers to the Agorae, in order to educate the new members that attending an Agora is a very important matter for an AEGEEan. This has also the aim to decrease the number of people going to an Agora as Visitors just to visit the hosting city and party hard.

You can read the full proposal here.

Updated Cd’A of AEGEE-Academy

Lia Tuska and Zvonimir Canjuga on behalf of Comité Directeur are proposing to strengthen the cooperation between AEGEE-Europe and AEGEE-Academy by updating the Convention d’Adehsion of the latter.

The commitment of AEGEE-Academy to provide training to AEGEE-Europe will be more specific. So not only AEGEE-Academy has to provide trainings to the individual members of Locals, but also skills development opportunities, based on Non-Formal Education methodologies, to AEGEE locals, as well as their individual members of Locals. Moreover AEGEE-Europe will recognise The Academy as the official pool of trainers of AEGEE-Europe.

AEGEE-Academy as a training organisation has developed during the years of its existence partnerships and relationships with other organisations, so in this proposal we can find more specific information about how and with whom it can cooperate. This has the purpose to give more independency to the Academy, which will have the right to collaborate with any organisation with similar scope, except for the ones in which AEGEE-Europe holds a position as member, partner, advisor or consultative status.

Moreover the Comité Directeur will appoint a member to be part of the board of the Academy who will have the same rights and obligations of the others elected board members. The Academy should also commit to support AEGEE-Europe and all its members, partner organisations and organs in all the internal educational needs with relevant training activities.

You can read the full proposal here.

Rewriting the Antenna Criterion number 12 included in: Antenna – Remaining an Antenna

Let’s start explaining what we are talking about (if you know how the Action Agenda and Strategic Plan work you can skip the first paragraph)!

The Strategic Plan (SP) is drafted every three years during an event called Planning Meeting. In the thematic part of this document you can find the Focus Areas on which AEGEE will concentrate its activities and events. The ones we will have starting from the 1st of August will be Civic Education, European Citizenship, Youth Development and Equal Rights. The Action Agenda (AA) is drafted each year in an event called European Planning Meeting (EPM). This is like a yearly list of objectives that tries to put into practice what is written in the Strategic Plan. So it can happen that if you organise an event about Youth Development (Focus Areas of the SP) but you do not fulfill the Action Agenda objectives related to that Focus Area, it is not counted as an event that contributes to the Action Agenda. The Action Agenda Coordination Committee (ACT) is the one who controls and approves if the locals have organised or not activities which contribute to the Action Agenda.

Experiencing this everyday, Juragis García, Cristina de la Parte and Svenja van der Tool on behalf of Action Agenda Coordination Committee would like to change the 12th criterion for remaining an Antenna. Right now it states that it’s a duty of an antenna to organise at least once every two years a European Event that contributes to the Strategic Plan. In case a local cannot organise it, it can be replaced by two local activities contributing to the Strategic Plan.

This proposal will make the locals organise two local activities each year (which can be replaced by a European Event – the opposite of how it is now) which contribute to the Action Agenda and not the Strategic Plan anymore. These activities must be approved by the Action Agenda Coordination Committee beforehand. This process is structured like this: the local sends an email to the ACT explaining the activity they would like to organise. Afterward the ACT will approve or not the activity. Moreover, this criterion obliges locals to maintain an active communication with the ACT, via the ACTie they have been assigned to.

You can read the full proposal here.

Antennae Criteria Reform proposal

Six months ago the Network Commission handed out a survey to gather opinions of the locals regarding Antenna Criteria. After processing all these data, Alejandra Piot Pérez-Abadín, Aleksandra Mojsova, Alin Andrei Georgescu, Gabriele Scollo, Kristina Reshetova, Loes Rutten, Mareike Ritter, Pablo Palazón Riquelme, Spyros Papadatos and Stanislav Mahula on behalf of the Network Commission drafted an Antenna Criteria Reform Proposal that is presented. Here below in bullet points the list of changes.

Remaining a Contact Antenna:

• The Contact Antennae will not have to create a bank account to keep that status, but only to become Antennae.

Remaining an Antenna:

• Now locals should send delegates to at least one out of the last three Statutory Events (usually 2 agorae and 1 EPM). With this proposal locals will have to send their delegates at least to one of the last two Agorae.
• Locals should send at least one of their board members to a NWM. With this proposal, if none of the board members can join this event, they can appoint an active member who will represent the Antenna in a NWM. This request will need to be approved by the Network Commission or the Comité Directeur.
• Each Board should send an Activity Plan to the NetCom within one month since they are elected and an Activity Report within two weeks from the end of their term. This proposal would like to extend both these deadlines to two months. Moreover the Activity Plan will need to be discussed with their Network Commissioner in a meeting arranged by the local. Same thing with the Activity Report, but the conclusions will need to be written down in an Evaluation Report. Unfortunately it is not possible to understand which conclusions the proposers are talking about. We will discover more on Prytannium!

You can read the full proposal here.

Written by Lisa Gregis, AEGEE-Bergamo & AEGEE-Verona

When we were taking office last August, we knew, all the 11 of us that we were assigned to handle a ship against all odds. The Action Agenda Coordination Committee was facing a wave of suspicion and doubt among the Network, due to the lack of connectivity people felt with it or maybe due to the very nature of our work, which is defining, analysing and decoding the Strategic Plan and the Action Agenda of the organisation.

Erifyli Evangelou: “ACT helped me discover how diverse our Network is”

Let’s pick it from the start though. The Action Agenda almost monopolises our work, since we have to make sure as well as strive during our term that the Focus Areas of the AA are actually respected, promoted and developed throughout the Network and its activities. For us, it could be either sticking to the basics and managing things behind our computers’ screens, or getting out there and try to infuse the Action Agenda into people’s minds, helping the locals understand it is not about “filling in an activity report” but more of a “promoting ideas that define AEGEE and feeling proud of it”, and that is what we decided to do. A group of people, of whom the majority did not know each other and most of them were rookies in the Committee. We sat down and decided to turn things around by devoting ourselves to the Action Agenda and the promotion of it, utterly aiming at establishing an honest relationship with the locals that could help fostering the dialogue with them.

Elena Efremova: “I had the best time with an awesome team”

The Network Meetings posed a great chance for us and we really took advantage of them during both seasons. Autumn Network Meetings we filled with those “ACT workshops”, which in the beginning no one knew so much about and did not know what to expect. After many hours of workshops, games, interactions and many laughs, each ACT trainer left his/her respective Network Meeting with a taste of reward and accomplishment, shown by the appreciation of the locals. We tried to show up at most places possible. Overall, both Autumn and Spring NWMs taken into account, we have managed to hold workshops in Zielona Gora, Moskva, Leiden, Aachen, Nijmegen, Bamberg, Beograd, Novi Sad, Barcelona, Bilbao, Torino, literally spreaded out as ACTies all around the map of Europe. After all, Network Meetings are the definition of active communication and contact with the locals, thare is where the bonds between AEGEEans are formed and strengthened and, if not anything, it was our honor to have served that goal.

Not to mention the EPM in Zagreb in February which was a total crash-test for our body. Our ACTies gave everything they had during the stressful, endless days of the EPM, drafting the newest Action Agenda. Managing to get together so many people in rooms to start the interactive discussions which eventually formed the newest Action Agenda is regarded as an accomplishment, especially after getting the positive Network feedback regarding the new Focus Areas.

Juragis Garcia Perez: “We became a group of friends able to deal with anything”

Our field of work was not however strictly limited to those actions. While out in the battlefield, we still had to do a lot -and I mean a LOT- behind the scenes so as to really achieve our goals. We established collaborations with fellow European Bodies and a regular and fruitful cooperation with the Network Commission and the CD of course, out of which Tekla Hajdu’s work must be highlighted. A dialogue with the Working Groups which made both parties really get the meaning of our interests came also along the way. Moreover, AEGEEans may have also noticed that the Action Agenda is now available in numerous languages, and that was something we wanted to do all the way from the beginning of our term. Having translated our “code of honor” in your mother tongue gives you the opportunity to get the ultra-essence of what you should be dealing with. The list can go on forever, though I cannot help but mention the “ACTive Local of the Month” awards our dear Elena has been handing out to every local contributing the maximum to the Action Agenda each month. These awards formed an urge to contribute to the Focus Areas spread among the Network and helped our work as well as the general aim foster.

Cristina de la Parte Rodríguez: “My whole perception of AEGEE changed through the ACT”

Our terms’ epilogue will be ACT’s presence in AEGEE’s most successful project ever, the Summer Universities. You might be wondering, can a body like ACT be integrated into crazy summer parties and amazing vacation time? The answer is yes and be prepared to experience it during Beograd’s (SUrbian Spirit: Tales of Wilderness) and Niš’s (Letters from Niš) Summer Courses which are about to happen this August. I personally express my gratitude for those two locals that believed in ACT because together we are turning this project into reality, but most importantly I promise to all of you who are attending these two events will be an unbelievable experience which will only make us wiser. 

Finally, I would like to highlight every ACTie’s personal commitment and promise to all the Network that ACT will continue its being with passion, devotion and hard work, aiming at developing the already amazing relationship we have established with the Network’s locals even further during the next term. Thank you for your trust.

Written by Constantine Bakiris, Action Agenda Coordination Committee

Last February, AEGEE-Zaragoza organised “DISCUSSION- Facebook Campaign about Sexual Health Day”, which was directly connected to the Action Agenda (Civic Education Focus Area). For this reason, they were chosen as the ACTive Local of the Month. We spoke to Celia Riveres, president of the local, to find out more!

ACT: What emotions did you feel when you found out that AEGEE-Zaragoza was chosen as the ACTive local of the month of February?

Celia Riveres, AEGEE-Zaragoza: We did not expect this. So, after the news, the widespread feeling was happiness and pride in ourselves. Moreover, being chosen as ACTive local of February has motivated us to do more activities. To conduct a campaign like this one is really easy and truly helpful.

Why did you decide to organise “DISCUSSION– Facebook Campaign about Sexual Health Day”?

We realised that the 14th of February, far from being just Valentine’s day, is the European Sexual Health Day, which was for us much more important. So in order to promote it, we decided to take pictures with the sentence “Be Sexual, Be Healthy” and post them on Facebook. The aim was to create awareness about “sexual health” not only as a prevention of STD but also as a way to give visibility of the intrinsic meaning of sexual rights that it entails: sexual freedom, integrity, autonomy and safety.

What was the result of your activity?

Our community manager wrote a post on AEGEE-Zaragoza’s Facebook page with the photos that some members took with the sentence. We immediately received the feedback we were expecting, some of our members even posted their photo in their profiles to give their opinions and create debate. Even the ACT congratulated us for the initiative!

How do you inform your members about the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

We have a person in charge of the Action Agenda who is always coming up with new ideas and activities related to the Strategic Plan.

Do you have any other activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

Actually, we are planning to do some activities like a first aid class given by some of our members studying for healthcare degrees or activities including debates about gender equality and chauvinism.

In AEGEE-Zaragoza we used to have a Zineforum every Sunday, we watched a film focused on a topic and later discussed it. This kind of activity was quite popular, especially because it made people think and develop different perspectives and arguments around an issue.

Why should other locals organise activities related to the Action Agenda/Strategic Plan?

It can be very useful to show some members a different view of AEGEE  and a new aspect which can help them learn more and get more involved in a deeper way in the association. We strongly think that AEGEE members are active people who are involved in what is happening in the world, with a lot of interests, that can contribute a lot to the purpose of the Strategic Plan.

Do you have any tips for organising thematic activities?

We try to show every activity as something funny and enjoyable, apart from the fact of learning something new, in order to encourage the members, especially the new ones.

Can you tell us a bit more about your local?

AEGEE-Zaragoza, founded in 1998 (next year we turn 20 already!), is a very active antenna in the centre of Europe. Nowadays, we are a family of 158 members who meet regularly and enjoy organising both cultural and fun events throughout the year. We have more or less 30 active members at a local level; furthermore, some of them are involved at European level.

Characterise your local in one sentence.

We really are a GROUP OF FRIENDS working together! [she smiles, ed.] Because for us, beyond the great non-formal education AEGEE gives you, friendship is the most important thing you take from the years you are in our beloved association.

Written by Elena Efremova, Action Agenda Coordination Committee