Incredible things always happen during an Agora. The AEGEEan checked old material and asked some old members for interesting stories about this issue, a funny way to approach the upcoming Spring Agora Bergamo and read some legends of the past. 

The Agora can be something legendary for those who have never been there, since they probably heard many stories before departure. For those who already experienced it at least once, it is something incredible: a thousand of people from all over Europe, a huge common commitment, great discussions, fabulous encounters, moments of sharing and great parties. For the people organising it, it is something very different. More than one year ago, I had the honour of being an organiser of Autumn Agora Cagliari. If you ask me to say what it looks like, I would probably say tiring, challenging and agitating. If you ask me why, the answer is easy: anything can happen, even if you planned it in detail.

For every organiser there is always a precise moment when s/he realises that the event started, in my case was the following episode:

On the 28^th of October 2014, a sponsor gave us two cars and a big van. They were quite big and none of us had used a van before. We drove them to pick up CD members at the airport and, after greeting them, we put the luggage inside the last one. Once ready to drive it, an alarm rang showing that the trunk was open, we closed it many times without any result and then we thought it was a van problem. Of course the reality was very different, because as soon as we had entered the highway we heard dozens of horns around us: two bags of our former president Paul Smits broke out in the street forcing uncountable cars to make extraordinary riggings and we had to walk in the middle of the street to take them back.

Anything can happen

After that moment, many stories I heard about disasters during previous Agorae came to my mind. Maybe you do not know but a lot of weird things happened during our statutory events in the past. Not all the things regarded only organisers or were bad, some of there were actually very positive. But of course at that moment I started thinking about the worst possible scenarios.

To start: one of the things to know about the Agora is that it didn’t always look like it does today, at the first ones there were not that many participants. During Agora Salerno 1989, about two or three hundred participants were present and local organisers picked them up at the train station by car! It was the very same Agora during which the Berlin wall fell down and a participant said: “We did not know about the fall of the Wall. There were no mobiles, no one saw the news. I read about it on Monday after the Agora”.

In 1994, Agora Montpellier started at a plenary hall but finished on the market square of the French city. Why? According to our source “the freshly re-elected President of AEGEE-Europe, Dorian Selz, did not accept the election result, because he got only 52% of the votes. Before a new candidate could be voted, all the members of the Agora had to leave the building since it was closing time. So they gathered in front of the building and elected the successor, Christina Thorsson, there”. Still, it was not the worst result ever for a presidential candidate. In 1998 Stefan Seidel from AEGEE-Augsburg was elected with a poor 38%. At first he did not want to accept it and said: “I will go home now”. But people convinced him to stay in office. A bad mistake since at the next Agora his CD got a vote of confidence and lost it.

The first day of the Agora in Athina in November 2002 was overshadowed by a blackout. Suddenly the plenary hall went dark. In this case, the reaction was amazing since organisers lightened a couple of hundreds of small candles and gave the Juridical Commission president, Yuriy Tokarsky, a flashlight which he held on the Agora booklet so that President Tomak Helbin could present the CD report. It was accepted with an overwhelming majority. The organisers of autumn Agora Zaragoza in 2003 had bad luck. They could not get the promised location and had to move the Agora to an old fair instead. The participants were sleeping inside that giant hall, when one of them turned on a switch, which he mistook for a light switch.

It was the switch for the ventilation and a dead bird, which had ended its life near the ventilator, fell down – right on the sleeping bag of a Dutch participant. The history had a revival in the last years when AEGEE-Zaragoza was chosen as host of the Autumn Agora 2013, some people in fact wondered if participants were going to stay in the same place again: it was not, the event was hosted in a brand new structure used for Expo Zaragoza 2008 and the organisation was simply amazing!

An incredible year: 2006!

If there is a year champion for incredible statutory events, that’s definitely 2006, since in both the Agorae which took place an incredible fact occured. At Agora Warsawa 2006, about twenty couples which found a lonely corner in a garage to spend some nice time with the respective partner: they got registered by a surveillance camera and watched live stream by the guards.

As this history can be familiar to the readers, not so known is the case of Agora Napoli 2006: in the late afternoon of the 1st of November the water boiler plant of the Fair broke down. It was the All Saint’s day, national holiday in Italy, and the same is the 2^nd of November (All Souls’ day). Organisers desperately tried to find a plumber but it resulted in an impossible mission! One of them said: “The only solution to find a plumber in Napoli on the 2^nd of November is to look for him at a cemetery”. The situation was not fixed and participants started a huge protest because of cold water in the showers.

Recent years

Lately there have not been such big cases if we exclude huge delays in the agenda, a vote of confidence, some locals which left the plenary for protest, a broken motorbike in Agora Patra 2014 or participants who had to move their luggage because of handball match (they were already informed about it). These can be considered as funny or sad thing things which happened. Except for two cases.

Most of us probably remember the 2010 eruptions of Eyjafjallajökull volcano in Iceland, which stopped the flight traffic from the 14^th till 23^rd of April of the same year. I guess you can imagine what happened: Agora Leiden was taking place from the 15^th till 18^th of the very same month: the perfect moment to destroy the travel plans of hundreds of AEGEEans, especially for their route back home, and create difficulties for organisers who had to take care of them.

If we also consider the CD members as organisers, since AEGEE-Europe is a partner organiser of the Agora, we cannot forget Agora Struga 2011 organised by AEGEE-Skopje. Because of an argue between the CD and local organisers, who increased the event fee one month before the event, for the last days of the event, the organisers disappeared leaving the CD and some other improvised helper managing the whole organisation – starting from the wake up till the welcome pack preparations!

The good God of AEGEE resides in Athina

It is possible that some organisers of Agora Bergamo or Autumn Agora Chisinau are getting scared while reading this article. In that case we should also remind them that AEGEE has a good God ready to solve every situation…and probably he is a member of AEGEE-Athina. Somehow the Greek local managed to solve not just a difficult situation but even two!

In the far 1992, this local organised an Agora which not took place in Athens but in Kōs, a Dodecanese island in front of the Turkish coast. You may wonder why they wanted to host the event there and the answer is quite easy: Agora was taking place in Spring, in Greece the weather is always nice so let’s gather all the participants in Athens to make a nice boat trip all together! While the organisation was running perfectly, only four days before the event an organiser switched on the TV and saw the sailor’s Labour Union president declaring started an unlimited duration strike because of high taxes. A panic attack caught the Greek organisers which started thinking about all the participants meandering around the Pireaus port and possible solutions to avoid it. One of them, was to meet the same president of the Union Labour – which they did but without results. The second solution, which now can sound very funny but probably in those moments was not, was to get an appointment with the Minister for Foreign Affairs and ask him to talk with the minister for the Defence to get a military vessel and transport all the participants to Kōs. Through some contact they succeeded to get the appointment.

At 11 am, two days before the Agora. The minister is taking part in a high level meeting with the Greek PM and the president of the Republic. Organisers are in front of the office ready to meet him, but at 11.05 they see everyone leaving the building and packing their things. They wonder why and they ask one of the officials “Is he coming?” – “No he is not coming at all, he just resigned 5 minutes ago because of disagreements on foreign policies”.

In case you wonder how participants reached the location, the story says that the greek minister of Finances (of course pure coincidence) accepted the requests of the labour union the day right before the boat departure. That’s how Agora Kōs could take place.

In case you do not believe to this story, you can download the 10th AEGEE anniversary booklet and read about it there (p. 92).

To end

Dear future Agora organisers, as you could see, also in the darkest situations there is always light and space for hope, and the people of AEGEE-Athina can confirm it for sure!

It has not been an isolated case since we also heard that while spring Agora in Barcelona 1999 was taking place overshadowed by the Nato air strikes against Serbia (with lots of people arriving late, because of many flights cancelled or rerouted), among the participants was Jasna Bogdanovic, President of AEGEE-Novi Sad. She took the opportunity to leave the country and was hosted by the President of AEGEE-Barcelona. They fell in love and got married.

So we wish you good luck and may the good God of AEGEE be with you!

Written by Mattia Abis, AEGEE-Cagliari

Did you miss the European Planning Meeting this year? It was organised by AEGEE-Leiden and took place between the 25th and 29th of February. Thanks to their amazing work and team coordination, they managed to organise a great European Planning Meeting. Not suprisingly, AEGEE-Leiden was voted Local of the Month for February for this great accomplishment. So, we had a talk with Boudewijn Steenhof, Main Organiser, and also Casper Renting, Vice Main Organiser of the event to tell us a few details about the challenges the team encountered  and the antenna’s future plans.

The AEGEEan: First of all, congratulations for being voted Local of the Month for February! What are your future plans in AEGEE?

Casper: Thanks on behalf of everyone from -Leiden! I’m sure that all these active and intelligent members will continue to do great things for our local and the Network. For example, I’ve heard things about a NWM next year… Personally, the EPM feels like a transition from Leiden to Europe. I recently joined the LIG & HRC and started as SubCom for Loes.

Boudewijn: For me, organising the EPM was the last big thing I will do in AEGEE-Leiden. I’ve had five great years, learnt a lot and made quite a few good friends. But what AEGEE-Europe has in store for me, you never know…

What was your overall impression as a hosting local of the EPM?

Boudewijn: Apart from it being very tiring, it was amazing. To see all these participants enjoying all we have worked for in the last year was simply great. I think I can speak for everyone when I say that we have learnt a lot from organising the EPM about ourselves, each other, and AEGEE! A hosting local receives a lot of attention during this time, which can be overwhelming. But I think we dealt with it well, and everyone knows AEGEE-Leiden for whole different reasons now!

What do you think you could have done better?

Casper: Oh, so many things! No seriously, we are really proud on what we have accomplished, but we also see room for improvement. Happily these were things mostly invisible for participants. For example, we lost quite a lot of stuff during the event. Apparently it’s not that hard to lose a big professional trolley, or 40 forks.

There were also quite a few participants who thought the food was a bit too ‘Dutch’, meaning, too many sandwiches. But I don’t think this is something we would have done differently, as trying different cuisines is part of exploring other cultures.

Do you plan to also organise an Agora at one point?

Casper: We already did! In 1987 (EGEE-III) and 2010 to be exact. But also if we hadn’t, I don’t think we would soon organise the Agora. It’s not like the EPM is a stepping stone to the bigger and maybe more prestigious Agora. Actually, it’s better to do something smaller really well, than something big so so, and because the city of Leiden arguably doesn’t have the facilities to host an event with this scale, I don’t think we should consider it. This is the sad reality I know other antenna deal with as well. They are very capable and would do great, but their city lacks the facilities.

What do you think was the biggest challenge in organising the EPM? 

Boudewijn: Definitely the logistics. Having the right locations, with the right stuff and the right people all come together to form a well-working machine has been a great challenge.

Casper: I’d add to that satisfying everyone’s needs. Obviously participants are very diverse in their preferences, but also in our team we had different ideas of what “EPM Leiden 2016” should be like. Combined with requests from the Content Team, Chair Team and Comité Directeur, all within our limited financial and logistical possiblities, this created a complex but interesting challenge.

After this experience, what piece of advice would you give to a local who has just decided to host an EPM?

Casper: Don’t ‘just decide’ it, haha. Make sure you have full support from your university and municipality, as you will very likely need them. Related to that, money is everything. Don’t even consider applying if you’re not sure you can get your funding sorted out. Lastly, you’re not going to organise it yourself. Make sure your whole antenna (especially if you’re small) supports the idea and is willing to put time and effort in it, and be aware that your local activities and plans will suffer. I’d say these are the three most important checks you should do before you can decide to host an event on this size.

What did you think of the theme (the refugees’crisis) for this EPM?

Casper: I think it’s a very important and relevant topic that deserves attention in the Network. From an organiser’s perspective, it was way easier to ‘sell’ an event with this topic to financial partners and media, than an EPM without a specific topic would have been. Combined, I’m proud we could facilitate a discussion about this topic. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time to actually participate.

The AEGEEan: Thank you for your time!

Written by Gabriela Geană, AEGEE-București

As February is getting closer, everyone is getting more and more excited for the upcoming European Planning Meeting (EPM)  2016 hosted by AEGEE-Leiden. With a very hot topic as the “Refugees in Europe – Europe vs. the Rest: Change of Perspective?” the Core-Team in Leiden is almost ready to present their participants with an unforgettable experience including some very important sessions and, as always, amazing parties. We had the chance to talk with Casper Renting the Vice-Organiser and PR & IT responsible of this EPM who gave us a bit of insight for the organisation and the city life.

The AEGEEan: AEGEE-Leiden has already hosted some great statutory events. Could you tell us a bit more about the history of your local?

Casper: We were founded on the 31st of October 1985, so we have been there since the very beginning. There has always been someone from Leiden in the Comité Directeur during the first 9 years of AEGEE, something we are quite proud of. We have also continuously organised Summer Universities since the early nineties. For most of its history, however, AEGEE-Leiden was a very small antenna, with only around 15 members, until the year 2000. Since then we have been steadily growing up to the around 300 members we currently have.

Why did you decide to organise an EPM?

We hosted EGEE-3 in 1987 and the 49th Agora in 2010, but we had never organised an EPM/EBM. What better reason could you have? Anyway, that is why, in 2014, some senior members of our antenna started thinking about the idea. After initially losing the 2015 bid to Burgos, we improved our application considerably and won the year after.

How is the organisation going so far? Is everything running as expected?

Haha, mostly! Jokes aprt, we are doing fine. We meet every Monday evening with the Core Team to update each other. We have just found our coordinators and we will soon select helpers. We have applied for various funds and are confident that we will get a positive response. All party locations and almost all meeting locations are definitive. As IJsbrand, our Logistics Responsible said: “If the EPM was tomorrow, it could go through. It would be very stressful for us as CT, but it could work.” Still being two and a half months away from the 25th of February, we are sure we will manage everything in time.

What is that thing that would make this EPM more special than the previous ones?

That is a difficult one. Every EPM or Agora is of course a unique experience and we do not want to sound like Burgos or Lublin were nothing special. But, to name a thing, as well as Bergamo could host the biggest Agora ever, we could host the biggest EPM ever. We can accommodate 350 people, if we will, that is up to whoever is reading this now.

Oh and the legendary European Night will be back on this EPM, so make sure to bring your national cuisine!

How did you come up with the postcard challenge? How is it going?

Every summer, members of AEGEE-Leiden send postcards to the AEGEE-office from wherever they are, and there is of course the Christmas-Postcrossing by AEGEE-Warszawa. AEGEE has some nice traditions involving postcards and we wanted to honour that tradition with this competition. We have now received only 5-10 cards, but as AEGEE people love being close to deadlines I am sure, more will arrive. Besides the big prize, there will be a small prize for every participant and of course we will display the cards during the EPM.

Any spoilers on how do you plan on delivering such a burning topic?

Well, as organisers we are only facilitating. How to deal with this interesting but difficult topic is up to the content managers. We can say, however, that we see the relevance of this topic every day. Our sleeping location was a temporary refugee shelter some time ago. AEGEE-Leiden people organised a day full of activities for the refugees at that time.

What is the one thing that participants must see or visit when they come to Leiden?

There is so much to see! We posted some inspiration on our website, but as an anthropologist I can reccommend the National Museum of Ethnology and the National Museum of Antiquities. A free tourist attraction is the Burcht, a 10th century fortified building in the middle of the city, from which you have a great view over the city.

Is there any advice you would give to antennas that plan on hosting a future European Planning Meeting?

Just go for it, it is a great experience for organizers personally and for the antenna as a whole. However, make sure you have full support from your university and/or local government. We would not have been able to do it without them and I think the same is true for Burgos and Lublin. Furthermore, do not abandon the local level, make sure there are still people organising and visiting local activities. Organising a statutory event, doing something for the network, is wonderful, but it is an (unnecessary) shame if it harms your antenna and the HR it heavily relies on.

What should the participants expect after their experience from the EPM and the city of Leiden?

Well, there is of course the common things. You will be drained from energy because of all the parties and discussions. You will have made new friends and reconnected with old ones. If you were smart you have seen a lot of Leiden and surrounding cities because you visited a Pre-Event in Amsterdam, Enschede or Heidelberg, or stayed a bit longer to see historical cities like The Hague, Delft or Utrecht. You will have found out that the Netherlands is quite affordable if you know the right places (and we do!) and that Leiden is rich in student traditions. Lastly, you will have many great memories that have one thing in common, they all start with: “Remember that time in Leiden…”

You can visit EPM Leiden 2016 here

You can apply here until the 17th of December 23.59 CET (Login Required).

Written by Theodora Giakoumelou, AEGEE-Athina

The year 2015 marks the year that AEGEE-Europe turns 30 years old, although we surely don’t look that old yet! To prepare the birthday, the Anniversary Team has been created, which organises several events throughout the year to pay tribute to the history and future of our organisation. One of these events is the Night of the Seven Antennae, which commemorates the Night of the Seven Cities of 1986 and will be taking place on the 18th of April.

Before we can take a look at the future plans for this event, it’s time to delve a bit into our past and take a look at the very first edition. During the night of March 7^th, AEGEE (at that moment still called EGEE) and the newspaper Le Monde cooperated to broadcast political debates about the future of Europe between students and high level politicians from seven different cities. In 1986, these locals were located in München, London, Paris, Amsterdam, Strasbourg, Brussels and Nice. The history is repeating itself, because once more there will be debates about the future of Europe in seven different cities. Except the cities have changed, because the locals elected to host the event are: AEGEE-Aachen, AEGEE-Bergamo, AEGEE-Catania, AEGEE-Eskisehir, AEGEE-Kyiv, AEGEE-Leiden and AEGEE-Sofia.

AEGEE-Aachen

Why did you apply to be part of the Night of the Seven Antennae?
We organised a political debate last year for the Karlpreis, and now we have a discussion group about politics in Europe in AEGEE-Aachen. We wanted to take it to the next level!

What will be the topic of your part of the event? Why did you pick this topic?
We’ll talk about the place of young people in Europe, and because there are a lot of students in Aachen, we’ll try to answer this question: is Europe a place where youth can flourish, regarding jobs, mobility, family, retirement?

What other things do you have planned for your participants?
We’ll write our wishes for how Europe should be and put them in a time capsule, protected for the next 10 years. We’ll also have a nice birthday ceremony to celebrate properly, and of course a party! Some other things too, but if you want to know, you have to come!

How many participants will you receive, and are you open to participants from other antennae too?

There will be 25 places for participants from other antennae, but all workshops and debates will be open to every student in Aachen. We hope we can reach a broader audience and share points of view with people who don’t have AEGEE experience.

AEGEE-Bergamo

What will be the topic of your part of the event? Why did you pick this topic?

The topics we have chosen are: Europe needs youth, mobility programs shaping European identity and old/new Europe. Bergamo is going through a period of strong internationalization programs, our antenna has recently launched an Erasmus Buddy Program, so we feel this topics best describe us and are interesting to examine in depth. With the topic of old/new Europe we want to give an insight in the major transformations that have happened during the last century.

What other things do you have planned for your participants?

We will have a city tour and are also working on the organisation of a live concert for the opening ceremony in the evening. The second day there will be three conferences each on the different topics and thematic discussions.

How many participants will you receive, and are you open to participants from other antennae too?

We will host 50 participants. Members from other antennae will be warmly welcome, but also applicants that aren’t a member of AEGEE will be accepted in order to make this event fully open and memorable.

When does your own local have its next anniversary, and what plans do you have for it?

We have had our 25^th anniversary this year. We celebrated it with members of others antennae, during a regional dinner event we organized for Christmas. However for most of all it was a surprise, because our President discovered only recently that AEGEE-Bergamo was earlier founded than we all believed and she kept it a secret. It was a really beautiful revelation and moment of celebration.

AEGEE-Catania

What was your first reaction when you heard your local was chosen?

Surprise and satisfaction! We knew that other Italian antennae had applied, so we were aware of how difficult it was to get the event, but I’m sure that the anniversary team understood our great motivation to host this important event, and they probably liked the “mission impossible” video! 

What will be the topic of your part of the event? Why did you pick this topic?

We have chosen “Europe in me – Me in Europe”, since we are working hard on the involvement of our members in Europe, pushing them to be active and interested also beyond our borders. At the same time we also believe that being European gives us a lot of great opportunities.

What other things do you have planned for your participants?

The event will be thematically full and very interesting, but aside from the theme, we won’t forget our origins and will fill up the event with our known AEGEE-Catania spirit! Funny activities, great team-building, and an unforgettable party will distinguish our weekend.

How many participants will you receive, and are you open to participants from other antennae too?  

We are able to host up to 50 participants, and of course we want this event to be open both to our members, but also to all our European new and old friends. This is an event of everyone!

AEGEE-Kyiv

Why did you apply to be part of the Night of the Seven Antennae?

First of all, we would like to take actively part in celebrating a really important date of our organisation. AEGEE is 30 years old this year and together we achieved a lot, so there is something to celebrate! Moreover, we would like to show our members and Ukrainian students that AEGEE-Kyiv is a serious NGO. We are well known for our Summer Universities and Local Training Courses, but our aim for this year is to change that image. Another reason is that we would like to check how the team will work for this event to be prepared for the upcoming Agora. Finally, we are really interested in the topic and would like to share our interest with others and create an event with space for communication and discussion.

What will be the topic of your part of the event? Why did you pick this topic?

We chose the topics that are interesting to our audience: “Europe Needs YouTH” and “The state of Ukrainian democracy”. Young people are the ones ready to change the present, to dedicate their efforts and contribute to Ukraine’s and our future. The lack of knowledge and experience is the problem, so we would like to dedicate the event to exchange experience with other countries, not forgetting about Ukrainian realities. Of course, the role of AEGEE and Frank Biancheri will be highlighted as, striving for a European future, we have been supporting the main values and aims of AEGEE for twenty years.

How many participants will you receive, and are you open to participants from other antennae too?

We are planning to host around 70-100 participants. 30 places are open for participants from other antennae, the other places are for AEGEE-Kyiv members and students from Kyiv universities.

When does your own local have its next anniversary, and what plans do you have for it?

AEGEE-Kyiv turns 20 on February 17th! The Ukrainian way of celebrating is always surprising for Europeans. We invite everyone to our house, prepare lots of food and drinks and go out until the morning and all the guests feel like it’s their birthday. We prepared something huge for our friends: an event from the 13th to 15^th, with a huge party, city tours, games, interesting content and of course Ukrainian AEGEE spirit!

AEGEE-Leiden

Why did you apply to be part of the Night of the Seven Antennae?

AEGEE-Leiden has always been active on the European level and in the last few years the interest of our new members regarding AEGEE-Europe has grown significantly. By organising this event, we hope to show all of our members and the rest of AEGEE how awesome this European Network of ours is and what we all can achieve if we work together, thus creating even more awareness of AEGEE-Europe among our members. Also AEGEE-Leiden is one of the founding locals of our beautiful association, so who can give a better history lesson about AEGEE than us? We think it’s a nice way to show the Network how much we like AEGEE and that we are here to stay for another thirty years.

What will be the topic of your part of the event? Why did you pick this topic?

We’d like to use the topic ‘Old Europe, New Europe’, because we, as an antenna, have a lot of history inside AEGEE, so we have a lot of topics to put into perspective. Of course it’s not all about AEGEE, but also about Europe itself. We have good connections with a few European Parliament members and with the head of the Dutch Information Desk of the European Union. We are going to contact them soon, so hopefully we can present the participants some experts on the ‘New Europe’.

How many participants will you receive, and are you open to participants from other antennae too?

At the moment, we want to host a maximum of 40 participants from all over Europe, but we cannot confirm this number yet.

When does your own local have its next anniversary, and what plans do you have for it?

AEGEE-Leiden was one of the founding locals, so our own 30th anniversary also takes place this year. Our birthday is on the 31th of October and because of that we are going to organise a whole lot of awesome activities till November. Organising this event is one of our bigger activities and it fits really well into our own anniversary year.

AEGEE-Sofia

Why did you apply to be part of the Night of the Seven Antennae?

We strongly believe that Europe’s future mostly depends on the actions and ideas of the youth, so we would be honored to host an event on the topic “Europe needs youth!” Almost thirty years ago, the Night of the Seven Antennae wasn’t just a big historical event, but the moment when Europe understood, in practice, that young people have the power to change the present and build the future. The foundations were laid, so we should not only discuss, but show that “Europe needs youth!”

What other things do you have planned for your participants?

First of all, we think that Europe needs healthy, open-minded and active youngsters, so we are planning some sport activities in order to promote the great importance of health and an active lifestyle. We have also planned other outdoor activities like a flash mob in the center of Sofia, to promote the importance of youth in Europe and the Night of the Seven Antennae as an event. Our participants will have the opportunity to show the power of young people to bring change by helping other people. Separated in groups they will make people exercise on the street, talk with them about human rights or help people with disabilities. One more of our intentions is to gather the participants in the non-formal atmosphere of a concert of a Bulgarian youth band during one of the evenings.

How many participants will you receive, and are you open to participants from other antennae too?

We are expecting to have around 50 participants. This includes members of our partner youth organisations, students from universities in Sofia and, of course, participants from our own network who will bring the AEGEE spirit from all over Europe.

When does your own local have its next anniversary, and what plans do you have for it?

Next year AEGEE-Sofia turns 25. At the last couple of awesome Balkan events our members visited (Shtafeta Novi Sad and Network Meeting Skopje), we learned that most of the antennae in the Balkan network were founded in the same year and we are one of them. So, this sounds like a nice opportunity to celebrate our 25th anniversary together!

AEGEE-Eskişehir 

Why did you apply to be part of the Night of the Seven Antennae?

Firstly, we want to take part in one of the most important night for AEGEE. Secondly, in 30 years period this is just the second time of  live streaming, that means that our hearts will palpitate at the same time with seven different antennae. And finally, with the topics chosen, we would like to make our participants more informed about both, an angle from Europe and different perspective from East by inviting important people from politic and academic life.

What will be the topic of your part of the event? Why did you pick this topic?

Our Main topics are ‘The State of Turkish Democracy’ and ‘Europe Needs Youth’. We believe that we should show our differences as a big organization, AEGEE. First of all, in Turkey, İt is really difficult to organize and manage kinds of discussions. Secondly, this is hard to deny the fact that democracy is not working properly in our geography. But there are so many examples for this situation all over the world. Thanks to panels and discussions we are planning to show process of democracy for young active individuals with blending experiences of politicians and academicians. Besides, as AEGEEans , to be respectful for all and to understand their ideas and feelings, with the target of representing one of the biggest aim of AEGEE, Europtimism, our event will be opened for all sections.

What other things do you have planned for your participants?

In the light of Democracy and Europe we have panels, discussions etc. but this is just beginning because we are organizing the event as a youth fest. Kind of games and entertainment and of course party!!! With the spirit of AEGEE in Eskisehir you will see a perfect birthday ceremony in company with a huge fest.

Written by Svenja van der Tol, AEGEE-Nijmegen

After having been a board member of AEGEE-Leiden, main organiser of two Network Meetings in a row and last but for sure not least Subcommissioner to Lia Tuska for the Dutch-speaking locals, Boudewijn Steenhof (AEGEE-Leiden) decided to take the step and run for NetCom himself. Read on to find out more about him, his motivation and plans!

The AEGEEan: First of all, please introduce yourself! Who is Boudewijn Steenhof and how did you join AEGEE?

Boudewijn: I am a very proud “Haarlemmer”, a city close to Amsterdam on the Dutch shores and a very beautiful place to grow up. I moved to Leiden for my English degree in 2011 and immediately became a member of AEGEE-Leiden. I was attracted to it by the travelling possibilities and the endless network of friends it offers you. I have not regretted joining for one second since then!

You were subcommissioner of Lia Tuska. How was this experience for you?

I have been interested in a position in the Network Commission ever since my friend and colleague in the board Dominique Lenssen (AEGEE-Leiden) had her term as NetCom. She would talk about how much fun it was and how much she learned from it. After being in doubt for a long time last term, I decided not to candidate because I felt I missed some experience to be able to be a valuable member of the team. When my friend forwarded me the open call Lia sent out for SubCom, I didn’t hesitate one second and replied. Although the term has not been very busy, I have learnt a lot from it. But most of all, I have discovered that I have a true passion for AEGEE and its network. Being SubCom was like a first peek into the world of AEGEE-Europe, and I would love for that window to become bigger!

And how did you decide to take the step and run for NetCom?

Election Observation Mission in Bosnia

Running for NetCom has been on my mind for probably a year now. Right after I returned from living in Australia half a year, a spot opened but I didn’t apply. I was in doubt again for this position at this Agora. The step to candidate almost seemed too great… This all changed probably two weeks ago, when I came in contact with a few board members from locals in the area. Talking to them and listening to their stories about their locals made me realise I had a few ideas on how to improve and sustain the network and I would love to talk to them and discuss strategies with them for the future of their locals. This, together with a few of my friends telling me I would probably regret it if I didn’t run, made me send in my candidature still, although the Agora was only a week away.

You would like to be in charge of the Dutch-speaking locals – which are, according to you, the strengths and weaknesses of this region?

The student culture in this area is very distinct from other areas in the network; a thing that all AEGEEans know ever so well. As a result, the locals generally are large and self-sustained. This is an obvious strength. I would also want to say that I have experienced that especially the boards of the area work together well and give each other tips and tricks to improve their strategies. This is something I want to build on during my term as well. I think, by the way, that this is also one of the biggest weaknesses of these locals: because of the distinct student culture, it is not always easy to feel one hundred percent connected with the European level. This is also something I want to keep an eye on.

Are you also planning to establish new locals?

Hitchhiking to Prague

I am certainly not afraid to explore the possibility. However, from experience I know this is a very time-consuming activity and needs to be carried out carefully and efficiently to be successful. There have been some people that were interested in helping doing this, but this process is in a very early stage and needs following-up!

You mention in your candidature the existence of a Fundraising Committee – what can you tell us about it?

In the Dutch-speaking area, we have an unofficial Fundraising Committee that functions on an ‘inter-local’ level. Three or four representatives of the locals work together to find funding, for instance through companies that can sponsor all the locals in exchange for advertisement space. This works better every year, but can still be improved. I would also like to explore the possibility of forming more of these committees for different things; this to encourage locals in my area to work together towards a common goal.

You organised two Network Meetings in two years in a row in Leiden. What do you like so much about this kind of events?

Network Meetings for me are the ideal way to be involved in the European Level in a very accessible way. I love the atmosphere and the reactions of the participants in the group. There is always a great mixture of local people and foreign people – if we’re lucky from very, very far away – and the workshops are great. This, for me, was my first real encounter with what AEGEE can offer you and I love to give other people that opportunity as well. I am very eager to discuss with my prospective fellow NetCommies how we can improve the quality of these events but still make it enjoyable and fruitful for the targeted group.

AEGEE-Leiden is known for organising several European events, how did you promote this kind of events in your local? Do you plan to promote this strategy in your locals, if elected?

Show your Colour party by AEGEE-Leiden

Yes! I am very happy with this question, because I am proud of the way AEGEE-Leiden has changed its focus more and more towards the European Level of AEGEE. I certainly want to employ this in my NetCom team as well. For me, I think there are a couple of very important key elements you need to succesfully promote a European event. Dedication is a very big part of it, of course; you need a few people that are willing to dedicate a lot of their time voluntarily to organise an event. Also, you need to create an atmosphere in which especially new first-year members, but also the older ones, know that European events are a matter of course. An example that I know from Leiden is for instance the change in a question from one first-year member to another: from “Are you going to help during the event?” to “When are you going to help?” I think this change is very important, because it reflects the way people view European events as something that is naturally part of their AEGEE lives. I want to encourage locals to try and establish this kind of vibe!

What do you think about the so-called “gap” between the local and European level, and how do you plan to face it?

This always remains a very difficult thing to deal with. I think it is important that locals are informed and partake in the European level, but do not lose their local identity and their place in the student culture of their respective cities at the same time. Especially in my preferred area this could mean a drastical drop in members, and no one wants that to happen. As said before, it is stated in my programme that I not only want to inform locals of the opportunities the European level presents them in the antenna criteria, but I also want to promote organising European events and sending members to events everywhere in the network.

Last but not least, are we going to meet you at the Agora in Cagliari this week?

Unfortunately not! Since I decided to candidate rather late in the process (read: one week before the Agora) and I have other obligations this weekend, I will not be able to present my candidature myself… If I knew I was going to candidate earlier, I would have made other arrangements, but alas! Luckily Svenja van der Tol (AEGEE-Nijmegen) offered to present for me, and I am very confident she will represent me in a good way!

Written by Anna Gumbau (AEGEE-Barcelona)

They were recently chosen as Local of the Month and for a good reason. AEGEE-Leiden is going strong and what they are in particular good at is hosting events! The AEGEEan interviewed Marije Arentze from AEGEE-Leiden about the details behind their antenna hosting the spring Network Meeting (NWM) earlier this year.

The AEGEEan: Why did you apply to organize the Spring NWM?

Marije: Initially, it was an idea from our group of friends to help out Dominique Lenssen, who was the Network Commissioner at that time, and who was having a lot of trouble finding a local to host the Spring NWM. Since for us the idea of not having a Spring NWM in the Dutch network this year was unacceptable, we told the board of AEGEE-Leiden we would be willing to help her out and organize a basic NWM if no other local wanted to. And so it happened. But, what started out as a minimalistic plan, ended up as an event that we all worked for with a lot of creativity and enthusiasm, and it turned out to be a great success.

The AEGEEan: What experience do you have with organizing events in your antenna?

Marije: We also organized the Spring NWM last year, and we did it with more or less the same people this year. I can truly say we are a well-oiled machine. Besides, AEGEE-Leiden organizes a Summer University and a New Year Event every year, our yearly Show Your Color party for the whole network and a lot of local activities and trips, etc.

The AEGEEan: What else have you been working on in AEGEE-Leiden this spring?

Marije: Recently we organized the “Week of Europe”. A week in cooperation with many other local student associations and national institutions, full of debates and workshops around the European Parliament Elections, in the first week of May. Even the Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, was present to give a speech here! This project was organized by our Foundation. Next to that we have our Summer University coming up, three trips (a general members weekend on the countryside, a summer trip to Split, Podgorica and Dubrovnik and a hitchhiking competition to Prague), and many local activities.

The AEGEEan: How do you work on keeping a high level of active members?

Marije: It starts with good recruitment. This year we welcomed around 60 freshmen in September, and the key is to make them bond. This year we had some very strong mentor groups, who still have dinner together and see each other regularly. We have our introduction month in September, with cool activities twice a week, where new members bond with their mentor group members and other freshmen. Then we organize the Local Training Course (LTC) and start up our committees right after, so everyone becomes active directly. Once they joined a committee, members will visit our social drink regularly, if not every week, and so a new generation of active members is born.

The AEGEEan: How did it go with the organization of the NWM?

Marije: Perfectly! I honestly cannot mention a problem we encountered. Everything went smoothly, no one was stressed, we were relaxed and had time to have fun with the participants. It was very convenient that the sleeping location and the congress location were at walking distance, and  that we had breakfast at the sleeping location. Leiden is such a small and cosy city and the weather was good, which helped a lot. Another high asset was that we had a lot of AEGEE-Leiden members to help us out. They helped cooking dinner, getting lunch, assisting trainers, guiding and hosting participants; everything was taken care of.

The AEGEEan: What challenges did you have?

Marije: The hardest challenge was getting enough participants. When the first deadline was approaching, we had only eight applications. Luckily, in the end we had almost 40, which is more than enough for a Dutch NWM. After that we needed a lot of information from them (arrival and departure times, allergies, etc), but we only managed to get all the information after a lot of spamming. But that is of course no exception in AEGEE.

The AEGEEan: What was your favorite part of organizing the NWM?

Marije: For me personally, that was the cantus on Saturday evening. A cantus is a traditional Dutch/Belgian students activity with a lot of singing, “punishments” and drinking beer. Our cantus was led by AEGEE-Enschede. We had little more than 50 participants, and it was a great night. Singing songs and getting drunk together is just a great bonding experience, especially with students from all over Europe. Even the AEGEE-Aachen Polar Bear was present.

The AEGEEan: What do you think is essential for the antenna to have when committing to organizing such an important event?

Marije: Good contacts with university and other locations. Flexibility and willingness to help from their side is very important to make the program run smoothly. But most importantly: enough people. Our team of main organisers consisted of four people (including Dominique it makes five). Ideally, the main organizers do all the preparation and don’t have big tasks to do during the event itself. The small tasks like running errands, cooking, doing city tours, moving stuff etc. should be done by groups of helpers, a lot of freshmen in our case. The main organisers themselves are there to overlook everything, communicate everything with everybody, solving and avoiding problems. In this way, no one is stressed, and no big problems suddenly occur.

The AEGEEan: How did you collaborate with the Network Commission?

Marije: In most cases, the communication between the Network Commission and Local Organisers is the biggest problem in organizing a Network Meeting. However, in our case, because Dominique is from our local, this was no problem at all. We see each other every week anyway. We had a common group on Whatsapp where everything was discussed, and one big Google spreadsheet with all the information. Decentralizing information is key: Everyone knew everything, and so communication was very easy.

The AEGEEan: Why would you encourage other antennae to organize a NWM?
Marije: Because it is a high profile event, which is good for the visibility of your local, and a very good chance to make a good impression. As a small antenna you can learn and grow from organizing a Network Meeting, because organising a big event is always a bonding experience for the team. Thirdly, it is a chance to introduce new members of your own local to the European Level, because they have the chance to attend sessions. And of course it is lots of fun too!

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-Zaragoza

In 1985 Leiden was among the founding locals of AEGEE, and ever after it has never stopped to exist or amaze the Network. Last May they didn’t only organize a very successful Week of Europe to gain attention for the European Elections, but next to that they also managed to organise a NWM in April. Reason enough to name them the Local of the Month for May. The AEGEEan talked to the Dutch local to find out more about their local, activities and of course the main reason for the nomination: the Week of Europe, visited by the prime-minister of the Netherlands! 

Currently, the local has about 200 members, which they keep active by involving them in everything AEGEE-Leiden does, either by taking part in one of the eleven committees AEGEE-Leiden has or being a part of project teams like the team that organized the Spring NWM or the Week of Europe. Next to this, the existence of fraternities/sororities in the local also helps, since this way members are part of a group of friends and therefore more likely to come to events. “The strength of our local is definitely formed by our members”, says Sandrine Lafay (European Affairs Officer in the board of AEGEE-Leiden). “They are active on the local and European level, they are enthusiastic and they are capable of organising great things!”

One of the things the local did to keep members interested in the European Level is the establishment of a committee which every month organizes an activity contributing to the Action Agenda of AEGEE-Europe. “In May for example we organised a wheel-chair race”, Sandrine says. “This month we are organising a thematic evening about voluntary work that can be done in Leiden, with different organisations telling us how we can contribute to their goals.”  Next to the committee, the local also has individual members to the European Level, like Marije Arentze, who was content manager of EBM Lublin, and Casper Renting, who was one of the election observers in Ukraine.

A good example of this is the Week of Europe, which took place from 6 – 9 May and had the goal to convince students to cast their vote during the elections for the European Parliament. During the week, the project team of AEGEE-Leiden, consisting of eight enthusiastic members, was supported by other students and study associations in Leiden, which took up some of the activities. “We wanted to create a program that would speak to a lot of different people”, Sandrine says. “Therefore we offered activities that focused on the institutions of the European Union, but also activities that focused on European culture, like a lecture about the history of European music. Next to serious activities, we organised an European Party and, in cooperation with two large student associations, we could offer an European Menu in their restaurants.”

The week started with the official opening ceremony, including an interactive debate between Eurosceptics and Europhiles about controversial subjects. The day after activities based on the theme “The Europe of Yesterday” were organized, namely a lecture about the history of democracy, a carsh course about basic rules and institutions, musical presentation, documentary, literature evening and the European Party. The day after, the theme changed to “The Europe of Today” and there were several presentations, a Green Office workshop and a debate with members of the European Parliament organised. The last day carried the theme ‘The Future of Europe’, and consisted of a lecture, a debate and the final speech and Q & A by Prime Minister Mark Rutte.

All in all, the week was a great success, with the activities being visited by about 870 people, although within this number some people are counted double since they visited multiple activities. “When our team looks back on the Week of Europe, we do so with a lot of happiness”, Sandrine says. “Organising this event took us a lot of time and it was great to see all the things you wrote down happening in real life! We handled everything really well and had a great crew consisting of a lot of AEGEE-Leiden members but also people from outside our association.”

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the local would love to organize another Week of Europe in five years, although the local would also love to organize the EPM. “We applied for the EPM 2015”, Sandrine says, “but unfortunately we didn’t get it. Organising an EPM is still on our wish list though!” Next to this, the local still has many other plans, like a Travel Summer University with AEGEE-Delft and AEGEE-Utrecht and another introduction period in August to attract new members. “In September we will have a new board, and it will be their turn to make new awesome plans for the upcoming year”, Sandrine concludes.

Written by Svenja van der Tol, AEGEE-Nijmegen

It has been repeated over and over again that it is very important to prepare delegates, visitors and envoys for the statutory events. It is essential to go through proposals and candidatures before flying to the Agora destination and The AEGEEan interviewed different antennae that prepare meetings for that particular purpose.

In Budapest members who want to be delegates have to write a motivation letter in order to apply for the position, they have to present themselves in front of the assembly where votes are cast by other members. As for visitors, the board creates the list according to a policy which says board members should be first, then mid-level leaders, active members and others. AEGEE-Leiden also selects delegates in a local Agora where candidates present themselves and then the members vote. The procedure of selecting visitors is also similar to what happens in Budapest “We select visitors by first promoting the Agora among our members: telling what it is all about, why it is important and a great experience. When people apply to become a visitor, the board goes through the applications and looks at the motivations. Based on their motivation, the board decides in which order the visitors will be put,” Sandrine Lafay from AEGEE-Leiden tells The AEGEEan.

As for the preparations, many antennae such as AEGEE-Groningen, AEGEE-Enschede and AEGEE-Amsterdam, AEGEE-Budapest before the Agora always have a so called Agora night where they simulate the Agora with most of its sessions and also present the proposals and candidates in order to find out the members’ opinions about the decisions the delegates have to make. “Of course during our simulation we don’t only vote in favor and against the proposals, but we try to talk about them. This way the delegates can later ask the questions which came up in the Prytania sessions. The result of the Agora Night is always recorded and the delegates should keep to those!” AEGEE-Leiden also hosts a Pre Agora meeting discussing all proposals and candidatures “We think it’s very important because delegates need to represent the local as a whole. The Pre Agora Meeting is the moment to discuss with all active members about what we think, so we can come up with a voting advice that represents the opinion of AEGEE-Leiden. To make sure that everyone’s well prepared at the Pre Agora Meeting, we distribute the proposal and candidature booklets among our members so they can read everything and form their own opinion before we start the Pre Agora Meeting. Moreover, we assign the different proposals and different candidatures to small groups of people that will present them at the Pre Agora Meeting, to make sure that even those who haven’t done the reading know what the proposal is about. During the Pre Agora Meeting we present and discuss about each proposal and candidature one by one and write down the arguments and voting advice for our delegates,” Sandrine says.

Clearly it is not only important to prepare the delegates but also the visitors so they have information about what is happening at what they are attending. AEGEE-Alicante told The AEGEEan how they focus on this matter “It is important to prepare not only delegates, but also visitors, so they can follow the discussion representing the antenna and understand why they are there. If we know that there will be newbies in the meeting, we explain what an Agora is, and then, we proceed to talk about candidatures and proposals and discuss all of it to reach a consensus so that they vote and act on behalf of AEGEE-Alicante as a whole rather than their individual opinion.”

There are different ways to help the members of the antennae financially in taking part in the statutory events. Whereas Budapest reimburses the fee to board members, delegates and honorary members, AEGEE-Amsterdam and AEGEE-Utrecht focuses on the travel costs. Where AEGEE-Utrecht reimburses 1/3 of the travel cost for their delegates, AEGEE-Amsterdam has a more complex system. Delegates get 50% of the travel costs reimbursed (till the maximum amount of €100), but first they have to make a little review about the Agora. The same goes for visitors who can get 25% of the travel costs reimbursed (till maximum amount of €50). AEGEE-Enschede implemented this year a 25 € reimbursement to the delegates. The AEGEEan also talked with AEGEE-Groningen about the same topic and the secretary Josine Rawee said “Normally we don’t, but when we cannot find enough delegates because the travel costs are too high, we sometimes give them reimbursement”.

The AEGEEan is also preparing delegates and visitors for the Agora having published interviews with candidates, organizers, explanations of proposals and more. Erika Bettin is the editor of the People’s section and says “This year I’m following the Agora preparation even more closely because I’m the Editor of the People section in The AEGEEan. For who doesn’t now, the People section hosts all the interviews given from candidates. Being a delegate myself, after reading all the applications, I wanted to ask a lot of questions to the candidates. During the Agora, usually, you see an endless line of people asking for questions that may or may not be answered. By doing the interviews, The AEGEEanis is giving everyone a chance to have a clearer overview. Personally, I was quite surprised to see how few people sent questions through our form. This is an important occasion to get to know the candidates better.”

Hopefully next time before Agora Cagliari there will be more questions submitted for the candidates and envoys, delegates and visitors can all be prepared in an even better way for the statutory event.

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-Zaragoza

LOCAL OF THE MONTH – AEGEE-LEIDEN

Eline and Margo

The AEGEEan interviewed E.G. & Margo van Berkum at the Agora Budapest about their local, the Show Your Colour (SYC) concept and future plans for this antenna.

Eline is a former board member and now Speaker of the Advisory Board of AEGEE-Leiden, here at the Agora Budapest she is a delegate. On European level she is the Policy Officer for Social Inclusion with a focus on LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) policy. Margo van Berkum is a second year member of AEGEE-Leiden, here in Budapest as a visitor at the Agora. It is her first Agora and she is enjoying it to the maximum. She is currently not in a commission on local level because she is very active in the study association of her university.

Your antenna is nominated because it is a very successful antenna, also because you have been organising the popular Show Your Colour concept for seven years now. What do you like most about this event?

Margo (M): Perhaps it is the fact that all Dutch locals come together here, and Belgian locals and often even representatives from the Comité Directeur (CD). Three years ago we also had visitors from AEGEE-Mannheim. So the best part about it, in my opinion, is that it brings so many people together.
Eline (E): Plus it is a party for new members. Not specifically, but a lot of locals see this party as the closure of their introduction period. For many newbies it is the first big AEGEE party. But of course old members also keep coming back because it is such a big and successful event.

Why was this event created?

Eline quoting Annelies Koop, former President of AEGEE-Leiden and the founder of the SYC initiative: “We had the idea of bringing some positive energy into our local and bringing AEGEE-Leiden back on the map, as some locals were wondering if we even still existed. Plus we wanted to find a way to get first year members more involved and familiar with AEGEE and members from other locals. With the help of AEGEE-Amsterdam and AEGEE-Utrecht, we promoted this event and starting from the first time we organized it, it was already a huge success!”

Why is this event called Show Your Colour?

E: There is not a fixed concept but every local gets a particular colour. So for example if Leiden gets the colour red, you dress in red and make it as crazy as you want! Every year they get a different colour. It is an easy way of a thematic party and you can recognise who is from where.
M: So ‘’show your colour” actually means show from which local you are! Plus it enhances a feeling of inclusion for new members within their antenna; all together in the same colour!

What else do you do during this night?

E: We have a nice speech around midnight where we express what the event means to us. This year we used that moment to honor Annelies Koop; the initiator of this event. She has just been made honorary member of AEGEE-Leiden.
M: And of course there is some traditional flag stealing!

How do you feel the event contributes to AEGEE?

M: It brings so many locals together so it creates a bond. It increases the bond within your local, so internally – because each local has one color – and on the other hand because everyone is from AEGEE so you have the common spirit as well.
E: The Dutch locals are closely connected in more ways than one, we have a great cooperation, and this party enhances that.
M: It is a positive start of the new year, all together. We start off the year together before we all have the Network Meetings, Agora, Regional training courses and so on.

What is special about AEGEE Leiden?

E: We are one of the founding locals of AEGEE-Europe. So we where there from the very beginning and still alive and kicking!

We interviewed Eline & Margo at the Agora but of course wanted to hear something from the board of this great antenna as well. Alicia Uijl, Secretary of the current board, was happy to reply on behalf of the whole board:

How did you feel about the nomination?

Alicia: We felt really honored when we found out that out of over 200 locals in the whole network we were selected as local of the month!

What other things are you doing now in AEGEE-Leiden?

A: In AEGEE-Leiden we are busy setting up a workshop evening, so that our members get to know more about the European Network. There will be speakers from the Environmental Working Group, Human Rights Working Group and the project Health4Youth. Next weekend we will have a hitchhiking competition to Brussels, were we will be visiting the CD House. Also we are organising a fantastic New Year Event and a lot of local activities, like social drinks, dinners and parties.

What are your future plans?

A: We hope to organise a Network Meeting in spring and we hope that a lot of our new members will become active on European level!

Written by Maartje Natrop, AEGEE-Utrecht