The announce has just been made… the next EPM hosting local is AEGEE-Zagreb from the 23rd to the 27th of February . The Croatian antenna will finally bring back to Balkans a statutory event. Excited? Well… We asked some questions to Zvonimir Canjuga to have the first sneak peek on it.

The AEGEEan: Why did you decide to apply?

Zvonimir: It was not some random decision for us. The idea of organising an EPM at that time in Zagreb was born on EBM Valletta in 2013 which Silvija (ex president) and I attended. As that was my first event, I was impressed with concept and since then I believed that AEGEE-Zagreb was capable to organise such an event. At that point we had all new members in the local so we decided to prepare our local and our members for EPM by organising smaller events like Summer University, and to educate our members about Project Management, event management, time management etc. Such programs took exactly three years from first plans about EPM to be finally realized.

There are several reasons why we wanted and we are organizing EPM. Firstly, we want to show to the youth of Zagreb, but also AEGEE members that Europe and EU is more than traveling without passports. EU offers much more: chance to activate yourself, develop softskills, learn languages, take anactive role in your community or be active in EU circles.

Secondly, with refugee crises we can see how the core values of Europe are weak and some important are threatened. We can see wire fences rising and border patrols all across Europe. We can see some nations want to leave EU. This is not the picture of the Europe that generations before us fighted for. With organising EPM we want to take a chance and participate in fight for rights of youth and values that we cherish.

Thirdly, we want to organise it for all former and current members of AEGEE-Zagreb. As I already said, since 2013 we worked very hard and in several different fields to prepare our members for such big project as European Planning Meeting 2017. We organised a great number of local and European events and we know we are more then ready for task ahead.

Fourthly, we were amazed with the support that we received both from institutional partners and 34 AEGEE locals. With so many people believing in us we owe to them to do our best and work as hard as we can do not let them down.

Last but not least, we want to organise a statutory event on Balkan, the first after Agora Skopje 2011. Balkan countries are all slowly approaching the EU entering process, but we do not see EU as bureaucratic machine, but as community of young people, ideas, knowledge, experiences and inspiration. Organizing the European Planning Meeting 2017 would have great impact for them and their community as well.

What were you doing when the Comité Directeur delivered you the news?

Well it took a long time for the CD to decide who will host EPM, but we knew that it will take time to give someone such great responsibility to organise statutory event. With every email from CD, and we passed two rounds of additional questions, my heart went trough the roof because I was hoping that somewhere in that emails was hidden that we got it. The night when we actually received the good news I was home in my bed almost went to sleep. When I saw email I must admit that I was positively shocked and I started to cry. My mind went crazy and I was wondering “What now? How will we do it?”, but I soon calmed down and i notified my dear Core team. The excitement between the Core team was amazing and  we are very proud when we look on our work in local and on our application. Now we are 100% focused on work for EPM and we cannot wait to host AEGEEans in Zagreb next February.

Please, present your local.

AEGEE-Zagreb was founded in 1993 and now we have around 60 members. I can say that we are a small local,l but we have awesome members with great experience and motivation to work for local. We learned long time ago that a local is our members, and we, leaders of AEGEE-Zagreb are really trying to offer a lot of different things except travels and SUs to them. We meet once per week on our regular weekly meeting in our office, but teams and projects have different meetings days during week. Also our members are active in European bodies of AEGEE-Europe, from project teams to Commissions, and maybe we will have a CD member again soon, who knows. Now we are more focused on local internal work to strengthen our members’ base and work on EPM preparations. All in all this is it, I invite everyone to visit and contact us if someone is in Zagreb.

Who will be in the core team? Do you have already decide?

Core team is consisted of people who were with me from the start. So firstly I want to take opportunity and thank every each of them for their work and support on this. I’m very proud of them. So, I would like to present you my dream team:

1. Vinka Suhin is alongside me most experienced person and person of great trust and she is Vice- Coordinator
2. Andrea Završki  will be Incoming group team leader
3. Nika Krnjak is  our Human Resources group team leader
4. Marina Klanjčić will be IT and PR group team leader with help of Manuela Džankić and Nika Alujević to help her
5. Jakov Rakić will be Fundraising team leader with help of Ana Drmić
6. Lucija Kozjan will be Logistics support team leader
7. Dominik Vukošić will be Social program coordinator
8. Me as Main Coordinator

So this is team that I will lead as Main Coordinator and we are fully confident and prepared to work hard and organize awesome EPM.

Tell us three things that make your local special.

The first thing that makes us special are our members. Although we are a small local, we are full of ambitious, motivated and skillful people who really care about AEGEE and want to make our antenna the best possible. Furthermore, we are very active for a small local. Apart from our weekly meetings, so far this year we have organized exchanges with AEGEE Ljubljana and Amsterdam, various language workshops, PR and public speaking workshops, teambuildings, social drinks, a fundraising concert and so on. Also, we have good relations with other locals and with other student associations in Zagreb.

And now three things that make your city special…

Zagreb is the capital of Croatia, but its main attraction is its peaceful and welcoming atmosphere. It makes you slow down and teaches you how to relax. Although people are very busy, there is always time grab a cup of coffee with your friends or have lunch at delicious nearby restaurants. If you are walking through the centre, don’t be surprised to see cafés full of people all the time. The second thing is that Zagreb has a lot of greenery at the city centre and with mountain Medvednica and lakes Jarun and Bundek within easy reach, you can find spaces for recreation almost anywhere. Finally, most of the city attractions are free and easily reachable by foot, which allows you to really experience the vibe and the atmosphere of Zagreb and discover little things which you cannot find in travel guides. The charming appearance, relaxing atmosphere and accessibility make it very easy to feel like home in Zagreb.

Can you give us already some sneak peeks of what we will see once there?

We were really brainstorming a lot about several options where to hold EPM and we decided that it will be  Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing (FER). This faculty offered us huge gym, 5 workshop rooms and  plenary room within range of 100m. At Student Center which is 300m from FER we will organize all three meals in student canteen per day. In general Faculty is very well connected and its is really easy to reach it from airport, bus or train station which are really close to Faculty.  For more informations about EPM I invite all members to follow us on social media and other channels.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

Ladies and gentlemen, the ACTive Local of the Month of May is AEGEE-Zagreb. Are you ready to meet the local that is full of young, motivated and hard working people? Let’s look at their story, at how they managed to organise a Network Meeting (NWM) and turn it into a success. We spoke to Marina Klanjčić,Vice-President & HR responsible of AEGEE-Zagreb.

Congratulations! ​As we would like to get to know this month’s winner, could you tell us a bit more about your local?

Marina:  AEGEE-Zagreb isn’t a very large antenna. Even though we are just 60 members, our enthusiasm is as big as any other large antenna’s. We are 22 years old and still growing at a fast rate. This year’s board was completely made up of new members, who have done an amazing job throughout the year. We surely hope this will continue in the future!

You ​have organised a NWM, as well as two workshops that have contributed to the Action Agenda. Can you tell us more about ​your events?

The Network Meeting was an international event, organised specifically for AEGEE members from our region. It was especially nice to see participants from countries far away from ours and we would like to thank them for joining us in Zagreb. During these four days our participants could learn more about AEGEE and how to be more active on local and European level. They got to know Action Agenda Coordination Committee (ACT) and Quality Assurance Committee (EQAC) as well. Our antenna was taking care of logistics of this event which means: arranging a hostel, a conference room, a place for European night, some incoming activities, social program, coffee breaks and everything else that our participants needed. We had 8 organisers and a couple of helpers, all of which made a great team.

We have also organised 2 local workshops. The first one was about time management and it was open for everybody outside AEGEE. The second one was about event management within AEGEE, organised specifically for our members. Participants could learn more about how to organise an event and also some information about ACT and EQAC. Through this, we contributed to the Action Agenda fulfilling one of the Focus Areas (Civic Education).

Why did you decide to organise a NWM​? And the workshops?

As I said before, this year’s board wasn’t very experienced (except our beloved president Zvonimir), but the Network Meeting was an excellent start. It was a great opportunity to learn something new, make connections with other locals for future events, while also strengthening our local by engaging our new members in this event. After this, we realised that we have a lot of enthusiastic new members with potential for growth. The aforementioned workshops were a result and proof of this.

What was the result?

During our NWM, we had 22 participants, all thrilled to be part of our amazing event. We are very proud and grateful for every “thank you”, and every smile we had from them. For us, this means that every sleepless night, every stressful situation and concern, have all paid off.

The workshop about Time management had around 20 participants, all equally satisfied with the material provided. Event management workshop had around 5 participants, mostly our new members, and every one of them stated that this helped them realise what AEGEE really  is.

Why do you think the Action Agenda is important for the Network, and what would you say to another local that is thinking about organising something related to the Action Agenda?

The Action Agenda is the basis of our AEGEE work and most of the events organised can be related to it. If you are ever thinking about organising something, don’t be scared and just go for it. Don’t worry if you don’t have enough experience – you have to start somewhere. Brick by brick and you will have a lovely house, right? After all, what we love the most about AEGEE is that you can ALWAYS ask for help from friends or other locals, European bodies, CD or anyone. We are all here to help each other. You will not know how strong you are until you put yourself to the test.

Do you have any other big plans for the upcoming months?

Since the summer has started, it is difficult to plan for events, but yes, we have big plans for the future, but that is all I will say for now. Stay tuned for more information!

​AEGEE-Zagreb has certainly shown to the Network that it can be an example to other locals. What would you say to other locals that want to be as awesome as you? 

Here is the list with some tips:

– Take care of your members, past, present and future.

– Make connections to other locals.

– Organise events, from smaller to bigger, from local to European.

– Ask for help from European bodies.

– Spread AEGEE spirit all the way and you will see how much you will get in return, and how happy and fulfilled you will be afterwards.

– And of course, JUST DO IT !

Which sentence would describe your local and your event?

A lot of hearts, but one soul.

Written by Tuğçe Çarpaz, AEGEE-Eskisehir

A month after Spring AgorAsturias, from the 30th of April until the 3rd of May, a Network Meeting (NWM) will take place in Zagreb, the capital of Croatia. Thirty lucky participants will get a chance to learn more about the history of AEGEE and get valuable advice about organising quality events. They will also find out about the Action Agenda and about Human Resources. We talked to the NWM Coordinator Ana Drmić, the organising team and to NetCom Ana Potočnik in order to feel a little bit of the Balkan AEGEE spirit before the actual event.

The AEGEEan: First of all, congratulations for having been chosen to be the host of  the upcoming Network Meeting. What motivated you to apply?

AEGEE-Zagreb: Since we have a lot of new and highly motivated members, we decided to give them a chance to find their role through practice being guided by experienced members whose knowledge will be helpful. Being the organiser, rather than a participant would help us acquire useful organisational skills for the future. Organising this Network Meeting would also make our antenna more active by motivating new members to participate and to learn how to work as a team on a project. We want to place our antenna as visible, highly motivated and experienced in organising European events. Of course, making new connections and friendships with participants from other locals would help us make the AEGEE spirit grow.

Tell us something about the organising team. Who is the Main Coordinator? Can we expect any helpers from AEGEE-Zadar considering the well-known cooperation with the members of that antennae?

The organising team consists of eight members, including the new ones, but also the experienced ones. The entire board takes part in the organising team and the Main Coordinator is our current treasurer, Ana Drmić. Although all the help is welcomed, we will have enough organisers and helpers for this event, but we would be happy to host our friends from Zadar as participants.

Do you have a fundraising strategy you are going to use and are you getting any form of support from the University of Zagreb?

At the moment we are not getting support from the University of Zagreb, but we are still negotiating. We will do corporate fundraising and we have already started applying for grants.

Why do tourists find Zagreb worth visiting and what does the social program include?

Since Zagreb is a historical town, the centre of culture with lots of happenings and crazy nightlife, we are sure that it will be an attractive destination to visit, especially at this time of the year. Participants can easily come to Zagreb by plane, train or bus, because there are several connections every day from all the capital cities in the area. Except for the European night, we will also provide city tours, visiting famous attractions and  night clubs.

What about the program of the event? Can you reveal the main goal and share some ideas you have already come up with? Have you already appointed the trainers?

Ana Potočnik: We are still developing the program. Like in the past, the Network Commission and Comité Directeur came up with some very interesting sessions from which locals will benefit a lot. We allocated a lot of time for sharing best practices and other sessions where locals can get to know each other and plan common activities. We will be tackling common problems of my locals and get into HR strategy together with the HR Director, Ivan Bielik. I am also in contact with some projects and Policy officers to make sure participants get to know the thematic AEGEE is working on and hopefully be inspired to organise theatrical events also in their locals and get active in European bodies.

Why should people apply for the NWM? Do you have any new ideas for motivating the members of the Balkan locals on both the local and European levels?

Ana Potočnik: Simply because it is going to be awesome! We are preparing a very diverse program with a lot of interesting and interactive sessions on how to improve thematic and organisational work of the locals. Together with my SubComomission team and Ivan we will make sure participants will not be bored during the day… and during the night. I don’t think there is a better recipe for boosting our motivation than the Balkan AEGEE spirit.

What does the emotional title “Million hearts, one soul” mean to you and who came up with the name?

AEGEE-Zagreb: The organising team came up with lots of ideas for the name of this event but from the moment we reached this one, it was clear to everyone that it was the one. Zagreb is called the “city of a million hearts” and the licitar heart [decorated heart shaped biscuits made of sweet honey dough popular in Croatia, ed.]  is one of its most recognisable symbols. On the other hand, the title symbolises also the community of a lot of members who think and act like one and it is what we are trying to achieve, to bond members of AEGEE and unite them in their actions.

Can we expect more statutory events hosted by the AEGEE-Zagreb? We have heard rumours about organising an European Planning Meeting (EPM) one day. Is that true?

Yes, it is true. The idea was proposed by the current President, Zvonimir Canjuga, and the Ex-President, Silvija Perić, during European Boards’ Meetin (EBM) Valletta in 2013. For us, this is a slow process because we want to motivate our members and give them organising experience by organising NWMs and Summer University events. Also EPM is one of the biggest and most important events and we want to have a good team that can handle such responsibility. But, with the right guidance, AEGEE-Zagreb will soon be ready for this challenge and we will apply for EPM 2017. 

What plans does the current board of AEGEE-Zagreb have for the future? Are you going to organise a Summer University this year?

This year we decided not to organise a Summer University because we want to focus more on motivating our members to take an active role in AEGEE, so our focus is on organising some local trainings to make it happen. However, the experience of organising the Network Meeting will help us prepare for other events of which one will most definitely be Summer University next year.

If you have anything more to add, please do.

We are looking forward to every application and are encouraging everyone to apply for this amazing event!

Written by Ivana Mijanac, AEGEE-Beograd

“Against. – Against. – Against. – …” At the Agora Zaragoza, the Focus Area named “Peacebuilding” received a clear negative vote. Does that mean that AEGEE is not interested in this topic, or do we believe we don’t have the capacity to work on it? Or is there a different explanation? – A short inquiry into one of our favourite misconceptions.

Peace in Europe is a normality for most of us. This doesn’t mean that we do not have conflicts, but at there have been only a few occasions in the last 68 years where Europeans have taken up arms to settle disputes. For a reason that you will come to understand in the course of this article, I am not going to mention any regions here as ‘examples of armed conflicts in Europe’. But most of us have probably have heard about some of the conflicts that have taken place in Europe recently.

In AEGEE, the way we speak about these conflicts sometimes reminds me of the way my grandma used to speak about her quarreling grandchildren. “C’mon kiddos, don’t be bad, if you stop fighting and just forget about your argument you will get some of my cherry cake!” You may remember that when you were a kid, you weren’t particularly fond of such interventions (even if you were fond of cake), simply because your quarrel was your own business, and you felt that you weren’t being taken seriously.

Now an armed conflict is a bit different from children quarreling. This seems like a redundant statement, but I believe we need to realise that we are not talking about a boy who destroyed his brother’s Lego castle. Forgiving and forgetting becomes difficult when your father was killed, your sister raped, your house burnt and your society filled with thoughts of hatred and revenge. Trauma is still there, even when the last survivors of the war are dying of old age. Peacebuilding after war is something that takes generations.

We have quite a number of Locals in our network that are located in areas which have been affected by armed conflicts over the past decades. For me it was interesting to observe that nearly all of the locals from these areas (with only two exceptions) voted against Peacebuilding as a Focus Area. It made me wonder about why this Focus Area was proposed in the first place – had anyone ever approached these Locals for their opinion? I have been asking the delegates who voted in the plenary to comment on their decision and I will to let two of them speak for themselves.

In the words of Mert Can Yılmaz (AEGEE-Ankara):

•  “Our argument was that we have already chosen four big topics. Each of them has several aims. […] And we think that working in detail is better than achieving aims superficially.”
  
• “On the other hand, we thought peacebuilding […] is a little difficult issue in Eastern Europe.”
• “As AEGEE-Ankara, we’d like to work on peacebuilding. Besides, we have already been working on it. As an example, we did the Turkish-Greek Civic Dialogue Project. And the AEGEE-Ankara Turkish-Armenian Working Group has done a project and sereval events. We are looking for more.“

Silvija Perić (AEGEE-Zagreb) adds:

• “I’m not saying we’re against the “Peacebuilding”, but we thought it wouldn’t work out as a Focus Area since people feel annoyed when others give advice or try to help with dealing with situations they can’t possibly understand.”
• “I love mediation, but you have to know when you can use it and when is best to wait patiently until there is space for compromise and work. We should do peacebuilding, but as careful observers who are not here to judge, give advice nor trying to ‘make things better’. We should be the ones who will go there to help them with what they need, to listen, to be friends with them and in the end, just be there for them, understanding that sometimes being there next to them in silence tells and helps more than words.”

Who could have said it better?

I still believe that AEGEE has a huge potential for peacebuilding. But it is not our task to settle territorial disputes or find a political balance in a conflict of interest. We are not in a position to mediate or give advice, and we should not try. What we are good at -and what is needed, goes along Silvija’s last lines: creating friendship, understanding and solidarity, just by bringing people together and so we realise that we share the same interests, worries, and love for life. And if the situation allows it -with some intelligent facilitation, it may be even possible to “talk about it”. But that should not be our main objective.

As AEGEE-Ankara’s example shows, we have achieved important things in the past. We have a unique capacity to build bridges where others can’t. Now we have decided not to have a Focus Area about it, but that doesn’t mean we must be idle. Maybe it is even better not to have a Focus Area, because that might have created wrong (result-oriented) expectations.

Peacebuilding, in this broader understanding, should be our daily ambition, in every event we organise. Our societies are full of small conflicts and misunderstandings, prejudices and stereotypes, ignorance and mistrust that we can help resolving. And by doing so, we probably make a greater contribution to our Europe without borders than we will ever realise.

Written by Thomas Leszke, AEGEE-Köln

Energetic, smiling and hardworking – these are the first words which come into my mind when describing Silvija Perić (AEGEE-Zagreb) who is our Member of the Month of June. Her dedication to helping with organizing the youth conference “Croatia in the EU” made sure that she is a real AEGEE addict, so let’s find out more about her!

Please, shortly introduce yourself to The AEGEEan readers!

I am a law student at the University of Zagreb and the president of AEGEE-Zagreb for almost a year now. I joined AEGEE in the end of 2011 and almost instantly became a board member and was working as a treasurer. Also in May 2013 I joined Antonija Parat’s (Network Commissioner) team as a Sub-Commissioner.

You have been voted as Member of the Month due to your involvement in Croatia in the EU conference. Could you tell us something, please, in a few sentences about the conference for those who were not present?

As you all know, on July 1st, 2013 Croatia became the 28^th member of the European Union (EU). The aim of the conference was to hear the opinion of young people in Europe and how they feel about the EU enlargement and Croatia‘s accession to the EU.

It was a great opportunity to review and discuss the achievements and challenges in youth cooperation and to discuss about European Identity. The conference was organized by the Directorate-General Enlargement of the European Commission and it gathered over 200 young people from Europe who actively participated in discussions and workshops.

What exactly did you and AEGEE-Zagreb do to help out? And what do you think were your biggest successes in that?

There were a lot of things that needed taking care of, but my main tasks were to promote the event in Croatia, help with participants’ requests, organize a city tour and journalists’ interviews with Erasmus students, organize the party (together with ESN Zagreb), introduce AEGEE to the participants of the conference, give interviews and report about the conference.

The biggest success was the opportunity to be involved in such a huge project both as the organizer and the participant. Also, it was great to have so many AEGEEans as participants and to promote AEGEE among people from all over Europe.

What are your tips for younger AEGEE members who also like to organize events? What have you learnt in this time?

Be prepared for all challenges! Sometimes it won’t go according to your plan, some things may go wrong, but stay calm, think, ask for the help and continue. Organizing events is a life changing experience. I learned more about myself, tested my limits, gained new skills, had the opportunity to meet and work with great people.

Apart from AEGEE, what are your passions and hobbies?

Traveling! I love exploring new cultures and meeting interesting people. Also, learning foreign languages and reading books.

Last, but not the least – dancing. I’ve been dancing for 5 years – I dance belly dances, tribal belly dance, Bellynesian and Bollywood dance. As Agnes De Mille said: “The truest expression of people is in its dance and in its music. Bodies never lie.”

And how about the future, what are you personally working on at the moment?

Our Summer University finished 3 weeks ago and since then I am helping Antonija with preparations for the Autumn Network Meeting. Also, I am studying for exams in September, searching for new challenges in AEGEE and looking for interesting projects I could join.

Written by Anita Kalmane, AEGEE-Ogre

The first month of the summer kept the Comité Directeur hyperactive, it has been full of work, events and conferences, many of them have showed that long months and sometimes years of hard work have been payed-off.

The summer also means an amazing start for all of us. Dozens of AEGEEans  gathered together the last week of June to proudly say: Welcome Croatia!

Luis Alvarado Martinez (President)

During June, the workload still did not go down as some of us expected, but rather went up. The month started with the YO Fest organized by the European Youth Forum where we had a stand, and I personally attended several meetings on the Structured Dialogue on Youth Process and the League of Young Voters representing our Y Vote 2014 project. Directly after this, I got a plane to Malta to the General Assembly of Les Ancines. You can find more about it here.
I could only stay for one day and I had to come directly back for the Y Vote 2014 meeting during the weekend. Then, on Monday I was the moderator of the Panel Discussion which we, as AEGEE-Europe ,organized in the European Parliament to launch our Y Vote 2014 project with Members of EP and the European Youth Forum.
The following day, I also moderated the Panel discussion in the European Parliament again, organized together with our partners from YEU (Youth for Exchange and Understanding) on recognition of Youth Work and the LLP research which we are carrying out.
On that same week, which we started calling the AEGEE week, we hosted one last event in the Parliament on “Co-management” with several other NGOs.

A few days later I got a flight to Mollina, Málaga Spain where I represented AEGEE in the CEULAJ Center at the coordination meeting for the next University on Youth and Development organized by the European Youth Forum, North-South Center of the Council of Europe and the Spanish Youth Council. We will be one of the key partners, and host a training on Caucasus Peace Building in September. Directly after this, I travelled to the UK where I represented AEGEE-Europe, and Chaired the Model European Council in the University of Cambridge. After staying a few days in Brussels, attending different meetings, I travelled to Las Palmas GC, as speaker to a Conference organized by the European Movement in Canary Islands as panelist with different politicians and Harvard professors on EU citizenship and the crisis in the EU. Last but not least, I travelled to Croatia to the conference we co-organized with the European Commission on the EU accession of Croatia where I had the chance to meet many of you again.

Lucille Rieux (Secretary General)

Surprisingly, the rythmn in June didn’t slow down, and it was yet another busy month which was coming to an end.
First of all, June was rich in events organised and attended.
The efforts of the Comité Directeur to increase our organisation’s visibility in Brussels were very present at the beginning of the month, while preparing the presence of AEGEE-Europe in the Yo Fest of the European Youth Forum as well as organising 3 events in a row in the European Parliament. First of all, I was helping the Y Vote project team to carry out the Press Conference to kick off the project. I was also supporting Madalena Sousa, our research and administrative officer, in the preparation of a roundtable on the topic of “certification of the youth workers’ competences”, which gave room for a very fruitful debate among representatives of European Youth and Educational Organisations as well as representatives of the European Parliament. Last but not least, I was coordinating the project which was organized by AEGEE-Europe on the topic of co-management for young people within the European Institutions. You can read the concept and the results of the event here.
This month, I have also started the preparation of the Identity Meeting of AEGEE, which will take place in July, in the CD house. I have been both managing the logistic preparations and starting the analysis of the results of the consultation which has been run in the network. I have also worked together with Madalena, on the development of an internal strategy for internal recognition of Non Formal Education, which will soon be shared with the network.
To continue, I have also attended the Secretary General Days organised by our platform the European Youth Forum, which has been a good chance to exchange good practices in terms of the management of the organisation, and gave me several ideas to be implemented in order to increase our efficiency. Together with my collegues, I have attended the conference organised by the European Commission in Zagreb, to celebrate the entrance of Croatia, as the 28th member state, to the European Union. Right after that, I joined the team meeting of the project on “Validation of the competencies of youth workers – Road for greater recognition” in Faro, organised by our partner YEU. During this meeting, we have met other partners of the project, and defined the next steps of the project, both in terms of content and administration.

Anna Gots (Financial Director)

Even though it seemed that all the most important deadlines and events of this CD year were left behind, June happaned to be a hyperactive month, much busier than the previous ones.
For me, it started with the preparation of the financial part of Europe for Citizens application,which aims to support several initiatives related to EP elections 2014, next year.
Then, I spent the very first week together with the rest of the CD members in the EP, participating in three AEGEE events in a row, there.
The following week was devoted almost entirely to managing the financial follow-up of the aforementioned events in the EP and the one we had in Starsbourg at the end of April, about Human Rights.
In the meantime, I finally had time for the implementation of certain long-planned initiatives.
One of them was the start of the consultation process with treasurers of other NGOs based in Brussels and the most experienced treasurers from our Network regarding the bookkeeping software they used in order to chose a new, more suitable one for AEGEE-Europe.
Meanwhile, I revived a discussion with the Audit Commission about the importance of increasing the role of  financial education in the Network and creating a informal forum for the treasurers to discuss common issues and share best practices.  As a first step, the corresponding Facebook group was created, which gathered around 100 treasurers already.
Moreover, together with the treasurer of AEGEE-Enschede, I started the preparation of two proposals for the upcoming Agora, aiming to facilitate the work of the Financial Director and hopefully, to bring more transparency and simplicity to the financial presentations at the Agora.
Besides, I’ve been following events of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum  and attended one of them about environmental challenges EaP countries were facing.
For the very first time,  I also participated as a speaker in the meeting of the working group in EESC, discussing the last Directive on the entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of research, studies, pupil exchange, remunerated and unremunerated training , voluntary service and au pairing; giving insight on the reality our members coming from non-EU countries face when they try to obtain long-term visas and residence permits for the purpose of training and voluntary service.
Last but not the least, I participated together with tens of other AEGEEans in the youth conference in Zagreb welcoming Croatia in the EU, where together with Kathrin we gave one of the workshops about intercultural dialogue.
In the very end of the month, I joined Lucille and Madalena in the sunny Faro for the second consortium meeting of partners of the project “Validation of the competencies of youth workers – Road for greater recognition” to discuss both administrative and content-related aspects.

Pavel Zbornik (European Institutions and Communications Director)

For me, June started with submitting Youth in Action applications and the meeting of the Y Vote where I took part in the drafting of the communication strategy. Then, the AEGEE week (as other NGOs called the first week of June) has started with 2 press conferences and a 2 day conference, all hosted in the European Parliament. On AEGEE YouTube Channel, you can find videos to see more. After these events, my traveling period started: I went with Kathrin to Paris for a consultancy meeting with SAP and Accenture organised by Probono Lab where we were consulting Online Membership System with consultants from the IT field. Directly from Paris, I went to Lisbon to help with the preparation of New Media Summer School which is a youth event prior to the European Dialog on Internet Governance (EuroDIG). Within the framework of this event, we aimed to prepare pax to be able to participate at big multistake holder conferences as the EuroDIG. I’m very pleased with the participants who came from AEGEE and their role during conference. After Lisbon I went to Zagreb, as many other AEGEEans did, to participate at the youth conference to welcome Croatia in the EU.

Miguel Gallardo Albajar (Projects Director)

I started the month assisting the Y Vote team at their meeting, and then jumping into a collaboration for the so-called AEGEE week, with three events in the European Parliament. Then, I spent the weekend with the Eastern Partnership project, and the next weekend I travelled to Ireland for a conference on LGBT Youth within the framework of the Irish presidency of the EU. As many more AEGEEans, I travelled to Zagreb to welcome Croatia in the EU with the youth conference organised by the European Commission. During the week days, I attended some external conferences on the situation of Turkey, skills needed for green jobs and the presentation of a new radio in the European Bubble, EuranetPlus. The preparation of the Planning Meeting continued during the entire month, same thing happened with I’M AEGEE (Identity Meeting of AEGEE), and all the small tasks related to WGs and Projects that constitute to my daily routine…

Kathrin Renner (Vice President and External Relations Director)

Days in the office: 10
Days spent at conferences, meetings and on the road: 10

As you can see, June was one of the busiest months, interrupted by lots of small meetings, trips and days at conferences.

It started with the ‘AEGEE week’ in the European Parliament: 4 days in a row, we had events there, organised mainly by Lucille and Madalena, but requiring the support of all CD members. By the fifth day of this busy week, we’ve got used to arranging things in the still not completely ready house, and to have a long overdue team evaluation. Other meetings I had, were a consultation on our IT infrastructure with SAP and Accenture thanks to ProBono in Paris, where I went with Pavel, a 2-days funding workshop in Antwerp, organised by the European Youth Forum, where especially the part about Foundations was interesting for us, and of course the EU Youth Conference in Zagreb.
In the meantime, my main tasks in the office included the preparation of the EU Youth Conference (and fighting with the travel agency), preparing the new edition of Key to Europe together with superheroines Hara Kogkou and Alma Mozgovaja, preparing the Study Fair in Zaragoza, and the usual emails and other tasks.

I hope that this was the last crazy month, and now, in summer we will have time to relax and work on the tasks we haven’t completed yet.

Beata Matuszka (Network and Human Resources Director)

June has been a human resources month for me, almost all the events I participated in, or organised and several actions were related to Human Resources Management.

My non-HR tasks concentrated in the beginning and end of the month: the first week of the month was the so-called AEGEE week in Brussels, according to the other INGYOs. Since we had press and other conferences, I was participating in the launch of the Y Vote, and I had the possibility to be a facilitator during the conference which gathered INGYOs and policy makers to discuss the possibilities of co-management in the European Union.

Later this month, I was participating in a training for the members of European Youth Forum with Lucia Gavulova and Zuzana Caplova (AEGEE-Bratislava) and Elena Antova (Human Resources Committee): this was the kick-off of the 2-year-long project which is focusing on Membership Growth on local and European level.

Right after this training, we have arrived to that moment for what I was eagerly waiting for months: the first Human Resources Forum for INGYOs organised by AEGEE-Europe took place in Brussels. This event gathered together many organisations (BEST, ELSA, JADE, IAAS, EGEA, EMSA, ESN, YEU) and during the 2 days, there was possibility to share best practices, discuss problems, find solutions and start a strong cooperation in terms of HR management.

Before leaving for the Youth Conference in Zagreb, Mathieu Soete and I were presenting the best practices in the field of entrepreneurship at the Policy debate in the European Parliament.

In Zagreb, we weren’t only meeting with the other organisations but also with fellow AEGEEans, we had a possibility to use this time also for extra teambuilding with the Network Commissioners and for discussing some important issues.

Madalena Sousa (Research and Administrative Officer)

June became a very enriched month, filled with diverse and fruitful work for our organization.

In the beginning of the month, I was giving support to the organization of the “Co-management for youth in the European Institutions” as well as in the background preparation of the facilitators. Right before this conference, I was responsible for the organization of the Round Table on “Certification of the Competences of Youth Workers in a European Context” that took place at the European Parliament on the June 4. This event was organized by AEGEE Europe & Youth for Exchange and Understanding International and hosted by MEP Marian Harkin. For more information, please, follow the link for the press release.
During this month, in the “backstage”, I was developing several conceptual and admnistrative works, such as the internal strategy of Non Formal and Informal Learning for AEGEE (together with Lucille Rieux); preparing AEGEE-Europe’s participation on the 2nd partners meeting of the project and preparing the facilitation process to the INGOs and the Structure Dialogue in Europe that will take place in Zaragoza in the beginning of July.
In the last week of June, I was attending the “European Launch of Education at a Glance 2013: OECD Indicators” where the 2013 ‘Education at a Glance’ report was presented, which provides key information and data on education and training in OECD and partner countries, including 21 EU Member States. This report enables decision-makers to compare education and training systems, and to draw lessons for future policy. For more information about this process you can follow  the link.
The last days of June took place at the 2nd partners meeting of the Project “Certification of the Qualifications of Youth Workers in NGOs – road to greater recognition of youth work”. This time, it was hosted and organized by YEU in Portugal. The meeting aimed to update the evolution of the partners in the different workpackages of the project, discuss the content with the focus on the profiles of the youth worker, quality management system of the project, Database and Network and administrative issues. For more information about this project, please, have a look on this.

Over the years the flag stealing game in AEGEE has developed to a battle in between locals in stealing not only flags, but also mascots and toilet paper belonging to other locals or their members.

Pre-Agora Skopje 2011 participants with the stolen AEGEE-Sofia flag

If you ever consider taking the risk of stealing a flag or another valuable item from another antenna, there are a few things to consider at first. The base of the game is that the aim is to steal a flag or an icon from another local in order to bring the locals closer together, but it is not as simple as it sounds, there are rules.

The basic rules of the game

You can steal everything from the presidential hammer, flags and receptions books till mascots, things with logos etc. when it is publically exposed. It does not count if you take it from personal belongings or in the house of your host which happened when AEGEE-Madrid mascot Retirito was stolen. It had to be given back, without any punishment, because the game has to be done in fair-play.

Faruk is trying to steal AEGEE-Lund/AEGEE-København flag

Now you have the possibility to identify what you can steal, the next step is to know how. First of all, one of the main rules is that you have to steal the item unnoticed/leaving the room without getting caught or you will have to give it back. This is the part where you analyse your opponent and the nearest exit.

During EBM Izmir 2012 Faruk Sayin, President of AEGEE-Canakkale, seemed to have analysed the exit but forgot to analyse his opponent Ilker Bildircin when he tried to steal the twin-flag of AEGEE-København and AEGEE-Lund. Faruk started running towards the nearest exit but Ilker caught up with him and tackled him in true American football style, which is exactly what Ilker practices in his spare time.

A good excuse to enjoy some beers

If you actually do manage to escape with the flag, it is time to come up with an idea for the punishment. The rule is that you are allowed to come up with a punishment that the local has to do in order to get the flag back, as long as the antenna agree to do it.

AEGEE-Budapest in flag-stealing action

This is what happend when AEGEE-Budapest  representative Gábor Pető stole AEGEE-Passau flag during an AEGEE conference with social business as a theme in Passau.  During the event AEGEE-Passau put the flag up everywhere in order to promote AEGEE, but Gábor had something else in his mind. It was an event full of new AEGEE people who were unaware of the flag stealing game, so Gábor found a co-partner in crime from Passau with whom he managed to steal the flag after one session.

Gábor explains the story saying:  “We stole the flag after a session on the last day, but it was quite adventurous. That day it was put in the biggest conference room and it was always crowded. When we almost took down the flag a girl came up to us asking whether we liked the program of the event etc. Later we found out that she was the president of the local, but she did not notice that we are about to steal her flag, which was quite funny because the flag was literally in our hands.”

The flag was returned at the Agora Skopje in which a beer-drinking competion was held between AEGEE-Budapest and AEGEE-Passau because of the interest in Bavarian beers. This all proves that it actually do bring the locals together.

A flag about to be returned to its owner after being away from home for many years

Another succesfull story contains AEGEE-Izmir legendary members Berat Ezel and Ufuk Bal who stole the AEGEE-Europe flag one month before Agora Izmir in 2005. AEGEE-Praha had organized AEGEE’s 20th year celebration event “The Happening.” The flag was stolen in the Czech Senato Building where the workshops and the plenary meetings of the event took place.

AEGEE-Izmir’s member  Tunca Ayyilidiz tells the story with a smile: “The way they stole the flag makes the whole story even funnier, because the two guys recognized that the flag was on the table in the plenary hall and there was only one person from AEGEE-Europe next to the flag, doing some things

AEGEE-Izmir revealing the punishment for the CD house during EBM Izmir

on the table. They asked him for a “scissor” and the guy was so helpful that he gave it to them. But the thing is that they asked for this scissor to cut the strings which attached the flag to the table. So in a blink of an eye, while he was not looking, they took the flag and ran out of the plenary hall.” The flag has yet to be returned to the CD house and the punishment was actually given during EBM Izmir ’12 which requires the CD to send a historic and symbolic item from the CD house in Brussels to AEGEE-Izmir and then the flag will be returned.

AEGEE-Peiraias looking forward soft accomodation during Agora Enschede ’12

These are only two examples of numerous “crimes” that have taken place in our organization, and the creativity regarding the punishment task is indeed wide. AEGEE-Oviedo’s representative Juan Sordo Barriero had to speak negatively about Asturias in a duration of five minutes during the Network Meeting (NWM) in Porto after the WDEE flag got stolen.

Others are more experience flag-stealers such as AEGEE-Peiraias representative Manos Valasis who was responsible of two punishmnets during Agora Skopje. He managed to steal the AEGEE-Enschede flag when it was left ungarded before the opening plenary which required AEGEE-Enschede to sign an agreement that they will provide lucky AEGEE-Peiraias members with up to 12 members

Proof of AEGEE-Enschede's signature on agreeing to provide 12 beds for AEGEE-Peiraias

with beds during the upcomming Agora, in order to get it back. Another flag that Manos had managed to steal during a visit to the CD house in Brussels belongs to AEGEE-Zagreb. CD member Marko and other representatives from AEGEE-Zagreb had to entertain the Agora participatns with performing “I just had sex”, which they succesfully managed to do and got their flag back.

The last case includes Chair team members Yvonne Antonovic and Percin Imrek who entertained a full plenary room during Agora Skopje with their cover version of the Danish pop plague “Barbie Girl” after the Where Does Europe End flag was stolen.

In the end, do not be scared to bring mascots and flags to AEGEE events but hold on tight, especially during Agora’s and EBM’s.

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-København

Main Photo courtesy of Tunca Ayyildiz, AEGEE-Izmir

Thanks to Tunca Ayyildiz, Dasha Panther, Deby Gabisson, Hara Kogkou and  Gábor Pető for providing pictures.