Veronika Chmelárová or, as she likes to be called Veva, is a young, but a very determined girl. She is currently a subcommisioner for the Juridical Commission of AEGEE-Europe and the president of AEGEE-Berlin. Her passion for law and love for the JC motivated her to run for it. Here she answers some questions regarding her candidature.

The Aegeean: Tell us something about yourself.

Veronika: I always found this question very hard to answer, but I will try my best. As you know my name is Veronika, but no one ever calls me differently than Veva in my antenna. I was born in Slovakia but partially raised in Germany, where I also moved later on and began my law studies. I became an AEGEE member two weeks after that, so that is my student life. I do not know how other people see me, but I consider myself very ambitious, focused and also very stubborn, although I am trying to work on that. I am also very pragmatic and realistic, but sure, like all of us, I do have my crazy times. Now you maybe await me to list you my hobbies, but I have to leave something a secret for the small talks on the Agora. [she smiles, ed.]

Why should people vote for Veronika for JC?

Although I was not born in Germany, I am pretty German when it comes to working. I am a perfectionist in the depths of my heart and that is what the JC work is about. You are searching for the tiny details which can make a huge difference in the result. I am aware that I am not a robot, but I am always doing my best in solving these legal issues in a proper way. I am very motivated and love the work that JC is doing. Also, I already have some experiences, as I have been the Subcommissioner of the JC for the past 9 months. Of course, there is still a lot to learn and improve, but I am more than eager to learn all I need in order to perform greatly.

Can you describe your experience as a subcommie for the JC?

I became a subcommissioner with the rest of us in September 2016 and have tried to support our commission in all ways possible since then. I corrected the status of four locals, lead the elections of the speaker team of EQAC, put together a list of motions as it was requested on Agora Chişinău together with the other Subcommies. On Agora Chişinău, I was helping with the registrations of the delegates and later on elections, and on this Agora I will be, together with the other attending subcommissioners, responsible for the JC stand at the Agora Fair.

According to your programme, you want to increase the speed of JC activities, how?

I believe more Skype meetings are needed in this matter as the communication through email can be very slow sometimes, or you will miss the message that was there but needs to be confirmed by all the commissioners. Also, some internal agreements on deadlines and the set time of an answer could not hurt. Of course in delicate cases, where a lot of research is needed, you also have to count on the JC to take the time to do it properly, but those are extraordinary cases for which extraordinary methods apply.

Tell us something more about your idea to bring the members closer to the CIA.

More and more members made me realise that the CIA is seen as some kind of burden, which hinders them to be creative and executes their ideas. Sure AEGEE is not about only CIA, but it is a crucial document on which our association is based on and it is important that it also is perceived as a basis for your own actions. Creating workshops on how to work with this document, or about its history and evolution might be very helpful in this case. Not all AEGEEans are interested in law and explaining all the complicated-looking rules with simple exercises in a one-hour workshop, where you can learn about the basics of it without reading the almost 100 pages of general rules plus Working Formats, can make it easier for them.

Here you can read her full candidature. 

Written by Paola Letizia Murru, AEGEE-Cagliari

October passed so fast, it is like it lasted only a week, but if we look back we can see that it was nothing like that – just look at AEGEE-Chișinău. Not such a big local, but united, open minded, full of hard working people. A happy family that managed to do a great job and got voted as Local of the Month of October.

The AEGEEan: Congratulations! Your local is Local of the Month of October! How did the members and you receive this news?

Ana Gancearuc: Thank you, we are immensely happy for being chosen as Local of the Month. Everybody took the news super positively and happily. Hard work pays off!

Andrei Dodița: Our newbies are very excited, this nomination is for them and their contribution to the project. It is very important for them to see that their effort is appreciated, this will motivate them to get involved more.

How did your local develope in the last months?

Ana G.: Our local grew a lot in the past months and we clearly have a stronger team, responsible and active members. We are like a big family now and we cannot let down the antenna and its people.

Andrei: Working for the Agora, under stress and pressure, could have broken the relationship between us, but it was the opposite, in the last months teamwork greatly strengthened us.

How do you keep your members motivated and keep growing your antenna?

Ana G.: The period after Agora was for recharging our batteries and in two weeks we had a couple of birthdays to celebrate in AEGEE-Chișinău. In a couple of weeks the new board is going to be elected and everyone is super excited and motivated to get involved more in the association and participate actively in AEGEE events, which is a very rewarding and pleasant thing.

Andrei: Working together, we developed our team spirit. Now we do a lot of things together, like going out or travelling. This is a beautiful friendship that keeps us together.

In October, you organised the Autumn Agora. How did the event go?

Ana Tricolici: I still remember the day when Andrei gave us the news that Autumn Agora 2016 would take place in Chișinău. My feelings were a cocktail of happiness and fear, and so many questions about what organising such an event means. There were many troubles, conflicts, problems during the organising period and of course during the previous weeks. The biggest problem was to find the perfect location, the transportation and meals. But you know what, there is no problem that does not have a solution. It was an unbelievable experience with powerful emotions – a real team building activity. We managed to do it with a very small team, but at the same time a very friendly one. Our international helpers were a big help, and I want to thank them all for that. After all the work we did, it is important for us to know that our efforts were appreciated, that the participants really enjoyed and had a nice experience in our city. We put so much love in this event and it was a dream come true.

How did the Autumn Agora influence your members?

Ana T.: As I said, it was a big challenge that helped us to become a stronger team. It is also a motivation for our new members to be more active and organise other projects and of course to take part in AEGEE projects. We now say between ourselves: “There were a few mistakes in the organisation, but of course when we will organise the next Agora, we will do it better”.

What impact has AEGEE-Chișinău in Moldova?

Andrei: In the last two years AEGE-Chișinău has grown a lot, and this fact is confirmed by the numerous prizes we won: a special award for civic activism, the prize for the most active NGO, the prize for the best project etc. This way, AEGEE-Chișinău became a youth resource centre, in process of continuous training. We also started to delegate members to the National Youth Council of Moldova (NYCM) and now we have two members on the board of NYCM, and one of them is the Vice-President. We are now a youth representative structure and our voice is heard more often. We are happy that a lot more people know about it now and that different youth portals e-mail us asking to post about our awesome association (especially when they find out via social media about the different events that we are organising).

What is on your list for the near future?

Andrei: On our list for the near future is to have the local Agora and elect the new board for the year of 2017, organise a team building with all the members, participate at some Winter Events and get everybody involved in that. We missed organising a Summer University last summer, as the Agora took over and we had lots and lots of work to do, so that will change in the next year, we are eager to organise a new one and we are already thinking about the topic. Besides projects that we used to organise, we are going to make AEGEE a real incubator for young people, where we will focus heavily on non-formal education.

The AEGEEan: The Autumn Agora was organised by AEGEE-Chișinău and AEGEE-Europe in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Municipality of Chișinău, financed by the East European Foundation in Moldova, the Embassy of Sweden and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Agora Chișinău’s digital partner was Star Net “we change the future”.

Other partners involved in the project and organisations that made a significant contribution to the organisation of the event were: Agepi, Draft, Minister of Agriculture and Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, Chateau Vartely, Apă Bună, The Railway of Moldova, Institute of Labour, Red Bull, ADR Center and Classic Mobil.

Written by Raluca Radu, AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca

A couple of weeks ago, AEGEE-Chișinău hosted the Autumn Agora 2016, and while a longer, more comprehensive interview with the organisers is still coming, we would like to take this opportunity to review some of the outstanding aspects of Agora Chișinău.

Environment

Chișinău was a really wonderful place to host the Agora. It is a city with loads of green areas, which during the Agora slowly started changing colours; throughout the city, one can read a fantastic mix of the Romanian and Russian language on walls, buildings and billboards; and one could be astonished by the wide variety of traditional and Soviet architecture in the city.

Most importantly for the Agora, the organisers had put a lot of effort into the location: finding a beautiful and charming auditorium to serve as the main stage, outside of which they created spaces for intimate and cosy workshops, space to register, exchange currency, receive one’s meals, and buy merchandise. A huge plus was the resting areas, spaces with fatboys where the participants could relax in between sessions. One of the most outstanding locations was the ‘palm room’ with real palm trees, just a mere two hundred meters from the main venue.

Breaking Stereotypes

One major part of AEGEE is to break stereotypes, and AEGEE-Chișinău has certainly exceeded many expectations. They, first of all, organised an excellent youth conference and were quite flexible to successfully tackle any problem or issue when it presented itself. This included, updating the programme when some sessions took longer than expected, providing some participants with transportation, if needed, and having paramedics on hand to assist participants, who were not feeling well.

What is more remarkable is that this local successfully recruited a diverse group of international volunteers to assist them in setting up this youth conference, making the organisation truly diverse and polyglot, a.k.a. European. In short, the organisers were kind and extremely helpful, the cultural programme (the traditional dances and clothing) was beautiful to see, and the traditional Moldovan food that the organisers provided for the participants was delicious.

Nevertheless, there were a few stereotypes that were confirmed. These were that Moldovans are extremely open, warm and hospitable to visitors, especially to their friends, and that Moldovan wine is quite tasty.

Knowledgeable

The Autumn Agora 2016 was certainly a successful event to transfer information about the various projects, committees, working groups and commissions of AEGEE. Like every six months, the Agora is a place where everyone in AEGEE can come together to discuss our ideas and opinions as one big European community, and this edition certainly furthered the cause for a borderless Europe.

Partners and Sponsors

The project was organised by AEGEE-Chișinău and AEGEE-Europe in partnership with the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Municipality of Chișinău, financed by the East European Foundation in Moldova, the Embassy of Sweden and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark. Agora Chișinău’s digital partner was Star Net “we change the future”.

Other partners involved in the project and organisations that made a significant contribution to the organisation of the event were: Agepi, Draft, Minister of Agriculture and Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, Chateau Vartely, Apa Buna, The Railway of Moldova, Institute of Labour, Red Bull, ADR Center and Clasic Mobil.

Stay tuned for our full interview with AEGEE-Chișinău.

Written by Willem Laurentzen, AEGEE-Nijmegen

Recently we talked with Gabriele Scollo from AEGEE-Torino, who is running for a position as Network Commissioner. He joined AEGEE when he was 25 years old, and has been an active member ever since. He was a member of the Action Agenda Committee for one year and participated in many local and European events otherwise. Now he is taking it to the next level and applying for member of the Network Commission. Read below the interview and get to know him better.

The AEGEEan: Hello, let us begin by telling us a few words about yourself. 

Action Coordination Team (ACT) workshop at EPM Leiden

Gabriele: Hello, I’m Gabriele, I’m from Turin and I’m 27 years old. I’m an economics student and I’m currently writing my Master thesis about sustainable food production. If I have to choose two things I love, I would choose cooking and travelling, that’s why in the future I see myself as an entrepreneur in the sector of gastronomic tourism, so I can share my passion with everyone visiting my country and maybe make some money to travel to new destinations during my free time. I’m also a big fan of science fiction, because it makes me think a lot about how the future should or shouldn’t look like.

What motivates you in AEGEE?

I got to know AEGEE when I was 25, so I was already a bit too old for a new member. Since my first European event (European Planning Meeting in Burgos 2015), I started to realize how many possibilities to develop yourself this organisation gives you. The very thing that motivated me was seeing all these people from everywhere around Europe, much younger than me, with such great skills, self-awareness and determination, so I can say I was greatly inspired by them to make up for all the time I spent ignoring the existence of student organisations.

Gabriele as main coordinator at AEGEE-Firenze’s Summer University “Go wild in Tuscany!” 2016

How would you explain to a five year old child what means to be a Network Commissioner?

A Network Commissioner is the good teacher who didn’t forget how to play, helps you do your homework, cares about your well being and asks you about your dreams and life goals.

Which are the two main points you want to focus on if elected as Network Commissioner? 

Gabriele Scollo at Network Meeting Valetta

I think there’s a problem that all members should take very seriously right now: the fact that our Network is shrinking more and more every year. AEGEE has been a strong and influential organisation for decades and it can’t just die out like this, especially in a moment when Europe itself is going through a serious crisis and needs all of our passion and energy. We should all do our part to invert this trend, and it goes without saying that NetCom should have a role of primary importance in this process.

A second problem on which I want to focus on personally is the development of our Network in qualitative terms: we need more thematic and training events for our members, more locals organising them, better prepared delegates at Agorae and, in general, more involved and active members. This doesn’t mean “no more parties”, but aiming at representing something more than a simple occasion for fun.

Gabriele Scollo as main coordinator at the Network Meeting in Firenze, autumn 2015

According to you, which is the biggest problem in Europe? How would you solve it?

Unemployment is definitely the biggest issue, and the one that has triggered the lack of trust towards politics that we all know of. There are no easy solutions, I’ll leave that to populist politicians that are trying to bring us back to the past. A good starting point though, would be for society to start learning from young people, often way more skilled, open-minded and mentally flexible than previous generations. Our society should believe more in us, let us access positions of power more easily, finance our projects and understand our world view. This means that we have to make our voice heard.

Do you plan to candidate also for a position in the Comité Directeur in the future?

It’s an experience I would really love to have, but I think I will prioritize having a job in my field of study.

Gabriele as main coordinator at AEGEE-Firenze’s SU “Go wild in Tuscany!” 2016

Name three personal strengths and fears.

One of my biggest strengths is that I get along well with 99% of people, even the ones who are really different from me. This takes me to my second strength: the ability to understand all points of view and find good compromises. This is probably linked to another strength I have: an analytical way of thinking.

My fears: to disappoint people I admire, disappoint myself, the inability to face uncertainty.

Do you have any message for the people who are coming to Agora Chișinău?

Let’s try to make this Agora a moment of reflection on our organisation’s future. We have what it takes to achieve all the goals we set for ourselves.

The AEGEEan: Thank you and good luck!

Gabriele: Thanks a lot!

You can read his candidature here.

Written by Gabriela Geană, AEGEE-București

Lucia Gavulová is a candidate for one of the positions of Member of the Summer University Coordination Team (SUCT), the preferred tasks being Project Manager and Treasurer. She is 26 years old and has joined the organisation little over four years ago. She has been the President of AEGEE-Bratislava for two years, but nowadays she is Project Manager in the SUCT and is willing to stay in office for a second term, but with much more experience. Check out her interview!

The AEGEEan: Do you think becoming a member of the SUCT again can get you more experience in AEGEE?

Lucia: Every single day as a person and as an AEGEE member gives me the experiences and skills I need to develop myself. I try not to go to sleep before I learn something small which will enrich my life. Being a SUCT member gave me a lot. I am sure that extending this term for one more year will not only be beneficial for me, but mainly for the team and the project, since we can skip the learning period and just continue working.

Can you tell us something more about your SUCT trip?
In July, I visited six SUs in total and I co-organised the one in Berlin, since I unexpectedly moved there. I had an amazing time with organisers and participants in Warszawa, Magusa, Beograd, Novi Sad, Ljubljana and Udine, and I have to say that I felt really welcomed and involved everywhere. I helped them with the integration of participants, provided a few tips and suggestions, participated in workshops and asked different questions to improve the project and to understand which challenges each organising team faces. Thanks to all the involved people who made this happen!

What are the tasks of the SUCT Project Manager?
The main one is obvious: coordinate the project and other three members to ensure the smooth development of the project. Furthermore, the Project Manager has to create and fulfil all deadlines, lead meetings, communicate with the Comité Directeur and all European bodies, represent the project and solve all problems. The Project Manager should be informed about everything that is happening (but ideally, all members are) and be able to help all members if they cannot fulfil their tasks.

How are you going to work on improving content of SUs? How will you select the trainers for SUs?
It is very important here to involve WGs, ACT and other European Bodies so we can all work on this together. We already started promoting contentful SUs this year, gave several workshops and hangouts on this topic, focused SUPS on this and reimbursed all trainers who asked us for support. For next year, since there is no aim in Action Agenda involving SUs, my plan would be to create special bonus points for really contentful SUs that prove us their high quality content. Therefore, I would also like to organise a number of supporting activities to show how content can be fun and enjoyable. Trainers are selected based on their experiences and our budget. This year we reimbursed everyone who sent us a reimbursement form.

Can you tell us something about the 30th anniversary of the SU Project in advance? How will you celebrate it?
The SU project will celebrate its 30th birthday in 2018 and therefore, we have already started to think about organising something epic. Since it will be in 2018, we will not be able to have much influence since a different SUCT will be in charge in that year, but at least we started to put some money from the budget apart. I cannot say anything particular yet as nothing has been set yet, and we are just collecting ideas. But it will definitely include sun, summer, positive energy and it will be the #YearOfMyLife!

How do you want to increase visibility of the project?
We all observed how influencial social media are and therefore I wouldn’t mind investing some finances into campaigns. It is also important to involve universities and their Erasmus offices as this is usually the group that attracts most of our potential members. I also believe that with our new official SU video – wait to see it during the Agora – this will be easier [she smiles, ed.].

In your application you mentioned Charlemagne Youth Prize. What is it and what are your plans regarding this Prize?

The European Charlemagne Youth Prize aims to encourage the development of European consciousness among young people, as well as their participation in European integration projects. The Prize is awarded to projects undertaken by young people which foster understanding, promote the development of a shared sense of European identity, and offer practical examples of Europeans living together as one community.

The European Charlemagne Youth Prize is awarded jointly and annually by the European Parliament and the Foundation of the International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen. Last year we applied with SUs as we believe it majorly fulfilled all criteria, and this year I want to do it again. Once, we will have to win!

Does the SU Project enjoy help of partnerships at the moment?
This year, we enjoyed three Interrail passes which we used for SUCT trips and we are working on more!

How can SUs contribute to AEGEE’s Impact Measurement?
Every year, the SU Project involves about 4000 members and they all get special questionnaire to fill in, which contributes to the overall impact measurement of AEGEE on its members.

Do you think AEGEE became famous for the Summer Universities?
For sure it contributed, but I don’t think it is the only reason for the success of an organisation as big as AEGEE.

According to you, why were there less applications for the SUs this year, than last year?
This year, we had only about 100 applications less, so it is not so tragic. We still have way more applicants than available places and that is important. As I already mentioned several times, this trend can be caused by availability of cheap travelling and services like Skyscanner, Couchsurfing, free city tours and such, which lower the need for travellers to include third parties in their summer travel plans.
Therefore, we have to raise the content again so we distinguish ourselves from travel agencies and offer some added value to travels.

You can read her full candidature here.

Written by Matteo Lai, AEGEE-Cagliari

With only fifty days left until Agora Chișinău, some of the organisers were so kind to let us publish an interview with them. Here is the following with Andrei Dodița; President of AEGEE Chișinău and the Main coordinator, Lucia Gori; Logistics & HR Responsible, and Ana Gancearuc; Incoming Responsible.

Lucia Gori

What is it like to be an Agora organiser?

Lucia: It’s difficult, but it’s the most wonderful thing that you can achieve while being a member of AEGEE. It’s a pleasure to think that your antenna has come to this moment to organise such an event.

Andrei Dodița

Can you, please, tell us how are the preparations for the Agora going at the moment?

Andrei: At the moment we are working a lot in FR and partnership areas and also on all those details that will contribute to the quality of our event.

Can you describe what kind of responsibilities you are having and what are some of the challenges you face?

Lucia: I am logistics and HR responsible, which is a great challenge for me taking into account that you need to work with a lot of people and then you must organise them and give them different tasks.

Ana Gancearuc

How would you motivate someone from AEGEE to participate at Agora Chişinău and why should they be there?

Lucia: Being the best event from Moldova, those from AEGEE should definitely not miss this amazing opportunity.

Ana: After summer is a great timing to join a big AEGEE event, and which one would be better than an Agora? Perhaps, many AEGEEans didn’t join any SU this summer, so a fall event, a big like the one we expect in less than two months would fit perfectly. Many started a new year of study and before the exams period starts, I think we all can find a few spare days to dedicate to our association and involve in the aspects needed. Most of AEGEEans have never been to Moldova, neither to the East. So, what are you still waiting for? We have the best wine and food, the best people and hospitality. You can’t miss it!

Chișinău

What are your personal expectations of this Agora?

Ana: My personal expectations are that everything goes smooth, without unexpected surprises or unpleasant moments, but we all know that sometimes certain things can’t be prevented. However, we have a strong organising team and as it will be the biggest youth event ever organised in Moldova. We’ll do our best to make it an unforgettable and a great experience for everyone.

Andrei: I can’t wait for our country, Moldova, to come with the coolest event, with the greatest moments. We are all hoping that our guests will make a positive impression about Moldova, especially Chisinau, and our traditions.

Written by the Team of Agora Chișinău

Most of you, during the Agora, watch the Chairperson and the Vice-Chairperson preside over the meeting. But how about the Secretary of the Agora? The only thing people witness of him/her, is them typing during the Agora, but being Secretary of the Agora has some privileges!

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1. You are in the spotlight.
Together with the rest of the Chair Team, you are the centre of the attention for a couple of days. You are the one who creates and revise the agenda. So, when people have questions or what to change something, they will come to your table and ask you for assistance.

2. You cannot miss a Plenary.
You are on stage during (almost) all Plenaries, cause it’s kind of your duty to record all the minutes of the Agora. But, if it’s your thing, you have the added benefit of not having to speak. Speaking of standing in the centre of a spotlight, sometimes they literally shine too brightly onto the stage. Luckily, that’s just an opportunity to put on some cool shades.

3. You can skip the queues for meals.
This might sound like something form George Orwell’s Animal Farm: ‘all AEGEEans are equal, but the Chair Team is a bit more equal than others’, but it actually has an important function. As a Secretary of the Agora, you have to be present at a Prytanium before it even starts, and since queuing up for food might take forever, you might not be able to finish you meal, or not have any food at all. Therefore, it becomes sort of necessary to queue barge… sorry, hopefully everyone can understand.

4. You have your own assistants.

You may be important, but you’re not all-powerful. During the Prytania slots, there are three parallel sessions and it is impossible to cover them alone. That’s why you need assistants to help you during the Agora. Also, after the Agora the assistants need to finish their sessions and you might need some proofreaders to help you. Thanks you guys!

5. You have internet access most of the times.

The internet is pretty great; the U.N. even deemed it a basic human necessity. However, while some people will even ask you for the WiFi-password for… personal things, you need an internet connection to access the agenda, which might change considerably during an Agora. You also need the internet to constantly communicate with the rest of the Chair Team and with your assistants. It’s kind of an important tool for chaos prevention; the internet, to a secretary, it’s more than just Tumblr.

6. You know everything that happened during the Agora.

You have recordings, and sometimes video footage, of all the Plenaries and Prytania.
After the Agora, can listen to the recordings or watch the videos in order to deliver accurate minutes of the Agora. You know, for everyone who doesn’t have the photographic memory of BBC’s Sherlock.

7. You don’t  pay the Agora fee.
Also, after you deliver the minutes, you get reimbursed for your trip. A lovely ‘thank you’ for doing a nice, good job.

If you are interested, you can apply for Secretary of Agora Chişinău till the 20th of June.

Written by Lia Tuska, AEGEE-Kastoria/Sofia