Do you remember the very first time you went to an Agora, and how overwhelmed you probably felt at all the new experiences, new people and new knowledge? Or are you going to your first Agora and curious to find out what will happen? The Agora Mentorship project is here to help you out!

Have you ever wondered why some participants at Spring Agora Enschede 2017 had an “i” icon or a graduation hat on their badges? Well, those were mentors (“i” icon) and mentees (graduation hat icon), participating in the first re-launch of the Agora Mentorship project. Through this project, AEGEEans who were going to their first Agora were coupled with an experienced Agora participant, who could guide them through the chaos we call our general assembly.

Interesting idea, but did it actually work? If we look at the evaluation answers, yes! For the question: “Would you recommend the Agora Mentorship project to others, for example new members in your local?”, 100% of the people said yes, and a large majority (84,4% to be more precise) wanted to participate (and is now participating) in a future edition again too as a mentor.

In the very first edition, 27 mentors took care of 63 mentees, and for Autumn Agora Catania 2017, we are back with 32 mentors and 64 mentees. A good reason to continue this growing project, which is organised by the Human Resources Committee (HRC) again after having its first edition during Spring Agora Asturias 2015, and another edition at Autumn Agora Kyïv 2015.

At Spring Agora Enschede 2017, the project was then officially re-established, and plans to continue in the future also thanks to the incredible hard work of Svenja van der Tol, Andrea Schmelz, Sonia Della Sala, Lyda Michopoulou, and Patrycja Figarska.

The re-launched version of the Agora Mentorship project mainly consists of:

1. Mentor-mentees couples or groups consisting of one mentor and up to four mentees, according to the mentors’ availability.
2. The Agora for Newbies session, which is held in the shape of an Agora simulation.
3. Online preparation of participants via Facebook page through explanatory posts.
4. Live and online helpdesk during the Agora, meant to answer all doubts and questions. The live helpdesk is available during lunch and coffee breaks, while the online helpdesk can be reached through chat on the HRC Facebook page during plenaries.

Missed your chance to apply this time? Stay tuned for Spring Agora Kraków 2018, where we will prove that three times is a charm!

If you want to know more about HRC and have doubts about anything, please approach us during Agora at the Fair or at our Helpdesk.

Written by Sonia Della Sala, AEGEE-Salerno

Agora is not just about candidates and proposals, but it’s a place where members of AEGEE can share also their knowledge in different fields and they are discussing the progresses on certain topics, such as Agora or Network Development. Overall, during Spring Agora Bergamo there will be 14 workshops and 12 Progress Meetings. You can check the agenda to see when they will be delivered or the thematic booklet to see the topics. Today we are going to present you all the workshops and progress meetings you can attend on the second day of the Agora, the 19th of May, from 11.45 to 12.45. 

Agora for Newbies is hold by the Chair Team and the Comité Directeur, a session tailored to the needs of who is at his/her first Agora and wants more explanations and clarification on our statutory event.  For who has already attended an Agora and s/he now a delegate, the Chair Team and members of the Agora Reform Task Force will hold the workshop Dark Agora Army: Agora for Experts. This workshop is targeted for members of the Agora who want to deepen their knowledge on the statutory and want to live it to the fullest. The goals of this workshop is to have members to comprehend the real powers of the delegates, to understand the procedural rules of the legislative mechanism of AEGEE-Europe, to know how to propose motions which cannot be denied by the Juridical Commission, to argument yourself upon hidden CIA legal exceptions and, to ask uncomfortable questions.

As we should all know by now, Agora will be in Italy where the official language is Italian. This language is one of the most studied abroad and definitely one of the most loved. Luca Ciucci from AEGEE- Pisa and member of the Language Interest Group will deliver the workshop called The history of the Italian language: a European perspective. In this workshop, Luca will give you an overview of the Italian language, in order to understand the differences built through century of history that resulted in how Italians see themselves and how they perceive their position towards Europe.

Despite approved in Agora Patra, very few are aware of what Data privacy policy statement is, and how it will work. That’s why Atanas Nachkov, AEGEE-Sofia, and Lisette Kunst, Mediation Commission and AEGEE-Groningen, will hold the workshop MedCom Data Privacy Policy. The aim is to clarify and explain the adopted protections and limitations as well as the related procedural matters. According to the holders, after this workshop, you will learn what is the current progress of the data privacy of AEGEE-Europe and what is to come, what kind of information AEGEE-Europe collects from you and your Local, what kind of limitations apply, why the elected people must sign NDA and what it legally means,  what the OMS is, how to get anonymous statistics and what kind of requests can be done to the Mediation Commission.

It’s not a mystery that our Statutory Event has some hidden potentials which are not fully used. From Autumn Agora Kyiv, a task force have been working on this to implement it and in the progress meeting Agora Reform, held by Svenja van der Tol, Secretary General of AEGEE-Europe, and Agora Reform Task Force, these new ideas will be shared. For more than two decades, we’ve spent money on the house rent, money that could be used for other projects and for members. At least what Ander Guerrero Ruiz, Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe, thinks and, for this reason, he will hold the progress meeting AEGEE HQ: looking for the next 30 years. In this progress meeting, he wants to explore, with inputs from the Network, the possibility of a long term financial strategy to buy a house for the association.

You can download the blookets here (login required). 

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona