At the upcoming Spring Agora Bergamo, beside plenaries, prytania and workoshops, twelve Progress Meetings (PM) will take place. Excluding a Progress Meeting which will be on Friday afternoon, they will all be on Thursday and Saturday, divided in a morning slot and an afternoon one. Progress Meetings are a very important moment in AEGEE since we all can receive information about the current status of certain issues and our members can present new ideas they want to develop in the medium-long term. So go there and discuss about the future of our organisation!

On the second last session of the Progress Meetings, which will be on Saturday 21st of May from 11:45 – 13:15, two interesting PM will take place: “LGBTQ topics in Europe: what can we do?” and “My AEGEE development & White Paper in IT service”. As the titles of them are announcing, the first will be a thematic one, the second will discuss the progresses about an implementation AEGEE is carrying out for some years now.

LGBTQ topics in Europe: what can we do?

Ander Guerrero Ruiz on behalf of the Comité Directeur is the moderator of this interesting debate which will be on the 21st of May, starting from 11.45 in the “S. Lorenzo” room. The main discussions will be regarding the current situation on LGBTQ rights across Europe, analysing which are the countries recognizing and reducing them. But it is not over, during the debate we have the opportunity to take a look at the current situation within AEGEE and homophobia problems people may have noticed within it. The purpose of this Progress Meeting? Launch a huge European project for our locals about this topic!

My AEGEE development & White Paper in IT service

Pablo Hernandez Rodriguez for the Comité Directeur and Fabrizio Bellicano on behalf of the Information Technology Committee are the hosts of this meeting. It will take place on the 21st of May, starting at 11.45 in the “S. Alessandro” room. The topic is a very important one since it regards the implementation of our new online system which will be updated from a system of the 90s to a system of today. At this Progress Meeting, the implementation results of this issue, which AEGEEans really care about, are going to be shown. What is the aim of the meeting? Gather the most possible inputs to finalise the work and shape the system as AEGEEans would like to see it. For more information about this topic you can also read this interview the AEGEEan took with Fabrizio Bellicano who is the IT person developing the system and our Member of the Month of February 2016.

For more information you can download the Agora Agenda and the Workshops and Progress Meetings booklet.

Written by Mattia Abis, AEGEE-Cagliari

Regularly seven people are working and living together as members of the Comité Directeur (CD) in a house in Brussels. Right now, they share their home with three more people: current CD Assistants Anna Gumbau (AEGEE-Barcelona), Fabrizio Bellicano (AEGEE-Genova) and Ander Guerrero Ruiz (AEGEE-Zaragoza). All three of them were interviewed by The AEGEEan to find out more about their specific jobs, their everyday life in the CD house and their future plans.

The AEGEEan: First of all, can you briefly introduce yourself and tell us shortly about your AEGEE career?

Anna: I am Anna from AEGEE-Barcelona, and I have been an AEGEE member for around three and a half years. I got very motivated to join the European level of AEGEE right after Agora Budapest, in 2012, when I joined The AEGEEan magazine. After that, I spent one year as Editor-in-Chief of the magazine, and I am currently part of the Election Observation Project, as Fundraising Manager, as well as Mission Coordinator for the Moldovan elections (November 2014), and the Anniversary Team among several other activities.

Fabrizio: My name is Fabrizio, AEGEE-Genova, and I’m a member since the online membership system (OMS) meeting at the Comité Directeur (CD) house last February (2014). I jumped directly to the European level because I wanted to be of service (I was working for a big company in Dublin before AEGEE, it was horrible).

Ander: I’m Ander Guerrero Ruiz, from Utebo (near Zaragoza). I’m taking a brief break before finishing my studies in Law and Business Management to come to Brussels as a CD Assistant. I joined AEGEE in 2012 and since then I was organiser of many events (including Agora, Network Meeting (NWM) or Travel Summer University (TSU) or participant (I think on more than 50 events). I was also one year member of AEGEE-Gdansk during my Erasmus. Now I’m the President of AEGEE-Zaragoza and I am running for Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe (which I really hope to happen!). I just like to be busy and active and I love AEGEE.

What exactly is your current position and what are your main tasks?

Anna: I am the member of the Anniversary Team responsible for the main conference that will be taking place in Brussels from 7th – 10th May. I am currently coordinating the preparations of the conference and dealing with literally everything – from logistics to fundraising, from content management to finances, in order to organise a great event.

Fabrizio: Mainly, I am focused on the development of what’s going to replace the intranet, although I also do some HR tasks – my most successful one being aggressive recruitment.

Ander: Corporate Relations Officer is stated in my official mail, known as Fundraising Assistant of the CD. I’m also helping Ioana out with Finances.

Why did you run for this position? What is your favorite part of the position you are fulfilling right now?

Ander

Anna: I decided to apply as event manager because I have quite some experience in organising local events in Barcelona (being main organiser of a Summer University and a European School), and because I really wanted to contribute to make a memorable 30th Anniversary of AEGEE. As for my favourite part, it is probably dealing with the content of the conference, as it allows you to unleash your creativity and look for activities that can be fun, interesting and engaging for the participants. It requires a lot of inspiration, which I get by spending many hours reading old ‘Key to Europe’ editions.

Fabrizio: I get to live with other people, which is great – when I was living in Dublin it was with a boring guy, not many social things going on. Here, I can do what I like and there are nice people.

Ander: I have always wanted to see and experience by first hand how life and work in the CD looks like. Now, I was lucky to move my compulsory internship of my degrees in Spain and, the most important part, an open call was open to something I like and I have experience in. I still have no idea which part I like the most, I just know that I try my best! Ask me in a few months.

How does a regular day in the CD house look like for you?

The garden of the CD house

Anna: Well the working hours are not something as spectacular as you might guess. Waking up, which sometimes I do later than I would like to, so then I rush into the office with my cup of coffee and my rice biscuits, read the e-mails, read the news, defining a bit the “goals” or areas I will be working on for a day (since, as I said before, I cover a wide variety of topics), and then go for them. After work, I usually like to go for a walk in the parks nearby, meeting some friends (from AEGEE and from outside the organisation), or just chilling with our other housemates.

Fabrizio: I wake up, I work, I eat, I work, I eat, I go out and I sleep. According to the day I also watch cat videos.

Ander: It’s pretty simple. During the week days, I am in the office from 10 to 19-20 (for me it is mandatory to take a break, disconnect a little and have a proper lunch) unless more work needs to be done. Timetables are quite flexible, which is good, because I try to continue my Spanish timetables somehow. Later, if I still have some energy and some plan comes up, I go to see the city. It is my first time in Brussels and I hope one day I will manage to visit the city also during the day. On weekends, normally, we have free days but always something appears that needs to be done and I try to reset a bit and continue discovering the city.

It must be very exciting to live with the CD, but it is not a secret that personal space is rather limited when you live with so many people in one house. What are your most and least favourite aspects of your current living situation?

Anna: My favourite thing about living here is the fact that I am in Brussels, with so many things going on every day, so close to the institutions, being able to reach literally any place in Europe very easily, and not least important having good friends living here, as even some of my former classmates have recently moved to Brussels. I also enjoy our social evenings in the basement, or when AEGEE friends of mine stop by at the house. Of course, sometimes I wish I had more time and space to be on my own, but you always find some time for yourself when you need it.

Fabrizio: I am easy going and I don’t care much. As said, the good side is that you never have a dull moment with nine other people.

Ander: The worst is that sometimes you would like some privacy and that I try to be quite clean. And with twelve people now living in the house plus occasional guests this is not easy. But I am quite flexible and open-minded and it is OK. Also, it is my first time sharing a room, and I want to publicly ask for forgiveness to my roommates if I occasionally snore. The positive part is that I really like the house and the office is just ten seconds from the bed. I really like the part of the stairs and entrance when you are lying in the sofa that is in front of the stairs!

How long will you stay in Brussels and what are your plans for the time to come? Any chance you might be interested in staying for another year as an actual CD member?

30th Anniversary Conference Brainstorming

Anna: I will probably be staying in Brussels until right before the Agora, so the end of March. Then I will go to the Agora and, after the event, figure out what I will do next – because indeed, I would love to stay for another year as an actual CD member.

Fabrizio: I am here in Brussels because other than doing my good deed I am delaying finding a job. As long as I can work on that, I can not care to return to adulthood. As for real CD tasks, nope – I still know nothing about AEGEE.

Ander: I will be in Brussels for 60 working days, so, until the middle of May. Later, I will be back in Zaragoza, if nothing goes wrong, to finally finish my studies and organise the most awesome TSU this year! As I said before, yes, I would like to be in the CD in the next term. I feel that I can do something positive to an association that has given a lot to me. I feel prepared, motivated and finally I have finished my studies! I hope it will come true in a few weeks!

If someone came up with the idea of making a movie about the life in the CD house, what genre would it be and what catchy title could you imagine?

Anna: It will be indeed somewhere between a drama and a comedy – it actually kind of reminds me of L’auberge espagnole, a very famous French movie about a guy who moved as an Erasmus to Barcelona and shared a flat with people from several different European nationalities. But as for the catchy title… I really don’t know! A former CD member and friend of mine used to like the “We are all mad in here” quote from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, which could be quite accurate some times!

Fabrizio: I am too sick to reply to this. [he laughs].

Ander: Sometimes I really believe that several reality shows could be recorded within AEGEE [he laughs]. My favorite types of movies are comedies, sci-fi, thrillers and romantic comedies. For sure not horror! So, why not, let’s choose a romantic one with the title “Pretty Assistant”. Classics are always good and who knows if dealing with companies will bring me a Richard Gere [he laughs].

 Written by Katja Sontag, AEGEE-Aachen

Since a few weeks ago, Ander Guerrero Ruiz, AEGEE-Zaragoza, is living in the house of the Comité Directeur (CD) in Brussels as an assistant. Apparently, he likes it so much that he now will run for the position of Financial Director (FD) for the next term. The AEGEEan talked to Ander about his candidature, his qualifications and his future plans.

The AEGEEan: Ander, even though you have already been active in AEGEE for years, some of the readers might not know you. Briefly introduce yourself and your history.

Ander: That is something normal, when you are part of such a big organisation like AEGEE, where every year a lot of members join. I will try to do it: I am a positive, idealistic, down-to-earth, smiling guy from Zaragoza (Spain) who really believes in the potential of AEGEE and who expects to improve the association next year in Brussels.

You are running for Financial Director. Please present your programme in one sentence!

I want to continue ensuring the financial stability of AEGEE in the short and long-term in order to keep on carrying out our activities, looking for more funds and using them wisely, and also dedicating my time and ideas to increase our activities.

When and why did you come up with the idea to run for a position within the Comité Directeur? Why did you pick the position of Financial Director specifically?

Being part of the CD has always appealed to me, saying anything else would be lying. However, I’m quite realistic and I knew that I couldn’t candidate for it until I finished my studies in Spain, because I am undertaking an intensive and restrictive studying programme and I cannot stop them like in other countries or for other bachelors. I have always said that if one day I would finally apply, I would do it either for External Relations or for Financial Director since I feel prepared and motivated for both. However, during the meeting for possible candidates we had with the CD during the European Planning Meeting (EPM) Burgos, nobody else from the members wanted to run for FD. I know how important and what a risk not having any candidate for FD is, so the next day I talked with Ioana (current FD) and I saw it (even more) clearly. Also, being FD is not just managing money or accounting. When you are the Financial Director, you are also a member of the CD, so you are in charge of more responsibilities, projects, activities, etc., which is, I think, the most important part of the position and where you really can contribute to improve AEGEE internally and externally.

Since the 25th of February you are assisting the CD in terms of finances and you are even living in Brussels right now. What did you learn in the past weeks and how do you think this will help you if you are elected as the next Financial Director?

Yes, I am currently Fundraising Assistant of the CD. However, I am also helping Ioana with finances, which enables me to already start learning about some tasks of the position of Financial Director. But, as I said before, being a CD member involves much more, especially office work, which is the part that regular members do not see when they think of CD work. So yes, this may give me a chance, but I really want to believe that if I am elected, it is because members trust on me, they realise how motivated I am and they think I can be a good CD member.

In your programme, you listed a lot of non-AEGEE experiences that are supposed to be helpful for your intended position as FD. Please name the three most important experiences that qualify you.

First, for sure my studies in Business Management. During six years, I have had several subjects related with the position of FD (accounting, budgeting, finances, etc.). Now is time to go from the theoretical part to the practical part. With a good Knowledge Transfer for sure I will make it. Second, also related to my studies and my internship, is that these extra activities have given me a lot of patient working with some tasks that I have to do and I didn’t like at all. The same can be applied to some people. Third, I have undertaken several trainings and courses that have boosted my presentation and training skills. When you are a member of the CD you have to attend meetings or facilitate workshops.

In your programme, you state that you plan to “remove the prejudice that finances are complicated and boring [which] will encourage our members to be more interested in the topic“. How exactly are you intending to do that?

Is it clear that for a lot of people everything related with finances, accounting or budgeting sounds ‘like Chinese’ and does not catch their interest. But this is not true: accounting is sexy! Jokes aside, it is important for members to realise, for the internal purposes of the organisation and for their personal lives, that a correct management of finances is essential. But in terms of the internal performance of the organisation it is even more important for everybody to understand where the money comes from and for what it is used; otherwise, false prejudices and myths are created and members get confused about what their money is used for. To achieve my goal and avoid people sleeping during the plenary while the FD is explaining the financial report, we should be slower and explain in a way everybody can understand it. The current FD explained in Agora Cagliari in a closer way to the members, which I really liked and appreciated. That is the way. Trying to facilitate a few workshops in budgeting during Network Meetings (NWMs) or Agorae could be positive as well. But in this case, the only setback is time I’m afraid.

You state that right now is the perfect time for you to move to Brussels as a member of the CD since you are about to finish your studies. Do you have a plan B in case you are not elected? What is it?

Being in AEGEE has taught me that there is always an opportunity or an option, you just need to look for it. However, in this case, I am really looking forward to move to Brussels to be in the CD. It is the perfect timing, I feel prepared and motivated and my ideas can have some impact in the organisation. In the unlucky scenario I won’t be elected, I think I would go to an European Voluntary Service (EVS) or similar. It is time for a break from Spain (unless due to personal or family reasons something would attach me to my beloved Zaragoza). We are at the moment for doing what we love – to experiment and discover new things. My parents never had the opportunity to go to university or traveling while they were young, and they have sacrificed many things to support my brother and I in all ways, and they really encourage us to go and follow our dreams and to do something positive for society with our time and life as long as they can support us if needed. I really have a lot to thank them for, and I wouldn’t be here without their help and encouragement, so thanks! I really want to be part of the CD and achieve one of my dreams.

In your candidature you write a lot about your qualifications and ideas concerning becoming FD. But what about the work within a team, especially one in which the team members live so close with one another? Do you see any chances or challenges for yourself when it comes to working together with others?

For sure starting in a new team is a challenge, and living and working in the same house with different personalities and cultures can be a mess or a blessing. I was an Erasmus student, so I know the feeling. I know some candidates and I know I can do quite perfect with both. But, it is true that a few of the candidates I don’t know at all. However, I consider myself quite patient, tolerant and open-minded. You have to give something in order to win, and this case is the perfect example, respecting always some limits. Of course, there will be some challenges, this is not the perfect dream, but I would like to believe that I am quite transparent and honest towards the rest of the people, which is good in order to increase the trust between the team and achieve a better performance while working and living together. For sure the experience can be extreme in both ways, but the one who doesn’t take risks in this life doesn’t win at all. As always time will tell.

Written by Katja Sontag, AEGEE-Aachen