The workload of the Comité Directeur can be demanding and they might need some extra help to do their duties. It can happen that open calls are sent out and willing and courageous people join the CD and work for our association. Maria Maris from AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca is one of them, working on communications since October. Her term was extended also for February and we took the occasion to ask her some questions. 

The AEGEEan: Please introduce yourself.
Maria: Hey, I am Maria from AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca (hearts, hearts, hearts) or you can also call me Dani, as the Civic Education Working Group does.

Why did you decide to apply for the position of CD assistant?
Last year I finished my bachelor’s studies and decided to take a gap year before my master’s. Until now, I would say it was an amazing idea, because I managed to invest a lot of time in things I enjoy, which means AEGEE too. At the end of summer I was looking at many possibilities of internships and decided to apply for the position of Communications Assistant for the CD. I think it was a great opportunity because the internship is in my field of studies and I was always curious to see how the CD life and experience are.

What was your experience before joining CD as an assistant?
My first experience with AEGEE was the Summer University organised by AEGEE-Istanbul and AEGEE-Skopje in 2014. Afterwards, I slowly started to get more active in AEGEE and last summer I also joined the CEWG.

What are your tasks?
Most of the time I try to help the Communication and Project Director Joanna Pankowska as much as possible. There are always so many things to be done, even very small details that sometimes take quite a while to be done. Mainly, I was taking care of a part of the communications, such as social media, and worked on the ECI-More Than Education. Even though I was just a communications assistant, in the CD, as an assistant, if you wish to also work for other projects or teams, you are free to do so.
Besides these everyday tasks, another task was to cook for the Christmas party that we hosted. What I really liked about it was the moment when all of the people in the house started to prepare for the party, decorating the house and signing carols. Those moments make you feel like home.

What does one typical day in your life in Brussels look like?
Maybe you would expect something super interesting… Sorry, it is quite monotone. You have to go to the office and work. The nice moments of the day are the ones when you take a break from work, go into the kitchen and become sort of a magician trying to cook something very quickly from what you have in the fridge or left-overs. Also, what I love about the CD is that I do not have to attend the board meetings, because they seem to take so long it looks like an eternity. As an assistant, I just have to go for the first 15 minutes, when we update each other on our work. The weekends are more exciting, actually. EU-bodies come for their live meetings and other visitors are in the house. One weekend, we had something like 40 people who entered the house.

Name one good thing in AEGEE and one bad thing.
The best thing are the people. I am so happy and grateful to have met amazing and interesting people in AEGEE.
One bad thing is Tim’s French. Tim, one of CD house renters, improve your French [she smiles, ed.].

Let’s play a game. Describe yourself by using adjectives that start with the letters that compose your name.
Mysterious
Agreeable
Responsible
Intelligent
Awesome

What is next for you?
In February I will be back in Brussels for another month as an assistant and in March I will start another internship in Berlin.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

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

 The Comite Directeur of AEGEE has recently opened new positions in order to increase the efficiency of the board; the positions of home-based assistants of the CD. The twelve AEGEE members will help the work of the CD52 in several tasks but without moving from their houses. 

“In the CD, we decided to introduce the position of home-based assistants because we have a very ambitious and extensive Activity Plan, and we understand that in order to be able to implement all tasks from this plan properly, a lot of time needs to be dedicated to each task”, said Antonija Parat, Secretary General of AEGEE-Europe. “We understand that, realistically speaking, we do not have time to dedicate as much time as needed, but we still want each task to be implemented efficiently. That’s why we decided to have this Open Call, and find people from the Network who have the time and will to help us. So on one hand we could get some assistance for the tasks that we wanted to perform this year, and on the other hand, home-based assistants can benefit by learning and developing themselves, as well as contributing to the overall work of the organisation” .

The selection of the home-based assistants, after the recruitment period from February, was done by the members of the CD by reviewing the applications. In order to pick the best applicants, they took the following aspects into consideration: the experience they have in AEGEE, the motivation to become a home-based assistant, and, last but not least, their availability on a weekly basis. But being a new member is not considered a barrier. “In the end, we are happy with the selection,” Antonija concluded.

After being selected, the candidates officially became home-based assistants and received information and knowledge transfer from the CD responsible. After the knowledge transfer period, every assistant received his well-defined task, being supervised by one or even two CD members, depending on the member who is responsible for the implementation of the task, as indicated in the Activity Plan. Even though they receive instructions for the completion of the task while being supervised by the CD members, they can freely expose their thoughts and ideas on the matter. The initiative and self-sufficiency in their work is well regarded by the CD members.

There are eight different tasks for the home-based assistants:

In-charge of the Visa guidelines update – the assistants have to support AEGEE members outside of the Schengen zone with information on visa regulations and procedures, to assess the existing guidelines of the deleted Visa Freedom Working Group and update these guidelines according to the Action Agenda 2014/2015. The assistants in charge of this task are: Daria Lovkova (AEGEE-Moskva), Katsiaryna Yakushyk (AEGEE-Minsk), and Svetlana Danchenko (AEGEE-Sankt-Peterburg).

Network development analysis – they have to analyse the existing Network and figure out ways on how to develop and expand it. The assistants in charge of this task are: Inna Mezentseva (AEGEE-Minsk) and Loes Rutten (AEGEE-Utrecht).

Website management (WordPress knowledge) – the assistant has to do software updates, update the content and is also in charge of the development of AEGEE Wiki. The person who is handling this task is Philipp Blum (AEGEE-Aachen).

Development of online trainings in AEGEE – they have to realise the development and coordination of more online trainings. The assistants in charge of this task are Matthijs Overhaal (AEGEE-Tartu) and Stephanie Bestges (AEGEE-Hamburg).

Policy monitoring and writing reaction drafts – they have to monitor European policies that are relevant for AEGEE and help in the creation of reactions/articles. The assistants in charge are Matthijs Overhaal (AEGEE-Tartu) and Wieke Van Der Kroef (AEGEE-Leuven).

Organisational culture survey creation and data analysis – they have to support and help in the creation of the survey on organisational culture, they analyse the results of the survey and create an overview of the results. The assistants in charge of this task are Lavinia Manea (AEGEE-Bucureşti) and Stephanie Bestges (AEGEE-Hamburg).

Impact measurement survey analysis/development of toolkit – the assistant has to support and help with the development of the project management toolkit. The person in charge of the task is Yana Ballod (AEGEE-Delft).

Mapping relations between bodies – the assistant has to help in the creation of a survey for European bodies, asking about their relations and needs towards other bodies, possibly also including their HR needs, analyse the survey and work on the visualisation of the results. The person in charge of the task is Iris Hordijk (AEGEE-Utrecht).

Daria Lovkova (AEGEE-Moskva) shares her experience as one of the new assistants: “When I was applying for the position, I was scared. I did not know if the people I’d be working with would be friendly and supportive. So far, I can say that we are always ready to help each other and promote our freshly established group. There is quite a lot to do right now and sometimes it is difficult to meet deadlines, however, we are doing our best and feel inspired about our work. Communicating only via the Internet is not the easiest thing on this planet but we are managing successfully!”

Written by Gabriela Cioată, AEGEE București

During Spring Agora-Patra 2014, unfortunately there was no candidate for Financial Director for the Comité Directeur 2014-2015. Soon after Agora-Patra, an open call was issued to find an Interim Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe until Agora-Cagliari. According to the open call,  it is expected that this person will officially run for this position in front of the Agora to be fully elected by the network. Ioana Duca, member of AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca since April 2010, has been selected for this position and she will act as CD assistant, with no voting rights in the CD, as she was not voted by the Agora. 

How have you been involved in AEGEE until now, both  on local and European level?

I joined AEGEE in April 2010 and since then I was involved a lot on local level as I’m in AEGEE Cluj-Napoca’s board since April 2011 ( Secretary 2011-2012, President 2012-2013, SU Coordinator 2013-2014 and now as Board Adviser). I have organized a lot of events in my local: 6 SU’s, local trainings, network meetings, European Days of Languages, Culture Action Days, recruitment and SU presentations. I was mentor of AEGEE-Ploieşti for 1 year and trainer in some LTC’s for AEGEE-Iaşi and some other small things.

On European level, I was not involved that much, but enough to get some experience as I was CD Assistant for 2 months in 2012 working with archives and Financial Intern since 17th of March this year.

What pushed you to apply for the open call issued by the CD?

The fact that I liked to work with finances and budgets. I was thinking “I’m already working as financial intern and I know almost everything related with the task, why not?”

Why didn’t you run for the position before, at Agora-Patra since you were present?

I didn’t run at Agora-Patra because of some of my principles. At that moment I already had another commitment, an internship in Brussels due to start at the beginning of June. For me it is very important to respect my commitments, even if I wanted to candidate I had to solve somehow this situation with my internship first.

Everything  got solved just on time, one week before I was supposed to start my internship it was called off. “Everything happens for a reason” I was thinking. I considered it a sign and I applied for Interim Financial Director.

You are already living in Brusells in the CD house as financial assistant of Anna Gots, yet next year you will be working with a whole new CD. How will it be different for you?

I don’t see big differences, but of course it will be different. Mostly because of the amount of responsibilities and the fact that I will work in a new team. Lucky me, I already had some experience in working with two CD’s already. This will be the 3rd CD I will work with and, most of all, it will be my CD  as I will not be only an assistant.

You will be Interim Financial Director until Agora-Cagliari. Are you planning to stay after the Agora?

I will be Interim Financial Director untilAgora-Cagliari, but my plan is to continue, so I will run at Agora-Cagliari because I want to be with my new team until the end of the CD’s term. I’m looking forward to work with them.