Like every year, The AEGEEan is giving a platform to candidates for a position in the European Level boards and commissions of our association to answer to some questions in order to present themselves. This year, we established a cooperation with the Golden Times and, together with his Editor Gunnar Erth, former and current journalists of our magazine will interview the candidates for the upcoming Agora in Krakow. Today we present you with the candidature of  Luca Bisighini (AEGEE-Brescia) and Oğuzhan Ayhan (AEGEE-Ankara) who both run for the position of Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe; and Lila Quaile (AEGEE-Paris) and Maria Smirnova (AEGEE-Moskva) who are running for the position of European Citizenship Working Group Coordinator. 

At Spring Agora Kraków 2018 there will be two candidates for the position of Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe: Luca Bisighini and Oğuzhan Ayhan. Luca Bisighini from AEGEE-Brescia is best known for being President of the Audit Commission, for founding the Migration Interest Group and his love for cats.

Check his interview here.

Read Luca Bisighini’s programme here.

At Spring Agora Kraków there will be two candidates for the position of Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe: Oğuzhan Ayhan and Luca Bisighini. Next to having been President of AEGEE-Ankara, Oğuzhan also already gather European-level experience in the Audit Commission.

Check out his interviews answers here.

Read Oğuzhan Ayhan’s programme here.

One of the Focus Area closely related to AEGEE’s existence is European Citizenship, with the aim to empower young people to become active Europeans. Contributing to that is the European Citizenship Working Group (ECWG), which supports the Network in organising activities and sets up its own related activities too. Lila Quaile, member of AEGEE-Paris, is motivated to take on the leadership of the ECWG for the next term, starting on the 1st of August. About time that we get to know her better!

Find Lila’s complete candidature here.

You can read her interview here.

Maria Smirnova, current HR Responsible of AEGEE-Moskva, will present her candidature for the role of European Citizenship Working Group Coordinator at Agora Kraków. The 23-year old already gained experience on European level as member of the Action Agenda Coordination Committee (ACT) and Speaker of the Events Quality Assurance Committee (EQAC).

Read the interview here.

Check Maria’s programme here.

AEGEE-Warszawa and the European Citizenship Working Group have great things in store for this spring. With Citizenship at its Grassroots-European and Polish Perspectives, they want to explore the current situation of democracy and the rule of law in Europe and Poland during a three-days event in March. We reached out to Patrycja Figarska, from AEGEE-Warszawa, and Álvaro González Pérez and Jasmin Kaiser from the European Citizenship Working Group to ask them about this upcoming event!

The AEGEEan: Congratulations on your event. How did you come up with the idea to organise it?

Patrycja: Back in September in Catania, the ECWG and AEGEE-Warszawa shared a similar idea of organising together a conference that will bring Europe closer to its citizens and tackle topics that are current and important for youth. The state of democracy, rule of law, and the approach to European values is something that is being challenged and questioned recently in Poland and other countries. Therefore, we have decided to raise awareness on these issues and invite you to take part in the discussion about the state of democracy and rule of law.

What is the current situation in Poland and why do you think holding this event there is important?

Patrycja: More than 25 years after the fall of communism, once an example for others after its successful fight for freedom and democracy, Poland is now a cause of international worry. Over a period of two years new laws and regulations regarding the justice system have been adopted, and this lead to crowds of demonstrators taking the streets of Poland to protest against the reform, the European Commission triggering Article 7 against Poland, the Polish government not accepting the EU concerns regarding the rule of law, thus rising tensions between Poland and the EU.

Developments in Poland show that the democratisation process never finishes and it is important to understand its development and take an action when necessary. Considering the past and present situation of democracy in Poland we believe Warsaw is a perfect place to discuss its state in Europe.

In your opinion, what should be the role of the rule of law in Europe and how can we AEGEEans contribute to it?

Álvaro: The rule of law should be the same everywhere, be it Europe, Japan, Brasil, or Libya: the principle by which every individual or entity is accountable to a certain and popularly accepted set of rules in a fair and equal way.

As AEGEEans we all agree (or we hope we do) that this is a fundamental principle that should be respected everywhere. Now, the way in which we can contribute to it is essentially tricky: we can and should lobby for it as much as our tools and means allow us, for example by organising a conference on the topic. However, when it comes to specific examples of deficit of rule of law, especially in countries where AEGEE is present, unfortunately we cannot be so open, simply because there’s a risk on it that involves AEGEE as a whole, and particularly the AEGEEans from that country.

Jasmin: As the rule of law cannot be taken for granted in any European country, it is each citizen’s duty to fight for it – constantly. Young people, especially AEGEEans, should act as role models and actively make use of democratic tools such as public discussions or direct contact with political representatives. It’s easy to ignore us, if the youth does not raise its voices.

Can you give us some sneak peeks of the programme?

Jasmin: The programme is going to be as diverse as the event description promises by bringing European and Polish perspectives together. There are various different session formats, ranging from informative input lessons to panel discussion and interactive workshops. In times of fake news we will profit from the expertise of high level speakers who will try to set an equal basis of knowledge for each and everyone. Coming from different backgrounds, such as European and Polish academia, politics or civil society, guest speakers will represent contrasting positions and open the discussion with participants in a fruitful and balanced atmosphere. In general, the programme is tailored to active Polish and non-Polish participants who want to be heard. Ideally the opinions and outcomes of the conference will be published on national and European media and used to confront decision makers. Friday to Sunday will grant a tight schedule which requires an attentive brain, thus participants are invited to take the opportunity to discover the city and relax with AEGEE-Warszawa on Thursday.

Who would be the ideal participant and how can they apply?

Álvaro: The first aspect we had in mind when thinking of the participants was the mixture of both international and Polish participants, mainly because of the fundamentally different perspectives that one has depending on one living in or out of Poland.

The second aspect we all agreed on was the fact that we want both AEGEEans and non-AEGEEans to be present at the conference in order to avoid the constraints that limiting ourselves to the views of exclusively AEGEE members brings along with it. Since the conference is open to all young Europeans who do not necessarily have to be AEGEE members we encourage you to share this open call with all of your friends!

As a whole, we obviously want participants that are interested in the topics of democracy and rule of law. This does not mean that there’s an expertise requirement. The same way our speakers will come from different backgrounds and fields of expertise, we expect our participants to be as heterogeneous as one could imagine.

In order to apply, you have to fill it this formulary.

If AEGEEan, also the intranet form.

And of course, clicking attend to the Facebook event!

Tell us three reasons to visit Warsaw and attend your event.

Patrycja: I. Multiple Perspectives – speakers coming from different backgrounds, local and international participants bringing diverse experiences from their home countries will create a mixture of high quality thematic content that will enrich your knowledge on the topic.

II. State of Democracy – a core value of AEGEE. Therefore, in the times when its principles are under threat we should make an effort to critically assess the situation and take and active role in shaping the presence and influencing the future we want to live in.

III. Warsaw – a city you will fall in love with while experiencing its rich history and different faces. Also called a “phoenix city” as it has been rebuilt from ruins after World War II. It is a place full of contrasts – a mixture of the old and the new, of historical monuments and modern architecture, of traditional and alternative places.

Decide on your own reasons to take part in “Citizenship at its Grassroots” conference and join us in March in Warsaw!

Their term starts today. A team of motivated people will officially begin their work on the 1st of August, and there are big expectations about them! It could be the new Comité Directeur (CD) 55 that we are talking about, indeed, but in this case we are referring to the brand new Working Groups, led by the newly elected Working Group Coordinators, namely Viola Bianchetti for Equal Rights, Álvaro González Pérez for European Citizenship, Svenja van der Tol for Youth Development, and Joanna Pankowska for Civic Education.

As most of you already know, the new Working Groups will ensure a fresh and successful start for the new Focus Areas of our three-year-long Strategic Plan.

Even though they still have not begun their term, they have already made history: they have received the highest amount of applications ever, with 62 applications for 28 spots (without counting the coordinators), and each of the teams have eight members (the maximum according to the CIA).

Furthermore, all of the Working Groups have already met via Skype several times and discussed their upcoming plans.  The coordinators have likewise met, in order to promote the team work among the WG themselves. One of the ideas that have come up from their meeting is the establishment of a unified newsletter and of Focus Area action months to take place in 2017/2018.

Before that, Working Groups will be present all around the Network during the NWMs and the Agora, and between September and October they will hold their live meetings. The Public Relations Committee of AEGEE is also working on the WG logos, in order to make them match and have common elements and show visually the level of coordination that wants to be achieved between the Working Groups.

That’s all by now. If you want to stay up-to-date with the news regarding the WGs, subscribe to our newsletter here! Rumors say that they are unstoppable!

Written by Álvaro González Pérez, AEGEE-Heidelberg and European Citizenship Working Group Coordinator

Special thanks to Stas Mahula, AEGEE-Kyїv, for the cover picture.