In their Facebook Page, you can read that the Network Commission is always open. This is not far from the truth! The NetCom has been established in 1996 and it has been caring and serving our Network locals for 21 years already. In Autumn Agora Chișinău we elected six new Netcommies, who, together with Network Director Tekla Hajdu, are working hard to collaborate, protect and look after our locals. We asked them some questions and here are the answers of Kristina Reshetova, Gabriele Scollo, Stanislav Mahula, and Mareike Ritter.

Stas Mahula
netcom-stas@aegee.org

The AEGEEan: Please introduce yourself.
Kristina: My name is Kristina Reshetova, I am from AEGEE-Moskva and I was elected as a member of the Network Commission at Agora Bergamo.

Gabriele: Hi everybody! I am Gabriele Scollo, a proud member of AEGEE-Torino and former member of AEGEE-Firenze, the antenna that made me passionate about our organisation. I am 27 years old and I will graduate in February in sustainable tourism management.

Mareike: Hi, I am Mareike, a member of AEGEE-Heidelberg living in Leipzig. I am in the middle of my Bachelor’s on Studies of Religion and I was elected NetCommie at Agora Chisinau. I am responsible for: AEGEE-Aachen, AEGEE-Bamberg, AEGEE-Darmstadt, AEGEE-Düsseldorf, AEGEE-Erfurt, AEGEE-Frankfurt am Main, AEGEE-Heidelberg, AEGEE-Kaiserslautern, AEGEE-Karlsruhe, AEGEE-Köln, AEGEE-Ljubljana, AEGEE-Maastricht, AEGEE-Mainz-Wiesbaden, AEGEE-Mannheim, AEGEE-München, AEGEE-Osnabrück, AEGEE-Passau and AEGEE-Stuttgart.

Stas: Pryvit/Cześć/Ahoj! I am Stas from AEGEE-Kyïv, the responsible for Ukrainian and Polish speaking locals, currently finishing my Erasmus in the Czech Republic, so I more or less have to manage communication with those three languages [he smiles, ed.]. My teammates call me “The baby commissioner” because I am the youngest there, but I think it is even better to experience all this awesome AEGEE stuff when you are young. I like what I do in the Network Commission, so all my doubts are gone for sure.

Mareike Ritter
netcom-mareike.r@aegee.org

What is the strongest point of your assigned locals? What are your plans for the locals in your area?
Kristina: My locals are located in different parts of Europe such as Turkey, Armenia, Russia, Georgia and Belarus. I think the strongest point is motivation and desire to do what you love despite on challenges real life throws towards us. By that I mean, for example, the Summer of 2016 when some SUs in Turkey were under threat or even cancelled. Or constant lack (huge lack) of participants in the events of Russian locals. How many of you know that there are locals not only in Moscow but in Samara, Ryazan, Rostov-na-Donu, Voronezh, Tuymen? And they are doing amazing events by the way! My plans for this term did not change a lot: I still plan to visit my locals before Agora. There are some other thoughts, but let’s see if I manage to make all of them real before my term ends [she smiles, ed.].

Gabriele: The strongest point of my locals is the ambition of always aiming at doing better. This year will be no exception and I see that many locals are already planning training courses, thematic activities, amazing Summer Universities and more! All I have to do is support them in any possible way. An aspect I would like to improve is the visibility of AEGEE in general, especially towards universities, that too often ignore our locals.

Mareike: Hm, that is hard to say. Generally, the majority of the locals have a good internal structure and most of them have a good number of motivated members. But I definitely want to focus more on HR as recruitment itself might not the biggest problem for some members (though for some it is), but actually making new members stay active in AEGEE in order to have a healthy change of generations. Here I think good and interactive training courses, a well though-through knowledge transfer concept as well as mentoring systems can make a difference.

Loes Rutten
netcom-loes@aegee.org

Stas: My locals are more or less close to each other (the closest two are just 25 km from each other), so what I see is a very good communication between them: they organise common events or just visit each other for local events. And yes, speaking about local events, this is one of the strengths of my locals. They usually have very good and big events on a local level, so my plan is to promote the European level more. That is why my team and I will start promoting the Twinning project very soon.

For you, what is the meaning of the NetCom Motto “To Serve and Protect”?
Kristina: First of all, it means dedication and commitment. I think once you are a Netcom you cannot be connected to just one local. You start to think more globally and you take care about at least 12 different locals. It may sound silly and trivial but you do become parents, trying to treat everyone equally and be sure that everyone is happy, has enough events and participants, does not have internal problems and feel motivated to surprise members of AEGEE all around Europe.

Gabriele: It means that the locals do not have to see us as a sort of bureaucratic body that only asks for reports and checks criteria, but as a resource, they can use to fulfil their projects and their potential. Of course, I am not saying that bureaucracy is totally useless, as in order to do our job properly we also need some information.

Mareike: The NetCom’s job is – like no other European body in AEGEE – to focus primarily on the performances of antennae. So “To Serve and Protect” means to me that we are not making antennae feel comfortable with what they have and do (although of course, some antennae are doing an excellent job), but instead challenging them and making them strive for more by keeping an eye on them, giving them some guidance and also guidelines and connecting them with others. That is the point for Network Meetings, to exchange ideas and ways of working and by that to inspire and motivate members to come up with something new.

Kristina Reshetova
netcom-kristina@aegee.org

Stas: To
Step into
Every
Road
Very
Enthusiastically.
Paint a
Rainbow
Of
The
Events we
Created
Together.

A day in the NetCom shoes. How does your typical day look like?
Kristina: Uuuh! Sometimes I think that I can define myself as a walking laptop! Also, I am falling asleep with my phone and the first thing I do when I wake up is checking my e-mail. But every day is different. Sometimes your day is full of Skype meetings, one after the other, some other day you just check the local monthly reports and answer e-mails. But you are always talking with someone, checking or doing something. Moreover, you always have time for having fun with your fellow Netcommies.

Gabriele: Mostly in front of a computer so far (I am starting to really hate Skype), but soon spring will come and I am planning many trips!

Mareike: Honestly, I have a quite laid-back schedule for university so my day does not start too early. But then there are E-Mails to be written and answered, Skype meetings to be arranged and held, posts on Facebook to be created and of course internal work regarding our work plan or other issues to be discussed. The advantage of it is that I can do that anytime, the disadvantage is, that you sometimes “forget” the work you have to do for the university.
Stas: A day in the NetCom shoes. How does your typical day look like? Tortures, stress, pain and suffering 24\7. Of course, it is a joke [he smiles, ed.]. It is endless communication, emails, and joy of discovering new horizons of AEGEE together with my team and my locals. So basically it is the same it would be without NetCom – chatting on Facebook, sending or posting something. But in my case, it is certainly not a wasting of time!

Gabriele Scollo
netcom-gasko@aegee.org

Why did you decide to run for a place in the Netcom during Autumn Agora Chisinau?

Gabriele: Because during my two years of AEGEE experience I had the opportunity to work closely with previous NetCommies and other people at the European level of AEGEE. Despite being people with very different ideas, their dedication inspired me to also put myself at the service of the locals. I am not an expert on many things, but I am very good at networking and creating synergies, so I cannot see a better role for myself.

Mareike: Being an AEGEE member, you often have to deal with many different kinds of issues. Bureaucracy, recruitment and too much work can easily take over the fun part. The only cure against these struggles is to be shown again what AEGEE is about: to gain skills, exchange ideas, make them concrete while connecting with people from all around Europe. I believe that the Network Commission plays a crucial role in that: Network meetings, LTCs and RTCs, Skype meetings and exchanges – these are the occasions during which one grasps the power of our borderless cooperation. I wanted to not only take part in that but also facilitate these occasions in order to give something back to the network.

Stas: I do not know actually. It happened very naturally, frankly speaking. It was just another day, I was thinking about joining some European Body in order to direct my energy into something useful. But then I saw the Open Call for this position, and no application from my Network. And then I decided to try because there was a chance, there was me. Match? Probably. So far I have not regretted it, not even for a second.

You met in Brussels for your team meeting. How did it go? What were the main topics of discussions? Funny moments that occurred?
Mareike: The weekend was intense with five hours of sleep and an average of 12 hours of work per day. But it was worth it: we became a team during this weekend, we shared loads of fun moments and we had a lot of worthy discussions and sessions, some of them together with CD. And if anything goes wrong, such as #babycommissionerfellasleep, #oopscommission will find a suitable meme and/or hashtag.

the old and new team during locals distribution in Chisinau

What is the Netcom Plan for Chisinau-Enschede Term?
Mareike: We will continue some projects of the previous term: tWinder, Contact toolkit, mentorship system and antennae criteria reform. We want to finish them until Agora Enschede. We will also work on internal education, such as the RTC reform implementation and on some guidelines for the local distribution. Besides that, AeGeENDA will be a great new project and our 20th anniversary should be properly celebrated – stay tuned.

You can read their Activity Plan here. Do not forget you can attend one of the ten Network Meetings that will take place this spring in Thessaloniki, Debrecen, Nijmegen, Torino, Yerevan, Gdansk, Bamberg, Novi-Sad, Heidelberg and Bilbao.  

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

Before anything, I feel like I need to introduce myself. I am Pablo Palazón, Network Commissioner (Bergamo 2016-Enschede 2017) and this article is to express my very own and personal opinion about AEGEE. Many of my colleagues in the Network Commission, as well as many fellow AEGEEans, will disagree with me, and I kind of like that. That is what, I think, AEGEE should be— disagreements and agreements while respecting each other.

Sharing my opinion on this topic has long been in my head and I hope that it will generate some debate or at least some thoughts. When I first heard about AEGEE, four years ago now, I loved the idea. Young people fighting for a borderless Europe, fighting for the construction of bridges between cultures and fostering the European identity is just a gorgeous idea. My first Summer University only confirmed my love for AEGEE and how much I wasted my time before! But now, after four years, that teenager crush for this organisation evolved to something more like “I love you despite yourself”.

My first Agora was quite shocking: 800 people gathering together! Well, not really… Just about 100 paying attention, about 250 sleeping or taking selfies (#Agora #SavingEurope) and 450 not even present, visiting the city or cities nearby. Why would AEGEE make the effort to organise such a big event and gather so many people? Finally, we understood it— the Agora Reform Task Force is working on improving it and there is some progress, but the core problem remains there and I doubt it is going to be solved. In general, Agora is quite boring. Is it a problem of the Agora itself? Is Agora too long? (Agora Enschede will last five days. Crazy, right?) Are we having too many discussions about non-crucial things and not enough about important stuff? Would it be better to have way shorter Agoras, to give one afternoon off for social programme and have most of the voting online or done by other means? Would that change the experience of the participants?

I feel Agora is the biggest show of AEGEE. The image towards externals is quite good. Local newspapers cover it like a massive gathering of youth working to make Europe a youth-friendly continent. The city mayor gives an amazing speech empowering youth. But what I see when I go to an Agora is the gym divided in “Spanish Federación”; “Italian Mafia”; “Greek ghetto”, etc…  I see plenaries and prytannia half empty. I see people approving activity reports that basically say: “Well, we did not do much this year”. I even feel a little concerned when I see the after movie, and most of it is based on clips from the parties at the Agora. The best part of the Agora is not the Agora, and that is scary!

And the worst part of the problem is that Agora is just an example. Than, Network Meetings where we have 9 hours of training per day. We make the effort to go to amazing cities and wonderful places and we spend 20 hours on trainings. Is that again too much? Would it be better to have fewer sessions and make NWM more appealing? For me, it is not a matter of trying to show how to improve your local and how to benefit from projects in one weekend. It is the perfect place to actually network, to get to know people from other locals, to share problems and solutions. The most common feedback that I generally get from NWMs is that it was a pity not having time to visit the city where the NWM was hosted, or hike around the accommodation if it was away from the city. If we want to empower people and make them more aware of what AEGEE is and how awesome the network is, maybe it is about being more relaxed about training and focusing more on making people enjoy it on a different way. Weekend events with 20 hours of training do not generate active members, they generate sleepy people.

The level of complexity that AEGEE has reached is a problem. People involved in European Bodies or Projects are asked to spend hours and hours on internal issues. We fail to foster the organisation of thematic events and we are seeing how the number of locals decreases. We suck the energy from the most active people and we ask them to give even more free time than they are keen on giving away. AEGEE’s backbone is a bunch of people stressed by the amount of work they need to do. Again, have we grown in a too complex way? Are we, by trying to achieve too much, not achieving enough? Is the amount of work we ask from CD and active people in AEGEE just unbearable?
I am a biologist and I have seen it before. It is a common rule in ecology- when a system becomes too complex, it collapses and needs to restart from scratch. How to regenerate the system? Mother Nature does it with natural disasters. And I fear that AEGEE will need a natural disaster to fix its complexity. But the question is: is the natural disaster already occurring in AEGEE? Maybe it is just in front of you and you have not seen it yet.

A few months ago we (and I say “we” because we voted it at Agora) started an amazing thing called European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI). We aimed to reach 1.000.000 signatures to push the European Parliament to put Civic Education on their political agenda. We knew  it would be difficult and we thought: even if we don’t succeed, we will be raising awareness about it, at least. A few months later, we have just a little more than 700 signatures (www.morethaneducation.eu if you have not voted yet). Not even people present at Agora, where the ECI was approved, have signed it! I do not want to be in the position to explain to people that AEGEE is an organisation that cares about Civic Education (since it has been one of our focus areas for the past three years and will be for the upcoming three years), meanwhile I can’t get my members to spend two minutes filling a form for the European Parliament.

AEGEE needs to rethink what it is and what it wants to be. And it might need to simplify things and change lot of stuffs. Those changes will be controversial for sure, but they will need to happen. What is clear to me is that, when Franck Biancheri founded our beloved organisation, AEGEEans could save Europe. In contrast, now I have the feeling that we would rather enjoy the very last European Night while Europe is collapsing. The beauty of AEGEE is that in 5 years time, just a few of us will still be an active part of AEGEE, but whatever step we take now will influence the future generations. I think it is time to act and ask ourselves: AEGEE, where are you going?

Written by Pablo Palazón, AEGEE-Manchester

The month of November brought us a new Local of the Month: AEGEE-Manchester, a new local, managed to do beautiful things in the past year. We talked to Bryn, one of the founding members and the Human Resources Responsible, and asked him to tell us how few people can accomplish what they want if they have will.

The AEGEEan: First of all, congratulations! Tell us a little bit about how AEGEE-Manchester began to write history.

Bryn French: Both myself and Pablo felt something was missing in our lives in Manchester, and when we thought about it we realised it was our active lives in AEGEE! I was a member in Toulouse and Durham, and Pablo was a member in Alicante. We met up with each other and agreed to start AEGEE-Manchester! We got in contact with Domitille, who founded the European Union Society at the University of Manchester some weeks before, and everything went on from there.

How did the NWM that you organised at the beginning of November go?

In April 2016, Pablo was elected as Network Commissioner and we thought that if we have a NetCommie from a UK antenna, we’d better have a Network Meeting in the UK too. We had three people in the Core Team (me, Bryn – Main Organiser, John – Treasurer and Silvia – Incoming Responsible). We spent lots of time planning, but this really paid off during the event. There were more than 50 applications for the 26 places we had. Close communication with Pablo, our NetCommie, and between the three organisers meant everyone knew what was happening. The event took place between the 4th and the 7th of November. We had a variety of trainers and members delivering different workshops, a great European night and even some time to explore the beauty and nature of the local area. All the participants enjoyed the event and expressed how much fun they had.

How do you see the development of the local in the last months?

I think in the last months, while working on the NWM, different members have developed various skills, particularly regarding the soft skills of communication and organisation. We have improved links with the University of Manchester Student Union and found a great venue for possible future events with the Youth Hostel Association. We have improved our fundraising experiences and again raised our profile within the AEGEE network.

How do you keep you members motivated?

As a very small antenna, we work together closely. It is really a family feeling, where all the members know each other. Every member is able to contribute as much or as little as they feel like, depending on what is needed at the time and the project we may be working on.

The United Kingdom just has a few AEGEE locals. What is your impact on the community?

The majority of students in the UK have never heard of AEGEE. It is always a difficult job to explain what we do and to recruit new members. At universities in the UK there are lots of different societies and associations for students to be involved in and it can be difficult to make an impact. We have started to branch out and cooperate more with similar societies such as AIESEC and European Movement.

What is happening next in AEGEE-Manchester?

We have been thinking about the NWM for the last 6 months and right now we do not have a project in the pipeline. This is in fact one of our tasks for the first meeting back after the Christmas holidays. We are continuing to send our members to events (EPM, Agora, etc) and will continue to collaborate with other antennae in the UK. Promotion of the Summer Universities will take place in the Spring term like every year and this should help raise our profile within the University of Manchester.

How do you see the local at the end of 2017?

I would like to see fresh new members returning from Summer Universities motivated to make an impact on the European community at the University of Manchester and in Manchester in general; contributing ideas and projects for us to improve European harmony, particularly following whatever may happen nationally!

Written by Raluca Radu, AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca

Today, The AEGEEan is meeting another enthusiastic member, who is running for the position of Network Commissioner: Malwina Zielińska (AEGEE-Torun). Malwina had a chat with us regarding the attributes that, according to her, a netcommie should have.

The AEGEEan: Who is Malwina Zielińska?

Malwina: I would say that Malwina is a girl full of energy, who is not afraid of challenges. In addition, she never gives up and puts a lot of effort in what she does. She loves meeting new people and hates sitting in one place.

When did you join AEGEE and why?

Officially I joined AEGEE on 09.11.2012. This was three weeks after I started college. I wanted to develop Public Relations theory and meet new people. When I decided to join AEGEE I did not think it would be the best decision of my life. In this network, I did not only meet real friends but also people who are motivated to believe in you and want you to grow. Here, everyone believes in another human being. It’s wonderful!

What is your experience in our network?

At first I was a member then I was the public relations responsible and this year I was president of my antenna. It was a very difficult term, because the antenna was in crisis, however, it managed to stave off. Moreover, I went to all Network Meetings (NWMs) in which I took an active part and I was also a delegate at the Agora in Patra. Undoubtedly, the most connected event with my studies was the participation in the PR School, where I met many wonderful AEGEEans from all over Europe.

Define the role of the Network Commission in your own words.

Supervise and support an antenna but also motivate, help and believe in the possibility of the AEGEEans.

Which attributes should a Network Commissioner have?

A Network Commissioner should be:
friendly
outgoing
communicative
a good listener
be able to respond quickly
share his/her experience
helping
honest
but also should be able to plan and seek help in every possible place for him.
Last but not least is that he/she should believe and motivate AEGEE members.

Do you really see yourself in this role?

Yes [she smiles, ed.]

If you were elected, what would your programme as a netcommie be?

I would like to continue the development of the Network Meeting-format in a way that they answer local needs in the most efficient way and bring benefit to the Network, but also continuing  what was started by my precursor. I would like to create a strong team of subcommies so that they will be more empowered and prepared for further work in the Network Commission. I would give advice in the areas of IT, PR, HR and FR to help the locals develop in those fields. I would like to supervise the quality of the implementation of Local Training Course (LTCs) by the antennae in the area. I would like to put a special accent on recruitment of new members by creating a recruitment plan and put a greater focus on knowledge transfer between the boards of locals, by creating more possibilities for dialogue and exchange of best practises between them. I would be in regular contact with representatives of the locals and also visit each antenna in my part of the Network and meet them face to face to see how they work and in which parts you can still help them. But most of all, I would like to create a fair and friendly atmosphere, because I believe that only people who like to be with each other are 100% honest [ she smiles, ed.]. To reach this last purpose, the creation of a method to exchange information within locals is important, follow closely and help young and small antennae to strengthen their full potential, foster collaboration beetween antennae, essencially between strong or expericed and weak or new ones for the creation of common initiatives and projects.

Written by Larisa Smajlagic, AEGEE-Verona

You can read her full candidature here.

September began already and things start to be more active in AEGEE again. The Network Commissioners however haven’t stopped working and they are here to share their experiences of the last two months with you. The Agora applications opened in August and there were some deadlines the locals should follow. This month, you read the Telegram of Ana Potočnik, Arsenis Tselengidis, Burak Topaloğlu and Lia Tuska.

Ana Potočnik
NetCom life can be pretty crazy! Working in different languages with many different teams and people is a huge challenge. Things changed a lot since the last Telegram. As I promised I focused more on the work with my locals, I visited some of them on their Summer Universities, slowly revived our Facebook group of active members and established regular contact with most of my locals and their board members.

I also started breaking my own rules. Before the NetCom I tried to keep “work” related things away from Facebook, now it has become my second workspace and the most efficient way to keep in touch with locals, my subcommies and the rest of the speaker team. (smiles) So Facebook changed from a place on the internet, where I was able to escape from real life, turn off my brain and just numbly scroll trough posts I usually had zero interest in, into a place on the internet with a constant and intense AEGEE buzz.

The NetCom is definitely one of the most challenging and interesting things I have done in the last years and even though I have a lot of fun working on my tasks, it is sometimes pretty damn hard. (smiles)

Arsenis Tselengidis
The last two months (July & August) my work focused mostly on the Speaker related tasks. That means I had to deal with the Working Format of the NetCom, the Working Plan, the management of the timeline for the NWMs, etc. The month of August was even more complicated for me, because I had to deal with my moving out from Greece to Sweden for my Master studies too.

On those last lines, I would prefer to address the future NetCom candidates! Dear AEGEEans, being a NetCom is a very demanding job. It’s actually a job! You have to work every day (including the weekends) and stay sleepless if it’s needed. So if you are thinking about candidating, then manage your time. Do not study or work at the same time. If you believe that being a NetCom you will travel a lot, then you are right! But the issue is that also during the traveling you have to work! A looooot!!! Sometimes, we, the NetCommies, prefer not to travel, because you have to work harder before the travel and even harder after it, in order to catch up with the team. Another last thing; candidating for NetCom member, does not mean that you are candidating for Germany, UK, Spain, etc., but for becoming a member of a team. So, that means that dealing with your locals is only 50% of your work. Dealing with the aim of the team is the other 50%, but the most important one! Many people were good with their locals, but only few of them were good NetCom Team members. Keep it in mind!

So, what else is NetCom besides workaholism? It’s the place where you will feel the mom and the dad of thousands of AEGEE members and a place where you are going to meet the most awesome people of your life (like…. Mattia or Ana!), where you will laugh and cry, feel nervous and excited. But most of all, you will feel a proud AEGEEan. I hope to see you all again, somewhere in Europe!

Burak Topaloğlu
During the last two months, I have been busy for some period, as I am also the president of AEGEE-Eskişehir. I had to work on our SU during 2-16th of July. After that I spent all the energy I had left on my NetCom tasks. I issued an open call for the of the Autumn NWM for my Network (Eastern Mediterranean and Caucasus Network) and after two weeks, AEGEE-Mağusa was selected. It will be under the leadership and contact of Hulusi Kilim who is already subcommie in my team. The date of our NWM is the 20th-23rd of November 2014 and the name of NWM is defined as NWM Mağuza “Meet the Mediterranean”. I have also contacted my locals about Agora preparations. After the selection results of Agora Cagliari, I plan to organize a skype meeting with delegates about how to be more productive and how to contribute more to the Agora. That’s all from me for now. I hope to have an amazing Agora in Cagliari. I keep my fingers crossed!

Lia Tuska
July and August were the months of the Summer Universities. Most of my antennae organised Summer Universities, so this period was quiet from their side. But this doesn’t mean that it was a quiet summer! I attended Leadership Summer School, I was an organiser at AEGEE-Sofia’s Summer University and during and between those amazing events, I had to work hard for the NetCom. I couldn’t find Wi-Fi all the time to work, so I spent many hours at Studenski Grad’s cafes in Sofia. When I finally got back home (after more than a month), I had to organise everything while I had a fever and a post-event depression. I was happy to finally have a meeting with the Organizing Committee of “NWM Nijmegen: Discover Europe the Dutch Way!”, where we discussed about the content of the NWM. I also had a meeting with Holger Schmitt and my CD-mate, Paul Smits, in which I updated both of them on the status of my locals and informed them about my plans for a NetCom Trip in October (for more info wait for my next NetCom Telegram). Last but not least, I started my Knowledge Transfer with Arsenis Tselengidis since he resigned and I am also going to be responsible for the Greek locals till Agora Cagliari.

We didn’t receive the telegram of Mateusz Dokurno, but you can read his activity report and the reports of all other NetCommies by subscribing to the NETCOM-L@lists.aegee.org

After the resignation of the newly elected Network Commissioner Balázs Kovács (AEGEE-Debrecen), an Open Call for an assistant was issued. Out of the applications, the Network Commission chose Brigitta Puskás from AEGEE-Budapest. The AEGEEan talked to her to find out more about her motivation and plans. 

The AEGEEan: Please, introduce yourself. How long have you been in AEGEE? What is your AEGEE experience?

Brigitta: I am 21 years old and this spring I finished my 3rd year at my university in Budapest, where I study International Business. Ever since I remember, I loved international things, especially meeting people living in other countries. I can thank my membership of AEGEE to one of my best friends in the University, Zsófi Lehota, who told me about her fabulous Summer University (SU) with all these different foreign people. Obviously, I was fascinated by the mere idea, so I joined and went to my first SU to Russia and Ukraine in 2012. After that there was no stopping: I joined the organising team of Agora Budapest and after that, I wanted to get more active, so I took up some smaller tasks. The first big challenge was being main coordinator of last years SU in Budapest together with Luca Gallyas. It was an Summer Course + with the theme of photography and Hungarian culture and I am very proud of the outcome. Then, I was Budapest’s delegate in Zaragoza. That and the NWM in Vienna gave me a push to become board member – I have been Vice-President for External Relations at AEGEE-Budapest from January untill August. This position is responsible for international events, PR and external communication, EVS and other foreign opportunities.

Why did you decide to apply for the position Netcom Assistant?

Now that my term as a board member has ended, I found myself in this uncomfortable situation where I have all this motivation in me and no path to move further on a local level. In the past two years, I have seen and learnt a lot, built relationships with people from all over the Network, and I feel that I have a general idea of the problems in the region, so I would like to help by solving them step by step.

What are your expectations for working with the team?

I am really looking forward to working together with the team! I don’t know all of them personally, but they seem like a nice team and so far, they have been very nice to me. I am aware that we will be facing a dynamic and intense period full of deadlines because of the Agora but I hope that it will all go well and I can slowly get involved with everything. I am also very glad for the two subcommies Mitsaki and Eva who I “inherited” from Arsenis, I hope that we will have a nice 2 months together.

You will be NetCom assistant until Autumn Agora Cagliari, what are your plans for the area?

To tell the truth, I have hundreds of ideas, but when it comes to what could be done – the problem is mainly time: locals in the area are often left without an active communication with the Netcom and we need to resume it quickly, the time left until Cagliari, and also, my time, which is limited. So, the first thing will be getting in contact with the locals and trying to get a general overview on what’s going on in each local, then, start collecting reports and then prepations for the Agora.

However, if you ask me what is really missing in this area, in my opinion, it is active communication between different locals. This results in them working almost completely separately from each other and this way, also from the Network. I think that this is very harmful for the whole of the Network and we definitely should start working on this, the sooner the better.

How will you prepare your locals for the upcoming Agora?

I think that my main priority has to be fulfilling the antenna criteria and meanwhile reminding the locals to proceed with the general Agora preparation procedure (such as a local Agora for choosing delegates, Agora preparation nights, etc.) as well as remindig them of the closing deadlines regarding the Action Agenda.

In one year, the area you will cover had four differents NetCommies or NetCom Assistants (including you). Do you plan to run for NetCom in Cagliari to give some stability?

This is a question I unfortunately cannot give a reply to just yet. It mostly depends on the amount of time I will have this semester, because I am starting an internship soon which will probably be a full-time job. If I cannot dedicate enough time to my NetCom duties as a result of this, I will not apply, because I think that would mean more harm than use. But I also find it extremely important for this area to finally get a motivated person who can take care of them on the long run.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia

Mattia Abis, “class” of 1987, has been elected as Member of the Month of August. Member of AEGEE-Cagliari since January 2012, he took up the position of internal vice-president in the local Board. After being Claudio Armandi’s (AEGEE-Napoli) subcommissioner during his term at the Network Commission, he ran in Autumn Agora Zaragoza and he was elected as Claudio’s successor, taking care of Italian locals, AEGEE-Valletta and the Contact of AEGEE-Europe in Lugano. His endless, and often sleepless, work for his locals, combined with his engagement in the organization of Autumn Agora Cagliari, made him worth the award.

Erika: Mattia, How does feel to be recognized with the Member of the Month award?

Mattia: Quite suprised and embarassed, especially because our work is spread in one year and I didn’t imagine I could get this prize. Honestly I was always reading the articles about past LoM and MoM, I wanted to get it one day but I didn’t expect it now. So I am feeling very happy, and grateful to the people who nominated me and The AEGEEan for the award. It gives me more motivation to keep up my work since sometimes I have the feeling nobody notices what me and the NetCom are doing. The prize goes to them, too.

After Spring Agora Patra, you were elected in the Speaker Team of the Network Commission together with Arsenis Tselegidis (AEGEE-Thessaloniki) and Ana Potocňik (AEGEE-Ljubljana). Beáta Matuszka (AEGEE-Budapest, Former Network Director of AEGEE-Europe) called you the “the best Netcom Speaker Team I had in my two years as Network Director”. Which is the secret of a good team work according to you?

I think that somehow we are quite similar people, we want to work seriously without pretending to be serious all the time. During our Skype meetings we are both working and having fun making jokes about ourselves, NetCom and AEGEE in general: this also gives us the possibility to create a personal relationship and communicate also beyond AEGEE stuff. For instance, last month, I had a Skype drinking meeting with Ana and some people of the team.

 With 29 locals, you are the NetCommie with the highest amount of locals. How can you manage to care about them while being so proactive as member of the Speaker Team?

I don’t know if I am as good as you said, but I am trying to do my best all the time both with my locals and within my team. I think it is just about passion for what you are doing, only if you have passion you don’t get tired and continue doing your job. Anyhow, I have been lucky since I joined the Speaker Team after Patra: since my locals are very busy with their Summer Univiersities, I can breathe sometimes.

 The NetCom’s motto is “to serve and protect”. Do you believe that all NetCommies (as far as you have been able to see during your term) were able to deliver such a motto?

Well, we should first analyze the motto. I think that since the Commission has been created, it has changed a lot and maybe the motto can be given different interpretations. The first interpretation I give is to “serve and protect” the Network for what concerns the gap between local level and European level, which is what is requested to the Commissioners. The other interpretation, the one that I like, is to serve and protect the Network in every aspect: from solving the most simple situations to help out a local in difficulties. Sometimes it can happen that we do not follow the first interpretation, often the second one. But this situation is common not only for the NetCom but in every AEGEE body. As member of the ST what I want is that NetCommies are at least following the first one, otherwise they are not doing they job at all.

You are involved in the organization of the Agora, the Travel Summer University La vita è bella with AEGEE-Napoli just ended, you are not only member of the Network Commission but also in the Speaker Team… how many hours do you sleep per night?

Actually I usually sleep at early morning, from 4 am until 8 am. Except for the days I do not hear the alarm clock and I am waking up late. But in general four hours I would say. I’d like to make a plea: if some of the readers have the same rhythms, please contact me and we can be nocturnal Internet mates.

 Among all the tasks you have as Agora Cagliari’s Vice-Main Coordinator, you are food responsible, which is the same task you had organizing the TSU. Can we assume you are a ‘buona forchetta’ (literally Good fork. It’s an italian common saying to define a hearty eater ed.)?

As I declared in a previous interview, they gave me this responsability because I am the most famous glutton in Cagliari. So yes, I am definitely a buona forchetta: I like to eat good meals and drink good drinks and fish is one of my biggest passion! About the TSU, I was accidentally food responsible for the part in Cagliari. I understood I only had to prepare one dinner, then I discovered I was for everybody the food responsible for the whole Summer University.

 Not only a cooker for your Summer University, but also a valuable handyman, repairing broken toilets in other Summer Universities. Regardless the fame, are you still a “man of the people”?

I wouldn’t define myself as a handyman, it just happened that a few days before I went to AEGEE-Udine’s Summer University, I hosted Enrico Cadeddu (Vice-Persident of AEGEE-Cagliari and PR responsible of Agora Cagliari) in my flat and he obstructed my sink. I spent four hours to fix the situation and when it happened in Udine it took me only five minutes to solve the problem. About being “a man of the people”: I think that more time a member spends far from local activities and problems less close to the Network and AEGEE he is. So, if there is something we can do at local level, although it seems stupid, we should do it whenever there is the possibility.

Christian “Bobo” Vieri, a former italian football player, one of Mattia Abis’ idols

Italians are well-known for being great Latin lovers, so tell us, Christian Vieri (a former Italian football player, one of Mattia’s idols ed.), who is the “hottest one” in the Network Commission?

Am I? [he laughs]. About the hottest one, I would say our former NetCommie Pauline Létard (AEGEE-Tolouse), but she unfortunately left us, so I will say Arsenis. I didn’t notice him until he has been elected to ST but he is pretty sexy.

You are used to give and have nicknames. Your locals, for example, call you Uncle Abis. Do you have one in the Netcom too?

Well, southern Italian locals are calling me that way, it’s true. I don’t know if it is because I call everybody Zio (italian for Uncle ed.) or because I am getting older. Probably both hypothesis are true, I better not think about it too much [he laughs]. In the NetCom, someone calls me the team-builder, but I would avoid telling you the reasons of this! Meanwhile the Speaker Team proclaimed itself as the Speaker Team Dragons, STDs for short (that could remind people the Sexually-Transmitted Diseases). That’s why we use the Meditation of the Dragon to calm down and think about our next steps.

 Organizing an Agora is the longtime dream of every local and you are living this as Vice-Main Organizer. What is the most amazing feeling you have towards it and your worst nightmare?

It is, certanly, the longtime dream of every local and mine as member of AEGEE-Cagliari already after two months I joined the local. The best feeling I have is that we can organize the best Agora ever and hearing people talking about us years after. My nightmare is to have one of those totally unexpected situations, although you worked hard for one year. Some examples? I heard about Agoras with dead pidgeons falling on screaming participants, others where hot water stopped working during the event and participants were on strike. The second story happened during holidays and there were no plumbers available… and our Agora is on the same dates.

Your term will end after Agora Cagliari. Have you already found someone to succeed you or you are  planning to run for a second term instead?

There is one of my subcommies who wants to run, so I guess he will become my successor. About spending another year in the NetCom, I thought about it for the last months, but I do not want to lose the few hair I have left. I don’t know if I will quit my experience in Cagliari, at home, or if I want to have another great, but different, experience as I am having now. This year as Network Commissioner is giving me a lot and I am already quite satisfied.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia

Andra Toma is candidating for Network Commision again! You,  AEGEEans had some questions for her. Here you can read the answers to these questions.

After one full year of being in the Network Commission, what will be your input if you get elected?

If I get re-elected my programme will include the following:

a) Sub-commissioners! Because there has to be continuity, without it we are nothing.
b) Supporting and helping antennae from my Focus Area
c) Evolving the cooperation between different bodies of AEGEE and local antennae:
-Encouraging members from my locals to be more active on the European Level,
-Mediating the cooperation during local projects and trainings.
d) Strengthen the cooperation between AEGEE and Youth Councils.
e) Improving the cooperation of locals in terms of fundraising through a common strategy.
f) Working on the visibility of AEGEE outside our organisation

As for the input we will have to wait and see after the Agora.

Why are you recandidating?

One of the main reasons is continuity. For me it was very hard without a proper Knowledge Transfer (KT) to do everything. Of course I am lucky enough to be part of an amazing and helpful team but there are so many things that I had to figure out on my own that could have been avoided if I had that KT. Another reason is because I hate the idea of getting up and just leaving. At that moment I felt that all my work would have been for nothing if there wasn’t someone to leave it to. A finale reason is that it is sort of a challenge for me because I know I can do more and better.

Are there things you would do differently, if you get elected for a next term?

Yes and no! As mentioned in my programme there are some things like the subcommies part and the regional cooperation that I think would benefit everyone and hopefully everyone will make an effort in making it happen. I am a very rules and regulations kind of person but I have bent some because I really wanted everything to work out to the best possible scenario, this time around that will not be happening again. I don’t believe that telling people 12 times the same thing helps, I believe that if they don’t get it from the second time around, you should either change the audience or the way of expression.

Yes, it’s excellent to explain and re-tell things over again however, we are only human and we have limits and people forget that we aren’t just their NetCom and we don’t have just their local but we are also individuals with a life separate from AEGEE.

Basically, less babysitting, more doing. If I am re-elected it’s going to be a SHOW and TELL year for me.

Do you have any new/fresh ideas for your new term?

I definitely want the region-collaboration thing up and running. There is a lot of potential and all the right people in all the right places in this moment and it’s an opportunity that shouldn’t be missed! Secondly, awareness of all the resources that AEGEE has to offer, I feel like the window is there but nobody knows how to get to it; the idea that we had at the internal meeting in Agora Rhein-Neckar for individual groups on certain departments will be implemented the first week along with the Network Meeting (NWM) and the importance of the Regional Training Courses (RTC’s). And last as I said before: Continuity, for without it we are doomed!

Written by Lia Tuska, AEGEE-Kastoria

Board member on the local level, vice-chairperson of AGORAe and EBM, subcommie in the Netcom team, representative of the Dutch locals towards the Dutch Youth Council, always energetic, optimistic and ready to have fun. This is our new member of the month – Paul Smits from AEGEE-Enschede. Let’s see what he had to say to the AEGEEan:

The AEGEEan: Tell me about your experience in AEGEE.

Paul: It started when I came to Enschede to study. I wanted to join an association, meet many people, make a lot of friends and get to see a bit more of the world. AEGEE soon turned out to be a perfect means for achieving those early goals. While I was having lots of fun, AEGEE more and more became part of my life. I became active on the local level, went to my first Network Meeting and after my first year I went to my first Agora as a Delegate for AEGEE-Enschede. Back then in Enschede I organised some trips, a Summer University and a conference and I soon wanted to commit myself to a year on the Board of the loveliest association of Enschede. As External Affairs responsible, I was responsible for all external affairs of AEGEE-Enschede, except for those concerning Europe. After gaining experience in the Board, I moved on to the European level as sub-commissioner of the Network Commission and Vice-Chairperson of the Agora and EBM.

What was it like to be Chair of two statutory events? Was it a lot easier the second time? 

I enjoy preparing and chairing the events with the rest of the Chair Team a lot! There is a lot going on in the months before a statutory event, which I had observed only from the point of view of the organising local in Enschede in 2012. It is a great experience to be in another essential part of the huge group of people involved in organising statutory events. This applies also to actually chairing the Agora and being at the cool side of the Chair table looking at all those lovely AEGEE faces.

The EBM is of course very different from Agorae. There are less people to entertain, less decision-making going on and fewer days than at the Spring Agora. On the other hand, there are more thematics and interesting discussions, which are awesome, but not very much connected to the work of us as the Chair Team. The EBM Valletta therefore was an easy start for us as Chair Team. The Spring Agora Rhein-Neckar was a bit more challenging, but since I am working with some thoroughly experienced members and the local organizers delivered a very well structured event, we were able to have a quite smooth Agora.

What are the different sides of working in the Board team and in the Chair team?

Working as a Board member of AEGEE-Enschede was a full-time job. We had fixed office hours, meetings all the time, and a lot of quality time with each other and our members. Naturally, this is very different from working in the Chair Team, which is more like any other body on the European level, I guess. Skype and Hangout meetings, dividing tasks and executing them on your own, in between the other things in day to day life.

Also after a while in the Board, each week became more and more like every other week. In the Chair Team however, we are working towards a single big goal with various steps along the way there.

Did you enjoy being a subcommie? Do you plan to conquer NetCom soon too?

Being a sub-commissioner was very enjoyable. I had lots of fun with Wieke, Marije and Mathieu in supporting our part of the network. It was a good way to broaden my horizons beyond the borders that surround AEGEE-Enschede for most of its members. In addition, because I was already a sub-commissioner, it was a fitting choice also to apply to be the very first representative of the Dutch AEGEE locals towards the National Youth Council (NJR). In that position, I am trying to achieve mutual benefit for the organisations. In AEGEE, strong Dutch locals can put their strengths to use in new and better ways and weaker locals can improve through cooperation opportunities and new funding options. AEGEE now also has a big say in selecting the Dutch Youth Representatives on European Affairs.

The Network Commission might very well be the coolest (and best-looking?) body of AEGEE.

Now I do not think I will be running for Network Commissioner in the near future. After my year as subcommie and after representing the Dutch locals towards the National Youth Council (NJR), I feel like its maybe not my time anymore to interfere with the Dutch-speaking locals. As long as there are good candidates for this part of the Network, I will be happy to leave the opportunity to discover and experience AEGEE as a Network Commissioner to those others.

What do you do apart from AEGEE? Studies? Work?

I finished my Bachelor thesis on modelling Single Pulse Electrical Stimulation of the brain cortex last week and after summer I will start my Masters in Technical Medicine, which will take me at least three more years. I have an interest in almost everything, so choosing studies and projects is not always easy. Discovering the world, enjoying it in every way and contributing to it as I see fit, that is my job. Studying is a hobby, which I do in my spare time! Who knows what will come on my path next.

AEGEE seems to fill a huge part of your life. Do you have a separate group of non-AEGEE friends that you spend time with? Sometimes getting some AEGEE-free air can be very refreshing.

If it were not for AEGEE, I would be a total hermit. Most of my friends nowadays have some connection with AEGEE in one way or another. Apart from my housemates and some fellow Technical Medicine students, it is all AEGEE for me. I do not consider this a bad thing, at all. Is AEGEE-free air supposed to be refreshing? In my opinion, AEGEEans are diverse and versatile enough to be refreshing in their own right. If I only compare some of my local fraternity friends with some European active AEGEE members, there is already a great variation in people. This is one of the key characteristics of our organisation that makes it so amazing!

Do you have a motto by which you live or strive to live by?

Summer, summer, summer is over. However, the list for the Network Commission (NetCom) candidates has just begun. Here is where Sofia Kaskari from AEGEE-Peiraias comes in. She is no stranger to AEGEE both on a local and European level, and she is here to share with us some of her future plans.

1)      Let us start with that basic question: you and AEGEE – how did it all begin?

It started two years ago when I joined my first Local Training Course (LTC). Less than two weeks after that, I got in the board of my local.

2)      We know you are already in the NetCom so why re-apply? Why not try something new?

As NetCom Assistant I have done some things and I have set some bases for my future work. So I want to continue it and I am sure that now with the experience I have gained, my work will be much better. Also my term as president is about to end, and I will have more time to work, and focus totally on the Network Commission. In addition, working with the NetCom team has been amazing, so it is not something that I want to stop now.

3)      How do your studies help in relation with the position you are running for?

Generally in order to be a part of the Network Commission team you do not need to study something specific. But every field of studies could be useful for something. For example I study political science and public administration, and it helped me make the Agreement of Cooperation with the delegation of the European Commission in Greece and the Greek-speaking locals.

4)      You have quite an ambitious programme in your candidature. What are your priorities?

I think my programme is realistic, it is focusing on things that I already know or have already done, and I think that they can be improved.

5)      One of the most classic questions of all: quantity or quality? Will you focus on increasing the number of antennae or strengthening the ones that already exist?

A combination of both. Increasing the number of antennae is not the only point but also taking care of the other antennae in order to have a healthy network. Creating a new antenna is not the easiest thing as you have to be really careful and protective in order to keep it alive after it is founded.

6)      How do you plan to combine your responsibilities as president of your antenna and as a Network Commissioner?

I will be president until the beginning of December so I will not have to combine them and I will have more time to work with my locals.

7)      Is there anything you would like to share with your readers regarding what you have learned so far in AEGEE?

The thing that I learned from AEGEE  is that the more active in it you become, the more exciting your life gets!

Written by Andra Toma, AEGEE-Bucuresti