Former Projects Director and current President of AEGEE-Europe Réka Salamon, from AEGEE-Aachen and AEGEE-Debrecen, is an active AEGEEan since 2011. She has covered many different areas of the association and now she is running for a second term as President of AEGEE-Europe. We reached out to her for this interview and also asked her the questions we received from the Network.

The AEGEEan: You mention bringing back more thematic conferences. How do you plan to do that?

Working in AEGEE-Europe for such a long time, I have identified some key structures:

Scenario 1: We provide more space to connect with each other at key events. Imagine thematic projects being born during the Agora and NWMs. When locals come together, share experience and knowledge and want to realise things together, realising they are already working on similar projects and the European dimension can only add to it. The thematic conferences are managed by a small core team from all the locals and the hosting locals don’t need to be found by open call – they came up with the idea on the first place. For example: is your local organising activities related to education about the EU? You can find ten more at least in the Network!

Scenario 2: We as a Network identify something topical that is crucial in the development of the future of Europe and select it as a topic of… not only the EPM, but a topic that a series of conferences should explore. A yearly plan/Flagship topic for the Network. With more conferences taking place in different parts of the Network (under the same or similar theme) we can truly explore not only what AEGEE’s opinion is, but also the conferences should be open to the local community/city students so the locals can recruit new members with conferences. Example: why don’t we organise a series of thematic conferences on the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN? Focus and funding are all over the place!

Your programme is based on analysis of the current situation, that you were able to conduct thanks to your extensive experience and your consolidated presence in the AEGEE House. Have you already shared your perspective with other actors and have you found common ground to work on? How do you think you can convey your vision to the Network?

Réka: The document has been continuously shaped based on a lot of data and discussions, new perspectives and new input that reached me. And it should still evolve with more discussions and reflections. I do not think I have the ultimate truth, nor the perfect solution to our problems. The document aims to provide information based on a lot of research, and it also aims to provoke in order to gain more attention from more actors, as well as being an invitation to a conversation where we can rethink and rebuild together. To convey the message: my vision is a stronger AEGEE that can be a real change-maker in the future of the European continent – the document is only a tool to provoke discussion, and to agree on working together with the Network on the solution.

You stress that going back to a simplification of AEGEE would increase flexibility, which is often mentioned as a failure of an overly bureaucratic system. How do you envision that?

1) Give a direction to the thematic work (keep the focus areas and their aims, but without a pre-drafted Action Agenda homework), 2) rebuild a Strategic Plan that is a smart Growth Plan for the organisational improvements (with external consultation and careful assessment of our resources), and 3) the organisational bodies’ work to be clearly connected to this Growth Plan (be able to provide trainings and meetings for Committee and Commission members).

AEGEE’s structure should be simplified according to a needs-based approach: what are the needs of the Network? What are the needs of the AEGEE-Europe head office? We find where the needs overlap and we create/keep those bodies on higher priority. Simplification and clarity will bring us more members. In this world of information overload, we need to keep our message clear and what we offer to the youth of Europe, easy to understand.

“Fixing the system” and “being a cold-headed robot” sounds a bit detached when talking about a Network of people driven by passion and belief, as you point out in other parts of your candidature. Why this choice of words?

People often see me being cold at first, so I learned how to play with it. I am fun when I feel the atmosphere allows me to relax, and I have the crazy passion that is ready to move mountains, limitless in possibilities. But I am also a smart manager of too many things in a too-complex organisation. The level of engagement in different matters is really different between AEGEE volunteers as well as their expectations of the very few members of the CD.

I see myself as an implementor, and I am continuously learning, studying management to increase my efficiency in managing the workload, filtering information and bringing the best possible opportunities to the organisation. My role in the complex AEGEE world is to strengthen the structure and give more tools to the members so they can live their passions. If you think about it, in a Network of a lot of passionate people, it is also good to have someone who keeps a cold head in the management. [she smiles, ed.]

Your AEGEE State of Play document is very detailed, but also very long and technical. How would you summarise the key points in it for first-time delegates?

The AEGEE State of Play wants to invite the Network for a conversation – because a lot of problems surfacing here and there are connected to or are consequences of each other. It tries to explain complex processes but essentially it wants to point to three learning lessons:
a. Question the status quo – let’s simplify the way we do things so we can breathe again and AEGEE’s crazy passion can run free!
b. The relationship between AEGEE-Europe and the AEGEE Network needs marriage counselling – we need to strengthen the work of AEGEE-Europe bodies to provide better support, but we need to do it with more trainings and more meetings!
c. AEGEE is a playground for the members as it is the change-maker for Europe – let’s use our biggest events to the full and have spaces for the best ideas to come together and build a better Europe together!

Agora is a space for the democratic process of the association. There is already enough discussion on how much time do we have, how long Agora is, how little flexibility we can allow with the programme. How do you think we could manage to fit a thematic part as well? And how would you see EPM, if Agora also becomes thematic?

A lot of discussions around the Agora are quick-fixes in my eyes. Like tackling surface issues when we should just be taking a clean piece of paper and identifying what kind of event we need and what kind of event we want. Agora is not just any event, it is the beating heart of AEGEE, and we literally have to feel its importance in order to clear our schedule, check our finances and want to go to Agora, not only because it is antenna criteria, but because it is mini AEGEE!

Scenario 1: The concept of the Agora has to be clear: it is a general assembly, it is a huge youth gathering, it is a primary meeting point for the AEGEE Network. At the moment it is 80% general assembly, 5% youth gathering (with conference?), 15% meeting for the AEGEE Network (social programme). What if we could reduce the general assembly sessions by having targeted consultations about the proposals during NWMs already? What if we had continuous communication about the activities of European Bodies during the year and only the most critical questions would be discussed at the Agora? What if we had fewer elected positions (that we are usually lacking candidates for) and the people taking leading positions could prove themselves by good work and not gain trust by a funny stage presentation? These modifications are all possible.

Scenario 2: This is a bit more complicated, bear with me. Agora, being the biggest youth gathering among other organisations, is one of the biggest fundraising opportunities, not for corporate but for institutional fundraising and the development of a network area. Imagine a huge thematic project for an area having its opening conference at the Agora, involving the local community and continuing with events taking place in the surrounding locals as well in the upcoming year. The European Commission would love conferences with 700 people where we kick off large-scale Erasmus+ funded projects for the development of our locals, and raise awareness about EU policies at the same time. It’s a win-win!

Do you believe AEGEE reaches out to “all those who are unheard, all those who are disappointed” in the broadest possible sense right now, or has the potential to do so?

AEGEE being inclusive/non-inclusive is a never-ending discussion. I believe in a lot of cases we want to be inclusive but we might not be able to afford the tools to do so. I want AEGEE to be the organisation truly for everyone in Europe, interdisciplinary, students and youth, we can be the destination for everyone from the politically frustrated to the one with disabilities. This approach needs to come with two important things, however: an agreement to live up to our values of being inclusive in our daily practices, and what we are lacking: the management of resources to be able to have bigger outreach. AEGEE’s impact needs to manifest in rising numbers of membership, greater recognition gained, the unheard and disappointed seeing AEGEE as their place to better themselves, and Europe. In a Europe that is burning in all corners, AEGEE should be the ultimate destination for people who want to build a future for Europe!

Questions from the Network

You are running for CD for the 4th time. Do you think it is fair to the current generations of AEGEE members, as if you win, you take away their chance to develop AEGEE and will make them a lost generation?

I did not get elected the first time. I do understand the concerns though. Still, I strongly believe that difficult circumstances require extraordinary efforts. CD is a very demanding experience, but is also the entity that shapes the Network substantially. With the lack of candidates for CD in recent years, and some of our members jumping into the CD too fast, we have to ask ourselves, isn’t it experience and knowledge that is needed in order to develop the organisation?

In addition, I think AEGEE members have plenty of opportunities to learn in the organisation without aiming straight for the “highest position” and becoming members of the CD. There have been many cases where even experienced members crashed under the workload and left demotivated and broken. AEGEE’s membership cycle shortened, but the opportunities to learn have stayed around – launch a project, become liaison officer, run for the Network Commission to help the locals etc. There are many opportunities.

I am aware that my intentions are unprecedented. But I strongly believe that in the current state of the organisation, we need continuity and stability. In a changing Europe, with many new challenges emerging, many of our mechanisms being outdated, and the competition with other organisations being harder to manage. I don’t want to stay for much longer; but I want to use the peak of my knowledge to facilitate the process of rebuilding AEGEE’s internal system, to be the real change-makers in Europe that we have always meant to be.

After two years in the CD, do you think you still have the understanding of the reality of the locals and the connection with the people and Network?

Actually, my understanding of the work of CD has been moving towards seeking a bigger connection with the Network more and more during my time in the house. With the first year dedicating all my energy to strengthening the thematic work, to the second year, trying to juggle a lot of different external inputs that can bring something great to AEGEE – I was continuously seeking connection with the members, to make sure I always have a reality check on my work. Understanding the needs of our Network has always been a challenge, but initiatives like “CD on Track” have given me strong insights into what really matters: I am amazed by the work of all our volunteers in the AEGEE locals. I enjoyed doing “What is AEGEE” workshops for new members and being back at a university fair promoting AEGEE to students. I wish I could visit the locals more, and bring more insight from the head office directly to them.

Populism is happening now in Europe, and we had an EPM about it. Do you think it is also a problem in AEGEE – do you think populism exists in AEGEE?

I am curious how we increased the Network’s understanding of populism during the EPM: did we also have the chance to discuss objectively the negative and the positive elements of populist movements or actions? Did we just condemn populism as being bad or did we explore the other side of the spectrum as well? Have we tried to understand the psychological drives that make people so receptive to populist narratives and how it cannot be labelled as good or bad? I admit to making statements myself that resemble populist narratives – and I do so for provocation. It is a tool to strike up more straightforward conversations, to try to discuss and analyse things together. Let’s question, let’s debate, let’s reform. But let’s do it together.

Are you a team player? Do you think your CD team sees you as a team player?

There are different roles in normal team dynamics that one can take. I take the role of team support usually. The person the others can rely on under any circumstances or hardships and the person who bears the final responsibility for the things finished/unfinished.

When you think of the work of CD, you need to imagine an environment where you are friends/colleagues/flatmates at the same time and you are as much dreamers as you are the executive board and head of administration of an organisation of 10.000 members.

My CD team does not always find me a team player in its normal translation, but they know they can always rely on me. I make conscious decisions every time I oppose or am critical towards things; I received the mandate and trust of the Agora to guide things in the organisation to the best of my knowledge, skills and experience. We learn together with the CD by challenging each other and understanding that there is not black and white, good or bad sides of any story.

How do you understand the vision of AEGEE? Do you have a political vision for Europe and what is it? What are the three biggest European challenges and how can AEGEE respond to them?

AEGEE is meant to be the driver of change in Europe, the organisation that redefines the status quo of the European integration project. You don’t believe me? The fact that AEGEE operates as a network of cities is a political statement of its own! We challenge the way societies are built, we connect cities and communities that are influenced by national policies but are units with their own governance and management. The future of Europe relies on the power of the cities – where the real people are, where the real conversations and real change can happen!

Europe should rethink its political construction by turning more power back to the citizens, by strong educational policies, strong measures to balance inequalities between member states, and even raising Europe’s status as a global actor. All this can and should only happen however, with the citizens’ contribution and awareness. Erasmus has built a generation that breaks down borders, now it is time this generation also takes a bigger role in leading the process of revitalising Europe.

The three biggest challenges Europe faces right now can be analysed under many lenses – but maybe it is more important to notice the pattern of history that is repeating itself. Citizens losing trust in the system, the fear of the unknown and new cultures “invading”, the yearning for security and protection; these social factors have always provided fertile soil for extremist movements to rise.  How can we anticipate the citizens’ reactions and make sure to build a powerful counter-narrative that re-establishes their faith? Not by new campaign promises, but on the level of emotional connection? They need to see the passion of the youth redefining the status quo and we need to remind ourselves of the values Europe has been built upon.

What’s your leadership style? How would you describe yourself as a leader?

I would say I am a strategic leader. A lot of thinking goes into my actions, yet I rely a lot on knowledge and intuition as well, all in service of the vision and higher purpose. I read people with care and try to understand the motivation behind their actions, so I am able to work with them. Thinking cannot be the strongest trait, yet careful deliberation of causes and consequences has to be part of the management of an organisation. I try to be the safety net for people and accommodate their everyday functioning, comfort them and talk to them when they need support.

I am a visionary person, but a pragmatic idealist at the same time. The visionary side of mine is someone who should come forward more often but it really depends on the right environment and people around me. We all feel spaces and people we just connect with, aspire to be and feel good around. I have a really good feeling about some of the people who are running for the Comité Directeur during this Agora, and I believe we would be able to accomplish great things together.

In your application you said you can’t ‘get a life’ because AEGEE needs fixing. Does it mean that if you are elected, you will run for President again next year if AEGEE is not ‘fixed’ yet?

I am preparing for this Agora with the calmness of knowing clearly what I believe in and what I stand for. I believe in the transformative change that AEGEE can make in Europe, as well as I stand for the change that needs to happen inside the organisation in order to make Europe happen. I am ready to give one more year with the most knowledge on the organisation and in the external world, but this year will be dedicated to rebuilding internally.

I will probably not get to see the long-term outcomes of a transformed and strong AEGEE, it will take years to grow. In this new system, the change we want to see in Europe is the only long-term objective we will put forward. We can continue exploring Europe, we can organise bigger and better events, we can join case study trips, we can let our youth and energy run freely and build a better Europe by every new member joining, every new city that welcomes an AEGEE local.

I will not be President any more when this becomes a reality – but I can play my role in setting the course towards this direction.

Regarding your proposal to delay the new strategic plan by one year, we have some questions:

Thank you for all of you under “we”. This is probably the most critical point listed in my analysis and I understand all the concerns raised below. I will try to explain my reasons but I would also like to invite you to find me for a chat on Facebook/Skype/whatever works for you.

(a) Working Groups:

You wrote in your document that you personally don’t feel well about the new working groups. If we were to change the system that Agora adopted, what is going to be the role of the WG? What are they going to do? What is going to be the support for different WG? What is going to happen with all those people who had made a real effort to make these WG real in the new Strategic Plan? What do you want them to do this year?

The Working Groups would go back to their original loose structure (similar to current interest groups) where people can play with ideas, discuss and realise projects together when they want to take bigger initiatives. WGs have always been key to bridging the gap between the local and European levels because of their easy-to-access nature. WGs could also request financial support from AEGEE-Europe for their activities as well.

If a motion would stop the Strategic Plan from coming into effect, the people who wanted to work on the topic can still continue working on it. Would the motion really change your interest in the topic you want to contribute to? Would it really change your belief, would it make you feel less passionate? You are free to realise projects with the others, organise events for your local, organise street actions, campaigns… there is nothing standing in your way.

(b) Action Agenda Coordination Committee:

ACT will not have any impact to measure, is this EB going to disappear next year? What is going to happen with all the members already committed with this EB during 2017-18 term?

The AEGEE locals are organising a lot of amazing activities that can and already are being used for impact measurement. The only difference would be that we will not read out in the presentation, which AA objective is fulfilled, which one is half-fulfilled and which objective is not fulfilled.

The people who were active and engaged during the EPM in drafting are also free to pursue the ideas they came up with by local activities, attending more training courses, discussing with AEGEE members during the events. The Action Agenda does not give permission to do things, it gives direction. Even without the AA, there is nothing standing in active members’ way to take action.

(c) Others:
What is going to happen with all the time and money spent during PM León, EPM Zagreb, Agora Chisinau and Agora Enschede? What is AEGEE going to be without the thematic part in all the events? Are we going to have EPM 2018? Agoras or other events won’t discuss anything related to the thematic part? Will we just discuss topics related to the AEGEE bureaucracy? How can locals and other European Bodies recruit new members if we only focus on the structure and bureaucracy? How are we going to start after a year’s gap with everything planned so far? What is going to be the main difference between AEGEE and other international associations without a strategic plan?

Money and time have been spent on exploring what AEGEE members are passionate about, yet only a small part of the membership has been reached (based on data). The thematic work of the organisation would not be stopped – how could it be? We have active interest groups, some active working groups and projects, and they are not bound to a document that has been loosely followed for the last decade.  Of course, we will have EPM with a thematic topic of the Agora’s choice, of course we will have thematic discussion at events. We have the freedom to realise any actions we want as long as it follows the values of AEGEE; thematic activities are our very essence, and what would make us stand out would be the action we take and not the nicely worded internal documents we adopt for ourselves.

(d) Regarding to your proposal of changing the format of NWM:
Could you explain us a little more about the idea about 70/30% of English / national language?

The idea stems from my genuine curiosity how we understand inclusion and empowerment in AEGEE. While many of our events on the local level are in the local language, or some in English, there are also those events where we should be strategic and keep the main objective in mind. Meaning, if the Network Meeting’s main purpose is to give space for locals to connect, to share and learn together, we need to make sure everyone feels included equally.

Many AEGEEans speak good English but if you have just one friend around who is telling you they are not speaking up because they are not comfortable with their English, this person might have amazing ideas for the development of the network that we will not learn about. Network Meetings should provide more space for opening up and honest discussions, and using your national language could comfort you more in certain situations more than listening to English-speaking trainings half of the day, but not feel connected to it.

You talk a lot about going back to the past and to the roots of AEGEE, using tools and structures from the past. Do you think they fit into the current context and the society we are living in now?

I strongly believe understanding our past, the challenges and victories can bring us valuable lessons to have mechanisms and face challenges of the present with knowledge of our capabilities. I don’t think the past practices fit any more, but their stories are both cautionary tales as well as serve as great source of inspiration to solidify our identity. Our identity of a network of change-makers.

The most important mechanism I have learnt from all the time digging into the past was that we need to aim for simplicity in our functioning and need to have a clear identity to feel for what we strive for as a Network. The society we are living in now is a high-functioning information society where your brand and the key message of your actions need to be clear and simple. We can grab the very essence of AEGEE’s existence and simplify its message to overcome this challenge.

Your candidature sounds a bit like a description of problems in AEGEE. Can you mention what will be your priorities and concrete solutions for all these problems?

My AEGEE State of Play document wants to provide the context for my candidature which is in the official form. Since I am running for a third year in the board, I saw a huge responsibility in my actions to show that I know what I am talking about when I propose ideas and improvement points that AEGEE needs.

I hope I made some modifications in the document though, that the priorities for the solutions are also a bit more clear:

• Needs-based approach towards a Growth Plan for AEGEE to strengthen the organisational structure
• Simplification of the structure – align our priorities, train our members in organisational bodies, find more resources for the thematic activities!
• AEGEE Identity: what unites us as a Network, what is our niche that makes us unique?

Since all three things above are going deep into AEGEE’s current functioning, the change should happen with the awareness, understanding, cooperation and cohesion of the Network.

If I understood your vision correctly, one of the current obstacles to AEGEE’s health according to you is that a lot of things are being done top down. Now, one solution you offer is taking a year off from the Strategic Plan. This process feels like it could become very top down itself and it could kill AEGEE as we know it and the enthusiasm of the members. How are you planning to prevent this?

AEGEE has seen top-down changes for the last ten years with one reform implemented after the other, mostly top-down. What I stand for is the change that provokes and needs everyone’s attention, one comprehensive review that would include all actors of this network, in order to have a realistic overview of where AEGEE stands now, what is our capacity to grow and how to make it happen. I highlight the importance of involving everyone so that the final outcome is something we all own and feel for. This does not mean of course, that the whole Network would work on internal structural reform, no. I need one representative from each local and European Bodies to bring the voices of everyone to the table. In the meantime, the rest of the members can continue pursuing all the action and fun they wanted to explore in AEGEE.

You can read her full candidature here.

Written by Federica Soro, AEGEE-Cagliari

Network Commissioner for the Nedertop and former member of the Action Agenda Coordination Committee, Loes Rutten from AEGEE-Utrecht is now candidating as President of AEGEE-Europe. We reached out to her for this interview and also asked her the questions we received from the Network.

The AEGEEan: The issue of active participation of members has been on the table for quite some time now. How do you think we can achieve that?

Loes: It is crucial that everybody who joins AEGEE understands that our organisation is completely built on the work of volunteers, and it is the role of current members to encourage new members to contribute. In order for a new member to become active, the newbie has to understand well what tasks the board is working on, and how he/she can contribute. At the same time the board has to recognise what skills new members bring to the team, what they are passionate about and what they still have to learn in order to grow. Each local needs a human resource strategy that incorporates this. NetCom, HRC, AEGEE-Academy are the supportive bodies which should jump in when locals have trouble developing such a strategy or lack the knowledge to implement it.

How do you think the balance between time-efficient actions and a horizontal structure can be kept?

Good question. I believe that within the CD, a horizontal structure leads to time-efficient actions because all CD members will feel ownership of our work. However, there is a clear trade-off between time efficiency and maintaining a horizontal structure in our Network. My answer is effective consultation through careful planning. If we plan the topics of discussion within the CD ahead, we can create enough time to gather opinions from relevant actors in the Network through consultations, before making a decision. It is the responsibility of the CD to not only communicate the last month’s CD decisions, but also to share upcoming agenda topics, and to clearly communicate how members can give input. I imagine having a regular (e.g. monthly) Hangout with interested AEGEE members to discuss topics that are on the agenda. This plan can only succeed if we are able to communicate clearly and provide sufficient information in due time for members to give feedback.

In the rapid shift of generations of members, very useful knowledge might get lost. How would you plan to keep the knowledge transfer effective?

We already have a treasure of materials and toolkits on the members portal, but somehow we tend to forget this! The key of ‘knowledge transfer’ is not ‘knowledge’, but ‘transfer’. We should invest in a stronger backbone of knowledge transfer in AEGEE. Some ideas: to have a ‘patron’ for each newly starting project or team, who can help to get the new team started. At the end of a cycle of any team it should be a habit to write down the main outcomes and recommendations in a document for the next team. We should encourage locals to have advisory boards, and provide mentors from outside the locals if there are no more experienced members to support the board. We shouldn’t fall into the trap of bureaucratising knowledge transfer. Rather than that, it is important to maintain human contact with experienced members when they leave AEGEE, so we can ask their help whenever we need their advice.

You mention the introduction of best practices picked up in other associations. Could you give us an example of where you see room for improvement in AEGEE and what would you keep instead?

I think we can make it more clear to new members that we are a volunteer organisation. After coming back from a year of volunteering in India and Bolivia, my non-profit sending organisation (SIW – Internationale vrijwilligersprojecten) clearly communicated that they would appreciate my help to promote the NGO and to share my experience with other people. In many of our locals, we don’t manage to keep track of people that went on Summer University even though their extra pairs of hands are so valuable to us.

One thing that is typical for AEGEE is to always complain about internal things. ‘We should reform the Agora, we should change our thematic structure, the CD is so disconnected’. Although we should be proud that we create such critical thinking members, in other associations that I was part of, members spend a larger fraction of time on doing things, rather than just thinking on how to do them.

One thing that doesn’t require direct improvement, but that we should always be aware of, is the way that we put Europe in context with the rest of the world. Having lived periods of several months in India, Bolivia and Iran, I sometimes find it striking that we still believe that Europe is the only and the best continent in the world. The vision of AEGEE is interconnected with western European values. We should avoid preaching our values to people from other cultures without practicing true efforts to understand their culture and history. This would be a form of European patriarchy that is contrary to our mission to foster mutual understanding. Rather, I would encourage more people from outside Europe to join our events and, if possible, send groups of AEGEEans outside of Europe. This year’s Europe on Track project and the conference “Education for the Present, Democracy for the Future” that took place in Budapest had participants from outside Europe. I really think that this diversity is an added value and I would like to see more of that in the future.

You put the emphasis on finding common ground with your fellow CD members and taking a personal approach to the job. Why do you think this is important and how do you plan to do it?

It is important that all of the CD members believe in what we are doing during the upcoming year. We may have different expectations and somewhat different visions, but we all want to give everything we have to work for AEGEE and to improve the organisation in small steps every day. Whenever there is a disagreement and people have opposite views, we have to come back to our common ground of good intentions for AEGEE and continue in a direction that everybody is motivated to work for.

It is well-known that the work-life balance of CD members tends to be crazy. Which concrete steps would you take to ensure that a healthy balance is maintained?

I believe that people perform best when they are in good mental and physical health. As CD we are going to build up enormous amounts of stress that needs to be released regularly. If we don’t allow ourselves space to breath, this stress will become chronic and this will impede our ability to work on the long run. I would like to encourage my team to find a fun activity in Brussels that can take their mind off work every now and then. What this activity is, depends on each person. I would like to go swimming regularly, maybe someone else wants to do yoga, dance, sing in a choir or beat the hell out of a boxing ball. I have been through periods of overloading myself with work and I learnt that making time for human breaks is the best way to continue to work hard, even if it sounds contradictory. I think it is the role of the president to keep track of the health of the team members and to understand when to encourage people to work harder, and when to drag them out of the office for a break.

Another basic human need is privacy, which the house obviously lacks. I would like to explore the possibilities to arrange the house in such a way that we create more private space. By the start of the term, the roof of the attic should be fixed, which means we can take the guest room back into use and we will have the attic as an additional space. As a team, we have to get to know each other well, so we understand when and how we can give each other the personal space we need.

“Human resources and internal education are two closely connected weaknesses of AEGEE, but there is hope”. Could you elaborate more?

The ideal human resource cycle can be memorised as: new member joins, learns about AEGEE, becomes active and learns new skills, joins the board, transfers the knowledge and eventually retires. Two key points are that the boards should know how to encourage new members to be active and that the new members should have the opportunity to learn. This requires an educated board, so that the board is able to educate their members. The fact that more and more people point out HR and internal education as weaknesses of our organisation shows not only that there is a challenge here, but also that people see the need to fix it. The Human Resources Committee redefined itself this year after a period of less activity. Together with the CD, NetCom and the AEGEE Academy they are working on aligning our internal education strategy with the current needs of the Network. If the HRC continues to grow, the committee can take back responsibilities from the overloaded CD and Network Commission, so that the topic of HR receives the full attention it needs in order to improve the current situation for the locals.

Questions from the Network

How do you understand the vision of AEGEE? Do you have a political vision for Europe and what is it? What are the three biggest European challenges and how can AEGEE respond to them?

a) AEGEE envisions a European continent whose citizens feel connected and integrated. We provide a platform for young people to explore Europe’s diversity through human contact. By encouraging our members to participate actively in our association, we also shape their minds and provide them the space to grow competences that allow them to take part in a democratic society in the rest of their lives.

b) I hope to see Europe grow into an even more peaceful continent, where despite its turbulent past, and in some cases, present, we are able to tolerate each other. Our democratic societies should have strong civil movements. I see a certain standardisation of civic education is a prerequisite for this. The European institutions should facilitate bottom-up initiatives, rather than enforce policies top-down.

c) Polarisation is one of the biggest challenges in our societies today. If you look at voting statistics from the Brexit referendum, the EU-Ukraine referendum in the Netherlands and the presidential election in France, there is a clear gap between cities and countryside and between young and old generations. This polarisation causes us to live in different realities. As a youth organisation, AEGEE could try harder to involve more young people from outside university environments. Youngsters living in a village are less likely to find themselves in an international environment, and may be more hesitant to join international exchanges like the ones we organise in AEGEE. Still if we manage to let them join our events, they will be contaminated with our enthusiasm and feel what really means to be European.

One of the main challenges related specifically to EU-countries is the democratic deficit in the EU. The reason that many citizens have lost trust in the institutions is that they feel that they don’t have any influence over decision making. This causes a backlash of support for nationalistic parties. In order to restore trust in the institutions, we should not only inform people about the benefits of the EU, but also listen to their concerns. We should think critically how we can make the voices of citizens heard inside the EU institutions, even if this involves changes in the current structure of the EU institutions themselves. As AEGEE we can challenge ourselves by starting a dialogue with movements that are less supportive of the EU and inform ourselves why they see things differently. Also, it would be interesting to have an event where we redraw the European project from scratch. In this field we can also strengthen our cooperation with the Association des Amis de Franck Biancheri (AAFB).

A third challenge is the spread of biased news on social media. Forming an informed opinion takes more effort nowadays, because we are most likely to read news articles expressing opinions that we already believe in. Our opinion is based on the information we have, and therefore our opinions are bound to differ depending on the social group we are in, as well as from country to country. As AEGEEans, the key answer to this problem lies in the geographical size of our network and in our ability to speak different languages. Imagine forming a team of AEGEEans from different countries monitoring the way that news are presented in different media, and translating key articles from their own language to English. This will allow us to understand what information different parts of Europe receive, and why therefore our opinions differ. Maybe some members of The AEGEEan and the Language Interest Group would be interested in contributing to this?

What’s your leadership style? How would you describe yourself as a leader?

My leadership style is that of a democratic leader. If we want the whole CD, and the whole Network, to feel ownership of plans, our common opinion should matter more than my personal one. I am not saying this because it makes me sound like a nice person. I am saying this because together we know more and therefore we can take better decisions together. I can identify strengths in each person and put trust in them, which motivates people. During discussions I stay calm and rational, and focus on finding solutions. I am the opposite of a bulldog, although that doesn’t mean that I let people walk all over me. I think that this is the type of leadership that a volunteer organisation as AEGEE-Europe needs.

What is your experience in writing grants?

None. I will have to learn this during the knowledge transfer period. This worries me as much as it may worry you, but I am eager to find out more about it. Fortunately, I have had quite some practice in academic writing in English which will definitely help. I think that generally the knowledge of AEGEE members on writing grants is lacking, so this is also a competence that needs investment this year.

Are you a team player? Do you think your NetCom team sees you as a team player?

I think so! As a Network Commissioner you always have to balance your time over work with the locals, work with the NetCom team, studies and personal life. The first few months of being a Network Commissioner, I invested most of my time in getting to know my locals. I visited 13 boards from Groningen to Lyon and I was the initiator of the ‘Think before you Vink’ information campaign preceding the Dutch EU-Ukraine referendum. During this period I had difficulties to fully contribute to the team, but afterwards I became much more involved. In the second part of the term I joined the speaker team and we had a good atmosphere in the team. In Agora Chișinău I decided to candidate for another term because I wanted to provide continuity for the team. Within the team we have a good common understanding of balancing our NetCom tasks with studies and personal life. We all miss a weekly meeting from time to time, but we still manage to get big amounts of work done all together.

Running for the presidency is a very important and tough decision. Why did you wait until the very last minute to upload your candidature? Do you think the Network should consider your candidature valid?

‘Running for presidency is a very important and tough decision.’ – I completely agree. Although I uploaded my candidature in the last moment, the process of making the decision did start earlier. I took the time to consult current and former CD members and weighed the pros and cons of quitting my studies despite my family opposing that decision. I wanted to be really sure of myself before making my candidature public. Imagine candidating, and having people candidate with me because they would like to work with me, and then withdrawing my candidature later on because I didn’t properly think it through, causing other people to rethink their candidatures as well. This scenario would have been worse in my opinion. Also, I thought that the candidatures could not be edited later on. I was changing capital letters in the last minutes, unaware of the fact that I could simply edit my candidature (or even start writing it) after submitting it. It is up to the network to accept my candidature, but I wouldn’t say that I candidated impulsively.

Let’s pretend for a minute that you didn’t decide last minute to run, therefore you had time to write and upload your candidature. In terms of fair play, do you think it’s fair to accept your candidature even if it was late?

Tricky question. Deadlines are there for a reason and I do think it is a good sign that my late candidature started a discussion on the general culture of missing deadlines in AEGEE. It was not professional, as a president ought to be. However, it is also important in a democratic organisation to be able to choose between multiple candidates for such an important position as president. If there is only one candidate, how will you know whether this person is elected because people really support the candidature, or whether there was simply no one else to vote for? I would be happy to have an opponent because this forces you to really think through your vision, your programme, your strengths, and your opponent candidate will of course also focus on your weaknesses. Therefore, I think my 14 seconds late candidature should be accepted, but that is ultimately up to the Agora.

Your position towards the Strategic Plan is the opposite of your opponent. You were in the NetCom for a year and a half. Can you state in all honesty that the Strategic Plan and Action Agenda are a shared objective of our Network?

I wouldn’t say that my position is completely opposite, but it is more moderate. We are trying to find the balance between freedom for locals to organise whatever inspires them, and a more focused structure that allows us to have a more effective impact on a smaller number of areas. We always have to keep asking ourselves if the structure we have fits with the reality of how our organisation functions. I believe that the organisational part of the Strategic Plan is a good reflection of the current challenges of our association and is a useful backbone for the CD to implement long-term changes that were proposed by the Network. I think that locals are in favour of having thematic focus areas, however changing the yearly objectives by means of the Action Agenda seems to work better for Working Groups than for locals.

What matters now, is that thanks to the input of many members, the new Focus Areas are already chosen, the Action Agenda is drafted, we have strong candidates for Working Group Coordinators and members that are showing interest to join their teams. We should not overthrow a system that many people are already motivated to work with. However, if many members believe that our thematic structure is one that requires rethinking, we can use next year to let a ‘thematic reform task force’ tackle this. I predict that if you start from scratch and design a system with some ‘focus‘ and some ‘freedom’, you end up again with a construction with two levels of thematic groups whose topics are redefined in certain time intervals. For now, let us give a fair chance for the current system with Working Groups and an Action Agenda. We should also recognise that this will be only the third year that Working Groups exist and we are still learning how to optimise the current system.

Our Network is losing locals and we have at our disposal an increasingly smaller pool of active people. What do you think are the reasons and what can be solutions to it?

Some people say that the problem is that currently students have less resources to travel. I think it is the opposite, people don’t need AEGEE to go on a cheap trip, so it no longer works to sell it that way. We are no longer the only association that provides cultural and learning experiences. We should focus on what makes us special. We are interdisciplinary. We have no national level. We welcome everyone. Name an interest and we are working on it. And maybe most importantly, we have a vision and a mission that after 32 years are still very relevant to the Europe we live in. We have to believe in what makes us special, in order to transmit the message that our association is unique!

How are you preparing for the role? Did you contact current and former presidents of AEGEE-Europe?

I am mostly in contact with Ola and Paul, and some of the current CD members. They are available for all my questions, which I really appreciate. I am also on good terms with Réka, and we already discussed a possible scenario for knowledge transfer but are giving each other space during the election period.

Although I believe that I have enough experience to be a president, there is still a lot of know-how to be transferred before the 1st of August. Knowledge transfer and team building could already start online from June, and I would move to the house in July. Once I know if I am elected, I would also like to gather input for our activity plan from the Network and European Bodies.

Education in AEGEE is important, yet trainings fail to attract enough people. What do you think is the reason? And how would you solve the problem?

I think this lack of applications is always a combination of factors. Students nowadays have less time to travel to the other side of our continent for a week long training. At the same time, shortening the length of trainings would be a too simple solution, because it will also reduce their depth. However, we live in a modern age, so we could experiment with having online preparation meetings and before the event and online debriefing sessions and follow-up after the event. This way training itself could be shorter despite reaching the same depth. I also think that trainings, like any other event, need a clear PR strategy. If the content, date and location of an event are known in time, locals can promote the event to their members or even use them as a tool to recruit new members. I also support the statement by AEGEE-Academy to revise the European calendar. Besides statutory events, we have Network Meetings, Regional Training Courses, European Schools, Summer University Project Schools and more. It’s amazing that we can pull it off to organise so many training events, but we are ultimately fishing from the same pool of members. With a more efficient planning, we can make sure that there are regular trainings with both trainers and participants.

You can read her full candidature here.

Written by Federica Soro, AEGEE-Cagliari

In AEGEE-Zaragoza you can meet Celia Riveres López, a member who is very active in her local (she is the President), but also on the international level with the Netcom of La Nave (Spanish, French and Portuguese speaking locals), Alejandra Piot. In this interview, she tells us also something about the Renove, an event that takes place every summer in Spain. 

The AEGEEan: Who is Celia in- and outside AEGEE?

Celia: If I’d have to describe myself, I would say I am a very active and positive person who loves enjoying life, travelling and meeting people. You will never see me bored because I am constantly joining new projects and ideas that make my day full. I have been a member of AEGEE-Zaragoza since March 2013 and, ever since, I have been active, attended as many events as possible and helped as much as time has allowed me. Currently, I am AEGEE-Zaragoza’s President but I also have other responsibilities such as being Alejandra’s Subcommie. Outside AEGEE, I am a lovely Design engineer with a great passion for teaching (actually I have a Master’s degree in high school teaching). Currently, I work for a startup in Zaragoza that will soon rock it.

You are the President of your Antenna. How was the experience until now? What did you learn?

Well, I still have many months to go as the president of AEGEE-Zaragoza, but there are some things that are remarkably important from my experience. Overall, the experience is great and I am extremely happy to work with the rest of the board and active members of AEGEE-Zaragoza. We all are the engine to make everything possible. This antenna is insanely active and we always come up with many new and motivating projects. As a hint of what we are preparing, we will organise an amazing Summer University focused on volunteering that will include loads of surprises, new experiences to live and astonishing places to visit. AEGEE-Zaragoza’s craziness is shown by the big and exciting projects we organise and I will just say that we have never organised a European Planning Meeting… May 2019 will be the time? After all these months, what I have learnt is that teamwork is the key to success. It is crucial to keep everybody’s motivation up and very important to value collective work.

You worked a lot for the last Renove. What was the best moment? What was the most difficult thing you have experienced?

To clarify a little bit the question for the reader, Renove is an event that the La Nave Netcommie organises in collaboration with a local after the summer to ease the transition between not-so-new members and new members, gathering around 150 participants. In this case, as the main organiser, the best moment for me was to see everybody playing Crazy 69. It is a sort of quiz that requires interaction with people from the village we stayed and having fun learning about AEGEE. The most difficult thing was saying goodbye to the participants (although we got a good sleep afterwards).

Are you happy with the results and proud of them? Would you change anything when you look back?

Absolutely, organising Renove has been a unique and unforgettable experience. I am definitely proud of the team and the results we achieved. I am really looking forward to new adventures.

Name one good thing and one bad thing about AEGEE.

Naming one good thing, AEGEE opens your mind and equips you with skills that you did not know you would
get through non-formal education. As a negative thing, it may be the over-structure and complexity of AEGEE that prevent especially new members from understanding how they can better contribute to it.

What are your future plans for AEGEE?

I do not have any strictly defined plan, but I would want to continue helping AEGEE-Zaragoza. As a new challenge, I want to help in the implementation of the Equal Rights focus area.

Describe your personality by using the initials of your name.

My initials are CRL that stand for Celia Riveres López, so my personality would be…

C: Curious

R: Responsible

L: Lively

Written by Matteo Lai, AEGEE-Cagliari

Pablo Hernandez Rodriguez is currently External Relations Director and he decided he wanted to continue his work for AEGEE by running as President. He has a Master Degree in Law but, as he think that ” AEGEE as a European Students’ Forum should keep the student perspective”, he is studying a second master in European Affairs. He will turn 25 in June and is from AEGEE-Alicante, but he studied also in Thessaloniki, Greece. Here is the question you asked. 

In your candidature you say that you were in charge of myAEGEE and it still needs to be finished. Who will do it?

MyAEGEE is a project that has been running in AEGEE for several years already. From the most recent history, Pavel Zbornik coordinated the part of the project were the discussions on the structure were held and he put them into strategic documents that have been taken over by the following CD responsibles. Last year Paul Smits and his team had to find someone to transform the papers into reality, so Fabrizio Bellicano was the one in charge of development of the founding of MyAEGEE. This year, my team and I have had to develop the part of the project that is visible to members, still counting on Fabrizio and other developers to do it. Pavel is still very involved in the development of MyAEGEE in order not to repeat the same discussions and to move forward as fast as possible.

According to the timeline that we proposed, we still have some time to continue working on the project before finishing our cycle. Once the first version of MyAEGEE will be released, the next chapter will open with the objective of making improvements to it. For that another developer and project manager will have to be found. If I’m elected I will be able to give full continuity to the project.

You wrote that you want to focus on knowledge transfer (KT) for the members. How as president would you be able to put it into practice?

When I referred to training and knowledge management, I was referring mainly to the fact that the time a person stays in the organisation is very limited, so that once that person has learned and luckily has performed in some position, this person leaves without, in many cases, passing the knowledge on to the next generation. This is a structural problem of a student-based organisation that, in my opinion, can be tackled by improving the amount and quality of our trainings, by using the already available resources (as the board roles KT) and by focusing on the validation of non-formal education.

The role of the president in this sense has two sides. First, regarding the internal side I (my team) would work together with the Academy to develop quality materials to be implemented in the Local Training Courses (LTC) that the antennae have to organise, the existing guidelines would be promoted and a task force would work on validation of soft skills in AEGEE. Second, regarding the external side, AEGEE has the duty to advocate for its main principles and in this sense, it should get more involved in projects and activities shaping the validation and certification of soft skills.

The Corporate & Institutional Relations Committee (CIRC) has not been active for a long time now. You said that the Committee will be in charge of the FR, how would you gather new people who are able and are interested to work in it?

I have to say that the CIRC is working really well for some months already. Mainly under Ander’s coordination, they are managing to undertake some challenging projects and the meeting in the house that they will have the weekend before the Agora will help them to keep doing a good job. Anyhow, new people is always needed in every AEGEE body to ensure sustainability and proper knowledge transfer so a recruitment campaign will have to be carried out.

How would you establish an online representation system? Who would take care of the technical realization? How much could it cost?

The pilot of the online representation system will be developed by the current Comité Directeur which means that next year we will be able to analyse and develop it further. The intention is that every local will not need to wait until the Agora to express their opinion on a certain topic but that the Comité Directeur can ask directly a remote delegate to give the opinion of his or her antennae. The results should be considered as not binding, but consultative so by the end of the term the Agora is able to judge better the performance of the Comité Directeur based on the attention paid to the answers. The idea is currently under development, so I’m unable to get more technical right now. Regarding the cost, we don’t expect it to have high human resources cost and zero financial costs.

How quick do you answer e-mails?

As the main communication channel among the different members of AEGEE, the e-mail communication has to be a top priority for all the board members. In my case, I try to stick to the rule that I use also for this year of answering within two days unless there is an event or any other cause that stops me from checking them.

Last year, you stated “I would like to strengthen the cooperation with other NGOs like ESN, BEST, AIESEC and JEF”. Can you tell us if this has happened, and if yes, in which sense?

To write in detail all the cooperation we have had with these organisations would be too long, so I also encourage you to drop me an e-mail once the activity report is sent to give more details in each case. In general, this is the status:

• With BEST our cooperation is excellent. They are attending our events and we are attending theirs. This year we have also co-organised trainings under the umbrella of the QUAT project.
• With ESN we are supporting each other in the development of our networks. In a practical example, they got a grant that AEGEE may be able to get in the future and they have helped us in understanding its terms. We also collaborate for the Structured Dialogue, the participation in the Exchange Group of the European Youth Forum and in other occasions such as in the incident with the bus in Tarragona recently.
• With AIESEC and IAESTE we are building up our collaboration and they have participated in some of our activities as the Stakeholders Meeting organised under the MY-WAY project.
• With ESTIEM we are formalizing a collaboration agreement based on training, employability projects and co-organisation of activities.
• With JADE we are finalizing an agreement based on dissemination of activities, participation in events and co-organisation of online courses.

If you could only make one big change in AEGEE’s current state, what would you want it to be and how would you contribute to it in the position you are running for?

The most important change that we have to face is to give added value to our current activities to improve our impact and our outreach. This is of course based on many small changes that AEGEE should do, for example developing a consolidated Secretariat to take administrative work out of the rest of the bodies of AEGEE, there should be an improvement of the training and knowledge management and of course, a development of a clear policy and advocacy strategy, etc.

The role of the president of this differs from topic to topic, for example in the implementation of the Secretariat strategy I would contribute, because I have experience in grant writing. In regards to policy and advocacy strategies, the president has the main responsibility of making AEGEE be heard externally and to put together the opinion of the network in the different aspects. In this sense I also have experience, as I was Policy Officer for 2 years, and this year I’m in charge of the coordination of the policy and advocacy activities carried out by the policy officers.

What part of your task did you manage to accomplish and fully fulfill during this year?

My portfolio, as any of the portfolios of my team mates, is quite large. After nine months in the office, there are some objectives that have been achieved and others that will be achieved by the end of the term. The full activity report will be presented at the Agora, but as an example, the objective of the team was to pilot the AEGEE day and some days ago we say more than 75 locals organising activities related to this project.

In your opinion, how can the network check and control the democratic processes and decisions of the CD ? To ensure that they are not based on your personal opinion, but that you try to be as objective as possible and take the best decision for the network and not for you. What is your plan to improve transparency for the CD?

My plan is to give continuity to the work done by the current CD and add some new ideas. For instance, as mentioned before, the remote representation system is one of the possibilities we have to bridge the gap between the CD and the locals, so in case of having to make a decision, the network can be asked about it, to better understand its opinion and take it into account.

Another idea, that I consider very positive, is to have time during the events to ask the CD about different issues that are of interest for the members. For example, during the Agora we will have a session to be more detailed in our activity reports allowing all the attendants to ask us direct questions in a more cozy atmosphere. As a complementary transparency habit, I would want to encourage the drafting of strategic documents to be implemented by the Comité Directeur, so we have a direction approved by the Agora and not just the direction set by ourselves for a various range of issues. As an example, this year I’m developing the White Paper in IT services, so the members have the possibility to influence how they want the IT services to be in the future.

Where do you see AEGEE in five years?

AEGEE has the task of looking ahead to society and challenge the status quo of things to shape Europe in the way we believe in. This vision has also implications towards our organisation and the way we function.

In five years I see that AEGEE will have to come up with a strategy to combat the decrease of the relevance of the Summer University and for that, the only solution is to give an added value to the young people to get involved in our organisation. I envision that to happen in different ways and responding to different needs:

• Personal development. Increasing the diversity of opportunities to participate in AEGEE. Not limiting it to attending a few events, but allowing people to carry out personal projects, that would allow us to captivate those that want to be active in a non-traditional way.
• Professional development. Increasing the quality and quantity of the trainings some students would want to have in the organisation. We would allow ourselves to organise better activities and we would also allow our members to join in order to develop certain skills.
• Focusing our target group and our thematic areas so that we become experts in the field and a reference to take into account when there is an activity linked to our goals.

In five years I would want to see that we have arranged a consistent Secretariat and that we are able to have an efficient knowledge transfer, so that the future generations don’t make the mistakes of the past. This would bring us a new window of opportunity, including better advocacy and focus on thematic activities.

What are your three biggest strengths and three biggest weaknesses?

Strengths:

• Analytical mind-set. I am a very structured person and that allows me to better understand the opportunities and respond to them efficiently.
• Perseverance. I am a person that keeps trying until I get the expected.
• Objective-oriented. In relation with the previous ones, I set the goals before starting work, so I can better distinguish what has to be done in order to get what was wanted.

Weaknesses:

• Learning to multitask. I like to work on only one project at a time, but this year I have proven to myself that I can carry out multiple tasks and get better results.
• Knowing my limitations. I have learned this year that all the ideas that I wanted to implement are simply impossible to do them myself and as I’m a persevering person, I don’t stop until those are done even if that requires a lot of energy.
• Perfectionism. I am learning to be more efficient in the sense that  perfection is not always needed and it’s more beneficial to allocate the time to other projects.

You said that we need “a mature culture of internal education”. How should it look like and what are the steps you will take to achieve it? What is the campaign to raise awareness about?

AEGEE needs to have a good learning and training system. I used deliberately these words to start referring to the changes that the previous CD started to implement to grow the quality of the knowledge in AEGEE all across the locals, based on the idea that a well-trained membership directly increases the quality of the results of their activities. Additionally, the project of the Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) should be re-open as it gives a lot of opportunities for members, and other organisations such as JADE, YEU or ESTIEM would be open to partner up for the design of those trainings.

Together with this, we have to move on to the next step when it comes to recognition of volunteering. We have been involved as AEGEE in projects and processes that aimed at developing the tool for validation of soft skills developed when doing non-formal education activities or volunteer and now is time to tailor those tools to our needs.

You said in your programme: ‘This next term we will have a unique opportunity to establish finally a secretariat that would be able to undertake some of the tasks of the CD improving its efficiency”. Did the CD get the money to have the secretariat already next term? How do you know it is a sustainable choice?

A short clarification to start with, the CD does not get the money, is AEGEE who does. So everything related to grants will be described in the next financial report, thus we encourage you to ask us about the Operating Grant or the Horizon2020 grants.

Regarding the grants for the Secretariat, already this year we have been trying to implement the Secretariat strategy that was improved some Agorae ago. Nevertheless, in the past we were rejected in a grant that can allow us to have the proper budget to have a Secretariat and we can only apply every three years, and in 2017 we will have the opportunity to apply again. Additionally, we are researching the possibility to be funded through other means but nothing is confirmed yet.

Having a Secretariat is something that AEGEE approved in the past and I would want to see implemented, so the technical parts as the finances, staff management or IT can be dealt by professionals, and not put the burden on volunteers, who if they have the wish to learn these technical areas, a system of job shadowing can be built up. People can also be trained to apply for grants and ensure the financial stability of the organisation.

You can read his candidature here, the first part of his interview here and his portfolio article here. 

Edited by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

You might have recognised Réka Salamon from AEGEE’s website, where she is already on the team page as Vice-President and Project director. She decided to take one step further, using all her previously acquired knowledge in several teams and projects, and run as a President of AEGEE-Europe. Her journey  has started in 2011 in AEGEE-Debrecen, where she was a Vice-President & Public Relations responsible. She then became CD assistant in three occasions and Speaker of the Public Relation Committee. In the meantime, she moved to Germany, becoming member of AEGEE-Aachen. She was a project manager of the award-winning project Europe on Track and last year she eventually managed to fulfill her dream to work in the Comité Directeur. We asked you to think about some questions for Réka and here are the answers we have got.

Why is the external representation not one of the main topics you would like to focus on in your candidature?

This year I have been working closely with the external organisations my portfolio is most linked to, developing closer relations with the Lifelong Learning Platform (umbrella for 36 education organisations). I am in the Management Team of the Informal Forum of International Student Organisations (IFISO) and I have been a speaker and attendee at different events in the European Parliament. Also, I am responsible for external projects with partnerships ranging from the World Organisation of the Scouts Movement to the Education Network of the European Youth Forum. While I was happy to experience AEGEE’s prestigious brand recognized and valued in Brussels, I do think we need a stronger internal focus next year, in order to continue branding AEGEE in Brussels with great achievements and activities carried out by a stronger network.

How quickly do you answer to the e-mails?
I am an admin of 28 mailing lists, included in various conversations from WhatsApp to social media, and responding within thwo-three days to emails has been the challenge of all projects directors since the very beginning. I always encourage everyone to write me on Facebook or even call me any time if they are in need of a quick response. I am really happy if someone calls, please continue doing that!

In your program last year you wrote “Corporate fundraising and institutional support for AEGEE projects” – what has happened in this field? Can you give us examples of what you have done (may be failures or successful attempts)?
Corporate fundraising is carried out by three people in our team at the moment, they are more experienced fundraisers than myself, so I support their actions by giving them background information on what the thematic bodies would need. I have invested more time in getting to know the world of institutional support, writing two workplan applications towards the Council of Europe, writing applications to two private foundations (getting 2500 EUR for our projects) and in other cases, supporing the project teams in their application writing. I wrote a successful application to get an AEGEE delegation to attend the University on Youth and Development in Mollina this autumn. Also, I wrote the majority of the applications that have given AEGEE another national Charlemagne Youth Prize winner “Night of the Seven Antennae” in Bulgaria. My current challenge is the grant application for improving the quality of trainings and exchanging best practices between volunteering and higher education in order to supply the internal education system of AEGEE with funded trainings.

In your program you wrote “Take your Summer University, your Network Meetings, your trainings: AEGEE-Europe should not only be encouraging you to organise them, it should be supporting you in making them happen!” – how do you imagine this? What kind of support do you have in mind?
The idea is closely connected to experience I gained with European institutional grants and the Network Development Project. It is something I am discussing with a part of the Network Commission at the moment. Many of our locals are facing the everyday challenge of not having enough funding for these events. You want your event to be amazing and attract new members, but in today’s reality AEGEE cannot organise the same quality events as it used to, simply because life and all costs of the events have become more expensive.

The contacts and the knowledge AEGEE-Europe has makes it possible to obtain institutional support for a series of activities, offering travel reimbursement and covering at least half of the expenses of local organisers. The grant application could cover a series of activities in the same network area, multiplying the impact. With bigger numbers we can have bigger support at both the local and the European level. Taking it to a concrete example: I was in touch with a few members and the NetCom of the Italian-speaking locals to develop and application that would focus on European history & culture education and in the activities section of the grant we could include five Summer Universities, two network meetings, two training events and one conference or cultural celebration. The activities would all have a joined theme, but it would leave space for the usual AEGEE activities as well.

We would also be part of the European dialogue and develop something European society needs, as well as help ourselves at the same time. Grant application writing is not a rocket science (but it is a useful skill to have!) and the great ideas always get their reward; the European institutions want to support young people, they just need to know more about our expectations and our ideas.

If you could make only one big change in AEGEE’s current state, what would you want it to be and how would you contribute to it in the position you are running for?

With all its internal structural bodies, with all its bureaucratic measures, with all the discussions about the serious and fun part of AEGEE, our organization has always been essentially a place for learning. From Summer Universities to political activism, our members have always found something interesting on the AEGEE playground.
I would bring back the approach when our members’ interest and talents dictate more what AEGEE is working on as an association. More of the IDEAS + ACTION. Because you will only be active in this organization if you can easily understand how it works and where you can develop in it. It becomes a part of you.

As president I have a few closely interlinked ideas on how to move towards this direction:
A. Reworking the concept of the planning meeting / idea factory this autumn with 80% representation of our locals to get a clear picture on our network’s needs and resources for the period of 2017-2020 and draft a Strategic Plan owned by the network.
B. Bringing back the working groups: the thematic backbone of AEGEE. Surprised? AEGEE used to have dozens of working groups, everything from environmental issues, through international politics to visa freedom working group. Working groups offered the learning space for members in the easiest way possible: subscribe to the mailing list and you join another world where people shared their interest in discussion and also in action.

AEGEEans are striving for a better Europe and we often say we build our society together and we shape active citizens of Europe. We can only shape our members if we make learning easier to access for them.

What part of your task did you manage to accomplish and fully fulfill during this year?

My term is not over yet! Nevertheless, I am confident with the fulfillment of one of the priorities of my portfolio, that is establishing long-term and sustainable projects. With the framework and project team for Europe on Track – the project is ready to run every year and become our next brand similarly to Summer Universities. With the AEGEEan, our online magazine – obtaining a project/long-term status. These are only two specific examples on the way I see AEGEE should go for activities we can keep as our brand.
I could not have accomplished anything alone, though. I am lucky to be working with dedicated and enthusiastic people in each and every one of the thematic bodies of AEGEE. Thank you guys, you know who you are! 

How do you plan to improve transparency from the CD?
For greater transparency, from the organisational perspective, I would develop the NetCom-CD couple idea so NetCommies have a close relationship with the CD members, understanding more of the tasks and bringing ideas and input from the locals to the everyday work of some CD members. I would insist on the Membership Growth project to be implemented in the work of CD, meaning the board members would have monthly Skype meetings with the local of their choice and guide them through the development process with contacts and ideas, one step at a time.

From the everyday-reality perspective: a simple idea would be livestreaming some of our meetings and everyday situations from the house. We can write articles and reports but essentially the pictures and videos would enable members to get a more clear idea of the house in Brussels, where those seven people are working. Talking about that, I still want to record the video of the epic highs and lows in the Days of Our Life: one segment of the video presenting at a press conference in the European Parliament and the next segment showing us in the middle of cleaning the huge house. Both can be equally fun!

In your opinion, how can the Network check and control the democratic processes and decisions of the CD? (to ensure that they are not based on your personal opinion and that you try to be as objective as possible and take the best decision for the network and not for yourselves)
I personally see a bigger role of the Advisory Board of AEGEE-Europe in monitoring if our decisions are true to the values of the organisation and serve the best interest of the network. The CD members, that are elected to take certain decisions, have the full-scale of understanding of certain matters from top to bottom. However, sometimes we want to and need to consult the network before we act. It is always case-specific and it is very difficult to find an universal rule.

When it comes to the democratic selections that affect the network the most, we could evaluate if CD should proceed making the decision in certain cases. For example, I would personally involve the network and Agora in the selection of statutory event hosting locals.

Where do you see AEGEE in 5 years?
An organisation aware of its inner indigenous identity and proudly offering the learning opportunities and the time of their lives to all members who join AEGEE. An organisation, that keeps growing, but puts just as much effort into strengthening the locals as into establishing new ones. An organisation that understands its history and its power in the diversity of background and opinions: An AEGEE that keeps up the spirit of its legendary roots and becomes a major actor in European affairs, using the part of the network outside the EU also to support the idea behind European integration.

AEGEE can construct the model of European society by being attentive to the cultural differences and shared values that bound us together. We only need to be more aware of why we are in AEGEE and what is our learning path from AEGEE and our contribution to AEGEE in return.

What are your three biggest strengths and three biggest weaknesses?
Let’s start with weaknesses, I am familiar with their strange nature:
1. I am a very efficient robot when I work. But switching to a more likeable humanoid tends to be a challenge when I am fully concentrated and I can imagine this could be a reason I sometimes appear cold to people.
2. I want to work on everything and all the time. Being a workaholic in the house is the biggest asset, yet I tend to work myself to physical and mental exhaustion. Work-life balance in the team would be a priority as president.
3. I am really bad at showing off. In the world of competition and appearances I still live by my values that my work should speak for itself and I do not care much about the appearance. But in a world where you need info about anything or anyone and you need this info fast, appearances do matter. I have not subscribed to this new trend yet.

I consider the following features to be my strengths:
1. I question the status quo. I need to understand why and how things work and possibly come up with a solution for improvement. AEGEE offers a wide range of fixing to be made from small to large-scale reforms, it only depends on your view of ‘accepting how it is’ or ‘looking into ways of making it better’
2. Connected to the first point, I usually try to understand everything in this organisation with the brief historical insight. I have already discovered a lot of activities and systems from the past, that should make a come back – and I promise you, it would bring amazing results!
3. I stand my ground for the things I believe in. I was raised to be honest and kind and I do not play games with people. Some people might not be as open to my honesty as others when it comes to feedback, but I see the learning process as a series of challenges you need to overcome, you need to be shaken out of your comfort zone. And once we get comfortable with each other based on trust and respect, I am the kind of a friend you can call in the middle of the night and I will come without thinking.

You can find the first part of the interview here, her portfolio article here and read her full candidature here. 

Edited by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

Pablo Hernandez Rodriguez is currently External Relations Director and he decided he wanted to continue his work for AEGEE by running as a President. He has a Master degree in Law but, as he thinks that ” AEGEE as a European Students’ Forum should keep the student perspective”, he is studying for a second Master in European affairs. He will turn 25 in June and he is from AEGEE-Alicante, but he has also studied in Thessaloniki, Greece. Here is his interview!

The AEGEEan: What is your vision of AEGEE?

Pablo: AEGEE just turned 31 and if we look back, AEGEE has achieved amazing things and carried out wonderful projects. Nevertheless, what amazes me the most is the possibility to influence people’s lives by empowering them to develop themselves and to have an active role in society. In the future AEGEE has to continue wondering about its meaning and its objectives so even if it’s a mature association, there is a need of keeping renewing its purpose so we adapt to the society changes. One of the core values of AEGEE has always been its innovation and its capability to look ahead of society challenging the status quo. Now we are in a situation in which we have to start drafting the Strategic Plan and therefore, the mid-term developments of our organisation. In this sense I would want to see an emphasis on education and participation from a technological point of view foreseen the changes, that the society is going to experiment soon.

After a year spent in Bruxelles in CD working for AEGEE, what do you think is the strongest asset and what do you think is the weakest, therefore the one you need to take care of as soon as possible. 

The strongest asset I have is the fact I’ve experienced what being member of the Comité Directeur is and I have acquired the needed knowledge to make the best out of the second year in Brussels. Besides the practical knowledge, my studies give me a solid background to understand how AEGEE can make a better influence. I think, that this year has also given me a clearer understanding of the network and how diverse and different it is. This means that there is a need of further analysis of the weaknesses and strengths of the locals, not limiting it to the regular updates and best practice sharing during NWMs, but creating action plans applicable to the locals.

As the biggest weakness, after being already one year in the Comité Directeur, I see the fact that there will be more members from the current team and there will be a combination of people from two different generations. We will have to find a common ground where we all feel comfortable working with each other, so that everybody has the same feeling of belonging to the team.

What is, according to you, the fundamental features of a President?

First of all, in my opinion, the president is one of the team members of the Comité Directeur and must get adapted to the needs of the six other members, so there are some crucial features that he or she has to put into practice depending on the rest of the people. To my opinion, the President has to be the one motivating the team members to keep believing in the common project and having an overview of the situation of all the team members. The president should also have an analytical mindset to constantly check the development of the projects and detect the possible deviations in the plan so there is the margin to correct them.

What was your biggest achievement in you first term as CD?

I take this question not only as a personal one, as the achievements I got are the achievements of the whole team.

I think that in this term one of the main achievements we have got is putting into practice the idea of the AEGEE day and we hope to see that the network feels the ownership of this and repeats it year after year. There are many other examples of achievements of the team, as for example the development of some new projects, the proximity to the members, the implementation of the FR strategy, etc. As a personal achievement, more on the side of personal development, I think that it has been a great experience having to coordinate the task division of the two employees I worked with in the MY-WAY project and delivering quality results to the rest of the partners.

In your last point of your candidature you wrote “Thematic activities”, but it is a very general term. What is your Idea of them? How would you ensure that locals will be willing to organise them more?

We have analysed in several occasions, which are our strengths, our weaknesses, our opportunities and our threats and we have realised that there is a structural problem. AEGEE invests the majority of its efforts into self-sustaining activities, the AGORA and the EPM, meaning that our focus keeps being the organisation of Statutory Events, rather than the organisation of activities, that develop what AEGEE strives for. When I refer to thematic activities I want to point out the need of AEGEE to continue encouraging the organisation of things related to the core values of AEGEE and mainly following the Focus Areas. The AEGEE day is a good example of how the locals can be stimulated to arrange thematic activities by giving on the one hand recognition and guidance, and on the other hand visibility of their ideas.

AEGEE’s history is based on societal anticipation, and if we want to keep being a reference for innovation and a good barometer of the changes, that the society is going to experience in the future, we have to continue looking ahead (may be longer than three years’ time) and think how do we see ideal Europe.

How would you create a pool of experts on Erasmus +? What will be their tasks? 

Many of us have been members of the projects, that depend on Erasmus+ grants, that are hardly ever given due to the lack of experience at grants writing. Other people have also experienced the same in their locals with frustrating results.

My idea is to identify, who in the network has skills to help in the grant writing of an Erasmus+ application, so we can put in contact those who need the help with the ones who can provide it. Additionally, what I would want to see from that group of people, is the development of a training on Erasmus+ to act as multipliers in our network. This project has to have a coordination with the Academy, as some of their members meet the criteria to be Erasmus+ experts so we don’t create duplicates, but work together. For other grants, as the Operating Grant, EYF or others, I would also like to build a network of experts that can help in the future to make the best out of the opportunities that are available to us.

In your program you mentioned the concept of “Borderless Europe” a lot, one of the principles of our organisation that does not have a national level. How do you place yourself, then, when speaking about La Federacion, that has a statute, a board and a registered office, therefore being de facto a registered organisation?

The way I understand that AEGEE strives for a Borderless Europe doesn’t have just one face, but several ones. AEGEE aims at breaking employment borders, inclusion borders, mobility borders, language borders, etc., and this should be understood in a context of respect to diversity. The barriers, that the dichotomy West vs East or EU vs non-EU create should be tackled actively by our association, advocating for our ideas wherever we should be heard. The example of la Federation, the Dutch representation in the National Youth Council or activities organised by several antennae show the willingness of the network to not depend just on AEGEE-Europe to carry out activities that develop our values. The absence of national is a great advantage, so we make decisions based in the local and European realities. But we have to wonder if we are being sufficiently inclusive with all parts of the network. For instance,  as a great majority of previous CD members were EU citizens and that might be caused by the fact that the Head office is in an EU country, we receive EU funds and only a few Statutory events happen in non-EU countries.

You put a lot of emphasis on the IT development of the organisation. Do you think we have the capacities (both in terms of finances and Human Resources) for developing it further? If not, what are your solutions to implement them?

In my opinion AEGEE is getting professionalised in almost every field. As it happened in the past with accountancy, now there has to be a small revolution in terms of Secretariat organisation, IT infrastructure, Financial management, FR, diversification of funding, etc. If it was not done in the past, it was not due to the lack of willingness, but as you say, because of economic and human resources reasons.

Luckily, I think that we are moving in the right direction to achieve some of the mentioned goals. In regard of IT developments, we have recently signed a contract with Campus Iberus – Excellence Campus that allows us to have trainees in the field of IT and others, so with no financial implication we would be increasing our human resources. Also an increase of the effectively of the ITC and its visibility should be done accordingly, ensuring Knowledge Transfer and a good performance of our services.

You can read his full candidature here, the second part of the interview here and his portfolio article here. 

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

You might have recognised Réka Salamon from AEGEE’s website where she is already in the team page as Vice-President and Project Director. She decided to take it one step further, using all her previously acquired knowledge in several teams and projects to take the next step and run for President of AEGEE-Europe. Her journey started in 2011 in AEGEE-Debrecen, where she was Vice-President & Public Relations Responsible. She then became CD assistant on three occasions and Speaker of the Public Relations Committee. Meanwhile she moved to Germany, becoming member of AEGEE-Aachen, she was the Project Manager of the award-winning project Europe on Track and last year she finally succeeded to fulfil her dream: working in the Comité Directeur. 

The AEGEEan: Please introduce yourself.

Réka: I am that person who called AEGEE her boyfriend. Slowly turning 26-years-old, originally from Debrecen, Hungary, having lived in different parts of Europe from Finland to Germany, and I still always joke about being from Eastern Europe. I studied English and American Studies & Communications before AEGEE started teaching me more than any of my professors. I am driven and question the way things work, I love challenges including myself and others, I fight for things I believe in. I hate Twitter because it symbolises everything that is wrong with society nowadays. And my favourite job so far was being a kindergarten teacher.

What is your vision for AEGEE?

I got this question during question time in the beginning of my term in July as well. See, the thing is: no one can have a vision for AEGEE that is universally applicable because this organisation means something different to each and every one of us. I could say I want AEGEE to be the strongest actor on the political field or have the best projects all over Europe. The path I chose in AEGEE has made me realise the power that lies in the diverse thematic work of the organisation, and how it can be placed into the societal context, the so-called external world.
But AEGEE is essentially a place for learning, a playground where you get to choose how you want to develop, who are the people who inspire you and essentially, AEGEE becomes the time of your life. My vision for AEGEE is a network where members understand and choose their path in the organisation that suits them the most – and lots of individual contributions will become collective action and the identity of the association.

After a year spent in Brussels in the CD working for AEGEE, what do you think is the strongest asset and what do you think is the weakest, therefore the one you need to take care of as soon as possible?

We need to reestablish AEGEE’s strong learning opportunities. Non-formal education is becoming a concept not widely understood, while teaching your members from the basic things on “how to manage a local” to developing entrepreneurial skills during a European School could be the reality of the organisation. Members who understand and want to learn more will build us together as a stronger network. Check  NFE’s impact in society, or how AEGEE faced Bologna process and its challenges, and check the era of European School courses to know what I refer to.

AEGEE’s strongest point is being a playground for pragmatic idealists. The organisation has worked and is working on all possible fields that the society around us could find as an important cause or problematic case. From refugees to visa regulations, from employment to peace building, from political anticipation to human rights education, we offer the space for everything our members find interesting and would like to learn more about. We are just not very good at communicating these opportunities in a simple way, but instead in a maze of an overcomplicated internal structure and intimidating levels in our work. Let’s clear up this mess so we can focus on the things that really matter to us!

What are, according to you, the fundamental features of a President?

Understanding people. It takes time to get to know someone what the artificial environment of the AEGEE headoffice does not allow. You work and live together from day 1. It takes empathy and understanding to see what drives every person in the team, what triggers their reactions and what is the way to truly respect and trust each other with them. Lead by example. The president is ultimately the person the other people rely on for direction and support, let it be moral or work-related support. This weight of responsibility can only fall on a person who proves to be the pillar of the team by deed and not only by words.

A president is able to take one step back to look at the bigger picture. The President of AEGEE-Europe is president of two very different entities: the group of seven people in Brussels and an entire organisation. Both have different needs and expectations, and finding the balance between is probably the most challenging task each year. The President of AEGEE-Europe however, can influence the sense of direction of the rest of the board and take an approach that does not allow the CD to forget about its most important task: supporting the network (and be less caught-up in the everyday reality of Brussels).

What was your biggest achievement in you first term as CD?

AEGEE Day was the main thing we have scheduled for ourselves as an objective for the whole team, and while we took different roles in the implementation in the network and in the external world, it is turning out to be a huge success. A tradition we should establish to be a yearly celebration, bringing our network together.

What is the status of the recognition of Non Formal Education (NFE) and Volunteering? Do you think it is possible to create a standardised procedure that can have AEGEEans’ skills recognised (i.e. Credits for University or trainership granted)?

The Council of Europe has drafted a recommendation to all member states of the EU to implement the first practices of volunteer recognition by 2018. Since CoE is a strong actor in the institutional sector, this recommendation is going to urge other institutions for actions as well, which means youth organisations are also likely to gain more support in the improvement of quality, accuracy and credibility of non-formal and informal learning.

With less Brussels-jargon, basically: the recognition of volunteering is a decade-long debate that has been on several tables. With so many different levels of knowledge, unclear map of competences, different youth organisations delivering different trainings, it is hard to find a universal solution. AEGEE has been, however working on the Quality Assurance for Trainings project and the GR-EAT (Guidelines for Recognition: European Advanced Tool) project that drafted guidelines for youth organisations to develop their own internal recognition tools. We have worked on researching the needs of companies and universities when it comes to volunteering and we have come up with a system that could really work.

The work on these projects is probably the most invisible one of my portfolio, yet the educational sessions taking place this spring NWM are trying to highlight the importance of non-formal education and the global struggle for the recognition of NFE. I work closely together with the Lifelong Learning Platform, the strongest umbrella organisation on the field of education, and the strategy we have drafted for volunteer recognition could move social and political recognition forward in the next two years. For further info, please ask and I can go on…

What is your idea of a bottom-up approach to the Strategic plan?

A planning meeting / idea factory with 100-150 people with at least one representative from at least 80% of our locals coming to attend a four full days event of learning about AEGEE and defining their locals’ interest and involvement in our work in the next three years. The bottom-up approach is when you bring people together and give them the space to define what AEGEE means for them and where they can and want to contribute to the organisation.

Our current structure of learning and training, the strategic plan and action agenda resembles more the structure where a small part of the network is telling the rest of the network what they should do and the official procedures impose certain topics to be worked on, but do not give them the support (financial and human resources) to properly implement their obligations. The current structure is a result of 5-6 years of paying more attention to planning than our locals’ capacity and the actions we can actually realise. We can reverse this trend and get back to the roots when idea + action was dominating AEGEE’s work and not the official documents, reporting and paperwork.

You want to bring some pioneering actions back to AEGEE, such as study trips or more thematic conferences. How would you do that?

Case study trips brought theoretical work and online discussions to their action, by actually visiting the country and exploring its reality (not from a tourist perspective). Case study trips break down stereotypes and create educational materials for the future. Thematic conferences were supported by working groups and projects but essentially they were bringing benefit for the AEGEE locals as well. Thematic conferences were all over to discuss important issues in a more meaningful way than passive-aggressive Facebook comments.

I have one more! Mini Universities. Another thing from the past, Mini Unis offered a five day long crash-course with one topic explained from all perspectives. Combined with European School trainings on Project Management, projects have emerged with strong teams who knew a lot about the topic and also knew how to manage the project. How would I do it? Explaining the benefits of the thematic events on the local level and applying for funding from AEGEE-Europe for all of these in order to support the quality events of our locals and strengthen the brand of AEGEE also on the local level.

You want to help locals to organise more thematic activities with the help of projects and working groups. How would you envision this passage? Do you think the European level is connected enough with the local level?

The talks about bringing the European level closer to local level are endless. In my view it is all about the presentation and the crucially important simplification of the information towards our members. By naming all the internal bodies differently and creating different procedures around all of them, we have given them the false image of being something “better” than the local level. I would discuss our internal knowledge management with the rest of my team and start simplifying the structure of AEGEE to make knowledge as accessible and easy to understand as possible, both for locals and for members.  

You can find the questions from the readers here, her portfolio article here and read her full candidature here. 

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

When we ask AEGEEans to nominate someone who did something important during a specific month, we often received nominations with the same name from five/six people. We never experienced an overwhelming number of nominations like we did with the Member of the Month of March: 25 in total! All with the name Naira N. Pérez Rodriguez from AEGEE-Tenerife. She was the main organiser of the Spring Break event in her local and her devotion towards participants impressed them, but also us. Here you have her honest and brilliant interview!

The AEGEEan: Tell us something about yourself.

Naira: My name is Naira N. Pérez Rodríguez, I’m 22 years old and I studied Law at the University of La Laguna, a warming (but not warm) and lovely city. Now I’m preparing the public examinations for being a judge. I’m in love with the law and the legal world. I know it can sound freaky, but I enjoy studying and arguing about the regulation of our country. I’m in love with the Canary Islands, which I consider a paradise. I was born in La Palma, the beautiful island, the jewel of the Atlantic. I’m in love with the sea and I love to swim: a way to be connected with nature where I can think without interruptions. But, among all, I’m in love with travelling. My trips’ philosophy is that the world is too big for repeating destinations. That’s why I don’t visit the same place twice; except for Turkey, thanks to AEGEE-Ankara, since I fell in love with that country, so I have to go again. I’m in love with music, as a way to express myself. Despite that I have no time for it now. I played drums and violin, but now I compensate with partying. I love to dance, above all, Latin rhythms. As you can see, in general, I’m in love with everything. And really, I’m in love.

How, when and why did you join AEGEE-Tenerife?

My relationship with AEGEE-Tenerife began with the Summer University campaign. Yes, of course, I was captured thanks to it. It was my first year in university and I saw a poster that said “Do you want to enjoy the best summer of your life?” and who could say NO to that proposal? In 2012, my adventure in Europe began with a Summer University organised by AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca, AEGEE-Gliwice and AEGEE-Pilicsaba. However, despite that I got back with too much willingness to get active, I couldn’t do much until I got back from my second SU, organised by AEGEE-Ankara. Just a few months later, I became president of AEGEE-Tenerife and I’m in my second term now. As I always say, AEGEE has given me more than I can give back.

How does it feel to be elected member of the month?

I don’t know how to define it. I didn’t expect it (and it is not the typical sentence of the Oscar’s winners). One of the participants of our European event “Spring Break in the limit of Europe” told me that she had nominated me, but of course, I didn’t expect that more people had done it. I really appreciate this award, but even If I hadn’t received it, just the nominations make me feel proud. I feel how my work has been recognised and, it has been a stimulus to go ahead. The funniest thing is that I almost did not realize that I had been awarded, because the email went to the spam folder and I don’t look in that one usually. Luckily we are in the Summer University campaign and the intranet registration of new members go to that folder too, so I enter it every day.

One of the reasons of your nomination was the event in Tenerife. What was it about? And when?

“Spring Break in the Limit of Europe” was an European event focused on the sustainability and environmental conservation, taking advantage of the endemic peculiarities of Tenerife, one island with an unquestionable and infinite natural heritage. This event was created because one of the basic features of the islands and AEGEE-Tenerife: only a few of the members from this antenna are from Tenerife or they don’t stay on the island during summer. So if we couldn’t organise a Summer University, we had to show our beautiful island in other times of the year.

It took place from the 18th to 23th of March, enjoying the Easter holidays. During this event, participants and a marvelous, fantastic, awesome group of 11 organisers, went, on the same day, to the highest point of Spain (our volcano Teide) and to a beach, changing gloves for swimsuits. We went across the North part of the island by hitchhiking and finished in a butterfly museum. We enjoyed a water park and had lessons about conservation and empowerment of local and natural heritage. We had a debate about the future of Europe and met La Laguna, an university and World Heritage city, and the capital of the island, Santa Cruz de Tenerife. All of that with their suitable doses of traditional Canarian food and party.

People who nominated you said that you were very committed and you gave all for your participants. How important is for you this aspect when organising an event?

Besides a compact and punctual timetable, to assure that the participants are pleased and enjoying the activities, it is one of the most important aspects of organising every event, because happy participants means motivated organisers with the will to work more. This creates an atmosphere where, if something goes wrong, the event doesn’t get ruined. As all the people that have met me know, you are my “dear Europeans”, so for me the human component comes always first.

Did you passed the exam you had the days after the event?

It is a hard question. Actually no, but it is not something to get worried about. For my public examinations, I have oral exams every Monday and Thursday where I have to recite, every time, one of twelve possible lessons, so actually if I don’t pass it one day, I can repeat it the next day. The final exam will be later on. In that moment I’m supposed to not fail, wish me luck.

What are your future plans in AEGEE?

I would like to get active on the regional and European level, as well as participate in an Election Observation Missions. However, I will have to wait until I finish with my public examinations. In AEGEE-Tenerife, I want to organise non-formal education activities, for facilitating and encouraging the training of members and non-members. In addition, after one year fighting with the University, now we can open our new office.

Name one good thing and one bad thing in our association. 

In my opinion, the best of AEGEE is the opportunity of opening your mind, meeting new cultures and getting out of your comfort zone in every activity, event, etc. It is achieving a completely educated person, not only education wise, but personally too. A negative aspect is that (however, sometimes this is inevitable) is the favouristims and cronyism that can be observed in the assignment of particular positions, without keeping in mind the training and background of people. I think that, as a democratic association, we should decrease the non elective positions.

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

NIMBLE: my mind is always hatching something.

ACTIVE: I can’t stay at home. I always need to have something in my “to do” list.

IDEALISTIC: Ideas move the world and I want to move it.

ROMANTIC: I really love to love, despite maybe I’m not the best loving.

AUTO-DIDACTIC: something totally required in AEGEE.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona

The closing of Agora Asturias 2015 brought the newly elected Comite Directeur with it, composed of seven people who will begin their mandate on the 1st of July: President Aleksandra Kluczka (AEGEE-Kraków), Secretary General Svenja van der Tol (AEGEE-Nijmegen), Financial Director Ander Guerrero Ruiz (AEGEE-Zaragoza),  and as Member of Comité Directeur: Anna Gumbau (AEGEE-Barcelona), Pablo Hernández Rodríguez (AEGEE-Thessaloniki/Alicante) and Réka Salamon (AEGEE-Aachen). In this article you will find out a few personal details about them and also about their program plan for AEGEE.

  President: Aleksandra Kluczka (AEGEE Krakow), 24 years old, describes herself as “an experienced passionate of youth work and AEGEE in particular, willing to unleash AEGEE’s potential together with the team and the Network”

She has been a member of AEGEE since 2009, the organization that empowered her through every passing experience. Her ascent in AEGEE went on as she joined nine Agorae and three EBMs/EPMs, advanced from being a CD assistant to being the current Vice-President & External Relations Director of AEGEE Europe. She was also the Vice – President and Fundraising Board Member of AEGEE-Krakow.

Aleksandra expresses her plans in the Candidates Booklet: “I decided to run for the position of President of AEGEE-Europe and devote one more year of my life to AEGEE, in order to ensure the development and continuity for the organisation. I have a vision for the organisation that I would like to offer to the members and develop it together with the elected team. I observed that one year of CD term is relatively short, as you do not always see the results of the processes that you start. I am running for this position, as I want to have a feeling of a fulfilled mission and that I did everything I possibly could to improve AEGEE, before I leave it.”

Secretary General: Svenja van der Tol (AEGEE-Nijmegen), 22 years old,  who describes herself as „a happy, optimistic, honest fluff puff” girl full of energy who loves rainbow unicorns, talking, eating, laughing and travels.

She has been a member of AEGEE since 2012, the organization which has changed her life a lot in many positive ways.

The most relevant experience which recommended her for Secretary General was the practice she gained as Secretary of AEGEE-Nijmegen (2012-2013), member of the Advisory Board (2013-2015), being a Chair of the Internal Formal Committee and being in the Chairteam of AEGEE Europe. Currently, Svenja is the Secretary of the Agora/EPM, a member of the Advisory Board and also a journalist and Proofreader at The AEGEEan. One of the most important aspects on which Svenja wants to focus during her term is the communication, not only among the CD, but also in the Network.

  Financial Director: Ander Guerrero Ruiz (AEGEE-Zaragoza), 24 years old, who describes himself as “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.”.

The experience of AEGEE, after joining in 2012, taught him that there is always an opportunity for everything, you just have to look for it.

The experience Ander gained as an AEGEEan, being the Treasurer for three Erasmus Trips in 2012 and 2014, member of the Core-Team for Autumn AGORA Zaragoza 2013 and Corporate Fundraiser, recommended him for the job. Also, he is currently the CDs’ Fundraising-assistant and President of AEGEE-Zaragoza.

Asked by The AEGEEan about his plans for AEGEE Ander replied: “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.”

Member of Comité Directeur: Anna Gumbau (AEGEE-Barcelona), 22 years old, who describes herself as “someone caring, idealistic, a good listener, extremely clumsy, and enthusiastic”.

AEGEE made her feel like home since 2011 and, according to her candidature, she wants to give back to AEGEE all that has been given to her.  She was Editor-in-chief at The AEGEEan (2013-2014), a CD-assistant, Vice-President of AEGEE-Barcelona and responsible for Human Resources (2013/14, 2014/present).  Her focus lies on communication and motivation of the members.

In the interview for the candidates, Anna declared: “in terms of internal communication, I want to strive for transparency and to ensure that our members are well-informed what these seven people in the CD are doing in Brussels, as well as to strengthen the dialogue with our members and locals.”

Member of Comité Directeur: Pablo Hernández (AEGEE-Alicante/AEGEE-Thessaloniki), 24 years old, considers himself as “another European citizen who wants to actively contribute to the development of our society and the defense of youth rights.”

After joining AEGEE in 2010, his evolution began quickly: from being the Secretary of AEGEE-Alicante (2011-2012) he became President the next year and in 2014, he moved to Thessaloniki and became a Member of the Advisory Board of AEGEE-Thessaloniki. He has been a Policy Officer since 2013.

In the interview for the Candidates taken by The AEGEEan, Pablo speaks about his programm: “In my candidature I have tried to transversely show three different aspects: First, I am confident about my knowledge, abilities, experience and motivation to assume the responsibilities linked to the position I am applying to. Second, as I exposed in my programme, I have ideas to improve the current organisation of this association in order to maximise our impact.” 

 Member of Comité Directeur: Réka Salamon (AEGEE-Aachen/AEGEE-Debrecen), 24 years old, defines herself as a meticulous and perfectionist person who “became the right balance of realistic-idealist over the years”

After joining AEGEE in 2011 she became the Coordinator of the ‘Europe on Track’ project 1st and 2nd edition, joined the Public Relations Committees’ Speaker Team (2012-2014) and she has been a CD-assistant three times.

She reveals her thoughts for The AEGEEan on being a CD Member: “The main role is to keep an overview of a hopefully ascending line of improvement on a certain field the CD member is responsible for.

Being one of the ‘directors’ means a constant load of intertwined tasks, from developing strategies to being in constant contact with the network and answer its needs. No matter how different things could seem in the Brussels bubble, the CD members always have to act representing the network’s opinion and keeping its best interests in mind.”

We were able to ask two questions to the elected members of the CD:

How do you feel about your new team? 

Maria Arends resigned from her position in June. After launching several Open Call, the newly elected Comité Directeur and the current one appointed Maryana Semenyak (AEGEE-Lviv) as interim member of the Comité Directeur.

 Written by Gabriela Cioată, AEGEE-București

Aleksandra Kluczka, but you can also call her Ola, is the Current Vice President & External Relations Director of AEGEE-Europe, originally from AEGEE-Kraków. 24-year old youth activist, with a passion for Europe, civic participation and gender equality, Aleksandra aims to empower the Association and to unleash the potential in its members. She is the sole candidate for President of AEGEE-Europe and, if elected, she will be the first female president since Agata Pateka (2009-2010).

The AEGEEan: You have already spent one year in Comité Directeur (CD).Why did you decided to run for another term? And why president?

Aleksandra: Once you join the CD, you realise than one year is a very short period of time. For the first months you learn the job, get expertise in certain fields, develop relations with partners and contacts. You plan and start many initiatives that you might not have the chance to see results of yet. I am still very motivated and passionate about AEGEE, and I have plenty of ideas on how to develop it. As I have mentioned in my candidature, I decided to run for the position of President of AEGEE-Europe and devote one more year of my life to AEGEE, in order to ensure the development and continuity for the organisation. I have a vision for the organisation that I would like to offer to the members and develop it together with the elected team. After one term in the CD I believe I have all the means, knowledge and preparation to take the full responsibility for and leadership of the organisation. I am running for this position, as I want to have a feeling of a fulfilled mission and that I did everything I possibly could to improve AEGEE, before I leave it.

You stated several time that you have a clear vision of AEGEE, what it is?

Since I do not want to repeat what I wrote in my candidature, I will be brief. It is balancing the external impact of the organisation with very strong internal development and education. It is deriving inspiration from the ambitious beginnings of the organisation, while adapting to the current European challenges and keeping in mind the reality and capacity of the Network. AEGEE of my dreams is an organisation with strong human resources and learning opportunities, empowering its members through various means, building dialogue and understanding between European youth through intercultural exchange. A driving pro-European youth stakeholder, with a more defined vision for Europe, strong in thematics, policy and  advocacy work, with members involved in decision-making processes. Being a true forum for discussion, where new ideas are born and challenges European youth is facing are addressed. Financially sustainable, with diverse sources of funding, being able to have a bigger secretariat. Step by step we are closer to such vision and I want to keep driving AEGEE gradually to achieving that goal.

How do you plan to improve and strengthen the tematic part of the association?

Speaking about current developments, I truly hope that the proposal on Working Group Reform will be accepted by the Agora. I do believe this change can be a milestone for our thematic and policy work, each of the new WGs being a motor for our work in each of the focus areas of the Strategic Plan. I am also looking forward to the discussion with the Network on the future of the EPM during this Agora. I intend to continue promoting and raising awareness about how to organise AEGEE-Europe activities. I do believe we should have more thematic conferences of AEGEE-Europe devoted to a particular topic (European affairs, civic participation, SP focus areas), more than just an annual one during EPM. The 30th anniversary conferences can be seen as a step in such direction. I also believe we should have more cyclical projects. It is important that the initiative of new AEGEE-Europe projects comes from the Network, but the CD should also be proactive in starting such. Strengthening the thematic part of the organisation cannot also happen without strengthening the project management and training project and content managers. This can happen through organising ES2s, development of project management toolkits, sharing best practices and knowledge transfers between project teams, etc.

What do you think is the most important thing to take into consideration when speaking about forum of discussion? and which part of the current communication channels should be implemented?

We need to work on our organisational culture, as forum for discussion was probably the most neglected means of our organisation. The most important thing is to work on engagement of a larger amount of our members in the live and online discussions, both on internal organisational matters, but also on the current European matters, our focus areas and other topics relevant for AEGEE. Encouraging active involvement of members in discussions is what AEGEE should be about, having a bottom-up approach to the activities of the organisation. This is the place where ideas are born and exchanged, stereotypes are broken and dialogue is built. Having 13 000 members, AEGEE can still greatly develop its potential to become the forum for discussion for European youth.

While speaking about communication channels in this context, we can distinguish between live and online means. We should keep working on having more space for quality discussions during our statutory events and to make sure we make use of the opportunity of gathering even 1000 Europeans in one place. Having more high quality content events also will contribute to developing AEGEE as a forum for discussion. Regarding online channels, I want to continue the popularisation and improvement of the Forum, which should be our main online discussion space. It is important to continue informing members how to make better use of Members Portal, which should be the main means for sharing information in the organisation. Also, better usage of liquid democracy tools could be a step in the direction of more digital democracy in the organisation.

Internal development of the Network and External visibility with relevant stakeholders… What is the most important action to do in this moment?

It is interesting how you correlated the two fields together. They are more interdependent that one might think. If we want to be credible with our external work, we need to bridge the gap between what we sometimes claim AEGEE is, and our reality. Regarding internal development, I do believe that strengthening our human resources is the most crucial action. A good step in that direction can be the Strategy for Learning and Training, that will be presented to the Agora in the next days. Regarding our external visibility, I would not mention one particular action. We should definitely continue and expand  AEGEE’s position as a strong youth stakeholder among European Civil Society. We should also empower our local members and give them the tools to be able to be more engaged in external work in their communities.

How do you plan to lead and manage your upcoming team to make sure to achieve the best from each of them and lead AEGEE?

Indeed, my first and utmost goal will be to develop a strong and healthy team, based on trust, respect and cooperation. The first step will be to organise a solid team-building with the presence of an experienced trainer, in order to learn the ways how each of the team members functions, what are the needs, expectations, motivations and visions for the organisation of every single person in the team. Based on this you can start moving from being a group of people into becoming a true team. I intend to develop a common vision and activity plan for the organisation together with the whole team, making sure that everyone can work on some issues that drive them and motivate them in the work of the organisation, and put their dreams for the organisation into practice. I want to support other team members in their development, their work, their struggles, and create an environment that lets their potential boost. Team should be always a priority for me, making sure that even in busy periods we will find time for listening to each other. As I mentioned in my application, a strong, trustworthy and simply happy team, where team members can fulfil their needs and work on interesting them fields, is a basis to be able to fully focus on the development of AEGEE, contribute to its processes and empower the members. I truly believe in the power of teamwork, if you have it, there is no challenge that cannot be addressed and embraced.

May you, please, point out the most relevant aspects of your candidature?

As far as my personal traits are concerned, I would mention: experience, knowledge, skills, motivation, strength, readiness, continuity, new ideas, vision, team-oriented, determination.  Regarding my programme, in a nutshell: the team, developing our vision for Europe, focus on human resources and learning opportunities, emphasis on Strategic Plan, strong thematic, policy and advocacy work, forum for discussion, active citizenship, sustainability of the organisation.

Describe yourself and your candidature in one sentence.

An experienced passionate of youth work and AEGEE in particular, willing to unleash AEGEE’s potential together with the team and the Network.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia