progress meetings – The AEGEEan – AEGEE's online magazine – AEGEE-Europe

Workshop and Progress Meeting VII: Summer University’s Upgrade, Visual Identity Manual, EUth, the Network and Fundraising!

Dariia Kogut — Sat, 14 May 2016 14:04:11 +0000

There are only a few days left until Spring Agora Bergamo 2016 kicks off and welcomes over 1000 delegates from all around Europe. Also summer is coming, Summer Universities, the most awesome AEGEEan events, are starting, so we need to be prepared and fully armed. We are presenting you workshops and Progress Meetings that are designed to help you with that. This block of Agora’s agenda includes two workshops – “Upgrade Your Summer University!” and “Fundraising starts with FUN!”; four Progress Meetings – “Visual Identity Manual 2.0: the Heck is Dis?”, “EUth”, “Facing the Challenges of Strengthening the Network”, “AEGEE Taking Collective Action”. So on May 21st, from 15:15 to 16:45 we are going to become more skillful and upgrade our readiness to take some serious action. Details, dear curious reader, can be found below.

Upgrade Your Summer University!

Réka Salamon (Comité Directeur), and the Summer University Coordination Team (SUCT) will be our hosts for this workshop, which will take place in the venue of the Plenary.

Make this summer count by creating the best experiences for SU participants with AEGEE! Learn best case practices on project management, branding, attracting and retaining talent, customer service and making fun memorable moments for your team and yourself. Also let’s not forget about next year’s SU competition. Are you ambitious enough to become a winner? Than prepapre yourself, we have some secret weapons to share with you during this session. We are here to help you, come and join us to plan the Summer of your life and the Summer of the lives of your beloved future participants.

Visual Identity Manual 2.0: the Heck is Dis?

Gerardo Garcia Diaz and Mayri Tiido (Public Relations Committee) will host this Progress Meeting, which will be held in the “Caravaggio” room.

Do you plan to become a PR guru in the future? We’re talking here about the brand and its visual identity. You have such an incredible chance to influence an international strong brand as AEGEE. Currently the Public Relations Committee (PRC) is working on renewing the Visual Ientity of the organisation, that will define how our organisation is seen by externals. And the PRC needs your inputs and suggestions here. So if you haven’t checked the Visual Identity Manual we would like to encourage you to do it now. The Visual Identity Manual (VIM) 2.0 has been developed in order to make things easier, clearer and more understandable. Are you up to make an impact on the Visual Identity of AEGEE? We’re waiting for your pitches!

EUth

Andrea Ferrara (AEGEE-Europe) will host this Progress Meeting, which will be held in the “S.Agostino” room.

The EUth Project is a great tool to improve the communication within our huge network,. The project started in March 2015. Now the pilot platform is up and running on www.opin.me. The aim of the project “EUth – Tools and Tips for Mobile and Digital Youth Participation in and across Europe” is to get more young people involved in political decision making and increase their trust in European political institutions.

Many things have been done already but more are to come. What is already available? What are the problems encountered so far? And what are the next steps? Come to the Progress Meeting and get to know all the details first hand. Also do not forget to like the project on Facebook and follow it on Twitter. Stay tuned!

Facing the Challenges of Strengthening the Network

The Progress Meeting will be hosted by the Network Commission and Comité Directeur and will take place in the “S.Giacomo” room.

This meeting is all about the current state of our Network: where are we? where do we want to be? what are the challenges? what is the impact that we’re making? During this session we’re also going to explore the contribution of each single member for strengthening the Network. Join to get to know best case practices to shape our organisation, suggest your ideas and solutions. Lets create the Network together!

AEGEE Taking Collective Action

Aleksandra Kluczka (Comité Directeur) will host this Progress Meeting, which will be held in the “S.Lorenzo” room.

AEGEE represents European youth. We’re already a network of 13 000 talented individuals presented in 200 cities, in 40 countries all over Europe. Each day we’re working on different projects and initiatives, we share a common vision, mission and values in pursuit for a democratic, diverse and border-less Europe. Is our voice loud enough? Do we live at our full potential? Or we can do more to make a really big difference in the world? Come and share your ideas on how our collective action can respond to European developments. We also prepared something special for you – a system for online representation of your local’s opinion. Join us to get to know more!

Fundraising Starts with FUN!

Ander Guerrero Ruiz (Comité Directeur), and the Corporate and Institutional Relations Committee is hosting this workshop, which will be held in the “S.Alessandro” room.

Do you want to feel like a real “Wolf of Wall Street”? Do you want your project to get funded? Do you want to be skilled in negotiating with high profile corporate decision makers? Can you “sell me this pen”? A hardcore fundraising workshop is waiting for you to join and the new team of the Corporate and Institutional Relations Committee (CIRC) is excited to meet you. Sales are curtail in today’s reality, whether you’re selling your experience to get a dream job or the project you’re working on in AEGEE. So it is your opportunity to learn and become a real fundraising expert!

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

Written by Dariia Kogut, AEGEE-Kyiv

Workshops and Progress Meeting VI: LGBTQ Rights and My AEGEE Development

Mattia Abis — Sat, 14 May 2016 12:02:27 +0000

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

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

LGBTQ topics in Europe: what can we do?

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

My AEGEE development & White Paper in IT service

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

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

Written by Mattia Abis, AEGEE-Cagliari

Workshop and Progress Meeting V: Becoming More Intercultural, EU Jobs and Ideas Factory!

Dariia Kogut — Sat, 14 May 2016 10:00:01 +0000

Soon Spring Agora Bergamo will start, where twelve Progress Meetings (PM) will be held. Workshops are a valuable and fruitful part of the Agora, and they are being prepared by several commissions and projects.

During the third day of the Agora, there will be workshops on being intercultural “More intercultural! Your participants can learn even more!” and careers “EU Careers”. This sessions will take place at 15:45 and 17:45. Also during this time slot, on 20th of May, will take place the Progress Meeting “AEGEE Idea Factory: the next big thing!”.

More Intercultural! Your Participants can Learn Even More!

Jorge Miguel Vielva, Civic Education Working Group, is the moderator of this workshop which will be on the 21st of May, starting from 15.45 in the “S.Giacomo” room.

One of AEGEE’s main ideas is intercultural exchange. The organisation creates a space for members of different backgrounds to meet and learn about cultural differences, in order to foster mutual understanding, to break stereotypes and strengthen tolerance, show respect and solidarity. This is possible to achieve with the help of Summer Universities and other AEGEE events. The topic might seem easy, but given today’s reality it is very complex and crucial. During the workshop the participants will dive into the intercultural communication theories and reflection exercises. This will help to embrace differences, diversity on a deeper level and truly understand other’s and your own culture. You might learn not only how to say “Hello” in any language, but also how to co-live peacefully in this dynamic and fast changing world with people from all around the globe.

EU Careers

Do you dream of getting a fulfilling job and build a truly great career in the EU? You don’t know where to start and how to make it happen? Than this workshop is exactly what you need.

The EU Institutions employ 40,000 people from a wide variety of cultural, educational, and professional backgrounds who are united by their passion for Europe. Candidates with AEGEE experience in their CV look like a good fit for this kind of job. So during this workshop you’ll learn everything about jobs in the EU Institutions and how to get one. Some tips and tricks are waiting you. Join us in the “S.Lorenzo” room to know more!

AEGEE Idea Factory: the Next Big Thing!

Réka Salamon (Comité Directeur), Paul Smits (Civic Education Working Group), and Maarten de Groot (AEGEE-Amsterdam) will host this exciting Progress Meeting.

Where will our organisation be between 2017-2020? What are we aiming and working for? We come together for the AEGEE Idea Factory every 3 years in order to define a direction for AEGEE as a whole. And global change always starts on local level. During this meeting we will down-scale the AEGEE grand vision to your local scale. Everything starts with the idea, come to the “S.Alessandro” room to learn how your idea can shape the society in Europe and maybe the world. Make it happen with AEGEE! We will give you the knowledge of instruments and tools. So what is the next big thing? History is happening now!

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

Written by Dariia Kogut, AEGEE-Kyiv

Workshops and Progress Meeting I: Agora, DPPS, Italian Language and a New Head Office

Erika Bettin — Thu, 12 May 2016 10:45:47 +0000

Agora is not just about candidates and proposals, but it’s a place where members of AEGEE can share also their knowledge in different fields and they are discussing the progresses on certain topics, such as Agora or Network Development. Overall, during Spring Agora Bergamo there will be 14 workshops and 12 Progress Meetings. You can check the agenda to see when they will be delivered or the thematic booklet to see the topics. Today we are going to present you all the workshops and progress meetings you can attend on the second day of the Agora, the 19th of May, from 11.45 to 12.45.

Agora for Newbies is hold by the Chair Team and the Comité Directeur, a session tailored to the needs of who is at his/her first Agora and wants more explanations and clarification on our statutory event. For who has already attended an Agora and s/he now a delegate, the Chair Team and members of the Agora Reform Task Force will hold the workshop Dark Agora Army: Agora for Experts. This workshop is targeted for members of the Agora who want to deepen their knowledge on the statutory and want to live it to the fullest. The goals of this workshop is to have members to comprehend the real powers of the delegates, to understand the procedural rules of the legislative mechanism of AEGEE-Europe, to know how to propose motions which cannot be denied by the Juridical Commission, to argument yourself upon hidden CIA legal exceptions and, to ask uncomfortable questions.

As we should all know by now, Agora will be in Italy where the official language is Italian. This language is one of the most studied abroad and definitely one of the most loved. Luca Ciucci from AEGEE- Pisa and member of the Language Interest Group will deliver the workshop called The history of the Italian language: a European perspective. In this workshop, Luca will give you an overview of the Italian language, in order to understand the differences built through century of history that resulted in how Italians see themselves and how they perceive their position towards Europe.

Despite approved in Agora Patra, very few are aware of what Data privacy policy statement is, and how it will work. That’s why Atanas Nachkov, AEGEE-Sofia, and Lisette Kunst, Mediation Commission and AEGEE-Groningen, will hold the workshop MedCom Data Privacy Policy. The aim is to clarify and explain the adopted protections and limitations as well as the related procedural matters. According to the holders, after this workshop, you will learn what is the current progress of the data privacy of AEGEE-Europe and what is to come, what kind of information AEGEE-Europe collects from you and your Local, what kind of limitations apply, why the elected people must sign NDA and what it legally means, what the OMS is, how to get anonymous statistics and what kind of requests can be done to the Mediation Commission.

It’s not a mystery that our Statutory Event has some hidden potentials which are not fully used. From Autumn Agora Kyiv, a task force have been working on this to implement it and in the progress meeting Agora Reform, held by Svenja van der Tol, Secretary General of AEGEE-Europe, and Agora Reform Task Force, these new ideas will be shared. For more than two decades, we’ve spent money on the house rent, money that could be used for other projects and for members. At least what Ander Guerrero Ruiz, Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe, thinks and, for this reason, he will hold the progress meeting AEGEE HQ: looking for the next 30 years. In this progress meeting, he wants to explore, with inputs from the Network, the possibility of a long term financial strategy to buy a house for the association.

You can download the blookets here (login required).

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona