Réka Salamon is a 23 years old girl from Debrecen.  Hungarian by nationality (her first local was AEGEE-Debrecen), German by adoption (she moved in Cologne and she joined AEGEE-Aachen), she is running for the position of President of AEGEE-Europe. If elected, she is going to be the first female President since Agata Pateka from AEGEE- Poznań (2009-2010). She is currently doing the internship for President candidates in the CD house and she is the Content Coordinator of the Europe on Track 2 project of AEGEE-Europe, as she was for the first edition. She joined AEGEE in april 2011 and since then she was engaged in a lot of local activities, being PR responsible and Vice president of AEGEE-Debrecen, and European level too. She currently is: Speaker of the Public Relations Committee, Quality Assurance Responsible of the Quality Assurance Committee and member of the Y Vote 2014 Communication Team.

The AEGEEan: What do you think your main task as the president would be?

Réka: Form a strong team with the CD in Brussels, so we can trust and rely on each other and so all of us can do their best for AEGEE. Working in the headoffice is difficult, the pressure, the workload and “locked together” for a whole year – it has turned out to be an unpleasant experience for many people. The president needs to listen and understand the needs of the team and support them when they need a good motivation to continue.
Another part of my job would be the representation of the association externally – but this cannot happen without maintaining a close link to the Network and being able to really represent young Europeans’ opinion on a daily basis. I have gathered extensive knowledge on the working mechanism of the European institutions during my university years so lobbying for the best interest of AEGEE is a challenge I am going to enjoy.

The AEGEEan: If you are going to be elected as president of AEGEE-Europe, what will be the first thing you are going to do?

Réka: I will go directly to the beach and run into the sea – taking all my friends with me. The same thing will happen if I don’t get elected.

The AEGEEan: What is leadership for you?

Réka: Being a leader is being the inspiration and driving force for the people around you. Coming up with new ideas, motivating your team members and working for the common vision you want to achieve together. Listen to them, understand their reality and support them when needed. Being part of the Comité Directeur – being one of the leaders in AEGEE – is being the guide for the entire association and the strong backbone of the work we are doing to achieve the goals we are setting for ourselves. Always aiming higher, making Europe a better place, little by little.

The AEGEEan: How would you briefly describe in one sentence the current situation of AEGEE, regarding internal structures and activities?

Réka: Decentralised synergy

The AEGEEan: What would you do differently than your predecessor, Luis?

Réka: I have always admired and respected the reckless drive Luis has been moving AEGEE forward and this transformation into a more professional and a more influential AEGEE on the political sphere has been something our founders had dreamt of and a step forward that has been much needed. However, I believe it is time for us to slow down a little regarding the processes in Brussels and let the Network catch up with all the changes on the European level. With a network as wide and diverse as ours, it takes a little more time.

The AEGEEan: Is AEGEE really working well enough at all levels in your opinion?

Réka: AEGEE is working well and I do think our Network is not even aware of the real potential and impact it can have on the European and on the global field. We have some imperfections to fix but with open dialogue and communication we can always aim higher fuelled by our relentless idealism, yet maintain a realistic approach towards our mistakes and do better next time!

The AEGEEan: We speak a lot about the gap between the EU and the locals. What do you think we need to do to fill it?

Réka: We need to strengthen the Network Commission. Their mediator role between these levels is of immense value. The NetCom needs AEGEE-Europe’s support to keep a better overview of the activities, needs and strengths of the locals and to aid the cooperation between European level and local level. Active communication is the key and we cannot rely only on our mailing lists to keep the information channel alive. More network meetings, more live meeting for projects are needed and I would also invest in a new form of training in AEGEE: training for netcommies and for presidents of AEGEE locals.

The AEGEEan: Do you have a strategy about convincing locals to cooperate with other NGOs?

Réka: It is known that I am a strong supporter of local NGO cooperation from the very beginning of my AEGEE life when  co-organised a huge local conference in cooperation with ESN, AIESEC and the local Student Union. We represent the same and similar opinion when it comes to the idea of Europe and our call for the active and aware European citizens of tomorrow can only be amplified if we join forces (and finances). Through examples like this I would try to highlight the benefits of these kinds of cooperations and offer the help of AEGEE-Europe with establishing the dialogue on the local level.

The AEGEEan: How will you make the cooperation with the AEGEE-Academy better? How will you make it strong?

Réka. The Academy holds one of the greatest potentials in strengthening AEGEE’s role as a platform that provides quality education for its members so they can obtain skills and competences they will need in their later life. A strategic meeting needs to be organised with the Academy to develop AEGEE’s training calendar together and also to involve the respective european level bodies (PRC, HRC etc.) to ensure the events uphold to the learning objectives and the participants will both enjoy and learn a lot during the event. At the moment, as the speaker of PRC, I am working on the next PR European School together with the Academy and I hope this event to set an example for the future successful cooperation between an AEGEE body and AEGEE’s trainers.

The AEGEEan: Do you have any strategy to make our voluntary work recognized by the institutions/universities?

Réka: The current CD has already started this process so my contribution is to develop the idea and reach the set objectives. I think I speak for many of us when I say I have learnt more during my 3 years in AEGEE than during 5 years at the university and we have to make this experience count also externally. The implementation of the system of recognising the value of non-formal education in AEGEE is a complex process which should first start with the precise impact measurement and the evaluation of the competences we are gaining through our work, what are the skills that we are developing and how can we measure this development for each member.

Providing our members with certification about the skills developed, making our projects internationally known and ideally, providing the external world with the standard portfolio of an AEGEE member and the skills we are developing are only a few ideas that can help us in ensuring the external world (including our future employers) are aware that the knowledge we gained through this voluntary experience actually – in some cases – is worth more than our degree from the university.

The AEGEEan. Do you think we need to focus on the enlargement of focus on the enforcement?

Réka: With a thorough strategy and preparation, both processes can be maintained. My idea of enforcement is to invest more in the development of the entire Network (without the constraints of the European continent) and even if geographically there are borders on the map, AEGEE’s reality is being a pan-European and transcontinental youth organisation which is an attribute we should all be proud of and a Network we should develop to reach its full potential to have a real impact not only in Europe but also in the global discussions.

The AEGEEan: How will you be lobbying for youth rights?

Réka: When decisions are taken on such a high platform like the so-called Euro-bubble in Brussels, it is always a matter of knowledge and research, who are the key figures and where are those phases in the legislative process where you can let your voice be heard. For instance, during the drafting of the new Multiannual Financial Framework of the European Commission, the lobby work of AEGEE, the European Youth Forum etc. played a key role in including a separate chapter for the institutional financial support of youth organisations and that wide-scale initiatives like the new Erasmus+ programme recognises and supports the youth as one of the core elements in the development. Former and current CD members were, are and will continue to be there to put pressure on the institutions, to ask questions concerning the inclusion of young people in the decision-making processes and to win over politicians to support our cause by showing the reality of our work: we care about Europe and we are the next generation of future leaders, therefore our opinion matters and should be taken seriously.

The AEGEEan: What are your strengths and what are your weaknesses?

Réka: I am a creative person. My visionary state of mind allows me to think outside the box, to keep calm and solve problems without panicking and to be a crazy workaholic when it comes to turning my vision into reality. On the other hand I am a pragmatic thinker, which means I don’t get too carried away and set ambitious but realistic goals for myself. I am a maximalist, which is only a weakness when you are the last one leaving the office because you cannot leave the work undone and imperfect. Consequently I usually lack sleep. Also, honesty is my core element. You decide whether it’s a strength or a weakness.

The AEGEEan: Léa made her intention of running for presidency a long time ago. Paul came out a little bit as a surprise. What do you think about your fellow competitors?

Réka: I have had the chance to work with both of my fellow candidates and even though we do not know each other perfectly, I truly value their work and the characters I got to know. These days I am mostly focusing on my own projects and the Agora preparations so I only wish them the best of luck on stage and I hope all of us see the challenge ahead as a transformative and lifelong learning experience – at least this is the way how I feel about the elections.

The AEGEEan. Why do you think people must vote for you? What are your plans if you are elected as president?

Réka: I have joined AEGEE exactly 3 years ago with the plan that I want to explore the full potential of this organisation, reinforce its presence as one of the most influential student organisations in Europe, while not losing our identity as a network of young activists, explorers and educators. If elected as president of AEGEE-Europe, I am going to continue my work on balancing our external impact and strengthening the bond of our Network.

Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia

Jakub Oleksy has been in AEGEE for many years and, he started his AEGEE journey with Network Meeting Lublin and has recently organized EBM Lublin, and he still continues being motivated. This is why he wants to join Juridical Commission (JC). It is something he has wanted to do for years, so his candidature for JC, which he will present at Spring Agora Patra, can bring him one step closer to fulfilling his dream.

The AEGEEan: Can you tell us a bit about yourself? What do you do you for a living? How old are you? Where are you from?

Jakub: I am Kuba, I am 23 years old and I have been a member of AEGEE–Lublin since October 6th 2010. I am at my fourth year of Law, which is my passion. Since I was seven I knew what I wanted to become in the future. I study in Lublin and come from Silesia, the area close to Katowice. Law and motorization (mainly Formula One) are my two passions. I also love travelling and my greatest dream is to visit Switzerland and the United Arab Emirates. While being there, I would love to watch the F1 race in Abu Dhabi.

The AEGEEan:  How did you learn about AEGEE?

Jakub: Since 2010 I have had many occasions and possibilities to learn what AEGEE is. I could enumerate many of them but I mainly learned from other members of AEGEE who had belonged to the organization for a longer time. The first person I learned a lot from was the coordinator of the Network Meeting in Lublin – Olga Targońska. For three years I have participated in many projects and events and I met a lot of very positive people. Thank to them I am in AEGEE now and I applied for the Juridical Commission (JC) member.

One more opportunity for me to learn about AEGEE was the Key to Europe, Members Manual and of course Corpus Iuridicum Aegeeanse (CiA). I gained a lot of information about the organization while being an organizer of various projects and participating in different working groups. Here, I learned more about how the organization works, teambuilding, gaining funds and many other aspects.

The AEGEEan: You have organized many different events, recently the EBM in Lublin, and have been part of Agora Zaragoza. How does this prepare you for the Juridical Commission?

Jakub: Organizing various projects is very useful for a JC member. Maybe it is not very obvious at first sight, but the JC is a commission which members should be responsible, keep up with the deadlines, correctly analyze current and future situations, have well-developed skills of time and self-management and be stress-resistant. It is impossible to learn those skills while only being a student and not being an active member of any organization or any social life unit. Being part of several projects within the organization is very helpful for developing those abilities.

The AEGEEan: Usually many see it as an advantage to know French when being part of the JC. Do you consider it an obstacle that you do not have a high level of French yet?

 Jakub: English and French are the official languages of the European Students’ Forum, however the English language is used during official meetings, for presentations and motions. Of course, a good knowledge of French would be a considerable advantage, however a basic knowledge and learning more seems to be a good choice as well. It proves your willingness to develop and gain new skills every day. The JC should cooperate with the Comité Directeur and other commissions, and also with the Language Working Group (LWG) who have many active members.

The AEGEEan: Will you ensure that you can go to the statutory events in case you are elected for the JC?

Jakub: If I become an official member of the JC, I can guarantee my participation in statutory events. For me it’s obvious that being a  JC member requires responsibility, high motivation and confidence for one’s right decisions. The JC is one of the most responsible commissions, if not the most important (without diminishing the value of other commissions). I would like to emphasize the fact that its members are obliged to participate in the organization’s statutory events, as they supervise the running of the meetings and all the procedures, and they monitor if the provisions of the European and country’s laws are respected, together with the internal legal laws, such as Corpus Iuridicum Aegeeanse.

The AEGEEan: You have been in AEGEE for many years, what keeps you motivated?

Jakub: Since 2010, when I joined AEGEE, I have not had any decrease of my level of motivation. My first project was Network Meeting in Lublin and thanks to this event I applied for the position of JC member – the commission on the European level. Being a board member of AEGEE-Lublin, taking part in many projects, events such as Network Meetings and Agorae, and coordinating the EBM Lublin are the best examples of my high motivation for so many years. After the EBM Lublin I have even more motivation, especially for being active on the European level. Would I apply for the JC member if I was not motivated enough?

The AEGEEan: What difference do you believe it makes that you have not been a JC subcommissioner?

Jakub: In 2011 I applied for the position of JC subcommissioner. At that time, according to the JC, I was not an appropriate candidate. However, now, in 2014, after over three years of my active participation in the organization, it is the right time to go for a higher level and that is why I applied for the position of JC member. Not having been chosen for the JC subcommissioner does not seem to me as an obstacle to become a JC member. I talked to experienced members on the European level connected to the JC, I watched the work of the JC during the Agora, as well as my knowledge of CIA – that all made me decide to apply for the position of JC member.

The AEGEEan: You have many things that are part of your program for the JC and are very ambitious, how will you ensure that you can realize all of it?

Jakub: In my opinion, the points in my program are feasible and possible to be put in practice. I think they are ambitious. Also important are my good will, motivation and good argumentation, so that each point from my program can be realized. I do not want to cover every point here as the answer would take a long time – even the whole interview. But a short example: 1) proposals for amendments to CIA in different languages – a simple solution – a cooperation with LWG and the translation of the proposals – that would be an easy thing to do (the JC – legal knowledge, LWG – linguistic knowledge). Yet another example – the actualization of CIA in one month. In this case it is enough to take a look at the voting results, final decisions or particular proposals to be approved and then putting them into practice in CIA.

The AEGEEan: What do you find most important of your program?

Jakub: The crucial points of my program are to verify that antennae’s statutes are consistent and agree with the CIA (Corpus Iuridicum Aegeense), a diligent observation of the legal documents of generally and internally applicable provision, legal support of AEGEE in contact with other non-governmental organizations and institutions and creating a working format for the Juridical Commission.

The AEGEEan: How would you like to bring the JC closer to the Network?

Jakub: This is a very good question. I observed that the JC is a commission of a vital importance to AEGEE and, therefore, it should be more appreciated and make its works more visible to the organization members. That is why my program also covers points like a bigger activeness on Facebook, promoting the law and the commission, the Juridical Commission European School and a CIA for dummies (maybe some feel discouraged and do not understand everything, especially legal aspects). My other proposal is to organize online meetings with the purpose to explain different aspects of CIA, legal situations and different interesting legal aspects.

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-Zaragoza

Member of the Month March is… Fotis Pastrakis, the new IT of the Chair Team, member of AEGEE-Kastoria for more than one year and he is so far exremely active!

 Can you tell us about yourself and your experience in AEGEE? How did you join AEGEE?

I was born and raised in Thessaloniki, my beloved hometown, until my footsteps brought me to Kastoria and university. As a realist and a person quite concerned about the world (politically, socially, etc.), AEGEE seemed to be ideal for me. It took me almost one year of thinking it through and discussing with people who were already in AEGEE, to decide if I really want to join and be active in the association. So when I finally joined AEGEE Kastoria, I was almost directly placed as IT responsible of the local board and started to build a network of connections with other people after sometime. If AEGEE was a program (like the ones in object-oriented programming), the objects for me would be people to meet, places to travel, cultural exchange and ideas which are worth further development.

What is motivating  for you? Is there a person who inspires you?

Motivating? What is more motivating than life itself? Nothing motivates me better than myself and nothing can motivate anyone better than themselves. I really don’t know by whom I am inspired, but I believe in the analysis of human psychology. Philosophy and poetry are some things which I am keen on. Nietzsche and Kariotakis have inspired me a lot, in general, but they are not the only ones.

What motivated you to apply for the Chair Team?

A strong appetite for knowledge. I am still a newbie(or I feel like this) in AEGEE, but as most of the stuff I am involved in, I  face it as a challenge. When I saw the qualifications for this place, I thought I had most of them and the ones I didn’t have, would be a great way (maybe a tough one, too) to obtain them. After all, the whole process of organizing an Agora is a great experience which I have to gain.

What else are you doing in AEGEE?

I am the IT of my local board, member of Culture Working Group, designer in the Public Relations Committee, member of Information Technology Committee and member of myAEGEE Team.

What are you doing at myAEGEE Team?

We administrate the system of all intranet accounts, answer to e-mails and mostly helping members in case they have some problem with their accounts.

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

I am in the fourth year of my studies at the Technological Institute of Western Macedonia in the field of IT. Apart from my field and the time I dedicate on it, I am involved with beatmaking, lyrics, photography and volunteering. I am not working right now, but I have done several part-time jobs before, not only associated with computers. I think AEGEE is a great gateway to get ready for the labor market from a strange point of view. AEGEE has so many aspects that anyone can take advantage of.  For his own good, but for others, as well.

Recently, you and the rest of the Chair Team had a meeting at Brussels. How was it? Are you ready to work together for Patra?

The meeting was awesome, if someone could describe a preparation meeting for an Agora as awesome. The meeting took a long time  but it was quite interesting. Maybe I was not that talkative, but it was the best knowledge transfer for me, in order to get ready for my position in Agora Patra.

I already had met Miljana in Belgrade so we were a bit connected and, since we are both from the Balkans, we have a special way of communicating. Alberto and Paul were very friendly and have helped us a lot.

Written by Lia Tuska, AEGEE-Sofia/AEGEE-Kastoria

Miljana Vulevic, former Human Resources Responsible of AEGEE-Beograd, decided to be more active in  the European Level by joining the Chair Team as the Secretary of Spring Agora Patra. Now she’s back from the Chair Team meeting in Brussels and we’ve had the chance to interview her!

Can you tell us about yourself and your experience in AEGEE? How did you join AEGEE?

I am Miljana, 24 years old. I’ve been a proud member of AEGEE-Beograd since 2012, so a bit over two years now. I joined my local after being inspired by our old members in one of our amazing Local Training Courses. After one year spent as HR Responsible of my antenna, I’ve decided to become active in the European level.

What motivated you to apply for the Chair Team?

Agora is my all-time favourite event. It’s like a rollercoaster ride – you go from being so full of energy to feeling miserable over and over again. It’s exciting, it’s inspiring, it’s intense: it’s Agora. Being part of the team that is involved in making that magic happen would be just… fantastic!  So, when I saw that an open call for the position was issued, it caught my attention and after getting the support from my amazing AEGEE besties and my Netcommie, lovely Miss Antonija Parat, I decided to just go for it. Obviously, it worked out fine.

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

I am studying Management at the University of Belgrade, I’m on my final year and I spend all my free non-AEGEE time with my friends.

Do you plan of running  also for  being Secretary of the Agora in Cagliari?

Honestly, I don’t know. But I have some more time to think about it, so who knows. I just might do it.

 Recently, the rest of the Chair Team and you had a meeting in Brussels. How was it? Are you ready to work together in Patra?

True, we had a meeting last weekend and it was pretty great. As a new addition to the Chair team, my contribution wasn’t epic or grand, I just suggested an idea here and there like it is whenever you’re a newbie. But it has been amazing to take part in drafting the agenda, selecting the participants and just being part of the whole process. It  has also been such an inspiration watching Paul [Smits] and Alberto [Cuesta Noriega] work like a well-oiled machine. It reassured me that joining the Chair Team was a good decision and made me want to give my best on this job. All in all, I can’t wait for the Agora!

Written by Lia Tuska, AEGEE-Sofia/AEGEE-Kastoria

The AEGEEan’s Choice Awards is returning for the third time in connection with Agora Patra and lucky number three is the overall theme for the exciting times that all will end in a magnificent award ceremony at the big statutory event taking place in Greece later this year. Honouring 10 antennae for being outstanding in different matters.

The team behind The AEGEEan magazine is very excited to carry on the project for another year, as Anna Gumbau, the editor-in-chief, suggests: “It has been a popular tradition of ours for the last two years, and the third edition will definitely reassure The AEGEEan’s Choice Awards as a tradition in our Spring Agorae”. Starting today, January 9th, and during the next three weeks it is possible for you to submit candidates you have for the ten different categories. Some of them are the same as the former two years but at the same time The AEGEEan team has added three exciting categories:

• First of all The AEGEEan believe it is necessary to honour the locals that make a grand effort through different actions in order to recruit new members. That is why “The most effective recruiting action” has been added to the list of categories.

• Together with “The most inspiring local activity”, The AEGEEan aims to give recognition not only to the things happening on European Level but also on Local level.

• Adding to that it is also considered essential to add “The most outstanding AEGEE moment” to the awards honouring the different actions that have taken place in the former year and it is therefore the third new category added to the list.

After the three weeks of suggestions of nominations, ten juries (with three members each) will gather and select the final nominations for the different categories. The AEGEEan will ensure to include many different active AEGEE members! “The AEGEEan, and the Network as a whole, have eye-witnessed many memorable moments and outstanding actions by our members”, Anna adds, “so I am pretty sure that the choice will be difficult!”. These next three weeks will also be used to arrange the juries making sure that plenty of thought is put into which antennae and members will be nominated among the final nominations. Hopefully The AEGEEan will get correspondence from members of the Network Commission, Action Agenda Coordination Committee, Public Relations Committee, Comité Directeur and more, and that all will help because of their broad knowledge about events and moments happening in AEGEE.

The ten categories are:

• Most impressive roll call: honouring the locals that make an effort to bring smiles on the faces of the statutory events participants. Only roll calls that took place at EBM Valletta, Agora Rhein-Neckar and Agora Zaragoza can be nominated.
• Most active Working Group: The Working Groups carry out many interesting activities and at The AEGEEans Choice Awards the members of AEGEE choose the one that has been most active in 2013.
• Best team achievement: Together Everyone Achieves More and there are many things that a team can do. This awards honors the best team achievement of 2013!
• Most successful thematic event: The Action Agenda and Strategic Plan are highly important for AEGEE and at The AEGEEans Choice Awards the best of the best are honored for prioritizing the thematics of AEGEE.
• Best Video: There are many creative and gifted AEGEE members that use hours and hours into making video promotion for AEGEE and the best one of 2013 will be named at Agora Patra.
• Most creative merchandise: Cups, t-shirts, stickers, hats and more are all different types of merchandise that carry the AEGEE logo somehow and at The AEGEEans Choice Awards the most creative of 2013 will be honoured.
• Most original mascot: Almost all antennae have a mascot and many European Level bodies have one as well but which antenna, Working Group or Project Team has put the most thought into the choice of theirs?
• Most outstanding AEGEE moment: One of the new categories as previously mentioned aimed to point out which moment was the biggest and most important of AEGEE during the year of 2013.
• Most effective recruitment action: Another new category, this one honoring the antennae that are successful in terms of using different actions to get new members to contribute to the growth of AEGEE.
• Most inspiring local activity: Antennae organise things that are not European events but that does not give them any less significance. This award has been added to highlight the actions antennae do on a local level and give inspiration to the rest of the organisation.

Afterwards The AEGEEan will of course bring you all the stories behind the nominations! During the time span of three weeks the journalists of The AEGEEan will be granting you with all the information you need in order to make sure you can cast the vote for whoever you believe deserves it the most! The final voting will take place online on The AEGEEan’s website from March 10th until March 31st! As always the results will be announced at spring Agora, this time during Agora Patra!

Let’s get it started! You can nominate your candidates here!

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-København