The month of January brought us a new Local of the Month: AEGEE-Berlin showed a movie about AEGEE members’ life and is organising not only an event for the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome, but also a SU in cooperation with AEGEE-Lviv. The board talks about an exchange with AEGEE-Kyiv. Get more information about this active antenna.

The AEGEEan: After being nominated LoM, present us your local.

AEGEE-Berlin board: For thirty years now, AEGEE-Berlin has stood as an example of our values, most visibly in the broad spectrum of nationalities and cultures present within the members and on our board. We have been through difficult times before, when the antenna struggled, but now this is one of the best times! We are not only a group of students, but also a group of friends.

What can you tell us about the Pulse of Europe event? What are you organising for the 60th anniversary of the Treaties of Rome?

As you might know, #PulseofEurope is an event organised every Sunday until the 12th of March. It is a gathering of pro-Europeans who want to stand up and be active in the fight for united Europe. As young Europeans, we consider it our responsibility to support this movement. That is why not only we have attended but also have taken to the stage to present our point of view. And not for the last time!

Considering the 60th anniversary, we have come together with five other Berlin-based NGOs (not only youth ones), in order to organise a March for Europe in Berlin for those who are not able to travel to Rome.

Which is the feedback for your SUPS, which took place in your city in January?

The SUPS was a very inspiring event with inspiring people. We were lucky to have high quality trainers and also amazing participants. This combination made it very productive and educational. We can not do differently than just to thank them all again for having been here with us.

Did you get successful in showing the movie “The Art of the Possible”? How can people watch it if they missed it?

We did air it, so I would say yes, we were successful and very pleased to have the creator of the movie, Luca Giazzi, personally there to take part in the discussions. For everyone it was a very cosy evening. The second part of the question is more for Luca than us, as he has a plan of publishing the movie.

Are you satisfied with the exchange “If I were in your shoes” with AEGEE-Kyiv? Which was the best moment of the exchange?

More than satisfied. Twenty-six youngsters from Germany and Ukraine got together to discuss the issues that modern Europe has to face and shared their knowledge and experience. The whole event was supported by the EVZ foundation and various other partners. It was a big challenge for us to organise it as it is always risky when you work with grants. Also it was very important for us becasue it showed that we, as antenna, are capable of this kind of performance. We are very grateful to all the organisers and helpers who made it possible and nailed it.

The general topic of our exchange project “If I were in your shoes” with AEGEE-Kyiv was to educate and provide experience of participatory democracy and voluntarism. Thus, on the second day in Berlin we decided to try out something new by sending all our participants in small groups to local volunteer initiatives, where they would not only be informed, but also engaged. One group went to a homeless shelter, where they helped cooking the meals, another one- to a refugee dormitory, where they built up beds. Two other groups visited different places as well.

We have been skeptical at first, but our participants were overwhelmingly moved by the experience, which was a novelty for many. They unanimously agreed on this having been the most transformative and intriguing part of the exchange in Berlin and some have voiced their will to continue such volunteering activities in their home cities. We hope the memories of this event will guide them in the future.

Have you elected a new board? Who are the board members? Can you tell us something about them?

The election of the new board took place at the beginning of January. Now we have five board members from which two are from the last year. They are all very motivated, promising and ready to make our antenna shine. And what is a better start than getting elected for the Local of the Month?

Are there any members who are also active besides your internal events?

We are very proud of the fact that there are. We have two SUCT members, one JC subcommisioner, a CD assistant for communication and a member of the Eastern Partnership project. This year we hope to get even more members interested in the work on the European level.

What are the future plans of your Local?

Besides usual exchanges and local activities, we are all already excited about the celebrations of the 30th anniversary of our local, which will be epic! Of course we are organising a SU in cooperation with AEGEE-Lviv. So save the dates: from the 18th to the 30th of August and just Hakuna Matata. We would also like to repeat the success with the conference and make another one, of course on a different topic. And the most important plan we have is to continue spreading our awesomeness.

Written by Matteo Lai, AEGEE-Cagliari

Originally planned in December in Cluj-Napoca, the Summer University Project School had to be postponed to March due to a lack of participants. Now, from the 5th to the 12th of March, the Romanian city will host 25 participants and trainers who are eager to share all their secrets about the Summer University project. Deadline for applications: 31th of January. 

Even though the abbreviation stands for Summer University Project School, it is actually the power source for the organisers of Summer Universities. For evelen years, this great school has educated AEGEEans to make them better organisers, helpers and even participants. As the project develops itself year by year changes and improvements are inevitable. Among the many highlights of this year are: GREEN SU, more Action Agenda ACTivities, inclusion of disabled people and extra award categories. As Outgoing Responsibles are the best allies of the project, their duties and importance are revised and strengthened as well.

Of course we don’t want to reveal all the secrets of the training by giving spoilers here, but we call it a quick trailer in order to attract the audience and provoke your curiosity. From PR strategies to budgeting, from managements to logistics, leadership, risk assessment; all blended in case studies – practical tasks in groups to show what kind of situations organisers can face during the SU. These are only some of the ACTions of the movie.

The director of the SUPS is Anna Pykhtina (but you can call her Smailikova), former SUCT PR responsible who will act as Trainer Manager of the Project School. “It was not a planned decision”, Anna says. “I was asked by the Academy if I was interested in doing this. Honestly, I wouldn’t apply as I never thought I can be a training manager, but I love challenges and now I’m super happy!”.  Although SUPS was moved from December to March, she still feels “excited to be the Training Manager of such a great event. As I saw the project from the inside, now I am willing to make it even better.” She won’t be alone, but she will be assisted by four valiant trainers.

Antonis Triantafyllakis (AEGEE-Heraklio and SUCT IT manager) is “extremely experienced and highly motivated” to use Anna’s words. He will explain everything about logistics, give examples of games and best team-building practices and teach how to deal with intercultural learning and how to work with disabled participants. Moreover, he will do the impossible: showing the participants how to make the “what is AEGEE?” session appealing even for veterans.  Luca Lombardo (AEGEE-Torino and member of the Audit Commission) is in charge of project and conflict management, fundraising and a mysterious and intriguing inspirational session. Another member from SUCT is Ksenia Lupanova (AEGEE-Moskva and Publication Responsible), who will explain how the SU project works and share her experience about risk assessment and Public Relations. Last but not least there is Ioana Duca, Financial Director of AEGEE-Europe, who will deal with budgeting, Action Agenda and Green Summer University.

The location of the event is still Cluj-Napoca. “Half of the inhabitants of Cluj-Napoca are student and it is the European Youth Capital of 2015. Also, our city has a rich cuisine like sarmale (cabbage filled with meat), mici, cozonac, mamaliga and countless others”, Bia Sabau, the main organiser, explains. Despite not being such a big local, AEGEE-Cluj-Napoca is very active. “We are a just a hand-full group of members, but we are very active and energetic. Last year we organised a lot of events: Yvote convention, Network Meeting, a Summer University and many more”.

Asked for reasons to apply for SUPS Cluj-Napoca 2015, Anna said the first reason is that “ the sessions that will be delivered are useful not only for organising Summer University and not only for AEGEE as you will learn so many things and get not just theory, but seven days of practice!” The second reason has a lot to do with the past edition of SUPS in Izmir. “Four  out of four members of the newly elected Summer University Coordination Team first met there and gained knowledge which helped them to not only organise Summer Universities, but even apply for working on the European level!”

The Summer University Project School in Izmir in 2014 was unforgettable for a lot of participants. “I have to say that after the SUPS I felt like I had been in the dark for so many years”, Masi Njeshi from AEGEE-Tirane says. “After the event I felt stronger because the training sessions somehow showed me the right way to take what we needed for our SU.” It was also a spur to set the bar higher for local organisers. “Before SUPS I was thinking about how I can organise a picnic with my local member, after SUPS I understood that the time is right for an AGORA”, Göksan Kahraman from AEGEE- Izmir concludes.

For more information you can visit the SUPS facebook page or their website
or you can apply here.

Written by Suzan Dilara Tokac, SUCT PR responsible and Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia