A few days ago, the Council of the European Union published its proposal for “a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the conditions of entry and residence of third-country nationals for the purposes of research, studies, pupil exchange, remunerated and unremunerated training, voluntary service and au pairing”, resulting from the meeting in Brussels on the last 9th of December.

The Council of the European Union, who was under the Italian Presidency back in December, made a further step in the legislative process which will lead to an update Directive on visa issues. In fact, back in March 2013, the European Commission (EC) published a Proposal for revising the existing Directive 2014/114/EC (dated December 2004) on the conditions of admission of third-country nationals for the purposes of studies, pupil exchange, unremunerated training or voluntary service, and Directive 2005/71/EC (Dating October 2005) on the conditions of admission of third-country nationals for the purposes of scientific research. The aim was to improve the legal framework applicable to third-country nationals, including also the remunerated trainees and au pair.

In February 2014, the European Parliament (EP) voted its first reading, serving as a mandate for the negotiations with the Council.

Despite its title, and the premises in the same text (point (2) of the Proposal: “[The Directive] should therefore simplify and streamline the existing provisions for the different groups”), this proposal was embarrassingly inadequate compared to the EC and the EP proposals.

In fact, already in the Article 1 (a) and in the Article 2 (1), the Directive makes a clear distinction between third-country nationals who apply to be admitted on the territory of a Member State for the purpose of research and study – for which the Directive shall compulsory apply –  and the ones applying in the frame of “pupil exchange scheme or educational project, unremunerated training or voluntary service”, for which “Member States may also decide to apply” (the Directive, ndr).

This reduction of the scope of the Directive, compared to the one proposed by the EC, is of huge concern. In fact, if we bring it to our association, it may mean that non-EU members may have burdens in participating in events taking place in all those countries who won’t extend the scope of the Directive to others than students.

The second biggest concern regards the fee for applying for a visa: not only is a fee foreseen, but, in its document,the Council does not foresee any limitation, but rather gives a suggestion for it not to be “disproportionate or excessive”. Again, the limit of the Council is clear: we all know how difficult, demanding and expensive it is to apply for a visa (if we didn’t apply directly, we for sure know stories from our friends in the Network), and this document proceeds in the exact opposite way than the Erasmus+ legal framework, where the learning mobility of individuals is one of the main actions to pursue the Programe objectives.

The list doesn’t stop unfortunately. Reading further in the document is clearly stated that “The competent authorities of the Member State concerned shall adopt a decision […] as soon as possible but no later than 90 days of the complete application being lodged”. Can you imagine applying for an Agora three months in advance to make sure to get the visa on time? Moreover, this provision extends considerably the “60 days” EC proposal, and even more the “30 days” framework suggested by the European Parliament.

The last remarkable point comes regarding the visa holders for studying and research considering to spend a period of time (up to 6 months) in another EU Country: despite the already long procedure spent to apply for a visa, the third-countries nationals may incur in a renew procedure for the second Member State, who is allowed to start further verification on documentation and purpose of stay.

Luckily, this is not the final version of the Directive. According to the Lisbon Treaty, this document has to go through the Parliament, who has the right not to validate it as such, but to propose modifications that will need to be then approved by the Council.

Of course, this doesn’t mean at all that there is an easy path ahead. Unfortunately, this document shares the fear to further concede facilitation for mobility in Europe. Let’s not forget that the Schengen agreement has been quoted and pointed out as one of the main factors allowing free movement to terrorists, and the happenings in Ukraine, Turkey, France, Libya (and the list may unfortunately go on) are misused and misreported to create a growing terror mood in Europe which is disruptive and mining the concept of United Europe.

That’s why AEGEE, together with the European Youth Forum and in all the possible platforms, is and has to continue campaigning for Youth Rights in Europe. An official statement has been presented, and a Policy Paper on Youth Mobility will be presented at the next Agora Asturias to be ratified.

Youth rights are at a stake, and we, European citizens, need to do as much as we can (and a bit more) to make sure we build up the Europe we want to live in.

You can read AEGEE-Europe Reaction to the Council Proposal for the Revision of the Visa Directive here.

Written by Alfredo Sellitti, AEGEE-Salerno, Policy Officer on Youth Mobility

I have frequently been asked why I find volunteering so important and why I´ve made it such a huge part of my life. Most people expect me to give them a short answer, something along the lines of  “I do it because it makes me feel good”. Certainly, none of them expect me to look at them with bright eyes and a wide smile saying “Where do I begin?” At this point many people run away terrified thinking that I’m about to deliver a life-long speech full of boring statistics. Well, just kidding. However, for brevity´s sake and in order to keep you interested, I´ll sum everything up in just three words: oneself, people and world.

Before I explain such choice of words, let´s state what is volunteering, indeed. As a future psychologist I´m extremely fond of experiments, so let´s carry one out. Say Volunteering aloud and ask the person next to you what is the first image or word that comes to their minds. You will find, as I did, that most people think about spending a month abroad helping out in a big natural catastrophe or fighting against one of the Big Problems of Humankind (war, hunger…). However, volunteering can also mean giving some hours of your time and taking action in your own city. Isn´t it fantastic? And incredibly cheaper, let me tell you. You can even be a volunteer in your own home trying to be more helpful, kind and loving, because in the end that´s what volunteering is about. Anyway, in some respects dedicating some hours of your week throughout a year is even better than attending a work camp or other volunteering program. This is mainly because it is important to recognize volunteering as a part of your life. This way you´ll be able to fit the precious knowledge you´re obtaining into your daily life. When one goes away to volunteer he or she is at risk of considering the experience as something isolated from their lives, in other words, something that cannot, in anyway, be brought into their lives.

Oneself

I have myself been a volunteer since I was 16. Countless are the hours I spent with children, immigrants and other groups. I faced some difficult moments, but also some of my most beautiful and precious memories are linked to volunteering and I will be forever grateful for these experiences. Volunteering has made me, in fact, who I am today. Now, let´s get down to those words. First of all, “oneself”. Something extremely important about volunteering is the fact that it enables you to view life from another perspective, to walk in another´s shoes. This is an enriching experience, as it is a way to encounter other situations, to see through another person´s eyes. Sometimes we tend to live in our own bubble, without getting close to any problems but the ones of our family and friends. Besides, we go through life on autopilot, but one cannot help someone, and do so the best of one´s ability, half conscious, that is, without concentrating fully on the task ahead: you have to be wide awake; you have to put your whole mind to it. Moreover, most of what you´ll learn by volunteering will go more than skin-deep and will certainly keep life interesting. Suffice is to say that what you´ll learn might also prove to be very useful in your future/current career. I can´t help but quote the lyrics from a song by Bob Dylan:

You say you´d never compromise

With the mystery tramp, but now you realise

He´s not selling any alibis

As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes

People

With the second word, “people”, I refer to all the people you meet when you volunteer; not only the people you help but also the other helpers. People with whom you are sharing a moment of your life, who are doing the same thing you are, and who may have different reasons than you to volunteer. I assure you there is an unimaginable amount of things to learn from this people, so keep your ears open! In addition, getting to know someone through volunteering is vastly different than getting to know someone at a party, in the workplace or in the classroom. Two people, volunteers, that are working for the same cause, both of whom have their hearts and their minds set on doing the task the best they can, who are bent on doing it right and, most importantly, on cooperating, form a very meaningful and deep connection.

World

Last but not least, “world”. This is a pretty personal motivation, but I hope it applies to you as well. So let´s be honest: the world is in a chaos in this century; we are cruel, self-centered, selfish, vain and greedy beings. However, for me, if there´s something that makes us worthy, something that erases all of the above, is our capacity to give other resources (money, effort, time, even life) to other beings and to do so freely, willingly and without demanding anything in return. This selflessness that we are capable of is what makes Humankind truly admirable. That, and our capacity to produce delicious chocolate, but that´s quite another story. I know that giving away some hours of your week won´t stop wars or rape, nor will it reforest the Amazon or wipe clean all the bloodshed throughout History, but it will make a difference.

Volunteering is, if you will, a movement, a movement of people who refuse to be passive machines and decide instead to take action. A movement of people fixated on an idea: making this world a little better. I am not saying we can transform the chaos into an utopia, but as one Beatles´ song goes:

I’ve got to admit, it’s getting better,

A little better all the time

Spoiler alert: you won´t be given money, and if you are I suggest you to refuse it. I have to admit I´ve been offered pastry and I did accept, but that´s also another story for a more appropriate moment. Your reward will be a priceless one, much more important than anything material, for what fuels volunteering is not something as banal or futile as money, or food for that matter. When you volunteer you feel a satisfaction that nothing else can bring, and you obtain a knowledge that no words in a book or sentences uttered in a class can grasp. It is the kind of knowledge shared by the whole Humankind, the kind of knowledge that doesn´t perish. It is the kind of knowledge that makes you, somehow, more human.

Written by María Eugenia Casariego Artola, AEGEE-Oviedo

In May the honour of Local of the Month goes to AEGEE-Istanbul, an active AEGEE body, full of enthusiastic fresh and experienced members. Read more about AEGEE-Istanbul in this article…

The AEGEEan: Before we start talking about your successful Network Meeting (NWM) in Istanbul, can you tell us more about AEGEE-Istanbul? What are the things well-structured  for AEGEE-Istanbul?

AEGEE-İstanbul was founded in 1992 and signed the antenna contract at Agora Praha. We celebreated our 20th Anniversary with a beautiful ball. From the very beginning, in 1996,  AEGEE-İstanbul campained for Turkeys’ inclusion in Socrates, Leonardo and Youth programs. In the end AEGEE-İstanbul managed to do it all. But probably the most popular AEGEE-İstanbul event was the Autumn Agora İstanbul 2010. We also had a twin antenna project with AEGEE-Beograd. And we are planning to establish a new twin antenna project with a surprise antenna! We have a nice office at İstanbul Technical University and where we are having our meetings. Almost every day we have our project and working groups (WG) meetings. Recently we organized the Spring NWM with a dedicated organisation team. Furthermore, what I can say about AEGEE-İstanbul is that every Friday we are making a presentation of AEGEE to the people who want to join us.

What project and working groups do you have in your local?

We have Public Relations WG, Education WG that is currently giving French courses thought by one of our member, Summer University Project Team, who work with great effort. Besides we have Yeni Nesil Yolda ( Young Generation is on the Way) Project Team. With this project we are making agreements with high schools and holding seminars that present what kind of opportunities pupils will gain when they begin university and we are presenting AEGEE, Erasmus, Youth in Action Projects, European Voluntary Service (EVS), Socrates and Leonardo in order to make them aware of Europe, of ways in which they can gain their mobility, before the university. We also have Turkey- EU discussion session in our local and at our weekly meetings we are having discussion sessions on topics that we choose during the week on purpose to keep our Active Citizenship part alive.

Do you also promote the European projects or working groups of AEGEE to your members in order to make them become more active in AEGEE?

During our Local Training Courses and presentations for new member, we are giving detailed information about European level of AEGEE, how they can join projects and working groups and we are also advising our members one on one depending on their personal interests. We are promoting European level events, projects that are announced, on our mailing list to make sure that our member don’t miss out on them. This year we were the partner for the Youth in Action (YiA) project organised by AEGEE-Köln. In December the ‘Europe on Track’ final conference was organised by AEGEE-İstanbul and the Visa Freedom WG also made a fruitful session gathering information about EU- Turkey relations and visa problems. And lastly there was the NWM.

Spring NWM

Can you describe to us what makes NWM-Istanbul different than the other NMWs of the Network?

In the past the NWMs in our area were not that international, especially the ones organised by Turkish speaking locals. A high percentage of the participants were mostly from Turkish speaking locals. But this NWM had a lot of participants from locals from the  Caucasus area and also the rest of the Network, from AEGEE-Sankt Peterburg to AEGEE-Zaragoza. This is why Spring NWM-İstanbul was different than the other NWMs in our network. Also the thematic part was very successful. Tika Kukhianidze and Beata Matuzska worked really well on that. We focused on problems of the locals and on creating permanent solutions for these problems.

So, what or which project(s)/ event(s) is the next stop? Can you tell us about the future plans of AEGEE-Istanbul?

During our LTC, our members came up with an idea for a new project named “PRESS the Button”. Since we are having a lack of freedom of speech in our country, this project will be a way to raise our voice. And also we want to spread it to our Network. On the other hand we are planning  to establish a new twin antenna project with a surprise antenna. We will keep being partner for YiA projects for the next year. An Exchange with AEGEE-Thessaloniki  and AEGEE-Köln is in progress as well. And of course we are working on our SU project with great effort.

Besides talking about AEGEE-Istanbul, The AEGEEan also talked with Meltem Darakci about the success of the Turkish antennae.

Meltem and her sub commissioners

Firstly, can you tell us more about how you feel as a new elected Network Commissioner (NetCom), Meltem? Then, would you like to give us a hint(s) about AEGEE-Istanbuls’ success, you being board member of AEGEE-Istanbul?

When I was elected it was a great joy at first and then I began to feel the responsibility of being a NetCom.  Now, we, the whole new elected team, warm to our work and are getting ready for a fruitful term. It is all about our members. We, as AEGEE-İstanbul, put an emphasis on spreading volunteering ideas and AEGEE spirit to our members. Because when you organize any kind of event or project, you need to have a dedicated team/ members. Otherwise a local can not move forward… I can say that this is our certain achievement.

In 2013, Eskişehir, Ankara and now Istanbul were honoured as local of the month from the Turkish speaking and Caucasian network. Would you like to share your feelings about that success, as being their Netcommie?

Our Network is implemeting indeed good  thematic events, projects based on active citizenship. AEGEE-Ankara and  AEGEE-Eskişehir are very good with their thematic parts. And that is the result of it. Thanks to Tikas’ and the locals’ effort at the Agora Rhein-Neckar four of our contact antennae upgraded and more will come. That also motivates me a lot to put my all effort to support locals and develop them more. Most importantly that is pushing all of us, members, locals, the Network to prepare even more successful events, projects, cooperation.

Written by Erman Berkay, AEGEE-Mağusa

One of the activities suggested by the Sports Working Group (SWG) was to volunteer at international sport events. That would encourage youth participation while strengthening the network between AEGEEans and companies or organisations, and also providing the opportunity of gaining experience and inspiration to organise events in AEGEE. AEGEE-København member Patricia Anthony told us a bit about the Euro 2012 a few months ago, and now it is time for SWG member Sabina Begic to share her experience from volunteering at the European Universities Games in July. 

Sport plays a significant role in today’s society.

I had the chance to be one of 35 International Volunteers at the 1 st European Universities Games in Cordoba, Spain. The city of Cordoba is located in the middle of Andalusia. Thanks to its privileged position, it has been the centre of diverse cultures, which translates to a great historical legacy and a warm and familiar atmosphere. The EUSA Games are meant as an opportunity to bring student athletes together and make Europe friendlier. The Opening Ceremony brought together all the players of the 10 modalities of the Games. Cordoba hosted 2583 participants, representing 253 teams from 151 universities coming from 32 countries, competing in 10 sports featured at the 1st European Universities Games: badminton, basketball, beach-volleyball, football, futsal, handball, rugby 7s, table tennis, tennis and volleyball.

VOLUNTEERING AND CROSS-CULTURAL COOPERATION

Here is my list of benefits and reasons why I chose to become a volunteer: getting to know new places and people – making new friends, and if you are lucky enough, as I was, then making friends for life; networking; building self-confidence; decision-making; CV improvement, civil responsibility. Another important argument is that volunteers only have to pay for transportation to and from the city of the organizer. Accommodation and food is provided. I really had a great time in Cordoba with other volunteers and players,  especially when we, after a long working day, spent the night in the city or in our Colegio Mayor chilling out.

WORDS TO THANKS

People who somehow find the time and energy to throw themselves into a cause cannot be thanked enough! Even so, there are ways to let them know exactly how truly appreciated their time and efforts are. Sports offer volunteerism, friendship, a healthy lifestyle, social integration. At the closing ceremony, all participants were welcomed by the Mayor of Cordoba Jose Antonio Nieto Ballesteros who also took the opportunity to thank all the volunteers for their hard work and dedication by presenting diplomas to their representatives. The president of the organising committee and vice rector of students and culture of the University of Cordoba, Mr Manuel Torres, thanked all the volunteer and partners in the project, especially emphasising excellent cooperation between the University of Cordoba and the European University Sports Association. Mr Adam Roczek, the president of the European University Sports Association recognised the tremendous efforts of the volunteers and thanked them for their enthusiasm and hard work. Also during the event Mr Roczek pointed out:Volunteers are a crucial part in each event. Without volunteers there is no event. Without motivated volunteers there is no successful event. This is also true for the EUSA Games.

I like the fact that both the local volunteers recruited by the organisers, and the international volunteers, recruited through the EUSA volunteer program were there because of their own will, positive energy and enthusiasm. They brought a really great and friendly atmosphere to the games and shared it with other participants.

Mr Daniel Sikkens, the president of the organising committee gave a short introduction to the 2014 games and invited the public to attend – either as participants, or as volunteers. At the end the EUSA Flag was then symbolically passed over from Cordoba to EUSA and onwards to Rotterdam as the next host of the European Universities Games.

If you are interested in experiencing a unique adventure, learning about sport values and gaining valuable work experience through volunteering in European University Championships and European University Games – apply for it. Hope to see you there.

Written by Sabina Begic, AEGEE-Wien

The Sports Working Group (SWG) has been using this summer to find its grounds. Thus, being approved at the Agora Enschede, the SWG is well aware that there will always be members of our Network with the strong belief that sport has no place in AEGEE, however the SWG board members are together with the SWG members wearing yes-hats filled with arguments why the SWG is here to stay.

Building the foundation of SWG

The new SWG logo

Any working group needs a lot of base work to function. Luckily, the SWG has talented members both from the Juridical Commision (Diana Tupchiienko) as well as the Public Relations Committee (Vahagn Keshishyan). So you have probably read about Diana’s help with organising the SWG elections and in the month of July Vahagn helped the SWG with creating the logo. The logo election was set up so that all members of the SWG (as well as the rest of the network) could contribute with suggestions and then eventually the SWG members would vote on different logos in order to find the first SWG logo. Vahagn came up with a stylish suggestion for the SWG in four different versions. The final logo is not only stylish but also versatile since it comes in two different colours, perfect for online as well as offline use.

Sportive AEGEE people in the Summer University organised by AEGEE-Burgos

Promoting the Summer Universities

Not being completely ready to organise a sports event, the SWG chose to reach out the Summer University (SU) organisers as well as the Agora Budapest organisers in order to organise an Expo featuring the Summer Universities which this summer made the effort not only to participate in the most popular AEGEE project, but also use sportive activities to make sure that SU participants had a good time and connected in a greater way. So far AEGEE-Burgos, AEGEE-Oviedo, AEGEE-Maribor and AEGEE-Leiden have contributed with photos and the deadline of submitting pictures is not before September 1^st, so the SWG is confident that this expo will work.

Moving it for AEGEE

But the SWG is not only working on the Agora. Approximately four weeks before the Agora sets off in Budapest there will be a so-called MOVE week in progress. This initiative is organised by the Danish Association of International Sport and Culture Association (ISCA) which strives to have physical active events all over Europe in the first week of October. The SWG sees the MOVE Week as perfect post-summer opportunity for AEGEE antennae to organise a get-together event with their members. What could this be? AEGEE-København is trying to organise a sports tournament between AEGEE, AIESEC, ESN and such in the Danish capital. People against the Sports Working Group could, and probably would, argue that such event is exactly why they opposed the SWG at the Agora, because sport clubs can organise football games.

However, Patricia Anthony from AEGEE-København explains why such tournament could help: “In AEGEE-København we do not have a lot of active members, and we are looking for opportunities to bring members closer to AEGEE. We believe that organising such thing with e.g. AIESEC can help strengthen the communication between these organisations. That way we hope to get more visibility, increasing the interest in AEGEE, and bringing the ones who are already members of AEGEE-København closer to each other. We can see that friendships and strong connections can be the base grounds of the organisation o great events and motivating people to become more active in AEGEE in countries like Spain, so we figured that we can try to do the same thing. This way we will help AEGEE, the SWG and AEGEE-København as well as supporting a great project as the MOVE Week initiated in Denmark, all at the same time.”

The SWG hopes that other antennae will join AEGEE-København and the Sports Working Group with moving it and/or organising an event in which some professors, sports people or sport event organisers can give their expertise on how sport can be implemented in non-formal education all over Europe in the first week of October.

Written by Patricia Anthony, AEGEE-København & Secretary of the Sports Working Group (SWG)

The Youth in Action Programme offers young Europeans a chance to make a real difference in the world – and to change their own lives – through the European Voluntary
Service .

About EVS

The European Voluntary Service (EVS) is a programme offered by the European Union to all people aged 18-30. Main focus is on the process of intercultural learning by sending young people to different countries of Europe, where they work as volunteers in a project of their own choice.

The EVS spans a wide range of working areas, including projects about culture, sports, the environment, youth, social care, cultural heritage, arts, civil protection, development, co-operation, etc. Depending on the wishes of the volunteer and his/her hosting organisation, the duration of the engagement can be between two and 12 months.

A successful EVS project requires close co-operation among at least three key players: a sending organisation, a host organisation and the volunteer. One of the organisations involved in this partnership also plays the role of coordinating organisation and applies for an EU grant on behalf of the partnership. Organisations perform a number of roles: they identify volunteering opportunities and develop projects that benefit the local community. They also recruit and prepare the volunteers, host them, and ensure the follow-up.

EVS activities can be carried out both individually or in group. Up to 30 volunteers can now participate in the same EVS project!

Here are some testimonials of  AEGEE members:

Agne (EVS volunteer in AEGEE-Las Palmas)

” Hola! My name is Agne! In February I came from Lithuania to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria to be a volunteer in AEGEE organization. I will stay here for 11 months and I believe that this period is going to be one of the best in my life! I have met some people who understood volunteering, they were happy, active, intelligent people, but I have also met a lot of people who heard about it, but did not realise what it was. The main message of volunteering is experience, learning, and cultural exchange. I have it all and even more! No one asks me ARE YOU HAPPY, because they see a smile on my face. At the moment I am starting to be a volunteer and it is amazing – I am meeting new people every day, seeing new places, preparing new tasks. I have energy to do things that I have not done before, do new activities, new ways to express myself, to find new beauty in life. Being an EVS volunteer means breaking the language barrier, travelling, communicating, exploring new lifestyle, finding a new inner self. Can volunteering change the world? YES, because we are the world!”

Gulay (EVS in AEGEE-Las Palmas)

“l am Gulay from Turkey. No, l am not a European but that does not matter in EVS. Everything is possible for you with AEGEE members. EVS is a huge space of opportunities. lt opened a new door for me.  It brings mutual understanding (empathy) and friendship between me and young people from different cultures. This article is an amazing chance to share my experience, to act and react and to show my power and it is the best way to discover myself during my project with AEGEE-Las Palmas. l am so happy that they are involved in youth exchanges. Finally, l feel freedom in my blood with European people. Life is meant to show respect towards other cultures and lifestyles. l am volunteer and l am proud of being a volunteer every day.”

Thomas from BEST and AEGEE Santander (EVS in Santander, Spain)

After graduating as an engineer Thomas felt that he did not know the world well enough. He wanted to travel and heard about the EVS program which he wanted to take advantage of so he sent some e-mails, prepared his suitcase and his EVS adventure was ready to start. In the Spanish city of Santander he helped supervisors at a youth centre in a disadvantaged area. A centre in which young teenagers aged 11 to 17 receive help for homework, they go on excursions, they practice sports and much more. By helping out with this, Thomas learned about this environment but also about himself whenever he felt useful helping others. The EVS experience also gave Thomas the opportunity to discover a new country (he got to visit cities like Barcelona, Madrid, Valencia and Zaragoza), a new culture, a new language and new people. About the experience Thomas says “This adventure helped me grow as a person and made me look at life in a completely different way, I definitely recommend it to everyone to grab this opportunity!”

Ezter from AEGEE-Pécs and AEGEE-København (EVS in Lille, France)

“Wanting to prolong your AEGEE experience but you don’t know how? Do you want to live an international life, be creative and help others do the same? Are you
passionate about ecology? What do you think of saving turtles in Turkey? Are
you all crazy about rhythm and salsa? How about giving dance classes in Sweden? Are
migration studies your thing? Would you be up for working with refugees in
Spain? You can have it all and even more with EVS! The “L’auberge espagnole”
feeling and the improvement in many different languages are really only
pleasant side-effects of the long term adventure, an adventure which is more
than highly recommended.”

So the question you may ask yourself now is why is my local not already an EVS host organization? And why are we not already bringing volunteers from all over Europe to help us with our local antenna projects?

You can also go abroad and have an amazing European experience. Find more information on the

following website or contact me at luis.alvaradomartinez@aegee.org

http://ec.europa.eu/youth/youth-in-action-programme/european-voluntary-service_en.htm

Try it out! Go on EVS, and bring EVS to your AEGEE Local!

Let us all EVS! VAMOS!

Written by Luis Alvarado Martínez,  AEGEE-Las Palmas

In the latest issue of Key To Europe four AEGEEans are expressing their opinions about volunteering in general and volunteering in AEGEE in particular.

But they are not the only ones with opinions. Listen to 3 more AEGEEans and hear (or rather read) what they have to say!

Alla Resheten, AEGEE-Kyїv

I am volunteering because I want to make my contribution to the society. I want to bring young people from all over Europe closer and make them understand that even if we are all different – we can be together, we can work for the same aim and achieve results. I am volunteering in AEGEE because here I can find a group of people who will support my ideas and will help me to make them real.

Jüri Kirpu, AEGEE-Tallinn & Comité Directeur

AEGEE has provided me a way to explore and discover myself. AEGEE has a way of connecting people from different backgrounds, which brings together an awesome synergy of thoughts, that can go beyond what we as individuals think is not possible. I have had the privilege to be surrounded by these amazing people that know that they can make a difference and who have proven that even one person is enough to do great things.

Anamaria Cociorva, AEGEE-Lund

Maybe it sounds like a cliche, but I really cannot rephrase it in a better way: AEGEE did change my life and I still think that it is the best thing which happened to me so far: because of AEGEE I have started to travel, decided to have a master abroad and finally lived in another country. AEGEE stands for the freedom to be yourself and a world in which the impossible might become possible.
When people ask me why I am so addicted to AEGEE, the first explanation I give them is the strong incentive to be thankful for those wonderful moments, unforgettable memories, inspiring people, great friendships, and more… And what is better than trying to help other people to benefit from all this?

Written by Anita Kalmane, Academy