The Night of the Seven Antennae was maybe AEGEE’s highlight of the year. Seven parallel 30th anniversary events took place in Aachen, Bergamo, Catania, Eskişehir, Kyiv, Leiden and Sofia. The Golden Times asked all organisers for their impressions. Read here why AEGEE-Bergamo, AEGEE-Kyiv, AEGEE-Leiden, AEGEE-Catania and AEGEE-Eskisehir think it was so spectacular.
AEGEE-Bergamo: “The live streaming was very touching”
GT: Are you satisfied with your “Night of the seven antennae” event?
Lisa Gregis, President of AEGEE-Bergamo: Yes, I’m very satisfied, but I think that there is always room for improvement.
GT: What were the three programme highlights?
Lisa: I think among the highlights were the conference about Europe needs Youth, the live streaming and the pillow fight party, where the whole club was full of feathers.
GT: How many participants did you have – and how many did you want to have?
Lisa: We had 39 participants, with this number we are fully satisfied.
GT: How was the livestream? Did your participants like it?
Lisa: The live streaming was very touching, it was better than I could ever expect! I can say that all the participants were very excited about that and it was like we were in the same place at the same moment.
GT: Was the livestream difficult to arrange or expensive?
Lisa: It wasn’t expensive, but it was quite tricky to arrange. Fortunately AEGEE-Aachen took the initiative and solved all the problems. I can’t ever thank them enough.
GT: AEGEE doesn’t make too many thematic conferences anymore. After your experience with this one, would you like to make one again soon?
Lisa: It was very interesting, but I think that right now AEGEE-Bergamo has already a lot of things that have to get done.
GT: How was the anniversary cake?
Lisa: We didn’t have an anniversary cake, because we decided to celebrate with an Italian aperitivo!
AEGEE-Kyiv: “Much more than just a birthday event”
GT: Are you satisfied with your “Night of the seven antennae” event?
Anna Pykhtina, President of AEGEE-Kyiv: Yes, we are very happy with the results! AEGEE-Kyiv not only organized the live streaming and big party, the Night of the Seven Antennae was also part of the international youth conference “Stating Democracy: The Role of Youth in the Construction of the Future of Europe”. The conference was held in Kyiv from 17th till 19th of April at the main building of the Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, which is recognized as top university in Ukraine and is really beautiful.
GT: What is the project about?
Anna: “ReBuilding Democracy” is a big international project, organized by AEGEE-Kyiv. It was created after AEGEE-Kyiv was selected to host the Autumn Agora Kyiv 2015 and consists of three more events. The first one was an introductory event, the starting point of the big discussion and our call for actions: we invited young Europeans and Ukrainians to participate in a dialogue, to find out what democracy is for everyone and what their opinion about its values is. The second one is an exchange with AEGEE-Dresden, called “Exploring democracy” in our project, then we will have the Summer University “Sharing democracy” and finally the Autumn Agora Kyiv 2015 with the tagline “Practicing democracy”.
GT: Can you tell more about the content of the first event from 17th till 19th of April?
Anna: By organizing this event, we proved that we are also able to organize a thematic conference and are not only good at parties and internal events like Network Meetings. Having speakers from thr Ukrainian Parliament, the president of the Cambridge society in Ukraine and the producer of the biggest independent online-channel Hromadske TV, young Ukrainians inspired our guests and made them ask so many questions, creating discussions. It was the biggest pleasure for our team!
GT: What were the three programme highlights of this event?
Olia Marrero, European Affairs Responsible of AEGEE-Kyiv: The main idea for us as organizers were to make a conference with an atmosphere for not just listening to the speakers, but active participation in the process. So, our first highlight were the workshops and group work. As you know, N7A happened with the support of the Association des Amis de Franck Biancheri; Marie–Hélène Caillol, President of the association chose Kyiv to come. She held a workshop, talked about the lessons of Franck Biancheri and put some hard things on the table to create debates. People loved it! I was inspired by her spirit and I knew that although the majority might not support her opinion, she told the rough truth and she made all of us think about new angles of the problem.
GT: For example?
Olia: For example, she explained that although many AEGEEans think that Franck Bianckeri was against the enlargement of the European Union and joining Eastern locals to AEGEE, it’s not true, he was against the way it was done. And the way it is happening now is not how it was seen 30 years ago. And then the discussion moved to talking about the situation in Ukraine and she was honest as well as the participants. It was like a breath of fresh, cold air, but at the same time so needed! Another great thing was the Inspire session – we gave an opportunity to every participant to share anything he or she would like to and they could join even in the last minute. It was really inspiring to hear ten speeches from experienced members and non-AEGEE members – by the way all of them are members now – who talked about languages, consciousness, active participation, communication and visa!
GT: How many participants did you have – and how many did you want to have?
Olia: Ideally we would like to have 100, but 15 people from other antennae and 50 more from AEGEE-Kyiv and Ukrainian students was a big number as well. We are satisfied with the result. And everyone could get two pieces of cake.
GT: How was the livestream? Did your participants like it?
Anna: It was so exciting! Especially because we were preparing a flashmob and had to perform it several times before the start, so everyone felt being a part of a performance. We loved the enthusiasm of Holger Schmitt, Network Director of the CD, and Marie-Hélène Caillol, the president of AAFB in supporting the idea and participating so actively. And the fact that we’re part of it, played a big role in creating the atmosphere and AEGEE-spirit. Moreover we had the cake!
GT: Was the livestream difficult to arrange or expensive?
Olia: It was stressful, especially for those who don’t know anything about technical things. Luckily, the power of communication between the main organizers from the seven antennae helped us to deal with this problem and find a perfect solution – Google Hangouts. After that we started to work on local level to make it possible. At first in AEGEE-Kyiv we tried to do it by ourselves, but after a few fails we decided to hire professionals. And it was very good idea! Of course, it costs pretty expensive especially in comparison with other expenses that we had, but it was definitely worth it. After all we got a high quality video from a professional operator with perfect sound and picture. The one and only problem was the Internet connection in the university, and unfortunately there is nothing that we could do about it.
GT: AEGEE doesn’t make too many thematic conferences anymore. After your experience with this one, would you like to make one again soon?
Anna: Indeed! We are so excited about organizing the conference of such level and I hope that in the future we will have at least one thematic conference a year dedicated to a topic interesting enough for Ukrainian and European youth to visit and for speakers to participate in. Everyone is willing to go to a Summer University and Network Meetings, but organizing this kind of events would attract more people interested not only in the fun part of AEGEE. And that’s a conversation worth going to the forum.
GT: How was the anniversary cake?
Olia: Well, you saw that picture! It was awesome – it looks stylish and tastes good, everybody loved it. As for the traditional birthday, we sang a song and gave the honour of the first cut to Marie-Hélène, so it was a very exciting moment for us.
GT: Anything you would like to add?
Anna: Сheck the first video of how was it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRroiqClfm0, apply for our Summer University “Across UAniverse” and wait for Autumn Agora Kyiv 2015!
AEGEE-Leiden: “Discussing about the future of Europe”
GT: Are you satisfied with your “Night of the seven antennae” event?
Daniël Amesz, Internal Affairs Officer of AEGEE-Leiden: Yes, definitely! We had an amazing time with all the participants and everything went really smooth.
GT: What were the three programme highlights?
Daniël: Making a top three is always hard and it’s pretty personal. I will not be naming the broadcast in the top three, because this was an amazing experience for every local and every AEGEEan that was there. Three highlights of the Leiden event were in my opinion: First, an expert meeting with two politicians who debated with the participants about a variety of motions. There was a lot of input and we were able to discuss about the future of Europe and the limits and problems of the European Union. Second, a champagne brunch on Sunday in a beautiful freemason building from 1875 with freshly baked bread, boiled eggs, fruit and many other treats. All of this accompanied by live piano music by one of our talented members. Third, a very moving speech by AEGEE honorary member and Agora veteran Olivier Genkin about the start of AEGEE and about our own future. Motivating us all to bring out the best of ourselves and showing how AEGEE can help you in your future.
GT: How many participants did you have – and how many did you want to have?
Daniël: There were more than 50 participants for the live stream which was great to see and even almost reached the maximum capacity of the location we had arranged. So that was a great success.
GT: How was the livestream? Did your participants like it?
Daniël: It felt very weird to know that what you said was broadcasted all over Europe, but it was also a lot of fun! Seeing all the other locals and how everybody did something completely different was a perfect example off how diverse AEGEE is. There was a lot of enthusiasm amongst the participants and it was interesting to hear what other cities had been discussing about.
GT: Was the livestream difficult to arrange or expensive?
Daniël: The organising of the livestream was definitely something we’ve spent many meetings discussing about. The biggest problem was that it was hard to find a system that all locals could use and therefore we didn’t know for a long time what we had to arrange in order to make it work. In the end it all worked out quite fine, except for a few minor technical issues. The expenses were well covered by the grant we had received by the Association des Amis de Franck Biancheri, so we’d like to thank them for that!
GT: AEGEE doesn’t make too many thematic conferences anymore. After your experience with this one, would you like to make one again soon?
Daniël: I don’t necessarily agree with this statement. I think we discuss a lot of thematic topics within our association. Every year we come together on the EPM for a large conference and besides that the locals organise a lot thematic meetings and conferences. AEGEE-Leiden is always open for discussions and debates so we are already working on new discussion sessions for our members and we are looking forward to more European-wide conferences!
GT: How was the anniversary cake?
Daniël: We had our anniversary cake after the closing ceremony and it was delicious! I’ve seen several people getting a second slice, so I’d call that a success.
GT: Anything you would like to add?
Daniël: It has been an amazing experience and we’d all like to thank the participants and organisers of all the seven cities. Again next year?
AEGEE-Catania: Funny live streaming and excursion to the Etna
GT: Are you satisfied with your “Night of the seven antennae” event?
Alfio Bonaccorsi: Absolutely yes, we had a great time. I have to say that me and the organizers of the other antennae were pretty afraid during the Agora, since the organization of this event was not so good from above, but fortunately we managed to take control of the situation and everybody seems to be very satisfied now.
GT: What were the three programme highlights?
Alfio: We extended our programme by one day with the same fee – so it started on the 16th and ended on the 19th. We used the extra day for giving a participant a free trip to Etna and Taormina, rolling from the top of the Volcano to the beautiful waters of Isola Bella in a few hours. Then the gastronomy course is always a great hit, and finally the live streaming was way funnier than we expected!
GT: How many participants did you have – and how many did you want to have?
Alfio: We wanted up to 50 people, but considering the length of the event and that no one knew each other, having 33 participants from 14 different countries was a perfect mix.
GT: How was the livestream? Did your participants like it?
Alfio: Absolutely yes, we all thought it was going to be serious, sitting and watching a screen, but it was actually very interactive and entertaining. We are very satisfied, because we think we had a good mix between the speech from Antonija and Caroline from the Association des Amis de Franck Biancheri (AAFB), and a funny part with a lot of noise and the magic candles joke!
GT: Was the livestream difficult to arrange or expensive?
Alfio: Not at all, we had a knowledge transfer with Peppe Colicchia, who arranged a similar streaming for our Network Meeting in March in the same structure, so it was pretty easy, and the place, the start-up incubator WCAP is a technology temple, so we had everything we needed.
GT: AEGEE doesn’t make too many thematic conferences anymore. After your experience with this one, would you like to make one again soon?
Alfio: Yes, we are working on two thematics we really care about in our territory, which are immigration and youth unemployment, we really hope to make an event like this, with a consistent thematic part, and a lot of fun in between.
GT: How was the anniversary cake?
Alfio: I think it was good, I just had some taste of the cream they smashed on my face!
AEGEE-Eskişehir: “The taste of chocolate, chestnut, joy and euphoria”
GT: Are you satisfied with your “Night of the seven antennae” event?
Suzan Dilara Tokaç: We are more than satisfied! It was a great and unforgettable experience for all of us. We had a lot of difficulties and bad luck before the event, however it was one of the smoothest and most perfect events in AEGEE-Eskisehir history. We received a lot of compliments from our participants, members and friends. During our weekly meeting a lot of people burst into tears –literally!
GT: What were the three programme highlights?
Suzan: Cutting the cake and champagne popping during our gala night. It was amazing and very classy. A video is coming about it shortly and we are sure that you will share our excitement while you will be watching. The second one was when we had an unexpected surprise for our participants thanks to our extraordinary fundraising. The last one was of course the Tunak Tunak Tun dance that we did with our Mascot Masagor. All participants, members, the other six antennae and everyone else was watching us, joined in!
GT: How many participants did you have – and how many did you want to have?
Suzan: We started with a hundred places, as our region is quite big and crowded. Also, we have a lot of alumni members who would like to participate. Due to all cancellations and misfortunes our applicants had, we had 31 participants in the end. Plus many alumni members and friends from other locals joined us. During our gala night 115 people were present.
GT: How was the livestream? Did your participants like it?
Suzan: There is no word to describe our honor, excitement and happiness. It was filled with dance, music and smiles. Due to some technical issues we were asked to extend our livestream so we danced for seven or eight more minutes! The participants were also surprised and they just went with the flow and enjoyed the beat.
GT: Was the livestream difficult to arrange or expensive?
Suzan: Thanks to Eric from AEGEE-Aachen, we coordinated with the other organizers from the other antennae and arranged the livestream all together. It was a live Youtube show done through Google Hangout. We purchased an HD-webcam and asked our university for an extra LAN cable for better Internet connection, as we were streaming live from our university.
GT: AEGEE doesn’t make too many thematic conferences anymore. After your experience with this one, would you like to make one again soon?
Suzan: As AEGEE-Eskisehir members we feel the lack of educative and thematic events. We are trying to organize some for our members, however it would be really nice to be part of more international and thematic events and conferences in the near future. Who knows, maybe we can resume the tradition with the support and cooperation of other enthusiastic bodies and locals.
GT: How was the anniversary cake?
Suzan: The taste of chocolate and chestnut was mixed with joy and euphoria. Read the faces of people to guess it!
GT: Anything you would like to add?
Suzan: We are very glad to be a part of this amazing event and thankful to ones who make it possible, especially to my local organizer friends, our main coordinator Ozan Isgor, coordinators of the other six antennae for their great effort, the Anniversary Team and the AAFB for supporting us and everyone else who believed in us and shared our enthusiasm and happiness. We are sure we are a part of AEGEE history now!
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