Our suitcases packed with Austrian cheese, sausages and of course Apfelstrudel, and our heads crammed with joyful thoughts about what would await us in the westernmost country of the European Union, namely Portugal, the Austrian delegation, consisting of Patrik Bruschek, Ciara Pircher, Florian Fellner and myself, Peter Goldsborough, set out by plane on the morning of the 16th of October. Having arrived a day early, we luckily had a decent amount of time to enjoy a walking tour through the enchanting city of Porto, with its over 90 churches, various masterpiece examples of baroque architecture, a touching contemporary history as well as numerous quaint restaurants with a memorable assortment of traditional Portuguese and local foods.
The next morning, the 29th NSC of EYP Portugal starting, we were taken to Matosinhos, a suburb of Porto and the actual location of the session. To our great pleasure and that of the other participants of the session, also with a polish delegation of two in their rows, the first part of Teambuilding took place in a beautiful park, first lead by President Krzysztof Ignaciuk from Poland, then by the individual chairpersons in their committees. In the afternoon, the participants were transferred to Escola Secundaria Augusto Gomes, where also the Committee Work was to take place the next day. Yet, the highlight of the day, the Eurovillage, was still to come. And without any doubt it was an experience every participant will remember as one of the best of it’s kind. Tables were stacked with colorful dishes of the various regions of origin of the different delegations, accompanied by traditional clothing and a mesmerizing atmosphere. Wanting to give the Portuguese and foreign delegations also a taste of the most prominent and traditional Austrian cuisine, we had brought with us a variety of sausages, cheeses and numerous delicacies from the different regions we had gathered from to attend the session.
The following morning we were again transferred to said school, eagerly awaiting the work in our committees, namely the committee on fisheries (PECH/Patrik Bruschek), the committee on industry and research I (ITRE I/Florian Fellner), the committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO/ Ciara Pircher) and lastly the committee on security and defense (SEDE/Peter Goldsborough). A hard and stressful, yet ultimately successful day of work was finally concluded by the theme evening, where Austrian board member Patrik Bruschek seized his chance to present his favorite song, Kabinenparty by Skero, to the Portuguese and international participants.
The session was concluded by two unforgettable and most gripping days of General Assembly, taking place in the Matosinhos city hall. The first day was perfected by the Euroconcert, an event particularly memorable for the Austrian delegation, who had the honor of performing and singing a celebrated Austrian song, “I am from Austria” by Reinhard Fenrich.
Finally, the session concluded with an emotional closing ceremony, where tears were not kept back.
Without doubt, the 29th NSC of EYP Portugal will be in all our hearts as one of the best experiences the European Youth Parliament has brought upon us. A warm thank you again to all participants, officials and of course the organisers, everybody having fulfilled an excellent and exemplary part in making the session as amazing as it was.
by Peter Goldsborough
Call for Officials: EYP Days Linz, Styria
/in National UpdatesDear EYPers,
It is our great pleasure to invite you to the EYP Day Linz on 7th February 2014, and to the EYP Day Styria on 14th February 2014, taking place in Kaindorf/Sulm (a couple of train stations away from Graz). Both sessions are excellent opportunities for EYPers to develop their skills and try themselves as Officials.
The EYP Days are one-day events with a revised version of the standard EYP session format of Teambuilding, Committee Work and General Assembly. The EYP Days are especially interesting for students and are the perfect way to get involved in EYP for the first time.
For the EYP Day Linz, we are now looking for Chairpersons and 2 Vice-Presidents, both Austrian and international, to join session president Jonathan Piepers (BE).
Please note that officials are expected to arrive in Linz a day prior to the session.
For the EYP Day Styria we are looking for Chairpersons, 2 Vice-Presidents, one Editor, as well as members of the Media Team to join the teams of session President Dunja Tanović (UK). Officials will arrive at the session a day earlier for training. Applicants who are applying for the position of Editor are kindly asked to refer to the according document attached.
Please complete the application form for the session you wish to apply for and send it to applications@eypaustria.org. Please submit your application as a PDF file, and replace Firstname_Surname in the file name with your own. The application deadline for Officials is Saturday, 14th December 2013, 23:59 CET.
With a charming and dedicated teams of organisers behind the Regional Session and the EYP Day, the events are bound to be amazing. We are searching for a motivated and spirited chairs team for these promising sessions.
We are looking forward to your applications!
Best wishes,
Raphael Bek
National Coordinator, Vice-President of EYP Austria
Melk 2014: Call for Delegates
/in National UpdatesDear Teachers or future Delegates,
From 16th to 18th of January 2014, 100 people from different parts of Europe will gather in the city of Melk to take part in the very 1st Regional Session of EYP Austria.
The session will host delegations from three Austrian regions as well as an international delegation and international individual delegates who will be split into different groups, each one discussing a politically vibrant topic. These groups will be guided by experienced EYP members from all over Europe, making sure that the respective academic goals are achieved and fun is not missing out.
There will not be a session theme, however, participants are encouraged to get in touch with our organisation and experience the very special session spirit. We would like to provide participants with the opportunity to actively live out democracy by raising their voices on divisive issues.
Melk 2014 is the perfect opportunity for students with political interest to experience their first insight into the European Youth Parliament.
We are now looking for 18 school Delegations, each consisting out of 4 students aged 16-19, as well as a couple of Austrian and international Individual Delegates that will take part actively in order to represent their school or country. Please find attached the application form which needs to be returned as a PDF file to
delegates.melk2014@eypaustria.org by December 16th 2013, 23:59 CET, as well as the official programme of the session, an Info sheet and a selection guide for teachers. Furthermore there will be a participation fee over 10 € per student.We are very much looking forward to your applications!
The organising team of Melk 2014
Downloads:
8th EYP on Ski
/in National UpdatesAre you dreaming of an EYP winter event? Now your dream will come true: Join the 8th EYP on Ski!
Details
EYP Austria is organising the 8th EYP on Ski from 12th – 15th of April 2014 in Schladming-Dachstein, and we are only waiting for you to join this special and unique event.
We will have four days of skiing in one of the most beautiful ski destinations with slopes for both beginners and advanced skiers, and cosy evenings in our own apartments.
Schladming-Dachstein is easy reachable from all over Austria by train and we will try to organise carpools from the regional capitals.
For further information about our apartments and the ski destination, you will find all you need to know here:
http://www.schladming.at/
http://www.ferienalm.at/
How to apply
Apply now by sending an email with:
to eyponski@eypaustria.org. Please also add your passport number and your contact data (name, country, date of birth, telephone number and email).
Deadline for applications: 7th December 2013, 23:59 CET
Update: the deadline has been extended.
Further information
This event will be for members of EYP Austria only.
Please note in advance that costs for accommodation per day are approximately EUR 38,- € and ski tickets for 2 days are for adults 84,-€ and for teenagers 63,-€
Three full days are planned which will add up to about 198,-€ / 177,-€ , excluding your personal travel costs and food.
Melk 2014: Call for Journalists
/in National UpdatesDear EYPers,
The Regional Session Melk 2014 (17th – 18th January 2014) is now looking for a team of journalists to join editress Moira Lanters (NL) in the media team. We are looking for young talents to produce various media products for the session.
EYP Austria’s first Regional Session in Melk (about one train hour away from Vienna) will include EYP’s classic session programme over two days. This duration of the session allows for improved discussions.
Please complete the application form and send it to applications@eypaustria.org. The application deadline for Officials is Sunday, 1st December 2013, 23:59 CET.
With a great team of Organisers, recently joined by a brilliant Chairs team, this session is a very promising event. Please note that journalists are expected to arrive a day prior to the session.
We are looking forward to your applications!
Best wishes,
Raphael Bek
National Coordinator, Vice-President of EYP Austria
EYP-er of the Month: November
/in EYP-er of the MonthPeter Goldsborough is the Regional Coordinator of EYP Carinthia and Head-Organiser of the EYP Day Villach.
He started his EYP carreer less than a year ago, when he was a delegate at the last EYP Day in Villach. Immediately hooked, Peter became the Regional Coordinator for Carinthia, taking over from Lena Strehman in July, only a couple of months after his first EYP event.
Following his appointment as Regional Coordinator, Peter also applied to become the Head Organiser of the next EYP Day in Villach. During the still ongoing preparations, Peter has not only shown his motivation, but also exraordinary talent and confidence in organising. Be it fundraising or managing his organising team, Peter has shown multiple times that he is about to make the EYP Day Villach an unforgettable event.
In October, Peter also attented the 29th National Conference of EYP Portugal as a delegate and wrote a report on his experiences, showing once more his dedication and commitment to EYP.
When he is not coordinating EYP Carinthia or organising an EYP Day, Peter attends the BG/BRG St. Martin in his hometown Villach.
We are happy to have such a motivated and talented member and hope to see Peter involved in even more events in the future.
EYP Day Salzburg: Call for Chairs Team
/in National UpdatesThe EYP Day Salzburg (6th December 2013) is now looking for Vice-Presidents and Chairpersons to join the team. Salzburg is beautiful in December, and the EYP Day is great for young EYPers to try themselves as chairs for the first time and discover sessions from a new perspective.
The session will be presided by Oscar Stenbom (SE). Officials will be asked to arrive a day before the session for training.
The EYP Days are one-day events with a revised version of the standard EYP session format of Teambuilding, Committee Work and General Assembly. The EYP Days are especially interesting for students and are the perfect way to get involved in EYP for the first time.
Please complete the application form for the session you wish to apply for and send it to applications@eypaustria.org. The application deadline for Officials is Monday, 11th November 2013, 11:11 CET.
Don’t hesitate and apply for this great session. Head-Organiser Kathi Radler and her team are working hard to produce a great and memorable session. Be part of it!
Report: National Conference Portugal 2013
/in National UpdatesOur suitcases packed with Austrian cheese, sausages and of course Apfelstrudel, and our heads crammed with joyful thoughts about what would await us in the westernmost country of the European Union, namely Portugal, the Austrian delegation, consisting of Patrik Bruschek, Ciara Pircher, Florian Fellner and myself, Peter Goldsborough, set out by plane on the morning of the 16th of October. Having arrived a day early, we luckily had a decent amount of time to enjoy a walking tour through the enchanting city of Porto, with its over 90 churches, various masterpiece examples of baroque architecture, a touching contemporary history as well as numerous quaint restaurants with a memorable assortment of traditional Portuguese and local foods.
The next morning, the 29th NSC of EYP Portugal starting, we were taken to Matosinhos, a suburb of Porto and the actual location of the session. To our great pleasure and that of the other participants of the session, also with a polish delegation of two in their rows, the first part of Teambuilding took place in a beautiful park, first lead by President Krzysztof Ignaciuk from Poland, then by the individual chairpersons in their committees. In the afternoon, the participants were transferred to Escola Secundaria Augusto Gomes, where also the Committee Work was to take place the next day. Yet, the highlight of the day, the Eurovillage, was still to come. And without any doubt it was an experience every participant will remember as one of the best of it’s kind. Tables were stacked with colorful dishes of the various regions of origin of the different delegations, accompanied by traditional clothing and a mesmerizing atmosphere. Wanting to give the Portuguese and foreign delegations also a taste of the most prominent and traditional Austrian cuisine, we had brought with us a variety of sausages, cheeses and numerous delicacies from the different regions we had gathered from to attend the session.
The following morning we were again transferred to said school, eagerly awaiting the work in our committees, namely the committee on fisheries (PECH/Patrik Bruschek), the committee on industry and research I (ITRE I/Florian Fellner), the committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO/ Ciara Pircher) and lastly the committee on security and defense (SEDE/Peter Goldsborough). A hard and stressful, yet ultimately successful day of work was finally concluded by the theme evening, where Austrian board member Patrik Bruschek seized his chance to present his favorite song, Kabinenparty by Skero, to the Portuguese and international participants.
The session was concluded by two unforgettable and most gripping days of General Assembly, taking place in the Matosinhos city hall. The first day was perfected by the Euroconcert, an event particularly memorable for the Austrian delegation, who had the honor of performing and singing a celebrated Austrian song, “I am from Austria” by Reinhard Fenrich.
Finally, the session concluded with an emotional closing ceremony, where tears were not kept back.
Without doubt, the 29th NSC of EYP Portugal will be in all our hearts as one of the best experiences the European Youth Parliament has brought upon us. A warm thank you again to all participants, officials and of course the organisers, everybody having fulfilled an excellent and exemplary part in making the session as amazing as it was.
by Peter Goldsborough