The European Youth Parliament
August 2nd 2013
GB Session Report – Zurich 2013 Report by the Governing Body on the 73st International Session of the European Youth Parliament Zurich, 19th – 28th July 2013
Introduction This is the 6th Governing Body report on the International Sessions (IS) of EYP. This report reviews the 73rd International Session of the European Youth Parliament, held in Zurich, 19th – 28th July 2013. The summer session worked like a Swiss clock. Thanks to the common vision of the NOC and Session President Kerstin Mathias, it was particularly professional and academic in nature. The Session received wide coverage in the media, and the partnerships with different sponsors went beyond just financial support. The GB considers overall information on the IS important for the wider EYP community and wishes to use this series of reports as a means to show its appreciation of the work done by all groups of active alumni committed to the success of our IS. The report is intended to be a review, and also to be constructive and forward looking, so as to be a useful reference document for future officials’ teams. To facilitate this, a summary is provided which lists: 1.
Successes and Good Practices
2.
Matters Recommended for Future Consideration or Attention
Two GB members were present at the session from the first day onwards in order to successfully report all the different aspects of the session. The summary has been
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reviewed by the Head Organisers, the Session President and the Editors to avoid major omissions.
I.
Summary of Conclusions a. Successes and Good Practices • One of the highlights of the session was the prestigious Opening Ceremony. Held in the University of Zurich Aula, where Winston Churchill held his famous speech in 1946, the participants were honoured by the presence of Commisioner Vassilou among other speakers. This marked the fourth consecutive time for an IS with an EU Commissioner attending. Vassilou’s presence was of particular importance, as EYP falls into her portfolio of Education, Youth and Culture. • The NOC continued the good practice of treating participants as responsible young adults. In practice it meant that no wake-‐up calls were organised, and participants were expected to be in time for transfers. Also, no difference was made between delegates and officials regarding rules and procedures at the session. • Every participant was accommodated at the Zurich Youth Hostel. Overall, the venue was perfect. It provided meeting rooms for the officials team to work in, a courtyard for participants to hang out and a larger room for small parties, video presentations etc. As on many evenings the official programme ended rather early, the venue facilitated impromptu socialisation. • The NOC and EYP Switzerland, Session President Kerstin Mathias with her chairs team and the media team had a common vision of a professionally organised, academic session. This was reflected in the amount of preparation done both by the officials and delegates before the session. The chairs team is to be especially commended for their numerous innovations and hard work. • The NOC took special care to ensure that every participant was aware of and understood the Alcohol and Drug Policy and its implementation (i.e. no drinks over 15 % were allowed). The same applied to the Child Protection Policy. Delegates were briefed individually or in small groups upon arrival by the President of EYP Switzerland, Ueli Staeger. The NOC tirelessly communicated the message to the participants and was always ready for the necessary actions if a violation of the policy would arise. In case of a policy violation a warning would be given first, with a second breach the participant would be sent home. No drug
use violations were detected, one minor case of overindulgence was dealt with adequate measures; no one had to leave the session. • The session had both a media partner (Neue Zürcher Zeitung) and an academic patron (Prof. Dr. Daniel Kübler), both contributing to the session overall and also to the pre-‐session training of chairs and journalists. Especially the cooperation with the media partner is to be laudated: not only did the NOC secure good coverage, but the newspaper also provided professional guidance for the media team, as one of their journalists went through each journalists’ article before the session and then gave feedback at the pre-‐session training. • Past-‐IS president, Ruben Wagenaar, was at the session from Wednesday until Tuesday, conducting the pre-‐session training and providing support for the chairs team throughout the beginning of the session. Ruben deserves thanks for his very well prepared and advanced training. The content of the training will be available for the wider EYP community later on. • The Media Team had a viral social media presence, which positively contributed to the ‘hype’ around the session. At the session the media team contributed both academically and socially, covering all the different aspects of the session theme with professional articles (including citing relevant sources), also discussing EYP in general and contributing to the evening programme for the participants when no activities were planned. • The Media Team contributed to the academic side of the session very heavily with the fourth publication that was compiled of resolution critiques, written by the respective committee journalists. The critiques included a critical opinion about the resolution by the journalists, bringing out both strong and weak points of the resolutions. The critiques initiated additional debates during the General Assembly and served as a preparatory material for writing speeches and making points during the GA. • 2) While all journalists were responsible for the session paper, the Media Team worked with several sub-‐groups focusing on photography, videos, social media and projects. Each of these groups took responsibility for contributing to the session within their specific aspect and tried out different formats such as a photoshooting at Euroconcert, and the publication of a Yearbook for all session participants. • 3) Additionally, the Media Team set up a "Committee Work Wall" where journalists posted updates on decisions or questions their committee was
working on, giving all participants the chance to both stay updated and comment or discuss on these posts. • As part of GA prep, the committees were divided into three groups according to the thematic connections of their topics for a conciliation session. In these groups the committees had the chance to present their resolution and discuss possible issues. This contributed to an excellent General Assembly, as most of the “obvious” questions had already been tackled and delegates had a better understanding of the proposals of other committees. • Another success of the Zurich 2013 was a very high quality General Assembly. From all aspects it was exemplary. The venue was provided by the main sponsor of the session. In addition to the space, the host offered lunch, coffee breaks and dinners on both days for the whole session. Active participation of the Session Board and all chairs contributed to the high level debate. Points were structured around thematic sections of the resolutions and brief sum-‐ups kept everyone aware of what was being said. Chairs allocated points of debate within their committee according to the relevance of the point and many appointed rapporteurs and shadow rapporteurs for the different resolutions. Unfortunately, there was no live stream of the General Assembly. • A separate report on the Chairs Academic Training has been published earlier by GB Member Andris Šuvajevs. • In order to live up to the session theme “sustainability” the organising committee adopted an overall sustainable approach towards the session. For instance, there were no plastic cups or mugs used at the session. Every participant received a refillable “SIGG” bottle for free which they used throughout the session. They were asked to bring a mug on their own or could purchase one for very little money. Both measures proved to be a full success. Furthermore all transfers were organised by tram or foot.
b. Matters recommended for Future Consideration or Attention The following are matters which are intended to assist future NOCs and Officials. Some of the items referenced are listed here because they have become recurrent issues at recent International Sessions. Some of these recommendations are intended as risk minimisation measures and do not necessarily refer to deficiencies at the Zurich session
• The main venues of the session were excellent and met the expected standards, though several observations are to be noted. Teambuilding took place in the immediate vicinity of Saalsportshalle, a local sports hall. Though the NOC had negotiated the use of the whole facility, in reality, due to the good weather, the indoor spaces were only partly available to the session. Considering some teambuilding activities are more suitable for indoors and the warmth (+30C°) of Zurich summer, this was unfortunate and a potential health and safety concern. This being said, the organiser went to great lengths to make the situation as bearable as possible, buying several blankets for every committee and pavilions for lunch Also, a few weeks before the session the Euroconcert venue changed, which luckily resulted in a better and cheaper venue in the end. However, in general it would be better to ensure the suitability and availability of all venues well beforehand. The Head Organisers noted that it would be important to always secure contracts in written form to avoid misunderstandings and changes. • Whilst the high academic quality of the session was without a question success, many participants felt that especially for a summer session bringing together alumni, there were too few parties. The lack of parties should not be viewed as problem as such, rather as something to keep in mind about participants’ expectations and expectations management. Also, academic quality and having fun should not be considered as mutually exclusive. • A third challenge noted by the Head Organisers was the aspect of communication and facilitation of the organisers team. Running a team of +20 organisers requires a lot of dealing with human resources e.g. facilitating, trouble-‐shooting, briefings etc. This aspect could be taken into account when considering future session head organisers and relevant trainings.
II. Discussion a. Organisation The NOC was headed by Felix Kurer and Philip Aiolfi. The structure of the organising team was based on a concept tried out at previous Swiss National Session. Also, many of the organisers at the IS had taken part in that session. The structure of the NOC followed the traditional approach of having thematic teams from the moment that the organisers were selected until few months before the start. These teams initially dealt with logistics, infrastructure, venues and events (LIVE), legal & financial issues, public relations and fundraising, food and beverages.
A few months before the session, the organisers were rearranged to new teams according to experience, gender balance and so on. During the session the Head Organisers briefed the Team Leaders of the 4 respective teams, the Team Leaders then passed on the information to their teams. As whole the organisers team had 4 larger meetings for feedback and discussion. Overall, there were no serious issues and everything ran smoothly.
b. Media Coverage and General Attention • Delia Berner from the organising committee was in charge of the media work. She received professional support from two PR departments of partner companies. This lead to a very professional preparation and resulted in wide coverage. • The session received a lot of media coverage in all major national newspapers, radio stations and TV channels. Many participants were interviewed. • The guest management was carefully planned before the session. All organisers received a booklet which briefed them on the “Who is who” of all guests. At the Opening Ceremony there was a representative room where the guests were received before they were lead to the Opening Ceremony hall once everyone else was seated. • As in Amsterdam all speakers were briefed beforehand in order to deliver an appropriate and interesting speech for all participants.
c. Academic Preparation & Innovations Zurich featured a number of innovations and good practices related to academic preparation. Fact sheets, first used in Tallinn, were again in use. This time delegates were asked to also argue for the relevance of the facts they gathered. Instead of Position Papers every chair had their own ‘preparation concept’ for their committee. The structure of the Topic Preparation was revised to better highlight different aspects of the topics and preparation. Also a slightly modified Resolution format was introduced. For a full disclosure on the different innovations and preparation concepts, see the Zurich Innovation Report by President Kerstin Mathias and the chairs team.
d. The GB, Office and NOC relationship The NOC took proactive approach to cooperation with the Office. Overall, the relationship between the different actors was satisfactory. Points to consider included for example the formulation of different contracts; their standard form was not adjusted to Zurich, which resulted in extra work for the NOC. Also it was slightly unclear whose responsibility the communication between the Cabinet of Commissioner Vassilliou was. During the session guest management worked really well.
III. Previous Reports a. Amsterdam Report Alcohol Policy • Amsterdam Report stated: Concerns were expressed, after the session, that almost every evening programme included the possibility to purchase alcohol. While alternative programme was occasionally available, it is a matter for the GB to consider, for the future International sessions, the need for less events involving the provision of alcohol. • Already discussed above, Zurich had notably fewer parties than Amsterdam. The 15% rule was applied and enforced for all participants including officials, which seemed to cause some surprise. Bars and party venues were instructed not to serve any liquor above 15%.
Innovations • Amsterdam Report stated: The chairs’ team did an excellent job in Amsterdam! All chairs were professional, sensitive to different needs, responsible and ensured participants’ safety all throughout the session. At the same time it was noted that more effort could have been put in innovating and advancing new techniques as well as ideas for the future chairs’ teams. • Also discussed above, Zurich featured a number of innovations from both the chairs’ and the media teams, not forgetting the NOC. These innovations were well received by the participants.
The GB, Office and NOC relationship
• Amsterdam Report stated: The NOC, Office and GB working relationship during the organising process was unsatisfactory. The roles of the involved parties were not clearly defined which resulted in expectations that were not met. The NOC indicated that a guide for organising International Sessions would be useful for every NOC undertaking the major responsibility which already is on the agenda of the Office. The Organising Committee and the Office made efforts to constructively solve the issues before the session and build a better working relationship, however, the end result was not satisfactory to either parties. Nonetheless, the project was very successful and the NOC had the necessary resources available to manage the work, however at times it felt held back which complicated their efforts. • See above, section II bullet d.
b. Tallinn Report Logistics • Previous reports have dealt with issues relating to logistics within the session. • In Zurich All transfers were done by tram which worked perfectly. The venues were chosen in close proximity, some transfers could thus be done by foot. In order to minimise transfer time there was no change of accommodation during the session.
Inclusion of the International Organisers • Tallinn Report stated: Attention to inclusion and role of international organisers, possibly make the role more that of an observer than an actual session organiser, with rotation between different roles and sectors within the organisers team to benefit the next IS as much as possible. In Amsterdam everything worked well with the IOs.
• Although the three IOs joined in the Zurich team on rather short notice with several cancellations and one NC sending no IO at all the collaboration was very fruitful. They joined different teams and found it easy to integrate. One noteworthy aspect is that in one case there were considerable language and communication problems. Therefore it should be made sure that IOs who attend the session are fluent in English and can easily express themselves.
Emergency situations
• Tallinn Report stated: Naming a person responsible in case of emergency and having a list of people with emergency assistance training, guidelines what to do in case of a emergency. Possibility to have a volunteer from eg. Red Cross who is competent in first aid. • The NOC was fully prepared for all medical emergency situations with two medicine students on the organising team that handled every medical issue professionally, efficiently and appropriately ensuring the well-‐being of all participants. • All participants were repeatedly reminded of the importance to have their own medical insurance as well as to hand in all necessary information on the medical emergency sheet. There was a medical student at the session during all times to provide assistance. In critical cases participants were brought to the hospital immediately. During the GA days the sponsor provided two paramedics that were present at the venue. • The local police had been informed about Ms. Vassiliou’s attendance and the session in general. This was based on the experience in Munich where the police initially mistook transfers for demonstrations. • For every venue there was a “factsheet” featuring information about wheelchair accessibility, fire exits etc. • Considering that there was one participant in a wheelchair one organiser was assigned to assist her if necessary. Furthermore, had there been a fire in the youth hostel during the night this organiser was instructed to go straight up to the participant in order to make sure she can exit the building (seeing that lifts would not work in case of a fire.) • General Comments The 73rd International Session of the European Youth Parliament, held in Zurich, 19th – 28th July 2013, was an excellent EYP event that excelled in new innovations, professional organising and high academic quality. Hopefully future sessions meet the bar set high by Zurich. Following this session, the GB will take a closer look at the given issues: • Zurich was an exemplary session, which best practices and innovations should be given a closer look to ensure continuation
The GB would like to thank once again all the participants of the session for their dedication to the event, with special thanks to the hard-‐working NOC. Comments are welcome from all alumni on any of the above issues and proposals to help the GB make more informed decisions on the above matters, and to widen the scope of contributions with ideas on how to enhance the quality of international sessions. These may be sent to the main author of the report – Robert Torvelainen at robert.torvelainen@gmail.com.