EUROPEAN YOUTH PARLIAMENT THE NETHERLANDS
Board Update Report on the May 2018 Board Weekend | Vision for the 2018-2019 season
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INTRODUCTION
Dear reader, It is with great pleasure that the Board of EYP the Netherlands presents you with their first board update. The new board has been working on the further development of EYP NL for almost two months now. The second weekend of May 2018, this year’s Board Weekend was held. This weekend also saw the first joined meeting of the Board and the Supervisory Council. This update is a summary of what was discussed during the weekend, but also serves to inform you about our vision and other plans for the development of EYP the Netherlands in 2018-2019. The complete shift to the Extended format of the Preliminary Rounds, the upcoming International Session in Rotterdam 2018 and ambitious democratisation goals, promise a year that will be extraordinary yet challenging. Making these ideas a reality is a joined effort. The board is looking forward to our alumni taking an active role in shaping the future of EYP the Netherlands. We need your input, ideas and help to make our organisation grow. There are many options to help define the direction of our organisation, such as the upcoming Developing Day, being part of our committee’s and filling out our regular surveys. Of course, we are also open for feedback, ideas and input at board@eyp.nl. We hope to see and hear from you! For now, enjoy reading the first board update of this year! All the best, Adriaan, Annelotte, Annelou, Hidde, Jarne en Luc
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DEMOCRATISATION Any questions and feedback about the topic of democratisation can be directed to Luc Vorsteveld, the President of EYP the Netherlands, at luc.vorsteveld@eyp.nl The European Youth Parliament is an organisation built upon certain core values, and democracy is one of them. The previous boards have worked hard to lay the foundations for the transition of EYP the Netherlands from a foundation (Stichting) into an association (Vereniging). One of the most important advantages of an association, is an elected board, and thus a more democratic EYP the Netherlands. Instead of being selected by the supervisory council (Raad van Toezicht), the board would be selected through an elective process by our members. An association also involves a regular (annual) general assembly (Algemene Vergadering) of members, where they can vote on proposals and voice their opinions. During this board weekend, we have set ourselves the goal of continuing the work of previous boards and completing the transition this year. We recognise the substantial amount of work ahead of us, but we are confident that this transition is of great value for our alumni and our organisation. This is why we are committed to this goal and looking forward to the democratic elections of the next board. Besides the formal legal transition into an association, we also want to continue the work of previous boards in terms of creating a ground for open dialogue and discussion. All alumni of EYP the Netherlands have the possibility to voice their opinion. During May 2018’s board weekend, the program and topics were discussed for the annual NC Development Day on the 9th of June. This program will be published soon. In the meantime, please take the time to fill in the suggestions form for the Development Day, which can be found on the Facebook page of the event and in the alumni Facebook group. This is an opportunity to send us points for discussion, other topics you want to put on the agenda or offer to lead the debate on certain topics. Naturally, besides this form, we are always happy to respond to your messages. We are looking forward to seeing you at our Development Day and hearing your ideas!
PRIVACY Any questions and feedback about the topic of privacy can be directed to Annelou Snippe, the PR and Fundraising Coördinator of EYP the Netherlands, at annelou.snippe@eyp.nl Starting with May this year, new European legislation on privacy will be effective: the General Data Protection Regulation. This also has consequences for EYP the Netherlands, as was discussed during the board weekend. In light of the new legislation and the considerable amount of work ahead of us, the board has set a couple of action points that we will focus on the coming year. This includes the creation of a register of processing activities (Register Verwerkingsactiviteiten), the publishing of a privacy statement and the re-evaluation of all personal data currently in our possession. Another goal for this year, which goes hand-in-hand with the new privacy legislation, is the creation of an extensive alumni database. Personal data of alumni will be stored here in a way that is comprehensible and respects the privacy of all individuals. Additionally, the board wishes to create an archive where documents, lists, figures, session materials, yearly reports and other files can be stored. This would make board transitions significantly more effective. It would further make sure that all the people who are working for our NC (board members, head organisers, committee members, the design team) can have access to the documents that they need to deliver quality products and work. 3 European Youth Parliament the Netherlands 2018-2019
ALUMNI INVOLVEMENT AND COMMITTEE’S Any questions and feedback about the topic of alumni involvement can be directed to Adriaan van Streun, the International Coordinator of EYP the Netherlands, at adriaan.vanstreun@eyp.nl. Questions about the committee’s can be directed to their respective chairs or responsible board members. This year, EYP the Netherlands will have the following committee’s: ● ● ● ●
PR and Design Committee Workshop Committee Lustrum Committee Regional Representatives Committee
There is no Academic Committee this year, due to our shift to the Extended format. All applications for the committee’s have been reviewed and the selection process was completed during the board weekend. The committee members will be announced online soon. This year, sixteen alumni applied to be part of a committee, which is a lower amount than expected, and considerably less people than needed to keep our NC running. The Board recognises this as a sign that we need to work harder on alumni involvement, by making voluntary work for the NC more rewarding and interesting, and by making opportunities to stay active in EYP NL more visible to new alumni. We believe that the National Selection Conference can play an essential role in this, as it provides opportunities to engage new alumni with our National Committee. All the opportunities to stay active can be communicated to new alumni through workshops, presentations, info boards and flyers. Furthermore, the board recognises the Alumni Weekends as vital in engaging and involving new alumni. The Alumni Weekend should therefore be promoted more actively during the upcoming National Selection Conference. The board invites further brainstorming on the topic of alumni involvement during the June 2018 Development Day.
FINANCES Any questions and feedback about the topic of finances can be directed to Hidde Fokkema, the Treasurer of EYP the Netherlands, at hidde.fokkema@eyp.nl This board weekend, the finances of EYP NL were also briefly discussed. The preliminary rounds of 2017-2018 were profitable by a small margin, and the National Selection Conference broke even, with total costs and total revenue being as good as equal. As a result, EYP the Netherlands is still a financially healthy organisation. The participation fees for the Extended Preliminary Rounds 2018-2019 will remain the same as last year. Thus, we maintain the same or a higher standard of quality, while also being cost effective, making sure EYP NL remains financially stable. More extensive information on the finances of our organisation will be discussed in the upcoming financial report, which will be published in October.
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REGIONAL OUTREACH Any questions and feedback about the topic of regional outreach can be directed to Annelotte de van der Schueren, the Alumni Coordinator of EYP the Netherlands, at annelotte.dvdschueren@eyp.nl Building on the work of previous boards, we consider Regional Outreach an important focus point. The board is fully appreciative of the efforts of EYP alumni in regions such as Brabant to organise events and engage alumni in their region. Supportive of these regional efforts, and in light of more outreach, the board introduced the concept of Regional Representatives, which will replace the Alumni Committee. Regional Representatives organise and promote activities in their region, which can be attended by all alumni. This year’s Regional Representatives will be announced soon and will be working under supervision of our Alumni Coordinator, Annelotte de van der Schueren. In addition to regional outreach for alumni of EYP NL, we also want to stimulate regional outreach in terms of school recruitment. We regret that schools from the east (Overijssel, Gelderland, Drenthe) and north (Groningen, Friesland) of the country are not well-represented in our yearly Preliminary Rounds. The board is working on finding schools in these provinces and adding them to our school network. We hope to see these areas represented at the Preliminary Rounds this year.
THE NATIONAL SELECTION CONFERENCE The Head Organiser of the 2019 National Selection Conference is Thanos Theofanakis. The board was pleased to see his determination and enthusiasm, and is confident in his abilities as Head Organiser. Preparations for the upcoming NSC have been in full swing for the past weeks, and more practical information about the session, such as dates and locations, will be announced in due time. The National Selection Conference of 2019 will be overseen by two board members: Annelou Snippe and Hidde Fokkema.
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THE EXTENDED PRELIMINARY ROUNDS Any questions and feedback about the topic of the Extended Preliminary Rounds can be directed to Jarne van der Poel, the Secretary of EYP the Netherlands, at jarne.vanderpoel@eyp.nl The format of the Extended Preliminary Round was launched in 2016. An Extended Preliminary Round is two days instead of one, with committee work and teambuilding on Saturday and General Assembly on Sunday. The format was expanded to two Extended rounds in 2017. This year, the board would like to complete this transition and shift to 100% Extended, organising four Extended Preliminary Rounds. This choice was made because both participants and teachers have been predominantly positive about their experiences at Extended Preliminary Rounds. Furthermore, the Extended Preliminary Round is more in line with the mission of EYP. By allowing delegates to write their own resolutions, instead of using pre-written ones, they can let their own ideas be heard. Additionally, social interaction is promoted at an Extended Preliminary Round by splitting school delegations into committee’s, spending two days together. Criticism on the Extended Preliminary Rounds was mainly the lack of sleep of delegates, as experienced by teachers. We are therefore making wellbeing of delegates a priority: this means 7 hours of sleep and a healthy diet during the session. Most notably, the sessions will have pre-written Introductory Clauses, which will shorten committee work and resolution typing. Wellbeing in general will be a focus point. Two Wellbeing Officers will be appointed from the board in the coming weeks. At all times, one of these will be present at our sessions or alumni events. They can be approached by both delegates and alumni to talk about any issues in complete confidentiality. Aware of the lower number of participating schools last year, the recruitment of schools will be a priority this year. Three board members and eight head organisers will focus on school recruitment for four months, also enlisting the help of external organisations and networks in reaching schools. School recruitment will strive towards regional outreach and diversity, by contacting more schools from outlier regions, and schools that teach all levels of education (“breedte-scholen”). It is important that we keep our sessions accessible to all participants, and therefore we will continue to offer financial assistance to schools that cannot pay the participation fee in full. The Extended Preliminary Rounds of this year will be Head Organised by: ● ● ● ●
Tim van Woezik and Lucas Taams Pien Kiliaan and Tom Suelmann Bente Vissel and Dorith Blijleven Jelmer de Haan and Hannah Wessels
The Extended Preliminary Rounds will take place in November, December and January. The exact locations and dates for the Extended Preliminary Rounds will be announced soon. Due to the increased workload that comes with extended sessions, two board members as opposed to one are overseeing the Preliminary Rounds this year: Jarne van der Poel (Secretary) and Annelotte de van der Schueren (Alumni Coordinator). On the 20th of May, the Head Organisers and supervising board members had a productive Head Organiser’s Training Day. During this day, crash courses on school recruitment, fundraising and budgeting were held. Additionally, a timeline was presented and deadlines were set. 6 European Youth Parliament the Netherlands 2018-2019
THANK YOU, for reading the first board update of this year! We hope to have fully informed you of all developments of the last months, and all goals that we hope to achieve this year, with your help. We are looking forward to seeing you on the 9th of June 2018 in Amsterdam for our annual Development Day! All the best, Adriaan, Annelotte, Annelou, Hidde, Jarne en Luc
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