alster twelve . issue one by Robin Janásek

Alster Twelve consists to a large part of online features. You can access these features by scanning the barcode-like boxes (QR codes) next to each article with a smartphone, or of course by entering the web address into your notebook browser. Each link will lead you to our press team website with the complementary brilliant photo and video content that just could not be expressed by a black-and-white copying machine. Robin Janรกsek and Randolf Carr

HEAD ORGANISERS’ INTERVIEW PAGE 6

TEAMBUILDING ARTICLES PAGE 12

EUROVILLAGE REVIEW (INCLUDING VIDEO) PAGE 15

FACTS ABOUT ACTA PAGE 18

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HAMBURG: MORE THAN JUST A SESSION VENUE Arriana Yia llo u r id e s A spectacular city awaits you beyond Gymnasium Grootmoor’s campus. Memorise some of this Hamburg trivia to impress fellow delegates at the City Tour.

t’s usually a good idea, when attending an EYP session, to immerse yourself fully in the location. Especially when the location is as exciting as the city of Hamburg. Getting to know the place where you will have some of the most intense debates of your life and play some of the most outrageous games with names so imaginative that they’re beyond common understanding - it is indeed vital to reach a full appreciation of an EYP session’s venue, since it will inevitably become the setting for some amazing memories.

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Having said that, especially as an international journalist, I found it an important task to investigate the city of Hamburg and ended up finding some remarkable facts and figures. So here it goes! Firstly, Hamburg is Germany’s second largest city after Berlin. Although a quite boring statistic, it contains a very interesting fact: Hamburg has a living space of 30 square metres per person, thereby making Hamburg the city with the most generous living space in the world. Secondly, contrary to popu-

lar belief, Venice is not the city with the most bridges! It is indeed Hamburg! Although not a widely known fact, it is actually true that it even has more bridges than Venice and Amsterdam combined. It is estimated that Hamburg boasts more than 2500 bridges, making it a unique place to visit. Consequently, Hamburg is also called “the city of rivers” with a large number of canals and rivers meandering all over the city. I bet you didn’t know that about our remarkable host city. For those interested in the

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environmental aspect of the city, you will be pleased to know that Hamburg has been chosen as Europe’s Green Capital for 2011 on top of being considered Germany’s greenest city. An astounding fact for a city that also houses the second largest port in Europe, which inevitably means: pollution. Nonetheless, Hamburg brings both into perfect equilibrium, managing to be one of Europe’s most important trade centres whilst remaining ecofriendly. What more could we ask for? It is also worth knowing that amongst the plethora of museums which one finds in Hamburg, there is one that should not go unnoticed! The city houses the world’s largest model railway museum called “Miniatur Wunderland”, an unusual museum definitely worth visiting.

I think we can grow to love Hamburg, not only for the common reason that brings us all here.

Last but not least, in the oﬃcially named Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, one can also find the largest Japanese Garden in the World, highlighting the multi-faceted nature of this amazing city. Need I say more? I hope it’s now apparent to you that Hamburg, beyond being a sensational EYP venue, is an amazing place to see. For these facts I think we can grow to love Hamburg, not only for the common reason that brings us all here. Extending your stay your stay here for an exploration of the city is definitely in order!

WEATHER FORECAST FOR HAMBURG If you hold this newspaper out the window and it gets wet, that means it’s raining

See you soon!

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FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF FIRST SESSIONS Judith Breh m e r Even the most experienced EYPer has once, like you now, attended their very first session... Some unforgettable first impressions.

n of the jury members in Hamburg, who participated on his first session in 2005, recalls about that first experience, “We were fanatical”. In hindsight he recognises, “Maybe we should have relaxed more to enjoy the session”. A realisation that he now wants to give to you. Like you, every EYPer has entered this world as a delegate. Everyone? No, there are exceptions: Lia experienced her first session as an organiser. Having gotten this position through a friend, she found herself rather lost: “In the Orga meeting, I didn’t understand a word. What on Earth was a committee?” Now, some sessions in the roles of delegate and chair later, she knows the answer. The feeling of being thrown into something that feels a little to big is familiar to session President Adriana too. Her first session was one of the big international sessions in 2006. In contrast to the delegates from other countries, she didn’t have any prior experialstertwelve

ence. “During the first day of committee work, I just felt stupid”, she remembers. Nonetheless, she didn’t give up and managed the situation. “Maybe the fact that is was my first experience in EYP made it even more magical. I continued EYP because I enjoyed it”. Upon being asked about their first EYP memory, some burst out giggling and laughing. Enough reason to dig deeper! Laura, currently a member of our organiser team, remembers having messed up the sum-up speech she had to hold in the General Assembly as she was very nervous. She recalls forgetting how to begin her speech and whispering to her fellow delegate for help, hoping the microphones wouldn’t work that well... in vain – the audience heard it. What happens when you don’t stick to water and juice, Journo Zuzana and Head Orga Ulli found out on their first or second sessions: Ulli woke up one morning covered in lipstick paintings, and Zuzana, together with some friends,

got fascinated by the idea of tattoos and painted her body. Nothing wrong with that; it just happened that the next day she wanted to wear a skirt for the General Assembly... and painted legs obviously didn’t match that look very well, so she had to spend some time removing the “tattoos” with a toothbrush... “The first session is always the first”, Adriana says. So look forward to what is yet to come and let yourself be surprised how this event will become unforgettable as your first EYP session!

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MOBILITY AND COMMUNICATION NEW CONNECTIONS Zuzana Holakovská Hamburg, with its famous port, is a worldwide symbol of mobility; therefore also the best place to look for New Connections.

oger Tory Peterson once said, “Birds have wings; they’re free; they can fly where they want when they want. They have the kind of mobility many people envy”. However these concerns are becoming less relevant day by day. The word Mobility, together with Communication, could adequately define this 21st century. While in the past people felt a strong connection with their roots and thus had a tendency to settle and spend their lives close to their nest, nowadays the concept of Europe, with the aid of technology and time, motivates people to explore the world. When it comes to mobility most of us imagine airplanes, cars and trains. Thus we also need to keep in mind the pressure we put on the environment while travelling, instead of taking the beautiful landscapes for granted, because it may not take long before they vanish. On the other hand, due to the development of new communication methods such as social

media, people do not need to be as mobile in the physical way as in the past. The concept of working from home enables entrepreneurs to spend less on renting office space and gives employees more flexible working hours. Looking further into the future, communication could therefore also have a significant influence on the metropolitan traffic - less people commuting means less traffic, so it may aid traffic-jammed cities, such as London, Brussels or Warsaw. The President of the session Adriana believes that communication reflects one of the basic needs of human beings – belongingness. According to the Head Organisers there were several reasons that eventually led to the choice of Mobility and Communication as the session theme. First of all, both Berthold and Ulrich felt that the session theme needs to stand for something that anyone, no matter how experienced or educated, can relate to. “By choosing a theme which is neutral and

pretty broad we aimed to balance the competitive spirit of a regional conference and thus encourage those less prepared to use their creativity,“ says Berthold. Furthermore Ulrich feels that although it is important to care about the environment, pushing the topic of energy saving, etc. into all sessions is rather unnecessary. Moreover, the Head Organisers decided not to relate any of the committee topics too directly to the session theme. “If the topics reflect the session theme directly, the General Assembly tends to become incredibly boring and one-sided and we primarily wanted to encourage diverse discussions.“ Hope for an enriching debate and keep in mind that one thing is more than certain; due to the speed of development of the 21st century, mobility and communication will undeniably affect the future of the EU on a much greater scale.

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THE DYNAMIC DUO Nives Kapro cki an d L eo n a Kohl The Head Organisers Ulrich Johannes Völker and Berthold Wahjudi talk about their EYP experiences and report on what happens backstage at the session. Nives and Leona: Why did you decide to Head-Organise the session together? Berthold: We met at the EYP Academy in Aschaffenburg in November 2010… Ulrich: One month later the Regional Conference concept was introduced and there was a call for Head Organisers and I never had the chance to have a session in my town. I was thinking about who I could organise the session with and asked Berthold. Were there any funny moments during the session preparation? Ulrich: During the preparation, which took longer than one year, there were funny moments, but it wasn’t really funny. Yeah, I remember one funny moment. (Both laughing) When we had an EYP Germany Board meeting near

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Stuttgart, Berthold and I needed to go to the supermarket, which was just a few streets away. We took Franziska’s car and somehow ended up at a construction site in a completely different direction and almost drove off the hill. Berthold: I really thought we were going to roll over. Ulrich: Oh really? I’m sorry! (Both laughing) I must admit I am a bad driver. What do you expect from this session? Berthold: My only demand for the session was to have a fulllength session in three days. I want the delegates, who are mostly first-time delegates, to have a full EYP experience although it’s just a Regional Conference. Ulrich: We considered it most important to make the delegates feel comfortable and

that’s why we chose a chairs’ team of whom were 100% sure that they are not only competent but also great personalities. With our advertising we got many applications and were able to choose the best oﬃcials’ team. We want to make this session the most amazing first EYP experience. What do you think makes the session unique? Berthold: To be honest, there are so many sessions, so from

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You can’t understand EYP until you experienced it. It’s amazing how far EYP can take you.

the organisational point of view this session isn’t unique. Because the basic parts and the programme like teambuilding and committee work were planned before. I think the people make the session unique and Hamburg is a unique event, not because of the session itself, but because of the people. Ulrich: I fully agree. Can you explain simply what EYP means to you?

Berthold: In general it is about meeting young, interesting and enthusiastic people from all over Europe, critical debates, and all the goals that EYP tries to achieve. Ulrich: I absolutely agree with you. I just want to say that in the past three years EYP started dominating my life. When I came to my first session, I was annoyed by people who were really, really enthusiastic, because I went there to participate in academic debating with competition - and now I went to 17 sessions and I just can’t stop. What was the most memorable moment in your EYP career? Berthold: I think it was the first Closing Ceremony. I realized that many people were crying and that EYP means so much to them and I also was very sad. You can’t understand EYP until you experienced it. It’s amazing how far EYP can take you. Ulrich: There had been so many moments; every ses-

sion more or less has brought a lot of interesting moments. For example when I had my first attack speech. It’s always about the people you meet and special moments. If you know the person for three or four days and you call him a friend. Is there any advice you’d like to give to the delegates? Berthold: I encourage them to participate with passion, because you can’t understand EYP unless you tried. Ulrich: Don’t be afraid, although at first place there might be things you’ll be afraid of . Just enjoy. Enjoy being together with all of those outstanding people. This session should provide every single delegate with so many special settings. Make the most out of it and be honest to yourself, and don’t worry too much about the obstacles. Thank you! Ulrich and Berthold: You’re welcome.

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Cruising and Ketelkloppering Judith Breh m e r Besides being a hub for shipping and trade, the Hamburg harbour has made also made some more… unconventional… contributions to mobility and communication.

he future of mobility and communication in Europe… How do these tow topics, mobility and communication, correspond? Where there’s mobility, communication develops… sometimes in the most curious ways. Need some proof? Go to the Hamburg harbour – and some decades, preferably one and a half centuries, back in time. The famous port of Hamburg, the second largest in Europe after Rotterdam, not only sees thousands of ships docking and casting off again; it’s also the source of some inventions that have made the world a lit-

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tle more interesting. Firstly, Hamburg harbour is the birthplace of pleasure cruises. Though nowadays the port is more famous for its container ships, transfer stations and its economical role, cruising was invented here in 1891 – not as a properly planned venture, but out of some state of emergency: During winter, when not as many passenger liners as usual could pass the Atlantic, many ships had to remain anchored in the harbour. No shipping, no business. So Albert Ballin, a businessman, decided to divert those ships a little from their intended

use: He advertised so-called “journeys for education and amusement” through the Mediterranean. The “Auguste Victoria” was the first passenger liner to serve for cruises – and from then on the idea has won many supporters throughout the decades until now and has added one more attraction to mobility. And didn’t I say something about a novelty in communication from the port of Hamburg? To be sure! Here you go: Ketelkloppersprook. Sorry? Ketelkloppersprook is a certain dialect that was invented by the workers of Hamburg

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Ketelkloppersprook. Sorry? Ketelkloppersprook is a certain dialect that was invented by the workers of Hamburg harbour and is now, apart from its cultural value, a secret or code language.

harbour and is now, apart from its cultural value, a secret or code language. To solve your confusion about the name: Ketelkloppersprook comes from the German “Kesselklopfersprache” (literally: the language of the workers who removed limescale from ships’ steam boilers), which came up in the middle of the 19th century – again out of need. It was hard for the workers to communicate due to the massive noise a harbour of Hamburg’s size naturally causes. But as communication was essential, the workers found a way of alternating their language in a way that made it easier to be understood over the noise. This is how Ketelkloppersprook came up. Its system is quite simple: Every word has to start with a vowel. If it doesn’t, the consonant at the beginning of the word is put

either to the end of the syllable or of the whole word, followed by an “i”. Not too complicated. What makes things tricky for us today is the fact that the basis of Ketelkloppersprook isn’t standard German but Low German. So for outsiders, it’s really hard to understand – which is why Ketelkloppersprook has become a secret language. For example, an extract of the “Hamborger Kedelklopper” song from 1925: Wi sünd Amborgerhi Etelki-Opperkli, / wi arbeit’t öbendri bi Ohmbli un Ossvi, / sünd üzfidelkri un ümmer opperpri, / kaut Attenswi un hebt ändlischi Ostdi. To say it in German: Wir sind Hamburger Kesselklopfer, / wir arbeiten drüben bei Blohm + Voss, / sind kreuzfidel und immer propper, / kauen Schwarzen und haben schändlich Durst.

And in English: We are the Kesselklopfer of Hamburg, / we work over there at Blohm + Voss, / we’re jolly and always all right / we chew black (tobacco) and are bitterly thirsty. So you see: Where there’s mobility, people come together. Where people come together, they communicate. And where they communicate, new dialects and languages come up and increase cultural variety. So if you want to tell secrets or just impress others, maybe you’ll use Ketelkloppersrook next time. But remember: Oﬃcial EYP languages are English and French!

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TRAVEL FAILS AND HOW TO AVOID THEM Hannah Gr a ce Ca r ter A short guide to all the things that can go wrong based on the collective experience of the oﬃcials body.

part from expanding your horizons, EYP will give you the chance to travel all over Europe, but from financing your own travel to filling out the travel forms on time, it’s all a little more complicated than going to Mallorca with your mum and dad. And let me tell you now, before you get all surprised about it: Things WILL go wrong. So here is a little guide to surviving travel fails, all based on real EYP experiences: 1. Money doesn’t only make the world go round; it also makes us go around the world.

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Keeping money with you at all times is essential for overcoming any possible travel fail. Keep money for a taxi on you when you go out and party, along with the address of your hostel and the number for a taxi company. Also try to learn how to ask a taxi driver to take you home in countries where it is unlikely that the cab driver will understand English. When you go abroad, make sure you have a credit/debit card with enough money to pay for a new flight/train ticket, in case you miss yours. 2. Don’t trust anyone but your-

self. When traveling in a group, it may be tempting to rely solely on your friends and Organisers, but be warned, Orgas make mistakes, friends get lost. Don’t end up in a city you don’t know well without the address of your hostel or session location in mind or on paper. 3. Lübeck is not Hamburg, Girona is not Barcelona. When booking flights to your travel destinations, some airlines, such as Ryanair, will sometimes sell you tickets to secondary destinations, pretending that they are actually

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the place you wanted to arrive at. Watch out for this, and make sure that when you want to fly to Munich, your flight actually takes you to Munich, not Memmingen. 4. Smartphones are handy, but only as long as they are charged. I have been to sessions where the hostel had no plugs, i.e. no chance to charge your phone for multiple days. If worst comes to worst, remember that payphones still exist. If you are lost with no phone and don’t know where to go, throw in a couple of coins, call your mum and have her Google your location (or better, keep the number of the travel Orga on a piece of paper). Also make sure there is enough credit on your phone to make emer-

Lübeck is not Hamburg, Girona is not Barcelona.

gency calls in a foreign country, and don’t waste it on texting your friends about how great the session is. 5. Ukraine is not part of the EU. When you travel to countries that are not part of the EU, make sure you have your passport. This may sound obvious, but sometimes we even forget the easiest things. 6. Be prepared to run. Your high heels may look good in the morning before you leave the house, but I promise you will hate them when you hear your boarding call and are still not past the security check.

out when you missed your train. Head to the travel center and have them book a new train for you. Sometimes you wont even have to pay the full fare for a new ticket. 8. Keep your Editor/President/ Orgas updated. Let your session team head know if you are coming or not. They care. This is especially important if you are an oﬃcial in the future. With all that in mind, have fun on your future EYP travels, and remember, every travel fail is a new chance to learn something. And usually, it all turns out ok in the end and you’ll be able to laugh about it.

7. Keep calm and head to the information point. There is no point in freaking

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CULTURAL LIKE A SIR hamburg.eyp.de/t1/ article, photos

Ma ja Zalews ka

ach and every beginning is hard, so it’s no wonder that CULT I also experienced some difficulties. Although a bit shy and lethargic at the start, after a couple of games they opened up to each other. One of the delegates (Carla Kluth) was purchased for 40 000£ during the Auction, all

thanks to her cooking skills and membership in Stroecher Karneval Gesellschaft. I must say that after watching the CULT I integrating, I feel they really enjoy getting physical with each other. They easily managed to succeed in passing not only the orange but also a bottle at the same time, which

requires much physical exertion, skill and enthusiasm, as well as the will to fight and not to give up. They also tried their best until they finally managed to solve the Human Knot. Keep calm and stay awesome, CULT I!

CULT II - THE COOLEST COMMITTEE IN HAMBURG hamburg.eyp.de/t2/ article, photos

Hannah Gr ace Car te r

rom chasing toilet paper to blitz presentations, CULT II was kept quite busy today. The delegates got quite close when they were pasted together by magic glue, and got to know each other even better after they had to introduce each other in elevator presentations. The lat-

ter revealed that CULT II has quite some interesting delegates! There was a delegate who camped out in the woods for peace (very alternative, non?) and one who speaks five languages. They where then asked to sort themselves in a line, according to certain criteria, such as their age and

hair color. Despite the bitter cold, the delegates kept up their warm, hearty enthusiasm. Also, this is quite possibly the committee with the coolest haircuts.

CAN’T BRING THESE GUYS DOWN hamburg.eyp.de/t3/ article, photos

Filippo R an alli

ransport I, under the wise and lively counsel of Anna and Hammu, really got off on the right foot. In fact every member of the committee bonded well with the others and the initial shyness was easy to overcome, especially with the good old Street Fighter that makes you shout

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your guts out, and honest to God, after a while they all did. Let’s say there wasn’t much ice to begin with, but the icebreaking “Pass the Orange” game definitely tore down all the icicles; they truly put some genuine passion into passing that thing around! This is in fact a very bright committee,

no kidding, there even is an App designer among them. This committee, dear readers, has in fact great potential and may very well surprise you all; stay tuned for more!

TRAN II - NOTHING GETS THEM DOWN hamburg.eyp.de/t4/ article, photos

Judith Breh m er

RAN II will be dealing with mobility the next few days, but in teambuilding they had to show their communication skills. Starting with probably the hardest area of dialogue, the nonverbal one, the committee mastered the task – after initially circumventing the rule

of silence secretly – quite well. Nonetheless, demanding chair Niklas made his shy Delis “butt-spell” for not having fulfilled a task properly. After a short time, the barriers were broken by a snowball fight and TRAN II started becoming a team. “Chicken Pilot” joined them in laughter (and even

tears of laughter), but when it came to communication again (building a square with a rope, blindfolded), they had to fight hard and accept some defeats. But TRAN II never gave up and was not to be discouraged – an essential requirement for the days to come!

SEDE – A REAL TEAM hamburg.eyp.de/t5/ article, photos

Leona Koh l

EDE is a committee you can look upon as an inspiring example. While other committees were busy with overcoming shyness and restraint, the members of SEDE participated from the very first moment with fun and abandon in the games. After learning the names and

getting to know each other a bit they embraced the concept of teamwork and cooperated brilliantly. And it was absolutely thrilling to watch this committee play competitive games like “Skin the Snake”, because you were simply able to feel the energy and the strong desire for suc-

cess. Guided by their chairs Yann and Dimitris, the young people obviously enjoyed the trust games that further strengthened their relationship. In conclusion, it probably was an enormously valuable and marvellous day for the members of SEDE.

MUCH LOVE FOR LIBE hamburg.eyp.de/t6/ article, photos

Lia Pac hle r

yping “LIBE” in a word document it automatically corrects it to “Liebe”1. I somehow have the feeling that my computer knows exactly what the atmosphere during the teambuilding of this committee was like, but that’s definitely not the only reason why the committee on Civil Liber-

ties, Justice and Home Affairs is special. Harmonizing very well, they definitely achieved the teambuilding’s purpose. The delegates managed to solve the Human Knot faster with closed eyes than with open ones and it goes without saying that this is a bit of an exception. The

members of this committee are very individual in an outstanding way and show a lot of different interests. Dear LIBE, however, I would kindly ask you to mind the language as German is not an oﬃcial language of the European Youth Parliament as English and French.

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THE IMCO MONSTER hamburg.eyp.de/t7/ article, photos

Nives Kapro cki

oon after leaving the general teambuilding and forming the first committee circle, it was apparent that the committee will be a smiley and enthusiastic bunch. The lovely Italian-German chair duo created a positive atmosphere from the very beginning, which allowed the group to feel comfortable around

each other. The committee found themselves in front of many challenges. However, after a couple of laughs, strategies and compromises, success was inevitable. Even when things didn’t go so smooth, such as in the case of the Spider Web, they managed to overcome the problems and succeed.

In the end, the most important thing was the willingness of the committee to cooperate and trust each other. For this reason, as well as the number of funny moments, it is a real pleasure being a part of IMCO, and capturing their first moments in the EYP world.

AFET – A FROGGY, EXPERIENCED TEAM hamburg.eyp.de/t8/ article, photos

Zuzana Holakovská

nder the lead of experienced chairs Panayiotis and Aleks, a gender-balanced committee of young adults gathered to get to know each other. To everyone’s surprise, all members instinctively formed a proper EYP circle immediately after entering their workplace. AFET’s artistic talent was proven during

a drawing (in pairs) exercise when they managed to create a representative committee banner. Lack of trust should not be an issue after that and especially thanks to an intense training during Drunken Bottle and Levitation. Although the relaxed atmosphere was pleasant to work in, the lack of disagreements

in any form may cause future problems in solving an argument during the committee work. From an observer’s point of view, further emphasis could also be put on the time management, which appeared to be challenging. But if they keep pushing their limits, they are a real force to be reckoned with.

ENVI – FIVE HOURS. ONE INCREDIBLE BOND. hamburg.eyp.de/t9/ article, photos

Arriana Yia llo u r id e s

he Committee on Environmental Affairs managed in one single afternoon to fully form an amazing team with great prospects in the session. The classic EYP energizers, which came after the initial name games, became the real catalyst in the bonding of the team. “Chicken Pilot” and the alstertwelve

all-new “Pass the Clap” were definitely a source of laughter that loosened everyone up. Later on, ENVI built its cooperation and communication skills to a number of rather stimulating tests. The Spider Web was definitely the most challenging. Strategy planning, trust, as well as excellent coordination were crucial

in the diﬃcult task. Frustration slowly gave way to determination, which allowed ENVI to work faster and more creatively. Their hard work gave them an opportunity to really get to know their strengths and weaknesses as a team. That is what teambuilding is all about anyway! Keep up the great work, ENVI! 14

EUROVILLAGE - FOURTEEN IN ONE Maja Zalews ka

he night of Eurovillage is your one and only chance to simultaneously taste many exotic, even though still European, dishes and snacks. This time you could savour some original recipes from the following countries: Spain, France, Portugal, Austria, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Denmark, Latvia, Finland, Italy, Ireland, Belgium, Poland and Germany. Although all of the delegates thankfully tried their best to provide us with the most

characteristic of their country’s cuisine, there were some tables that stood out more than others. The dim lighting and the crowd worked to the advantage of the less prepared arrangements. Also in such conditions it was easier to try some more suspicious looking dishes. But now let me say some nice words about tonight’s event. My personal favourite was the Belgian mini-exhibition with terribly sweet waﬄes. What also caught my attention was

Evita’s Latvian ice hockey outfit. Dutch cheese is always good, and so this time is no exception. Personally, I missed the Polish thin dried sausages (kabanosy), which are a delicacy. If you are interested in another entertaining, more in-depth opinion on the Eurovillage, you can watch the interview with our fellow journalist Lia. She took a thorough tour of the entire culinary event and contributed a live video report. You can view the video here...

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EYCamping Lia Pac hle r a n d Ar r ian a Y i a l l ou r i de s Advice on how to cope with the ‘environmental hazards’ of Hamburg’s Gymnasium Grootmoor.

hen entering the premises of Gymnasium Grootmoor, there’s so much that doesn’t meet the eye. The serene landscape hides the real adventure, as you’re about to experience the most original form of camping: EYCamping. Having the chance to sleep for three nights in a school, is somewhat mysterious and adventurous. Sleeping bags, air beds, mattresses and pillows will become part of your daily routine; so embrace the camping side of Hamburg 2012 as it only has to offer a lot of memorable experiences. Having been here for

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already two days we’d like to offer you some advice on how to make your stay here as comfortable as possible. We have scanned the venue for all possible environmental hazards in order to help you make the most out of this Regional Conference! Firstly, we would like to provide you with some sleeping advice. For some, sleeping is essential in order to be fully alert and energetic for the packed days of an EYP session. We feel with you… really. In the frequent case that you have forgotten to bring a pil-

low to the session, the best alternative is your towel or a cozy hoodie. Just fold it a few times, and trust us it will help you avoid the neck pain, which will most probably follow the next morning. For those who are susceptible to the cold weather, we strongly recommend this: Wear a hoodie and one or preferably two pairs of warm socks to bed, as well as a beanie. Keeping your head and your feet warm, will allow you to sleep more pleasantly. Also, for all the light-sleepers amongst you, we suggest you to find out more about your fellow delegates’ sleeping/snor-

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In the frequent case that you have forgotten to bring a pillow to the session, the best alternative is your towel or a cozy hoodie.

ing habits in order to ensure that you put your sleeping bag as far away as possible. Secondly, another burning issue regarding your personal hygiene is the common showers. If you’re fond of privacy make sure to wake up early so that you get the shower for yourself or just go rather late after “shower rush hour” is over. Otherwise you will get the chance to really bond with your fellow committee members. Regardless of the communal element of the showers, they work perfectly fine and they will still provide you

with relaxation and warmth after an exhausting day of EYP work, so do not be taken aback. One last tip, when going to the showers, take some warm clothes with you. You definitely want to avoid walking through the school with nothing but a towel around you. Besides, a cold is the last thing you need during an EYP session.

get a good night’s sleep is key for your performance during the session. So do immerse yourself in the EYCamping, you have nothing to lose, but experience and survival skills to gain!

All things considered, we really hope to have given you some insightful and practical solutions to the problems that you might encounter here at Grootmoor. Ensuring that you

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THIS TITLE HAS BEEN CENSORED BY ACTA Nives Kapro cki an d F ilipp o R ana l l i The protests against the latest measures to stop online piracy have shaken the world, and with the approval that was given to ACTA by most of the developed countries, they donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t seem to be coming to an end.

t is a matter of fact that the illegal proliferation of copyrighted material, may that be audio tracks, movies, or software, truely damages the authors, especially if the creator involved is a minor entrepreneur or issues very specialized material that is designed for specific professional activities. If we take a closer inspection at the formerly mentioned copyrighted material, we can notice that its development required a massive amount of effort or scientific research in the first place, hence the high costs on

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the market. Needless to say, piracy hits these developers the hardest, and if a dead end in which it is no longer profitable for them to improve their products is reached, there would certainly be negative consequences on the whole scientific computerbased development. It is a whole other matter when it comes to audio tracks and movies, as they each suffer differently from piracy; we could in fact say movies suffer the least from it, as the incomes at the movie theatres manage to overcome the loss

to some extent. On the other hand, musicians and record companies truely suffer from the constant increase of surfers who prefer downloading tracks illegally than having the pleasure of handling a brand new CD. In spite of that, the Internet is filled with famous artist posting their thoughts on ACTA, amongst which most are strongly against it. Although it may seem contradictory, what they agree upon is that freedom of sharing information on the Internet is making their

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Musicians and record companies truely suffer from the constant increase of surfers who prefer downloading tracks illegally than having the pleasure of handling a brand new CD.

work available to everyone, which is every artistâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s wish. If someone is good enough, there isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t a lack of material gain either. Nowadays, everyone has a chance to use the infinite possibilities of the Internet, and ACTA opponents including Google and Wikipedia believe it would quash innovation and jeopardize freedom of information that makes them strive. To understand this, the question that should be addressed is: what is ACTA exactly? The Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is a multina-

tional treaty for the purpose of establishing international standards for intellectual property rights enforcement. It is the current threat to Internet freedom, after the U.S. lawmakers pulled the controversial bill SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act). Its main problem is, however, that it does not involve developing countries, which are the ones that have most problems with piracy. Also, it mixes two completely different matters, tangible products and digital intellectual property. By trying to solve two completely different problems, requiring differ-

ent responses, it solved none. Whether piracy is a good or bad habit it is not for us to decide, nevertheless we can assert that it is a trend spiking upwards and has changed the whole copyright development (take the Apple online store for instance). P.S.: This article was produced while listening to some good, old downloaded music.

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Ecological Mobility Filippo Ran alli “Mobility” could be the defining term of this century. But mobility has to reform so that our environment can last until the end of this century.

obility in Europe, as in most of the world, is exponentially increasing due to the development of new technologies and the constant renewal and improvement of the already existing infrastructures. The word “mobility” itself could adequately define this very century. If in the past people felt a strong connection with the roots they had and thus had a tendency to settle and spend their lives close to their nest, nowadays the concept of Europe, with the aid of technology and time, transcends the single countries in the minds of many citizens. That trend will most probably not

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spike downwards in the next decades. Instead, both the means of mobility and the personal need for such will evolve to a point that may be very surprising; for instance, some romantically say that we will be taking family cruises to the moon by 2050. If we look back on the lives of the people who lived in the past centuries, we certainly remark how their lives were far less dynamic than ours, and that is mainly due to the fact that even the smallest journey took a significantly larger amount of time than it would nowadays. We can therefore conclude that today mobility and its extremely quick and eﬃ-

cient means let us lead a far more intense life than in the past. However, we do need to further develop environmentally-friendly transportation means that would both satisfy our ever-increasing needs and the requirements for a tolerable life on Earth in the close future. We should always keep in mind that we are merely guests on this planet and our increasing population should not be a burden to it. While it is certainly a positive fact that we increase the spectrum of transportation means, each and every one of them contributes to some extent to pollution and global warming. It is common

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While it is certainly a positive fact that we increase the spectrum of transportation means, each and every one of them contributes to some extent to pollution and global warming.

belief that the temperature of the Earth is increasing mainly due to man’s pollution and Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions. However, the co-founder of Greenpeace Patrick Moore has shown on charts in his worldwide lectures that in the past million years the amount of CO2 and the global temperature have had spikes way higher than nowadays and several ice ages have taken place. What he implies is that the climate will cyclically change in time, shifting from ice ages to very warm conditions regardless of pollution and other manmade effects. Whether his opinions entirely reflect reality or not, most people agree that it is our duty and a major priority to cut back on all the polluting factors. Transportation is one of the major pollutants nowadays, so let us dig a bit deeper into the mat-

ter. Looking at the raw data it comes to our eyes that airplanes, whose emissions are 70% CO2, make up for 3% of the whole air pollution and are predicted to increase by 2% by 2050. Cars make up for about 20% of each country’s pollution share and trains contribute to pollution directly and indirectly depending on the system used. In fact, new generation electric trains do not pollute directly, however it is the production of electrical power and the industrial production of the necessary infrastructures and trains themselves that generates the actual pollution, which is greater than that generated by airplane traﬃc. What mobility policies should focus on, apart from fostering renewable resources in all the fields, is working on long term smart strategies, as in try-

ing to increase the number of available seats on airplanes, spreading the environmental tax on flights, improving public transportation and increasing the service in order to make it preferable to private transportation. The chances are small that each Member State can develop a successful policy that meets all the requirements all by itself - in fact we could doubtlessly assert that in Europe communication and development are interconnected. Communication implies cooperation, mutual understanding, sharing, planning common strategies, knocking down distance boundaries and prejudicial walls; it is in all our interests that this flourishes in the near future.

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COMMUNICATION AND BODY LANGUAGE Zuzana Holakovská Different ways to master self-expression and become a confident person – or “how to make friends and influence people”.

lthough you might be pretty confident in expressing yourself in front of your closest social group (such as your family and friends), meeting new people and being forced to practice your English while getting to know them could easily become a tough challenge. If so, feel free to use this article as a short tutorial lecture on how to present yourself and become a popular delegate among your committee. By this particular moment you should be familiar with the names of all your committee mates. Although it might be funnier naming people by what they wear or how they look, it is always pleasant when someone remembers your name. Most of you are probably familiar with general manners, but just to make it clear – there can never be too much of “thank you”, “please”, and “you’re welcome”. Especially when the atmosphere becomes overwhelming, a few

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polite phrases may serve as a means to ease the tension. You can also never be wrong when you respect others, listen to them and consider their opinion while presenting yours. Furthermore, in case you did not understand what your colleague has said (no matter if due to the pronunciation or simply the content), do not hesitate to ask politely for a clarification while keeping in mind that „what!?“ is not considered to be a polite exclamation. Apart from verbal communication, there is also the body language, which scientifically speaking actually constitutes more than fifty percent of what we communicate. Starting from the top – there are generally six universal facial expressions based on human emotions and those are: happiness, sadness, fear, disgust, surprise, and anger. Although honesty is highly valued behaviour, think twice before letting the emotions out. Further down there are gestures we do with

our arms. Crossed arms generally stand for reservation and withdrawal while resting arms behind head show the willingness to discuss openly. Taking all that into consideration, try to avoid nervous gestures (playing with your hair, clicking pen or simply looking down), do not take yourselves to seriously, and enjoy yourselves.

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PREJUDICES Leona Koh l Living in the EU and meeting people from different countries you often face national prejudices and stereotypes.

YP is a powerful force for stripping away your prejudices and here are some of the national and also regional stereotypes that you might have come across: You probably heard about Polish guys, who are partying all the time, are always drunk and loud. This arises from the common belief that persons living in Eastern Europe use this “lively” behaviour as a way to cope with the cold. Contrary to the Polish way of living and celebrating, the Germans are considered as humourless and tense. Supposedly, they are always on time and organised and this fact makes them a bit boring and serious. More specifically, you can distinguish between different regions of Germany. For example the conservative people from Bavaria, who drink beer, wear leather trousers and stick to their folksy traditions, whilst in the North everybody eats fish. In contrast to the Germans, the

French nation is not believed to be that familiar with punctuality. They are always imagined to run around carrying a baguette under their arm, or identified with foods such as croissants, frogs and snails. Remaining with Southern European countries, here is another cliché: Spanish adolescents are really vivacious and agile, and whenever they are celebrating they are extremely loud and love to drink Sangria straight out of bottles in the streets. Just similar to the Italians, who are also known as noisy party-people and always talk by using their hands very actively. The Scandinavian people are supposed to be spoiled and their public institutions have an admirably high standard. This stereotype originates from the high income and good economic situation in general. Nevertheless because of the high taxation they’re known to often leave Scandinavia for buying alcohol.

The list of prejudices towards other nationalities or even towards people that live in your own country could be extended so much longer that it would be impossible to complete. EYP gathers young, openminded people from all over Europe and that is a unique chance for you to get rid of all the bad things you heard about other Europeans. As you will see, EYP makes an enormous and valuable contribution to overcome prejudices and really fosters the relationship between young people. Enjoy your time and take this opportunity to get to know the participants as best as possible.

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WHICH TEAMBUILDING GAME ARE YOU? Ma ja Zalews ka Take this quiz and discover which Teambuilding game reflects your personality the best. Is it “Levitation”, “Sheep and Shepherd”, “Pass the Orange” or “Street Fighter”? Answer the following questions and see the results. 1. What do you do when you visit a place for the first time? A. You do a sight-seeing tour on your own, because you want to see as much as possible in the shortest period of time. B. You go to the nearest café/pub/bar and search for people to hang out with. C. You join a sight-seeing tour, because you aren’t sure what exactly and in which order you want to see things.

D. You want to get the attention of everyone as soon as possible. Also you believe in every story you hear. 4. How would you describe your style of clothing? A. Comfortable, sporty. B. Casual, but also emphasising your good points. C. The most trendy and fashionable.

D. You go to the most crowded places, where you can meet new people.

D. Eye-catching, unusual clothes that you were told suit you.

2. In which situation do you feel most comfortable?

5. What’s your favourite music genre? A. Techno

A. When you compete with someone. B. Soundtracks B. When you work in pairs. C. Pop C. When there is someone you can follow. D. Alternative D. When you are in the centre of attention. 6. What’s your favourite colour? 3. How do you behave when you meet new people? A. You want to get to know all of the people quickly, you are loud and everywhere.

A. Black B. Orange C. White/grey

B. You simply shake hands and introduce yourself.

D. Blue

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Mostly As: You are the Street Fighter type. You are always full of energy, no matter how many hours of sleep you got the previous night. You like to shout out loud and move a lot. Sometimes you forget about your surroundings and just go wild, but you don’t let yourself be bothered by issues like what does other people think about you – you do what you want to do. You are straight-forward and honest. You take on the problems and solve them with confidence. Keep fighting!

Mostly Bs: You are the Pass the Orange type. You are an openminded and easy-going person. You possess the marvellous gift of handling even the most uncomfortable and embarrassing (but still decent) situations with ease. Although you are strong on your own, you give the best of yourself when you are paired up with somebody. Then the two of you can overcome any obstacle. You also like meeting new people in random places.

Mostly Cs: Your are the Sheep and Shepherd type. You are a good listener, but you also tend to get influenced by others. You do whatever you are told to do, not because you don’t have your own opinion, but because you believe that the person you follow, and who you trust, is simply right. You also have a good intuition and rarely get lost, even in the places you’ve never been to before.

Mostly Ds: You are the Levitation type. Even though you like being the centre of attention, you know that without your “audience” you wouldn’t actually be able to be in the limelight. You are friendly and responsible, and you also have no problems in putting your trust in others. You are very trusting, so people tend to take advantage of you! So be careful and don’t choose your friends/co-workers rashly!

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Arriana Yiallourides . Filippo Ranalli . Hannah Grace Carter . Judith Brehmer . Leona Kohl Lia Pachler . Maja Zalewska . Nives Kaprocki . Zuzana Holakovskรก Maya Szost . Robin Janรกsek . Randolf Carr