august 2021
voices
MAGAZINE FOR ALL YOUNG PEOPLE AROUND THE WORLD
Editorial
Едиторијал
“Our human compassion binds us the one to the other.” As floods and wildfires are taking place in European countries, we are once again facing big challenges as a society. Let’s also not forget that we are still going through a pandemic. Everything is more difficult for us, but things are even more difficult for blind and visually impaired people.What gives hope during a crisis is compassion and the willingness from people to help. Compassion is also necessary for mental health.
„Нашето човечка сочувство не поврзува едни со други“. Како што се случуваат поплави и пожари во европските земји, ние повторно се соочуваме со големи предизвици како општество. Исто така, да не заборавиме дека се уште поминуваме низ пандемија. Се е потешко за нас, но работите се уште потешки за слепите и за лицата со оштетен вид. Она што дава надеж за време на криза е сочувството и подготвеноста на луѓето да помогнат. Сочувството е неопходно за менталното здравје.
On the lighter side, this year’s summer is full of exciting events, from local festivals like the Cinedays European Film Festival to events that the whole world is following. The Olympics in Tokyo brought a joyful message to Macedonia: For the first time in history, Dejan Georgievski won Macedonia a silver medal in Taekwondo!
Од посветлата страна, годинешното лето е полно со возбудливи настани, од локални фестивали како фестивалот на европски филм „Синедејс“ до настани што целиот свет ги следи. Олимпијадата во Токио донесе радост за Македонија: За првпат во историјата, Дејан Георгиевски донесе сребрен медал во таеквондо!
What about the space? Is the sky still the limit? Elon Musk’s projects are coming to an end. In this edition, you can read about Starlink - a satellite internet service that can send internet to any place on Earth. Do you want to hear more exciting news? Starship spacecraft is preparing to be launched into orbit for the first time this month. Can a permanent human presence be established on Mars? We are about to find out!
А што е со просторот? Дали небото се уште е граница? Проектите на Илон Маск се при крај. Во ова издание, можете да прочитате за Starlink - сателитска интернет услуга што може да испрати интернет до кое било место на Земјата. Дали сакате да слушнете повозбудливи вести? Вселенското летало Старшип се подготвува да биде лансирано во орбита. Дали може да се воспостави постојано човечко присуство на Марс? Ќе дознаеме наскоро!
With all that in mind, don’t forget to be aware of the summer heat! Protect yourself from the midday sun, always take water with you and take care! And of course: Enjoy our newest edition of VOICES!
Имајќи го сето тоа на ум, не заборавајте да бидете свесни за летните горештини! Заштитете се од пладневното сонце, секогаш носете вода со себе и внимавајте! И секако: Уживајте во најновото издание на „Воисес“! Клариса Лојте
Clarissa Leute
VCS DIRECTOR: Nikola Stankoski COORDINATORS: Andrej Naumovski Goran Adamovski Goran Galabov Selina Niemi Ewelina Chańska
VOLUNTEERS: Christopher Machold Clarissa Leute Yvan Barbeau Anna Marek Kacper Król Jolanta Ciopcińska
WRITERS: Ine Schepers Alex Eykens
INTERN: Rute Cardoso
PROOFREADERS: Elen Wright-Stead Edward Stead
TRANSLATORS: Ejona Limanaj Stefan Nikolovski
DESIGNERS: Selina Niemi Christopher Machold Clarissa Leute Yvan Barbeau Anna Marek Kacper Król Jolanta Ciopcińska Ine Schepers Alex Eykens
CONTACT: Volunteers Centre Skopje Emil Zola 3/3-1, 1000, Skopje +389 22 772 095 vcs_contact@yahoo.com www.vcs.org.mk
Voices magazine is coordinated, designed and created by ESC and local volunteers with support of Erasmus+ program.
content topic of the month 4
VOICES August 2021 - issue 8
8
Visually impaired and the pandemic: “I just want to stop it, to make it disappear”
Rute Cardoso
26
Визуелно попречените лица и пандемијата: “Само сакам да престане, да направам да исчезне”
Руте Кардосо
music 6
The man standing behind the “Bleachers”
16
The King of Pop
Anna Marek
Christopher Machold
reportages 8
Plastic - you are banned!
Jolanta Ciopcińska
10
Jolanta Ciopcińska
12
Plastikë - je e ndaluar!
12 One week of European movies - Cinedays in Skopje
Clarissa Leute
14
The XXXII Olympic Games are ahead of us. What is their beginning?
18
20
22
24
28
Kacper Król
Flying AirCar
Yvan Barbeau
Break the silence
Ine Schepers
Mental health matters
Alex Eykens
Starlink is about to bind everyone together
Yvan Barbeau
Two months of memorable job experience
Jolanta Ciopcińska, Anna Marek, Yvan Barbeau, Kacper Król
16
reportage
Visually impaired and the pandemic:
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“I just want to stop it, to make it disappear”
F
ilip Velickovski and Damir Iseni Dorevski have retinopathy of prematurity, a potentially blinding eye condition caused, in their case, for too much oxygen on their incubator when they were born prematurely. Both 12 years-old shared with VOICES how the pandemic has been for them. Andrijana Prokopenko, an English teacher at DimitarVlahov, in Skopje, with the same condition, also told us her story. “I was pretty afraid,” shares Filip. Despite being only in the 7th grade, the student showed a great understanding of the severity of the pandemic situation. “I was scared [of catching it]; it wasn’t the best experience.” The daily life changes started with the online classes and the use of a mask. Filip already washed his hands a lot, but he did it a bit more often the rare times he was outside. “The worst part was that I couldn’t talk to anyone, I could only phone them. Online school didn’t help much”. The student admits how hard it was to “stay in one place just listening.” Damir Iseni Dorevski felt the same struggle. “The hardest thing was not going to school,” he shares. When the teachers told him to be ready with the computer at 8:00, Damir was not happy. “In the beginning, it wasn’t hard, but afterwards, it really was.” Both Filip and Damir were relieved when online classes ended, and they were able to go to
The pandemic hasn’t been easy. Hugs became cold fist bumps, going out with friends became long hours on the phone, touching became forbidden, and disinfection and fear took over. Closeness disappeared, but some people felt it more than others. “It wasn’t good, I was pretty afraid,” shares Filip Velickovski, a 7th grader studying at Dimitar Vlahov, the only school for visually impaired people in Macedonia. school despite the new measures – “the mask is still a problem.” “It was hard that the classes were split into groups, and also we didn’t go to parks anymore, only to school,” shares Damir. “I just want to stop it, to make it disappear.” Adrijana Prokopenko, 42, saw how hard it was for the students and how much her life changed. “We were all confused, and we couldn’t believe that it would last for so long,” she says. When online school was announced, a lot of problems appeared. “We had to figure out some things by ourselves, with each child, each parent.” Technical issues were everywhere: some of the software for online school was not accessible with screen readers, some of the students couldn’t afford the internet, and the materials were too big to carry home. “Sometimes you had to do individual lessons, to call phone numbers and try different platforms, sometimes the internet would stop, electricity would stop,” tells the English teacher who has been working at the school for 14 years already. “Even before the pandemic, things were hard for a blind person because of the lack of accessibility around here,” shares Prokopenko. Even if you know how to use a cane to it’s dangerous– “they drive like crazy.” Also, people are not up for helping out visually impaired people on their grocery shopping. The websites that you can order things from are not accessible with screen readers, and many places are not accepting orders by calls. Prokopenko feels “worse now” for how dependent she is on her parents. She has been so careful not to catch anything and not infect anybody that she hasn’t seen her friends since last march. Even though she caught
the virus meanwhile, Prokopenko is more scared of the pandemic now. She also shared that the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired – Skopje contacted the Macedonian government to be considered as a priority group in vaccination. They never got a response. About support from the government, Prokopenko says, “it’s a state school but only when they want.” “All the braillers [a machine to write in Braille] in my class are broken, so I have to use a very slow kind of old-fashioned method to prepare the classes. We face a lot of problems when it comes to textbooks and materials”, she says. Plus, the government says they cannot import materials from abroad because they are a state school, but it’s “so hard to find the things here.” Each brailler costs around 1200 dollars, says the teacher. In an ideal world, each student would have their own brailler at school and another for home use. Since the school has about 50 students, there is a significant need for financial support only for the materials. “People don’t understand that education for the blind is very expensive,” emphasizes Prokopenko. “They think printing a page in braille is as easy as printing a page from the computer.” The pandemic has made things more difficult, but for blind and visually impaired people in Macedonia, things were already difficult. Without basic accessibility and no proper support for education, having to use masks, to keep in touch only through phone, or to rely more upon other people to walk around, grocery shop was just another obstacle for them. Rute Cardoso VOICES - 5
reportage
THE MAN STANDING BEHIND THE “BLEACHERS”
Lindsey Byrnes | Rolling Stone
Lana Del Rey, Lorde, Taylor Swift, Carly Rae Jensen, and St. Vincent. They are united not only by their enormous popularity in the music industry, but also by something that connects them. Or rather – someone. 6 - VOICES
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J
ack Antonoff. Currently one of the most talented music producers but still not as popular as he deserves. Although maybe this popularity shouldn’t affect him like that. After a proper search, his name appears in many credits of famous works. Even that did not make Antonoff a recognizable name nowadays, such as the names of people with whom he works (I mean, who doesn’t know Taylor Swift or Lana Del Rey?). It’s obvious that music producers will never become as popular as people releasing music under their own name. Although in this case, it is a bit different - Jack also has his own band.
Side projects bring success
To understand this phenomenon of “lack of popularity,” there is a need to know a bit of a Jack musical history. Music was always part of his life. At age 14, he went for his first tour, and in that time, he fell in love with touring. The break and popularity came with the band’s fun., which people can associate with the big hit and the 2013 Grammy Song Of The Year, “We Are Young”. Back then, he proved his multitasking – playing in that band was only his side project. While being on tour with them, he started composing for a secret idea called Bleachers. However, his own musical project did not bring him the popularity he could have
expected. In the meantime, he got involved in activities in which he began collaborating with other musicians. This did not, however, make Antonoff abandon Bleachers - quite the contrary. His idea, which was born a few years ago, continues, and he even released a new album in July. Antonoff’s talent has been noticed by the most popular
singers on the music market. The first person who let him produce a song was Taylor Swift. Before that, everyone he encountered said: “you are not a producer”, but an American Popstar thought: “I like how it sounds”. This is how he contributed to the enormous success of the “1989” album, the hits of which “Shake it Off”, “Style”, and “Blank Space” are still broadcasted on major radio stations. Although he produced only three songs on this album: “Out of The Woods”, “I Wish I Would”, and “You are in Love”, it certainly contributed to the growing number of offers from music stars and the continuation of the collaboration with Swift, repeatedly awarded at the most important music awards.
Music stars open the studios
So there were opportunities to work with the most outstanding singers: Lana Del Rey and Lorde. Jack Antonoff once again proved how creative a producer he is. The production of “Melodrama”, Lorde’s second album, is still widely commented on in the music community. In turn, Lana’s album “The Norman Fucking Rockwell” is rated as the most underrated during the Grammy Awards and, at the same time, one of the best albums released by the artist. Meanwhile, Antonoff worked on many other projects. One of the first songs that achieved
great success was “Brave” by Sara Bareilles. In subsequent projects, he collaborated with P!nk, Rachel Platten, Sia, Troye Sivan, Fifth Harmony, Banks, and St. Vincent, among others. The musical world knows these performers very well. Collaboration with Lana Del Rey, Taylor Swift, and Lorde, where Antonoff had his greatest share,
increased recognition. The appearance of Jack Antonoff on stage next to the biggest stars during the performance or receiving the most important awards, at least for a moment, drew attention to his character. His style stands out from the crowd. He is not afraid to play with the musical past - there are clear inspirations from the 80s, including the synth that can be heard, for example, on the first Bleachers album – “Strange Desire”. Lyrics are also essential in the produced songs, which is most clearly visible in Lorde’s work. Sometimes Antonoff focuses on simplicity, where you can hear just a woman with one instrument - a piano or guitar in a song. The latter plays a prominent role and often creates a mood in other songs. Most likely, this ability to listen to artists while working with them made Antonoff gain their trust, and at the same time, he could show a distinct style. It has already brought him a lot of success (or at least to the people he worked with). The question is if he will be appreciated by continuing his project Bleachers, or will he always stand in the shadow? Anna Marek
Adi Goldstein | Unsplash Sources: NY Times: You May Not Know Jack Antonoff. But You Probably Love His Music The Ringer: The Cure for Dr. Luke? The Line Of Best Fit: Jack Antonoff reveals Taylor Swift was the first person to let him produce a song Vulture: 6 Key Elements of the Jack Antonoff Sound
VOICES - 7
reportage
tic ned! On the 3rd of July 2021, the ban on using single-use plastic came into effect in the EU. The European Parliament’s ban aims to prevent and reduce the impact of plastic products on the environment, especially sea life. Is it finally time for a change?
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O
ne hundred years from now, we will walk on water. Do you know why?
There will be so much plastic garbage in the ocean! It would be possible to stand on the trash and even walk on it to the other side of the bay. We don’t have to wait that long to see how it might look like. Every day we can observe the tragic effects of plastic pollution. Imagine yourself an enormous floating island made of marine debris. It already exists - the Great Pacific garbage patch is the largest accumulation of ocean plastic in the world. It has 80,000 tons of plastic and is about 1,6 million square kilometers in size - 62 times the Macedonia area. The infamous patch mentioned here is not the only one in the ocean. If no measures are taken, we could forget about the holiday at the seaside in the blink of an eye. There will be more toxic waste in the seas than fish, and who would like to put one’s life in danger?
products and replace the ones which cause littering. An average of 30 million disposable bags is consumed in 15 minutes. Every minute more people get another 2 million. Each bag will be in use for approximately 15 minutes. Then they will be thrown away to litter our planet for several hundred years. When you go to the grocery store, take a cloth or paper bag. You want to drink a fancy drink with a straw – use a metal or bamboo straw. If you’re going to pack leftovers – try glass containers. Many simple solutions can help to save the planet. Super invention or a curse? Plastic is the real challenge of the 21st century. It was supposed to help us live more comfortably and hygienically, while by 2050, there will be more of it in the oceans than fish. The ban on using singleuse plastic is a significant step forward, but also awareness is needed.
“Super invention or a curse? Plastic is the real challenge of the 21st century.”
Every year on the 3rd of July, International Plastic Bag Free Day is celebrated. This year the date is significant. The EU’s directive on single-use plastics, adopted in June 2019, was finally brought in. Single-use plastics are products used once or for a short time before being thrown away. The directive points to 10 items that will purge from the EU markets. For other single-use plastic products, the EU is focusing on limiting their use. Plastic bags, cotton bud sticks, cutlery, plates, straws and stirrers, balloons and sticks for balloons, polystyrene food and beverage containers, cigarette butts, packets and wrappers, wet wipes, and sanitary items – they will all vanish from the store shelves soon. Most of us use them every day. Can we live without these items? Probably not everyone, but everyone can find more eco-friendly
It may take you a little over 2 minutes to read this article. During this time, more than 4 million singleuse bags were consumed. Next time you go to the store, think twice about what you want to buy. If you’re going to see the change and save our planet, you must first change your habits. _________________ Jolanta Ciopcińska Sources: European Commission: Single-use plastics The Ocean Cleanup: The Great Pacific garbage patch Plastic Oceans: Plastic Pollution Facts Picture: Unsplash: Jordan Beltran
VOICES - 9
reportage
tikë luar! Në 3 korrik 2021, ndalimi i përdorimit të plastikës një përdorimshe hyri në fuqi në BE. Dekreti i Parlamentit Evropian synon të parandalojë dhe zvogëlojë ndikimin e produkteve plastike në mjedis, veçanërisht në gjallesat e detit. A është më në fund koha për një ndryshim? 10 - VOICES
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jëqind vjet nga tani, ne do të ecim mbi ujë. E dini pse?
Do të ketë aq shumë mbeturina plastike në oqean! Do të ishte e mundur të qëndroni në plehra, madje dhe të ecni mbi të në anën tjetër të gjirit. Nuk do të duhet të presim aq gjatë për të parë se si mund të duket. Çdo ditë mund të vëzhgojmë efektet tragjike të ndotjes plastike. Imagjinoni vetë një ishull të madh lundrues të përbërë nga mbeturina detare. Ajo tashmë ekziston - copa e madhe e mbeturinave të Paqësorit është akumulimi më i madh i plastikës oqeanike në botë. Ka 80,000 ton plastikë dhe është rreth 1,6 milion kilometra katrorë në madhësi - 62 herë më e madhe se sipërfaqja e Maqedonisë. Copa famëkeqe e përmendur këtu nuk është e vetmja në oqean. Nëse nuk merren masa, mund t’i harrojmë pushimet në breg të detit sa hap e mbyll sytë. Do të ketë më shumë mbetje toksike në det se sa peshq, dhe kush do të donte ta vinte jetën në rrezik?
mjedisin dhe të zëvendësojnë ato që shkaktojnë mbeturina. Mesatarisht 30 milionë qese një përdorimshe konsumohen në 15 minuta. Çdo minutë më shumë njerëz hedhin edhe 2 milion të tjera. Çdo qese do të jetë në përdorim për rreth 15 minuta. Pastaj ato do të hidhen për të ndotur planetin tonë për disa qindra vjet. Kur shkoni në dyqan ushqimesh, merrni një çantë lecke ose një qese letre. Ju dëshironi të pini një pije të zbukuruar me një pipë - përdorni një pipë metali ose bambu. Nëse do të paketoni ushqimin e mbetur - provoni enë qelqi. Shumë zgjidhje të thjeshta mund të ndihmojnë për të shpëtuar planetin. Super shpikje apo mallkim? Plastika është sfida e vërtetë e shekullit të 21-të. Supozohej se do të na ndihmonte të jetonim më rehat dhe higjenikisht, ndërsa deri në vitin 2050, do të ketë në oqeane më shumë prej saj sesa peshk. Ndalimi i përdorimit të plastikës një përdorimshe është një hap i rëndësishëm përpara, por gjithashtu nevojitet ndërgjegjësim.
“Super shpikje apo mallkim? Plastika është sfida e vërtetë e shekullit të 21të”
Çdo vit në 3 Korrik festohet Dita Ndërkombëtare pa Qese Plastike. Këtë vit data është domethënëse. Direktiva e BE mbi plastikat një përdorimshe, e miratuar në qershor 2019, u prezantua më në fund. Plastikat një përdorimshe janë produkte të përdorura një herë ose për një kohë të shkurtër para se të hidhen. Direktiva indikon 10 artikuj që do të spastrohen nga tregjet e BE-së. Për produkte të tjera plastike një përdorimshe, BE-ja po përqendrohet në kufizimin e përdorimit të tyre. Qeset plastike, shkopinjtë me pambuk, takëm, pjata, pipa dhe shkopa trazues, balona dhe shkopinj për balona, tasa polisteroli për ushqime dhe pije, bishta cigaresh, pako dhe mbështjellëse, peceta të lagura dhe sende sanitare - të gjitha ato do të zhduken së shpejti nga raftet e dyqaneve. Shumica prej nesh i përdorin ato çdo ditë. A mund të jetojmë pa këto sende? Ndoshta jo të gjithë, por të gjithë mund të gjejnë produkte më miqësore për
Mund t’ju duhet pak më shumë se 2 minuta për të lexuar këtë artikull. Gjatë kësaj kohe, u konsumuan më shumë se 4 milion qese një përdorimshe. Herën tjetër kur të shkoni në dyqan, mendoni dy herë për atë që dëshironi të blini. Nëse do të shihni ndryshim dhe do të shpëtoni planetin tonë, së pari duhet të ndryshoni zakonet tuaja. _________________ Jolanta Ciopcińska Përkthyesja: Ejona Limanaj Burimet: European Commission: Single-use plastics The Ocean Cleanup: The Great Pacific garbage patch Plastic Oceans: Plastic Pollution Facts Foto: Unsplash: Jordan Beltran
VOICES - 11
reportage
One week of European movies Cinedays in Skopje
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For one week Skopje turned into a hub for movie and festival lovers. Between the 15th of July to the 22nd of July, twelve recent European movies were played on open-air locations across the city.
U
sually the “Youth Cultural Center” (MKC) hosts the Cinedays during November, but the pandemic required a new planning. For the first time in Cineday’s 20 year long history it was an open-air event during a summer week. With locations at City Park, MKC and even at the top of Vodno, the event had great visibility across the city. However, due to to heavy rain for three days, not every movie could be played in open air.
“It was raining for three days. We had to reorganize everything, changing the schedule” “It was raining for three days. We had to reorganize everything, changing the schedule”, explains the two volunteers Katarina and Tamrara. At the closing day of the festival, there is sunny weather again. We immediately feel the festive and joyful energy. On the campus at city park, a volunteer quickly offers us
free water while a salesmen gifts us popcorn. Some people in the park don’t pay the ticket money by sitting and watching the movie from outside of the campus. The screen is huge and the volume is loud so they follow the movie without giving the 100 denars entrance fee. Inside of the campus, the the stage manager Darko shows enthusiam for the event. “It’s a great opportunity to see European films on the open air. It’s good to enjoy the summer with the cinema.” Afterwards we take a look at the location at MKC. Here they show the closing short movie “The Human Voice” by Pedro Almodovar. The story about a woman abandoned by her lover catches and moves the audience. During the closing night, the two best movies are awarded. The international jury couldn’t be present, so through a prerecorded video they announce “Hive” by Bierta Basholi and “It’s all about peace and harmony” by Nesimi Yetik as this year’s winners. Volunteers are an important part of the festival. Katarina and Tamara got involved through other film festivals like “Makedox”. They say around 30 volunteers are helping out – 10 were put in each location each day. “We make sure that there are enough chairs for the guests, that the chairs are clean. We’re taking the tickets, checking the temperature”, the two girls describe. About the covid measurements they say: “Since it’s
outside it’s very easy. When it was inside there were more measurements to consider.” When talking to the visitors they underline how great it feels to attend events again. “After the pandemic it’s a great experience. I mean, we kinda distanced ourselves from everything this year and this whole experience is like boom for me . Like there are so many people, what is happening?”, states Ana who is selling drinks. She also shares one of her highlights: “It is a movie festival but a lot of concerts and music gigs took place in the evenings.”
“It is a movie festival but a lot of concerts and music gigs took place in the evenings.” Silvia, a visitor of the festival gives a similar statement. “It is an amazing feeling because we can go out now. We can see people, we can see movies and drink beer. And in a way, it never stopped.” 20 years ago the Cinedays were held for the first time in European capitals. With the intention to “celebrate the European cinematography” and promote young European authors, Skopje’s festival managed to establish itself as an annual and recognized event. By today “Cinedays” are the largest film festival in Macedonia. Clarissa Leute Photos: Sonja Stavrova VOICES - 13
reportage
The XXXII Olympic Games are ahead of us. What is their beginning?
“So, I raise a chalice for an Olympic idea which, like a ray of a powerful sun, broke through the mists of the ages and returns to throw the glow of joyful hope on the threshold of the twentieth century.” - These are words spoken over a hundred years ago by Pierre de Coubertin, the man to whom we owe one of the largest sports events in the world.
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M
ore than 1,500 years have been waiting for the return of the event known as the “Olympic Games.” The last ancients were played in 393 AD. Then, by decree of the Roman emperor Theodosia I the Great, their organization was forbidden, and the memory of such rivalry was slowly fading away. Until the French educator Pierre de Coubertin. Thanks to him, we can watch the largest and oldest sports festival in the world every four years.
Ancient Olympic Games They were organized every four years from 776 BCE. until 393 AD and were a religious festival in honor of Zeus at Olympia, located in the Peloponnese. Only native Greeks were allowed to take part in competitions called agons. Women were not allowed to participate in the competition or even watch it. Failure to comply with this law was punishable by death. However, games for women were held every four years. From the goddess Hera, they are called Herai. During the Games, wars and conflicts ceased throughout Greece. They were supposed to conform to the Greeks that despite their disputes, they remain one people. Initially, the competition lasted one day, and then it turned into a five-day form. They included inter alia, chariot races, running events, classic pentathlon, and boxing. The winner of the Olympic pentathlon was the one who won at least three events, including wrestling. He received a laurel wreath made of olive tree branches, and he was also exempt from paying taxes. Apart from sports competitions, the Games were also a celebration of the Greeks’ culture, music, and religion. The fouryear period that separated the individual Games was called the “Olympics.” The Olympics lasted 1168 years until 393 AD when Emperor Theodosius I the Great forbade the games because he considered them a cult of pagan gods.
The modern Olympic Games Archaeological excavations at the end of the 19th century uncovered the ruins of Olympia’s main structures. This sparked a great deal of interest in Europe in the history of the ancient Olympic Games, including that of Pierre de Coubertin: “International Youth Festival, the festival of the <<spring of humanity>>.” At the jubilee session of the Union of French Athletic Sports Societies in 1892,
held within the walls of the Paris Sorbonne, Coubertin proposed the revival of the Olympic Games. During his speech, he called on the audience to support him. In 1894, he invited all sports organizations in the world to attend an international congress in Paris. It was planned to adopt a resolution resuming the competition. Even though some countries did not express interest in this event, in 1894, representatives of a dozen or so countries came to the Sorbonne. They decided that the first modern games would be held in Athens in 1896. The choice of place was obvious. Which city would be better to host the competition, if not the homeland’s capital of this type of sports entertainment? About 80,000 people gathered at the Panathenaic Stadium at the opening ceremony of the Games. Two hundred forty-five players from 14 national teams participated in the games. Participants competed in nine disciplines: gymnastics, swimming, athletics, weightlifting, shooting, fencing, tennis, and wrestling. After the Olympics, several athletes wanted the event to be played exclusively in Greece. Coubertin, however, was against it, stating that the Modern Olympics should be held periodically in different venues. By his wishes, the second Games were held in Paris, although they were not as successful as those in Athens.
Olympic symbols The sign of the Olympic movement is five circles intertwined with each other: blue, black, and red at the top, and yellow and green at the bottom. Each color has a different symbolism: blue-Europe, black-Africa, red-America, yellow-Asia, and greenAustralia. It was invented by Coubertin in Stockholm in 1912 and is part of the Olympic flag. The wheels represent the union of five continents and athletes from around the world at the Olympic Games. On the other hand, the Olympic torch is a symbol of the durability of the Olympic ideal. It burned for the first time in Amsterdam in 1928. From 1936, a practice was established in Berlin to carry fire by a relay race running from ancient Olympia through Athens to the city of the following games.
Summer Olympics 2020 Officially, the Games of the XXXII Olympiad will be held in the capital of Japan - Tokyo. The city has already hosted the 1964 Summer Games. So far, the Games have not been held only four times: in 1916 because of World War I, in 1940 and 1944 because of World War II, and in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic. The President of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, and the Prime Minister of Japan, Shinzō Abe, decided to postpone the Games until 2020, but not later than Summer 2021, and the old name of the Games has been retained. Participants in the 2020 Summer Olympics will compete in 37 disciplines. The Olympic Committee decided to restore baseball and softball, which were removed from the Olympic program after the Beijing Olympics. It was also decided to add four new disciplines such as karate, skateboarding, surfing, sport climbing, and street basketball 3x3. Due to the introduction of the state of emergency in Tokyo until August 22, due to the growing number of cases of coronavirus infection, the organizers of the Olympic Games in the Japanese capital decided that the competition would be held without the participation of fans. Kacper Król Sources: Histmag: „Pierre de Coubertin – ojciec nowożytnych igrzysk olimpijskich” Wikipedia: „Letnie Igrzyska Olimpijskie 1896” Kierunek Tokio: „Jak to się wszystko zaczęło, czyli pierwsze nowożytne igrzyska olimpijskie” Sport.ug.edu.pl: “Historia Igrzysk Olimpijskich”
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Have you ever heard of a Swedish guy named Max Martin? No? Well, he is only the most successful and influential pop music producer of the past 25 years. Let’s get introduced to the King of Pop in disguise.
Max Martin | Axel Öberg
The King of Pop W
e all know this moment when a casual garden party turns into a time travel through our recent history of pop music. I Want It That Way, Hit Me Baby One More Time, I Kissed a Girl, , I Can’t Feel My Face, Blinding Lights... Only by reading those titles, many of us can recall the songs instantly and their melodies pop up in our heads. Some of us might even get the image of Britney Spears dancing in the school hallway or the Backstreet Boys posing dramatically at the airport. Well, probably everyone knows that it was not the 16-year old Britney who actually wrote the song that made her become the most famous teenager in the western sphere and later on the most successful musician of the 2000’s. However, something that much fewer people know: all those songs mentioned above, performed by different artists and released in different years or even decades, have one thing in common the person who created them, Max Martin. It was 1971 when the Swede Karl Martin Sandberg was born in Stockholm. Even though he grew up in this golden age of
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Swedish music when ABBA became the most popular band around the world, nobody could know that the person who is (at least a bit better) known as Max Martin would be the most successful producer of pop music one day. However, his success didn’t come out of nowhere. Already as a child, Max Martin encountered the world of music as a student of Sweden’s public music education program. Later on, as a teenager, he sang for a couple of bands before he dropped out of high school to focus on his music career as the singer and frontman of the funk-metal band “It’s Alive”. Eventually, the band wasn’t really successful, but the more important thing was that their second album was produced by Cheiron Studios, the label of the Swedish DJ and producer Denniz PoP, who was meant to see Max Martins
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potential for writing pop songs. PoP became Martin’s mentor, hired him for his label, and soon they were producing songs together. When PoP died due to cancer in 1998, Max Martin already had it, the key to the ears of generations. It started with the Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears and it’s gonna end who knows where and when, so far, there is no end in sight. Already for more than two decades his sounds are dominating the charts and influencing the pop music culture. Unless your name is Sleeping Beauty, you are born after 2010 or you belong to an indigenous tribe living in the South American rain forest (what in turn would make me wonder how you did get access to this article), it’s likely that you have heard more than a hundred of his songs. Everybody by The Backstreet Boys, Tearin’ Up My Heart by *NSYNC, Oops!... I Did It Again by Britney Spears, Since U Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson, Whataya Want from Me by Adam Lambert, Raise Your Glass by Pink, Dark Horse by Katy Perry, Blank Space by Taylor Swift, Can’t Stop the Feeling by Justin Timberlake, No Tears Left to Cry by Ariana Grande, Save your Tears by The Weeknd... the list is endless! To this day, Max Martin has written or cowritten 24 Billboard Hot 100 number-one songs, most of them he has also produced. Only music legends Paul McCartney (32) and John Lennon (26) have written more number-one hits than him. How come that I’ve never heard his name before, you might ask. Well, obviously, if not the same person, in most cases, the writer or producer of a song will not get as much attention as the person you see
performing it on MTV or YouTube. In Martin’s case, it’s a lot about his personality as well. He is rarely talking about himself. The interviews he gave during his career can be counted on the fingers of one hand. He never was a stage hog, never ostentatious, even though he probably could be. Max Martin isn’t just a good songwriter and producer, he also is a good singer. Usually, he is recording the demo tapes by himself. The Backstreet Boys once said he could have recorded all their songs with his own voice and it would have been a perfect record.
book “Song Machine – Inside the Hit Factory”, found out that the Swede purposely changes major and minor chords to make happy songs sound sad and sad songs sound happy - it adds excitement. Nowadays, everything is about attention and attention span as well. That’s why every 7 seconds a song needs an element of surprise. Fast passages have to alternate with slow ones in order to keep the listener attentive. When Martin plays a new song to someone, he cares less about his opinion than about his posture, mimics and gestures while listening to the song.
There are producers that take their The Swede purposely Whatever it is that share of the makes us want to changes major and spotlight cake too listen to a song over minor chords to make and over again, - Timbaland might happy songs sound be a good example either consciously sad and sad songs - but not so Max or unconsciously, Martin. Maybe also Martin sound happy - it adds Max because he knows understands it to a excitement. too well how this really great extent. society works. Let’s be honest, He is creating the sonic cocktail we people want to believe in this one need to feel the emotions we want. superior person with the voice of an Admittedly, it has a bitter aftertaste angel that is writing its own songs to know that a single person is able and is probably just an amazing to have such an impact on our lives. human being in general. The Swede It is scary because it reveals how retains this illusion to us by staying primitive and suggestible we still are, in the background, as every good even though we think we are all so ghostwriter would do, and that’s also individual. After all, deep inside us, we appreciated by the “stars”. are still animals, and if a well-made TV commercial, a half-naked model on But how can it be possible to produce the front page of a magazine or a Max one hit after another for a quarter Martin song presses the right buttons, of a century? The answer might be there will be a reaction in us, whether that People like Max Martin not only we want or not. With that in mind, understand music, first of all, they we should possibly be more cautious understand humans. We still don’t about what we expose ourselves to, know for sure why exactly music but hey, let’s stop that seriousness can have such strong effects on our for a second, open the music platform emotions, but a connection to some of your choice, search for “Baby One of our oldest survival mechanisms More Time”, press play, and well, in the primitive limbic circuits of our enjoy! brain seems more than likely. There are many theories on how music works. A promising one that already Christopher Machold dates back to 1956 highlights the Sources: importance of our expectations and Faz.net: Die Hitmaschine predictions and if they get met or BBC: Will we ever… understand why not. Music is no longer the expression music makes us feel good? of the artist. It’s a science, applied Wikipedia: Max Martin math, with equations and variables. Wikipedia: Max Martin production John Seabrook, the author of the discography YouTube: Manufactured Music
The Weeknd | Nabil Elderkin Britney Spears | Zomba Records Taylor Swift | YouTube VOICES - 17
reportage
FLYING AIRCAR Fasten your seatbelts! A flying car has completed its first inter-city flight in Slovakia on the 28th of June 2021; a milestone its creators claim is "turning science fiction into a reality."
Sources: BBC News Flying car completes test flight between airports bne IntelliNews Slovakia's flying car makes history Silicon Republic Could this flying car be the future of intercity travel? traveldailymedia.com Flying car completes 35-minute flight between Slovakian airports
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Image: Klein Vision BBC news he flying "AirCar" designed by T visionary Slovak designer Stefan Klein has completed an 80 km flight
from Nitra to Bratislava in thirty-five minutes. Professor Stefan Klein, who is also the founder of Klein Vision - the company behind this technological advance- has driven it straight off the runway and into town upon arrival, watched by invited reporters as he was slowing down into the streets of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. This university professor of transportation design has been working on this concept of flying cars since the regime in 1989. He completed the flying prototype of AirCar that was already tested successfully at Nitra airport in October 2019. This flight was the first even performed between two international airports, imitating a ride carried out by a common car. It is also the longest flight in the distance and the 142nd landing performed by this engine.
parachute. Before the flight, this model had already completed more than forty hours of test flights, in which it has flown at 8,200 ft. (or 2500 kilometers). "With today's flight, we wanted to demonstrate the capabilities of this experimental prototype as well as prove that idea behind this means of transportation is realistic", Klein said to astonished local media. In some aspects, this AirCar is not indeed that different from our cars: It runs on regular petrol-pump fuel and can fly about 1,000 km. It can carry two people, with a combined weight limit of 200 kg (or 31 stones). When parked in a parking place, its volume is comparable to a classic car.
After the flight, the vehicle underwent a mandatory after-flight check then was transformed into a sports car in two minutes and 15 seconds as its narrow wings folded down along the sides of the car. It continued to the city center on the ground to demonstrate all of its modes.
Likewise, it is similar to private planes: Dr. Stephen Wright, senior research fellow in avionics and aircraft at the University of the West of England, described the AirCar as "the lovechild of a Bugatti Veyron and a Cessna 172". For him, the vehicle would not be "particularly loud or uneconomical in terms of fuel costs, compared with other aircraft." He adds: "Anyone can make an airplane, but the trick is making one that flies and flies and flies for the thick end of a million hours, with a person on board, without having an incident."
When he arrived at his final destination, Stefan Klein described his experience, early in the morning, as "very pleasant." Its flying car, "the AirCar prototype One," had flown at an average speed of 170 km/h during the flight. It boasts a 160 horsepower BMW engine with a fixed propeller and a ballistic
Anton Zajac, the co-founder of Klein Vision, emphasizes the positive features of this flying car and particularly on its convenient aspects: "with AirCar, you will arrive at your destination without the hassle of getting a ride to [the] airport and passing through commercial security […] you can drive your AirCar
to the golf course, the office, the mall or your hotel and park it in a normal parking space". This is not the only advantage this new AirCar might have compared to its rivals, cars and planes alike: flying cars has indeed been a long-term aspiration for people. Such vehicles can play a key role in reducing congestion globally. But it also offers an alternative to the old model people are used to driving and how they do it. As Stefan Klein says, his flight "starts a new era of dual transportation vehicles. It opens a new category of transportation and returns the freedom originally attributed to cars back to the individual". Besides, AirCar's investment cost (£1,7m) is not exorbitant, and it does not kick it out of the competition. For these reasons, the AirCar Prototype One's future seems to be promising: according to Anton Zajac, adviser and investor in Klein Vision, the company "could attract a small percentage of global airline or taxi sales, and they are already about 40,000 orders of aircraft in the US alone". The company's development is also promising in technological advances. They plan to develop a second-generation vehicle called the AirCar Prototype Two to double the AirCar Prototype One's horsepower. It will also have a range of 1,000 km at 300 kph. But before being marketed, the AirCar One will have to show that it is perfectly safe for customers. Let us hope that this will be guaranteed in a short time! Yvan Barbeau
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It's okay not to be okay.
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Break the silence
K
AWAII means cute. YAMI KAWAII means sick cute. KAWAII uses a lot of pastel colors and cute elements, YAMI KAWAII does the same but they’re adding some dark elements. Mostly medical and grotesque items like Band-Aids or syringes. Some items also contain anti-social words, the mismatch between this and the cuteness is what makes this style so popular, mostly among young people. The topic mental health is still a big taboo in Japan, which is remarkable when you know that Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the world. Mental illness is still considered weak in Japanese culture, when some others see it more as an injury. This is how YAMI KAWAII was born. Fashion is generally known as a way of expressing yourself, healing and as a coping mechanism for mixed emotions. The word KAWAII doesn’t have a negative meaning and therefore it brings positive thoughts. Combining this with the “sick” elements brings the topic to light and makes it more approachable to the Japanese.
Japanese culture focusses a lot on how you look in front of others, this is also a reason why showing negative emotions is not often done. They’re more tempted to keep their emotions suppressed and not talk about them with others. Talking about your emotions when you’re not feeling well is really important and is a way of healing. The people who wear the YAMI KAWAII style often find other people with the same style and new friends which they do can talk to about their struggles and emotions. It brings people together in a way that is unique in current Japanese society. YAMI KAWAII is the start of a new generation, a generation where we can talk to each other even if we’re not feeling well. However, mental health being taboo is not only a problem in Japan, but all over the world. We should all work together to make this topic approachable, we have to empower each other to speak up and educate ourselves to create more awareness. Only this way we can one day live in a world where it’s okay not to be okay. Ine Schepers Sources: Youtube: The Dark Side Of Harajuku Style You Haven’t Seen Yet | Style Out There | Refinery29
ゆ め か わ い い
(YAMI KAWAII)
KAWAII is a fashion style in Japan that spreaded itself through anime and manga, therefore you can now find this type of fashion all over the world. With the popularity of this, a new style or subculture was born, YAMI KAWAII. On the first hand it’s just like KAWAII, with a darker twist to it, but there actually is a lot more then it seems.
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Mental Health matters Mental health is the state of the mind. It is essential for general well-being and for a quality life.
“Every year around 800,000 people commit suicide.” 22 22 -- VOICES VOICES
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eing in good mental health means finding a balance between all aspects of existence: the physical, psychological, spiritual, social and economic. Mental health therefore means much more than simply the ab-sence of mental illness. - The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 1 in 4 people will experience mental problems at some point in their lives. - 350 million people worldwide suffer from depression. - Suicide is the second leading cause of death among 15-29 year olds. Rates are especially high among girls and young women. - Every year around 800,000 people commit suicide. This is almost twice as many as the number of people who die from malaria. (This is a calculation by the WHO). Mental problems are characterized by chronic or recurrent functioning of thoughts, emotions, attitudes, and/or relationships with others and cause suffering or disability in one
or more aspects of life. The problems can manifest themselves in a variety of ways. Some examples are: isolation, sleeping problems, sui-cide thoughts, crying, stress, panic attacks, unexplained physical problems… Over time, this can cause mental disorders. It may then be necessary to seek help.
Mental health among young people in Belgium In Belgium there is a red nose day every year. Over a certain period money is collected for projects that make young people mentally stronger, especially in schools. Everyone can do their bit for Red Nose Day. How? Very simple: by organizing cool actions to raise money for the Red Noses Fund. At the end of the edition, the money goes to organizations. In 2016, 4,103,677 euros were collected and with most of the money, five ‘OverKop houses’ were estab-lished: An OverKop house is a place where young people and young adults can stay in a nice, relaxing at-mosphere, which makes
it easier to discuss problems. If necessary, low-threshold support and help can be offered to young people who need it. In an OverKop house, young people can just drop in to do activities together, but they can also find a listening ear and professional therapeutic help. It has been able to offer many young people a second home, a place where they can be themselves and meet new people. Because of the success and the large walk-in in the houses, they have decided to place another 25 houses, so there would now be 30 houses where the young people can go. Alex Eykens Sources: Rodeneuzendag: Over Rode Neuzen Dag Overkop: Wat is Overkop? World Health Organization: News GVA: Deze vijf steden krijgen Overkophuis van Rode Neuzen Dag Pers Opgroeien: Van 5 naar 30: nieuwe OverKop-huizen starten op in Vlaanderen en Brussel
When you’re struggling, it’s not always easy to keep thinking. Here are some tips! Tips for yourself
Tips for loved ones
- Bring structure to your days, for example, getting up at the same time every day. - A healthy lifestyle helps you stay mentally fit. Eat healthy and get enough sleep and exercise. - Talk about your emotions. Don’t bottle them up. - Write down all your thoughts so it goes out of your head. Then you can -if you want- tear it up.
- Don’t listen, ask and judge - Accept it as it is - Ask if your loved one wants to talk or would rather do something else: for example, go for a walk together, listen to music or just be quiet and not have to do Anything
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reportage
Starlink is about to bind everyone together
Photo: Danie
l Oberhaus
Have you ever heard about Starlink? It is the name of the project, conceived by Elon Musk a few years ago only, which consists of providing global satellite internet service across the globe in the long term. Next month, this aim will be nearly achieved, for the first time in human history, according to the South African entrepreneur. Let’s take a closer look at this.
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lon Musk has got us accustomed to making us many promises, some of which we did not eventually realize, but we have to recognize few people in the world have achieved so many important challenges in their lifetime so far.
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Photo: Space X wikimedia
the mobile communications industry, Elon Musk officially announced another of his brilliant achievements that is the providing of global satellite internet service coverage of the world by the project Starlink in the course of next month. This achievement consists in the scattering of hundreds of satellites that supply internet service for people who live in remote or rural areas and who do not yet possess high-speed broadband. It
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Because of the large “spot size” of the satellite beams, Starlink is “really meant for sparsely populated regions,” Musk said. “In high-density areas, we will be able to serve a limited number of customers.”
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also meets needs for broader and more varied uses of the internet worldwide, such as networked video games or video conference calls. So far, Space X - the name of the society in charge of this project - has launched more than 1.500 satellites in low Earth orbit and provides internet to about twelve countries. That’s low, but according to Elon Musk, “We’re on our way to having possibly over 500.000 users within 12 months”. For the moment, there are only around 69.000 people who use Starlink broadband service, but Starlink is getting operational in “more added countries every month,” he said. Asked about the aim of his project during the Mobile World Congress, Musk underlined the difficulties associated with it as well as its tremendous potential: “We target the most difficult-toreach three percent, possibly five percent of the global population. Think of Starlink as filling in the gaps between 5G and fiber. We’re really getting to the parts of the world that are the hardest to reach”.
or changes in ownership, and “step number one for Starlink is, don’t go bankrupt,” Musk said. The cost of the decadelong project to design, build and deploy the constellation had been estimated by Space Musk and Starlink executives have X in May 2018 to be at least never pretended at anything else. US$10 billion. Newer satellite But the mystique around Musk and launch vehicle technology and his companies has led to a will help costs, with Starlink’s widespread misunderstanding of upcoming “version 1.5” satellites Starlink’s capacity, some people able to network to each other believing that the service was to extend coverage across the destined to all human beings on Poles, and its starship vehicles the Earth, which is far beyond able to bring more satellites into Space X’s current capabilities. orbit at once. Musk also intends Besides, if Starlink’s high-speed to sink $5 to $10 billion into the broadband will be operational company even before it hits worldwide in the next positive cash flow. Satellites have weeks, regulators in Getting there will individual countries involve bringing never been so must approve numerous as today, and equipment and Starlink before launch prices with the progressive people there can down. Starlink use it. Starlink loses money privatization of space, broadband won’t on its $499 user space traffic is likely also be immediately terminals, each to intensify. available in the north of which cost the and south poles, but it will company more than normally take another six months $1,000. Musk’s proposition to for these poles to be connected remedy this is the following: (according to a tweet Elon Musk “selling terminals for half price wrote on the 25th of June). being not super compelling at scale [so] we would like So far, Starlink’s story has been a overtime to reduce the short and successful one as the first terminal cost from $500 to two prototype test-flight satellites $300 or $250”. were launched only three years ago, in 2018. Then, additional test Among the challenges that satellites and sixty operational Starlink might face in the satellites were deployed in May future is the argument that 2019 for an implementation that maintaining such a high took place as soon as 2020. To number of satellites in low achieve its business objectives, Earth orbit increases the risks Space X plans to maintain 12,000 of collisions. Satellites have operational minisatellites in low never been so numerous Earth orbit in the long term, towards as today, and with the 2025. Starlink is also characterized progressive privatization of by a reduced latency compared to space, space traffic is likely to current offers supplied by internet intensify. satellite providers, which rely on big satellites located in geostationary orbit. The envisioned latency would Yvan Barbeau be between 25 and 35 milliseconds, Sources: to compare with 600 ms for Medium.com Elon Musk targets satellites in geostationary orbit, but august for global starlink coverage according to Elon Musk, it could be Business insider Elon Musk suggests inferior to 20 ms or even faster. The satellite internet field is, however, littered with companies that have been through bankruptcy
Starlink will be available worldwide from August — a month earlier than planned
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reportage
Визуелно попречените лица и пандемијата: “Само сакам да престане, да направам да исчезне”
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Пандемијата не беше лесна. Прегратките станаа ладни боксчиња, излегувањето со пријателите се претвори во долги часови на телефон, допирот стана забранет и завладеја страв и дезинфекција. Блискоста исчезна, но некои луѓе ја почувствуваа повеќе од другите. „Беше ужасно, бев преплашен”, сподели Филип Величковски, ученик во 7-мо одделение во „Димитар Влахов“, единственото училиште во Македонија за лица со попречен вид.
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илип Величковски и Дамир Исени Доревски имаат прематурна ретинопатија, болест која потенцијално може да доведе до слепило предизвикана, во нивниот случај, од премногу кислород во инкубаторот, бидејќи биле родени предвреме. Овие две 12-годишни дечиња споделија со „Воисес“ каква беше пандемијата за нив. Андријана Прокопенко, наставничка по англиски јазик во „Димитар Влахов“, Скопје, со истата болест, ни ја раскажа и нејзината приказна. „Прилично бев исплашен”, сподели Филип. Иако е само 7-мо одделение, овој ученик покажа големо разбирање за сериозноста на пандемијата. „Се плашев да не се заразам и јас, не беше се како што треба”. Промените во секојдневниот живот започнаа со онлајн часовите и носењето маска. Филип досега често ги миеше рацете, но со пандемијата сега тоа е уште позачестено во ретките случаеви кога беше надвор. „Најлошото беше што не можев да зборувам со никого во лице, можевме само да разговараме на телефон. Онлајн часовите воопшто не беа од корист”. Ученикот признава колку било тешко „да се остане на едно место и само да се слуша”.
Истата борба ја водеше и Дамир Исени Доревски. „Најтешкиот дел од сето тоа беше неодењето на училиште” сподели тој. Кога наставниците им кажале да бидат пред компјутерот во 8 часот, воопшто не бил среќен. „На почетокот не беше толку тешко, но потоа навистина стана”. И на Филип и на Дамир им олеснало кога слушнале дека онлајн часовите завршиле и дека и покрај новите мерки, тие можат да одат на училиште„маската се уште беше проблем”. Беше тешко што класовите беа поделени на групи и не одевме повеќе во паркови, само на училиште, сподели Дамир. „Само сакам да престане, да направам да исчезне”. Адријана Прокопенко (42), видела колку им било тешко на учениците и колку се променил нејзиниот живот. „Сите бевме збунети и не можевме да поверуваме дека ќе трае толку долго”, вели таа. Кога беше објавена веста за онлајн предавања, се јавија многу проблеми. „Требаше некои работи да ги решиме самите, со секое дете, со секој родител”. Техничките проблеми беа насекаде: дел од софтверот за онлајн часовите не беше достапен за читачите на екранот, некои ученици не можеа да си дозволат интернет, материјалите за настава беа премногу големи за да се носат дома. „Понекогаш ќе требаше да правам индивидуални часови, да ги барам по телефон и да пробуваме различни платформи, понекогаш само ќе паднеше интернетот или ќе снемаше струја”, вели наставничката по англиски која работи во тоа училиште веќе 14 години. „Дури и пред пандемијата работите беа мошне тешки за слепите лица како резултат на недостатокот на пристапоност кај нас”, сподели Прокопенко. Дури и ако знаете како да го користите белиот стап, многу е опасно – „возат ко луди”. Исто така, луѓето воопшто не ни сакаат да им помогнат на визуелно попречените лица при купувањето намирници, самите веб-страници не се пристапни со читачи на екран и многу место не ни прифаќаат нарачки преку повик. Прокопенко се чувствува „полошо сега” за тоа колку е зависна од нејзините родители. Таа толку била внимателна да не се зарази и да не
зарази некој друг што ги нема видено своите пријатели од минатиот Март. И покрај тоа што во меѓувреме го прележа вирусот, Прокопенко сега е повеќе исплашена од пандемијата. Исто така, сподели дека Здружението на слепи и лица со оштетен вид – Скопје ја имаат контактирано владата за да бидат земени во предвид како приоритет при процесот на вакцинација , но за жал никогаш не добиле одговор. Во врска со поддршка од владата, Прокопенко вели „Државно училиште, но само кога тие сакаат”. „Сите брајови табли [помагало кое се користи за рачно пишување на брајовото писмо] во мојот клас се скршени, па за таа цел морам да користам многу бавен старомоден метод за подготвување на часовите. Се соочуваме со многу проблеми кога станува збор за учебници и материјали”, вели таа. И како плус на тоа, владата вели дека не можат да увезуваат материјали од странство затоа што тие се државно училиште, но е „многу тешко да се најдат работите и тука”. Една брајова табла чини околу 1200 долари, вели наставничката. Во идеален свет, секој ученик би требало да има сопствена брајова табла на училиште и уште една за дома. Со фактот дека училиштето има околу 50 ученици, јасно е дека има голема потреба од финансиска поддршка само за материјалите. „Луѓето не разбираат дека образованието за слепите лица е многу скапо”, потенцира Прокопенко. „Тие мислат дека печатењето на страница на брајово писмо е исто толку лесно колку и печатењето на страница од компјутер”. Пандемијата многу ги отежна работите, но за слепите и визуелно попречените лица во Македонија, работите веќе беа тешки. Без основната пристапност и без соодветна поддршка за образование; потребата од маски, контактирање само преку телефон или пак потребата да се потпираат на други луѓе движејќи се наоколу, пазарувањето намирници беше само уште една препрека за нив. Руте Кардоcо VOICES - 27
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Two months of memorable job experience Seven students from Institut Cavall Bernat from Terrassa, Barcelona, spent two months in Skopje as the participants of VET program (Vocational Education and Training). The program aims to strengthen students’ practical knowledge and skills by performing practical activities in companies. Their Macedonian adventure was possible thanks to hosting organization Volunteers Centre Skopje and partner organization Asociación Mundus from Spain. We visited Sheila at Talent Business Incubator Step up, Nil and Carolina at the travel agency Arbotravel, David and Paula at Hotel Ragusa 360, and Xavi and Victor at Hotel Panoramika Design & Spa. Read all four stories to learn more about our interviewees’ internship experience.
Choose a I career that suits your personality About their first time working at the hotel, their difficulties, and career plans, I talked to Xavi Monmany and Víctor Cuevas. They arrived to Skopje to do their internships in frames of VET program at Hotel Panoramika Design & Spa. 28 - VOICES
t was a sunny afternoon, almost 40 degrees on the thermometer. I arrived at the Hotel Panoramika Design & Spa a few minutes before the appointment with Xavi and Victor. The architecture and design of the hotel are modernistic what adds to the hotel’s luxurious feel. Everything blends seamlessly into the natural area of the beautiful mountain Vodno. Xavi and Victor came on time. We sat at the elegant veranda of a fourstar hotel to talk about their summer internship in Skopje. Xavi’s and Victor’s recipe for a happy day is a great team, a busy work schedule, and a good mindset. A positive workplace does exist. However, the people who work together must create it. The atmosphere at the hotel seems to be that of a friendly one. “Our colleagues are the best – very kind, helpful and funny. When we are not busy, we can talk about anything. We also teach them Spanish, and it makes us
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laugh a lot. The people at the hotel are of different ages, and we enjoy working with all of them”, says Victor. The interns have different shifts. Victor starts his workday at 9 am, Xavi at 2 pm. For 5 hours Monday-Friday, they help at the bar where they prepare drinks, at the restaurant where they provide a wait service, and at the reception desk where they welcome new guests. They do small jobs like table cleaning and coffee serving at the hotel’s veranda, but primarily they work inside. You can find Xavi at the reception desk most of the time. Victor is wherever he is needed, but mainly at the restaurant. He is always ready to stay some extra hours to help if his colleagues tackle the heavy workload. They work at the hotel for the first time and feel lucky to be here. They had a greater expectation before arrival regarding the number of responsibilities they have, but the four-star hotel in Macedonia will add glamor to their resumes. “Our degree in tourism wasn’t focused on hotels, so we didn’t get the proper knowledge before arriving here. I think that I learned more about work in the hotel from TV series than from school.”, says Xavi. They wanted to apply for hotel jobs when they were in Spain. However, they were unlucky - coronavirus thwarted their plans, and their CVs were left unanswered. Some days are busy at work, sometimes they are not, but all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. The weekends for our interviewees are a time to relax and party, for exploring Macedonia or neighboring countries.
What was the biggest challenge at the beginning of their hotel adventure in Skopje? Communication. The Macedonian language is entirely different from Spanish, and the Cyrillic alphabet is complicated for them. They couldn’t understand anything at the beginning. “We communicate with everyone in English, but I would like to know the Macedonian language to help more. I know some basics such as hello and thank you. My co-workers also taught me Macedonian numbers, but that is all I know.”, says Victor. “I want to talk more to our guests. The problem is that they don’t want to speak English if they have other workers who speak Macedonian. I would also feel more obligated to learn Macedonian if I stayed here for one year. Unfortunately, our internship is short-term.”, Xavi adds. One of the essential features of a hotelier is the openness to work in many destinations worldwide. Xavi had a hard time deciding about his internship in Macedonia, but right now, he doesn’t want to go back home. He wants to travel more and explore other places. His dream destination is the USA. “Now, I know that it might be difficult at the beginning, but if you don’t risk anything, you risk more.”, says Xavi. Victor plans to go to Switzerland when he finishes college to be a waiter there and what his next destination will be, who knows? For Xavi and Victor, it is too early to decide if they want to work at the hotel for the following years. What is their career goal? Victor has two dreams that he wants to make come true. The first is becoming a voice actor, and the
second is getting a job as a referee. Sports have always been a big part of his life, especially football. His brother is a football player, and his other brother is a referee. Victor is sure that with persistence and discipline, he can achieve the career success he wants. Xavi also has very ambitious plans. We could see his name among people like Steven Spielberg, Christopher Nolan, or Xavier Dolan in few years. He wants to become a movie director. It is very expensive to have a degree in film, but chasing your dreams can cost money. Plan B for Xavi is getting a job in tourism. He would love to travel and have a career that allows him to visit new places. He thinks that he could work as a flight attendant, travel agent, or hotelier. What is the golden advice to give to someone who wants to start their career in hospitality? “The most important advice is to choose a career that suits your personality.”, Victor says. The interns agree that you should rather be an extrovert if you’re going to work with people. It depends on the job, but working in hospitality can be pretty tough. You always have to smile and treat the clients with respect, even if it is not your good day. Friendliness might be exhausting, but you must always be kind. The most important lessons learned from this conversation are matching your career choice with your personality type and not being afraid to try something new. Take a plunge! You will not regret it. Jolanta Ciopcinska VOICES - 29
reportage
First practical experiences in travel agency It’s been almost 2 months since they arrived in Macedonia. Carolina and Nil are the only people from the Spanish group that work in travel agency here. After this time, both of them confirm it’s the perfect place to gain an experience in the field.
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ood day starts with a coffee and that’s what Carolina and Nil do it before coming to their work. They have two shifts – first from 10 am to 1 pm and second one from 1 pm to 4 pm. Working place is Arbotravel, a family-run travel agency with a trusted clientele. There are already three women working, so Carolina and Nil enlarged the team. With the employees the communication is very good, two of the girls speak English. “But with the clients there is not much because the majority speaks Macedonian”, says Carolina. She adds that even there are difficulties like that, they still can learn a lot from that experience. Nil also thinks the working place makes the day better. Shortly, he comments: “Just perfect with all the people. They speak English, so it rewards lack of communication with Macedonian. “ When I talk to people from the agency, they are pleased with the work of Nil and Carolina. “Usually, we receive the people for the internship and after this period of time of our new crew, we can confirm they are very good at the job. We give them tasks that they later do during working hours.“ So far, they have already completed several of them. On the agency they organize programs and travels for the customers. For now, Nil and Carolina are planning two travels: both of them in Spain. First one will last one week and the main goal is to show the sunny side of Spain. Anyone can take part in 30 - VOICES
that trip: it’s all-inclusive for families, friends or groups. Other program is a city break in Barcelona which will last 4 days. “We are planning the travel and then people from the agency decide if this travel, they will put on sale or not”, says Nil. Carolina says that preparing these programs were a pleasure; “So far there have been no problems, because the girls have helped us a lot.” The company was created 30 years ago and from that time they’ve gained a lot of trusts from the clients. During that period Arbotravel also made some cooperation with other institutions. One of them is Volunteers Centre Skopje which made it possible for people from Spain to do an internship in travel agency. “We have a people for an internship here every year except last year because of coronavirus. Many people have passed through our agency. They’ve been here for a long or short time, both from Macedonia and from abroad”, explains one of the workers. For the first time Nil and Carolina have the opportunity to gain experience in such a place. Earlier, during their studies, they performed tasks that were only planning and not the actual performance of the profession. “I’m learning to plan real travels. On the studies I was planning a lot of travels, but it’s just planning, not doing it. Here is a real to sale”, says Nil.
Their tasks at work also require other competences. They’ve started an Instagram account of travel agency to promote Macedonia in other countries, especially of their own. Even though they’ve gained different skills on studies, this also can teach them a lot. Carolina agrees that she can see herself in this kind of job. “I think it’s a job that will satisfy me in the future. I’ve studied for this, and I want to work on it. “ Working in a place like this showed them other side of the coin. “In Macedonia there is no haste at all. In Spain every day goes so fast and here is more chill. Because of that you can work better, and you don’t have to be that stressful”, says Nil. Nothing surprised Carolina here but she points out the openness of people. “I wasn’t surprised at all, but I’d like to point out that people who come to the agency are really friendly”, she adds. They are both very satisfied with the workplace. In addition, they try to take full advantage of life in Macedonia, which is flying faster and faster. Anna Marek
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“I want to feel empowered” When she arrives in Skopje with six other Spanish volunteers on the 7th of June, it is the first time in her life Sheila comes to Macedonia. She does not know the language, and has to integrate fast into a society that is completely unknown to her: the VET program she enrolled indeed finishes at the end of July.
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owever, our Spanish intern is determined to make this experience a success. Despite her previous past experiences (work in a pizzeria, in a kindergarten, and a supermarket), she is young: She is only 19, and she has her whole life ahead of her. This new experience can be used, according to her own words, “as an opportunity to learn new things, be more outgoing and independent.” “At the beginning of my stay, I was introduced to the activity of the company, the environment, and my colleagues and felt more relaxed. The project is called “Inspection of the electrical network with the help of drones.” It will be the first time in my life I will fly a drone, and I feel thrilled about this. I have previously taken an online pilot course on the Yudemi platform, studied the drone manual, and got acquainted with the drone and its equipment. My work with the drones involves how to operate them, that is how for example, to use them to take aerial views and pictures about the infrastructures”. She is also in charge of the marketing part of her firm; in other words, she has to think about the posts, the slogans, the presentation of the company, and the promotional actions on social media, along with her colleagues. A normal day at work can be described as the following: “I take
the bus at 10:30 a.m., and I arrive at the office at 11:00. At 12:00, I discuss with my colleagues how I can improve the company. I finish work around 3:00- 3:30 p.m., and then the bus takes around 15 minutes to get me home. When we fly the drones, the pattern of the day can be very different as my colleagues, and I get up very early, then we go in a room to check together the photos taken by the drones”. I also ask her about her relationship with her coworkers, and she does not hesitate to describe it as “excellent” and “reciprocal.” When she has time, she teaches them some lessons in Spanish while her workmates teach her the Macedonian language. As her stay comes to an end, I ask her about her stay in Macedonia and if she regrets leaving this place for Barcelona, the town where she comes from. She admits her life in Skopje was comfortable and insists on the quality of food, which is (like many other things in Macedonia) much cheaper than in the capital of Catalonia. We decide to leave on these words. Sheila will go back to Spain at the end of July, but we believe that her stay in our unusual Slavic country will be memorable. Yvan Barbeau VOICES VOICES - 31- 31
reportage
New experience, new skills A professional career is an important part of our lives. It is safe to say that each of us wants to do it today. However, not everything goes our way, and it often turns out that the completed studies do not guarantee our work in the profession. Good work is the result of our actions already while studying.
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avid and Paula from Spain are examples of making the most of your time and gaining professional experience. They focused on their interests and talents, which they combined with their field of study, i.e., tourism. Thanks to this, they have the opportunity to acquire new skills during an internship at Hotel Ragusa 360. They start their day at 7.40, take a shower, get dressed, and go to work. There is one bike in the hostel, and the bus connection is terrible, so the best option for them is to walk. The journey takes fifteen to twenty minutes. David and Paula always work the same hours. There are two shifts in the hotel daily. “I prefer to work in the morning because I have more free time in the afternoon that can be used to explore Macedonia,” says David. “According to the schedule, we should work from 9 am to 3 pm, but most days our supervisors make us finish work at 1 pm, so we only work 4 hours,” he adds. The place where they work used to be a hotel. Now it is an event room. Ragusa 360 is located on Kiril and Metodij Street, in a six-story building whose facade attracts the attention of passers-by. The facility is located on the top floor, thanks to which it has a beautiful panorama of the city. The interior, in turn, looks very luxurious. Interestingly, on other floors in the middle of the building, there are only parking lots. “The area
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around the hotel is crowded. Next to it is the main street leading to the southern part of the city, so there are traffic jams all the time during the day”, says David. Upon arriving at work, David and Paula can go to the staff room where they change, eat the breakfast provided by the hotel, and leave their belongings. “When an event takes place in a hotel, we have to put on a shirt and a mask with the Ragusa logo, but most of the time we clean and prepare events, then we put on comfortable clothes,” says David. The main job is waiting and organizing events, i.e., arranging tables or arranging dishes. The biggest obstacle is communicating with people who don’t speak English or Spanish. But even in these situations, there will always be someone willing to help. “We had one event where we could speak English and even Spanish. Then we were able to get to know these people better and help in every situation. The rest of the events were organized exclusively for Macedonian residents; sometimes, it is troublesome. I had such a situation during one event where I was called by one of the guests who spoke only Macedonian, and I didn’t understand anything, so I had to call someone from the staff. It turned out that the Lord only wanted a glass of water”. This is his first experience in tourism, but he has already worked in other places where he had contact with
other people. “This job is not different from my expectations, but it is a unique experience. Planning events is not my dream thing, so I do not see myself working in such a company again, but I know that it is a new experience for me, which will teach me a lot and will also help me prepare for my dream job as a tourist guide in Catalonia.”, says David. One of the things that surprised him during his Skopje internship is that people are often late. “Sometimes they tell us to come by nine o’clock, and when we’re there, the first person doesn’t come until an hour and a half later. However, it doesn’t matter in the end because everyone carries out their duties.” he adds. The internship at Ragusa 360 is undoubtedly an opportunity to learn about a new culture, acquire new skills and make a strong entry in your CV. David claims he has come to love Macedonia. It is an exciting personal experience for him. He also hopes to be able to come back here in the future.
Kacper Król
Our monthly magazine has a very simple, yet powerful, mission - to be the voice of youth. And how do we do that? We encourage young people to take an active part in today’s society through journalism and designing by giving them a platform to express themselves. VOICES is produced in Skopje, Macedonia, and published online every month and four times per year as a printed edition.
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