If there is one “language” that can be understood by each human being, it is probably music.
Music can bring people together. So there was no question for AEGEE-Düsseldorf to take the fact that Europe´s largest song contest, the Eurovision Song Contest (ESC), organized in Düsseldorf, as an opportunity to organize it´s very first international event
–“Your Own Vision”, 12th to 15th.
Bringing people from all over Europe together to celebrate was one aim of the event – the other was to share each others’ visions of Europe, Challenge ourselves by decreasing the importance of stereotypes in addition to increase mutual understanding. Different workshops enabled the 28 participants from 11 different countries to do so – by means of Music, history, improvisation theatre and art. The art workshop was especially interesting to show what kind of ideas participants have about other countries, and this could helped foster lively discussions. Participants had to draw, paint and write their ideas of the countries of all participants on large sheets of paper sheets, and on the other side the citizens of those countries noted down their ideas of how they see their own country, an excerise that brought up many interesting results.
Recognizing that challenge is the key to motivation, the event encouraged participants to present their own countries in the most creative and reflective way they thought possible. The energy and the passion of motivated youngsters committed to an idea, and the power of their actions is the perfect example of broadminded and creative citizens of Europe.
written by Fabian Brüggemann, AEGEE Düsseldorf