Summer has been over for a while now, but AEGEE Valencia keeps offering the opportunity to create unforgettable memories. From the 13th until the 15th of November, Network Meeting Valencia will be hosted in Corbera, a small town located 40km from the region’s capital. Charming Corbera is well known for its monuments and its rich history.
Network Meetings are events where AEGEE members get together to share the problems their antennae are facing and work on finding a way to solve them. New members can greatly benefit from attending a Network Meeting, given that the basics of AEGEE, from its structure to the Strategic Plan, are usually covered. By taking part in NWM Valencia, participants will also expand their knowledge of AEGEE’s European bodies and how to cooperate with them.
AEGEE-Valencia has been looking forward to organising a Network Meeting (NWM) for over two years. According to its main organiser, Consuelo Ródenas “the reason for organising NWM Valencia, apart from our motivation, was that AEGEE-Valencia members need to meet more people, discover and learn more things about AEGEE and the best way was bringing the NWM to our city”. In her opinion, the NWM is a good way to help inactive AEGEE-Valencia members to become more participative: “we have a lot of new and motivated members that are helping with the NWM as organisers, but also many members who are attending the event as participants”.
Participants will be lodged in El Tossal hostel, which will provide them with everything they need to make the most of their stay in the town. Among its facilities, “El Tossal” includes two rooms where workshops, debates and sessions will take place, high-level multimedia equipment and fantastic outdoor areas, including football, basketball and volleyball pitches. From its privileged location on top of a mountain, participants will enjoy an amazing view of the mountains surrounding Corbera and the Mediterranean Sea.
Those from outside Valencia will be able to explore this beautiful city in a tour in which they will get to visit Valencia’s most touristic landmarks and uncover its most well hidden secrets.
NWM Valencia will focus on the exchange of best practices among different antennaes in the Mediterranean area. Locals are encouraged to send an analysis of their strengths and weaknesses that will be discussed during the weekend. The event will also include an Open Space Session where some selected topics chosen and proposed by participants will be tackled.
NWM Valencia will start with an Opening Ceremony in which Melissa Carreras, newly elected member of the Network Commission and her subcommissioners will be introduced to the audience. The event will also include a workshop called “Identity and Liberation”, which will be lead by academics Dr. James M. Skelly and Christian Eichenmüller.
NWMs are also a great chance to socialize and make new friends within AEGEE. AEGEE-Valencia is planning two thematic parties that will surely delight the NWM’s participants. The first one will be a Suit Up party which will take place right after the open ceremony. On the second night, there will be a “bad guy in the movie” party, in which participants will have the chance to show how bad they can be by dressing up as their favorite movie villains.
AEGEE-Valencia cannot wait for one of the best events of the year. “Here we are waiting for the event to start and to show the whole Network what we are ready for!” Consuelo exclaimed.
Written by Kimberly Townend, AEGEE-Valencia