In little more than a month, the spotlights will be on Burgos where the EPM (formerly known as European boards meeting, EBM) will take place. Historic capital of Castile, this northern city will captivate participants, according to Rubén Sanz Martínez, main organiser of the EPM. We interviewed him to get to know what he and his antenna have in store for us.
The AEGEEan: When and why did you decide to apply to organise the EPM 2015?
Rubén: After we organised a NWM and a Renove (one of the biggest events for Spanish, French and Portuguese speaking locals), we realised we have a lot of very active members with a lot of experience on organising big events. Since our antenna is growing up very fast and we were full of motivation, we wanted to apply for an Agora at first, but the University of Burgos is one of the smallest in Spain, so we decided that an EPM would be the perfect challenge for us. We made a good program focused on participants and … we were elected! Since then, we are working very hard on this.
What will await the participants in Burgos?
Burgos is the capital of the Old Kingdom of Castile, an amazing city where all stones have a lot of history. During the middle ages all Spanish kings lived here, some were even crowned and buried here. Even Christopher Columbus came here to see the Spanish king after one of his trips to America. Moreover, it’s the birth place of El Cid, a Spanish hero, and the cathedral of Burgos appears in all art books as one of the top gothic cathedrals of the world. I know that Burgos is a bit unknown outside of Spain, but it will be a great surprise for all the participants. Nonetheless, Burgos was selected last year as one of the top 25 places you must go to by The New York Times.
How are the lodging and the plenary halls? Are the facilities cloes to each other?
It will be an event focused on participants. Even though we will walk from the gym to plenaries, all buildings are in the same area. Also, the places for social program will be close and we will walk there.
Let’s talk about food. Spain is famous for its cuisine, what do participants have to expect?
In 2013, Burgos had the honor of being the Spanish Capital of Gastronomy and our cuisine is one of the most popular in Spain. Even in the most remote corner of the country you can find Burgos cheese and Burgos sausage (also knows as morcilla). We are planning to have typical products of Burgos for dinner after the closing ceremony to share it with all the participants.
We are currently facing an economic depression phase. Have you had any difficulties in finding sponsors and partners?
I always say: “The most important things in life are for free” and here it’s the same. The economical situation is not the best, but we are a big team full of ultra motivated people and we are trying to get as much as possible by working hard. Step by step we are reaching all our goals. We already have all the basic features, now we are working hard for get more for all participants.
How many active members do you have in your antenna? How will you ensure that you have enough organisers and helpers?
Now AEGEE Burgos has about sixty members only, but we have fourty active members (five of them are from other cities living in Burgos) and we have chosen ten members with a lot of experience in order to have a final number of five. We can say that there will be one of us always ready to to help participants.
Why will EPM Burgos be unforgettable?
It enough to go to our website to see how nice the city is, all the work we’ve done so far, how easy it is to reach Burgos, etc… For sure it will be an unforgettable experience for all of you!
According to the statistics on Zeus, only 290 people applied (and now applications are open again), a lot less compared to the previous EBM in Lublin. Why do you think applications decreased? Were you disappointed by the results?
Well, all of us knew there would be less participants than the previous ones. The application period was during Christmas holidays, when all people were spending time with family or focused on exams. The topic is Russia and EU, but it will be on the opposite corner of Europe, and Agora will be during Easter in Spain too, so almost all people have chosen to attend this or the other event, but I am sure and I can say proudly that nobody who comes to EPM Burgos will regret it.
Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Venezia