2880 minutes – issue2

Regional Sessions of EYP Finland in 2013

EUROPE OFCHANGESMost Editors do not like holding speeches. It is hard to come up with something smart and relevant when you have spent the entire session behind a screen, barely catching climpses of what is going on through pictures and videoclips. It follows that, as Nicole Goetz, Vice-President, puts it, “Editor’s speeches are basically the editorials.”

So, with Mathilde Pascal’s permis-sion, I will write my thoughts here. Because for once, I have something to say, and that is related to some-thing she briefly mentioned in her own speech, about not giving up on EYP.

When I started EYP, I did not imagine it would become such a big part in my lfe. Nobody does. Yet there I was, on Wednesday, standing at a session and wondering why I do not know any-body, at my sixth time editing. This is not something that, should you contin-ue EYP, you will learn is relatively com-mon. Quite the contrary. Furthermore, I am one of the four coordinators of the unofficial project EYP Voice, an online magazine about EYP, by EYPers. We also founded that project.

Not only was I never selected to an In-ternational Session, but I was rejected ten times before getting a place as an official. Mathilde has chaired ten times,

and will soon be presiding a franco-phone forum. She had a similar story.

Without getting into the details of why it was so, the morale of this story is not to give up. If you try hard enough, you will make it through. Perhaps it will not be your dream session, but it is a start.

This attitude is not only useful within EYP, but in everyday life as well. Keep trying, start somewhere. See how far you get. It may be much, much further than you think.

- Giada Benfatto (DE), Editress

Editresses

Mathilde Pascal (FR)

Giada Benfatto (DE)

Journalists

Riccardo Passarella (CH)

Lauri Lahtinen (FI)

David Soler Crespo (ES)

Marek Haisl (CZ)

Maria Browarska (PL)

Mari Ylivaikko (FI)

Saara Rissainen (FI)

Marja Pentikäinen (FI)

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CONTENTSCONTENTS

Regional CommitteesPoint of Views

The Man in the Red HatThe Blender of Eras

A Day as a Journalist

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The Night of the OrganisersCount Me InEYP: The Way AheadReport on GA Fashion

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Regional Committees: At Your Service

The first regional committees of EYP Finland were established five years ago. There are now four official regional committees: EYP Helsinki, EYP Tampere, EYP Turku and EYP Eastern Finland. The fifth regional committee, EYP Northern Finland, will organise their first event at the end of 2013.

The purpose of the regional committees is to organise activities for people who are interested in staying active in EYP after attending an EYP session. As many EYPers do not have the opportunity to attend EYP sessions as often as they wish, regional committees are a great way to organise EYP activities on a smaller scale and on a more frequent basis.

The events of the regional committees are wide ranged and there is certainly something for everyone. They vary from visits to museums to an afternoon in Megazone and from sauna evenings to training courses. For instance, EYP Tampere organised a training course on the European Union in summer 2013, led by an EU officer. All regional committees are happy to receive ideas also from new EYPers to organise events as interesting as possible.

Most events are planned during the board meetings of the regional committees. The board of each committee has a president, a vice-president, a secretary, a treasurer and a variable number of other board members. The meetings are open for everyone and are great opportunities to learn about the EYP, to get to know other EYPers and bringing out your own ideas. As meetings are also a great excuse to gather up with EYP friends, it is usual that after the meeting, there is a relaxed gathering for example in a café.

In addition to organising events for EYPers in their region, the regional committees help the national committee, EYP Finland, in significant ways. For instance, regional committees are responsible for contacting and visiting high schools every autumn and encouraging students to take part in the Regional Sessions of EYP Finland.

Regional committees of EYP Finland offer a perfect opportunity to stay active in EYP and meet other EYPers. They gather old and new members and enable them to share their thoughts and experiences. The regional committees are there for you and help you to rise to an entirely new level in EYP. - MP

EYP Finland has four regional committees around the country. They offer EYPers different kinds of events and activities between EYP ses-sions. Regional committees also have the honour and the responsibility to recruit new faces to EYP.

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How can I get involved in a regional committee?

Like the Facebook groups of the regional committees. The groups are named EYP Helsinki, EYP Tampere, EYP Turku and EYP Itä-Suomi [EYP Eastern Finland]. The new regional committee in Northern Finland will get a Facebook group soon.

All regional committees still plan to organise events in 2013, some of them especially designed for new EYPers. Come visit the events with an open mind and bring your EYP friends along.

The events are advertised on the Facebook groups of the regional committees and in the Facebook group EYP Finland | Alumni.

IIf you have any questions, do not hesitate to send an e-mail to the president of your respective regional committee.

Tim Backhaus

President of EYP Helsinki

[email protected]

Marja Pentikäinen

President of EYP Tampere

[email protected]

Tuusa Eriksson

President of EYP Eastern Finland

Silja Tuovinen

Contact Person of EYP Northern Finland

[email protected]

Charlotta Lahnalahti

President of EYP Turku

[email protected]

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Point of views

Everyone will agree on the fact that photography is expensive. You will never be able to seriously get into this hobby if your bank account is always feeling lonely. Obviously the photographer gets the job done, but this is not always enough. In fact, you need lenses designed for different purposes: wide angles for landscapes, prime lenses with large apertures for portraits, telephotos for wild life or concerts and so on. Good lenses (like Canon L, Zeiss or Leica glasses) usually cost more than the camera itself: they are the result of state-of-the-art engineering and are more durable than a combination of chips and transistors. Apart from the lenses, you might also need flashlights or tripods, thus increasing the final value of the investment. The common user does not need many pieces of equipment, though. These things are sold for people who earn a salary from photography or simply like wasting their money.

Even if it is a fancy hobby, you will be able to get a lot from it. In fact, practicing photography will turn you

into a better observer and better aware of what is happening around you. The secret to a good photo is concentration. You have to carefully spot everything that is happening inside the frame and figure what you want to reproduce. It is a lie to state that photography is a representation of reality. It is fairly the opposite. Every time you take a picture, you give a point of view and an opinion. It is not the camera to decide what to shoot. Photography has deep human and intellectual dimensions, which are sometimes forgotten. If you keep this in mind, you will be able to represent yourself through your work and personalise it. What is art, if not the person breathing through its creations?

Finally, in order to learn photography in a convenient and sustainable way, you have to get a digital camera. However, if the goal is to master photography, the next step is to buy a manual SLR from the 70s and shoot film. Film might be annoying, but its limitations forces the photographer to weigh every single frame and think how to get the best out of its ideas. - RP

Everyone has a passion or a hobby that other people think they are good at. Sometimes it is sport, sometimes music, politics or kittens. Among other areas which mankind explored in its history, there is also Photography.

You can like photography for several reasons. It allows

you to express yourself in a very conceptual way and to produce almost tangible memories. Or maybe you are

just a tech geek who likes to press buttons.

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The Man in the Red Hat

Marek Haisl: When and how did you get involved in EYP?

Hammu Varjonen: It was a Regional Session in Espoo several years ago. There was a delegation from our school but I was not part of it? Then someone on the delegation got sick and I was asked to go with them. I have been involved in EYP since then.

Can you please explain the functioning of the Board of EYP Finland?

The Board consists of seven members – the President, a Vice-President, a Treasurer and four Board Members. The President is on the top of everything. Each member then has its own competences. For example my competences are Public Relations (PR) and Communication. This means that I am responsible for social media, coordinating the European Youth Polls, planning the topics for the sessions and communicate with Session Presidents on academic issues.

What made you decide to be a Board Member of EYP Finland?

I wanted to do something besides attending sessions. Also, I felt

like contributing to the work of EYP Finland is a way to repay the organisation back for what it has offered me.

Can you please elaborate on different types of session that EYP Finland organises?

We have annual Regional Sessions, where we select people to the next annual event, the National Session. At the National Session we select people for International Sessions and other events such as International Forums. The National Session is usually at the beginning of the year. This year we are organising four Regional Sessions and one National Session. It is the first time that we organise as many Regional Sessions, as EYP Northern Finland has been established recently. The upcoming National Session is going to take place in January 2014 in Vantaa. The cherry on top is going to be an International Session in Tampere in 2015, which is surely going to be an amazing event.

What is your most interesting experience with EYP?

My way back from a Regional Session in Croatia in 2010 was really

Hammu Varjonen is a member of the board of EYP Finland, in charge of Communications and Public Relations. You might have seen him at the session, sitting with a MacBook on his knees, headphones in his ears and a red hat on his head. This 21-year-old student in political history was so kind as to give us an opportunity to interview him.

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interesting. It was my first time as an official. The event took place at the time when the volcano erupted in Iceland, so my flight was cancelled and I had to take the train. It took me three days to get home and it was a great experience for me.

Is there anything you would like to say to the delegates?

Enjoy the session and if you like it, get

involved. It does not end here, this is only the beginning. Even if you are not selected for the National Session, you can apply for sessions abroad and other sessions which EYP Finland organises. So if you like this, then go for it, get involved and make the most of it.

- MH

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Farewell Party: The Blender of Eras

“Time travel will never be impossible forever.” –Toba Beta. In the meantime, Turku 2013 is unfortunately drawing to a close. To run away from the inevitable, the participants of Turku 2013 went time travelling to the Farewell Party. Clothes and accessories from the past and the future were well combined as the participants gave their best on the dance floor.

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Cowgirls inspired Salla (ITRE) on her outfit. Her committee members Sara and Vilma dressed up as Greek goddesses with white togas. The rest of the group relied on past decades. Kiira and Siru (ITRE) returned to the 80s, Venla (ITRE) danced her night away as a 70s hippie and Olga (AFET) trusted on the swing of the 50s. The girls believe that time travellers should not regret anything.

Organisers Robert and Joel turned heads with their original outfits. They were inspired by a conversation they had with one of the Head Organisers, Ian. The duo endorses time travellers to use another material than unpractical aluminium in their armours and garments.

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Frans (EMPL II) got his inspiration from unicorns. According to him, unicorns have always existed and will exist in the future as well. Frans advices time travellers to find a unicorn as they can always be helpful.

Veera (REGI) got her vision from Doctor Who. Her committee member Emilia and Jemina (EMPL II) trusted in teamwork and dressed up as a Fennoman couple from the 19th century. Henri (REGI) also looked at the past as he dressed up as an old-fashioned sailor. The foursome recommend time travellers to be open-minded


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Maria (AFCO) and Silvia (EMPL) came to the Farewell Party wearing old evening gowns. Silvia explained that she got the dress from her relatives last year, and the Farewell Party was a perfect opportunity to finally wear it. Sami (EMPL I) explained how his outfit is innovative: he did not know what to wear until he found a coat of Santa and got a bow tie from Maria. The trio suggests that all time travellers should remain calm and remember to take their towels.

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Saturday, 2nd November 2013. Turku, Finland.

07:30

Time to wake up. There are hundreds of things to do before the day ends. Without much energy, the journalist grabs his camera and goes down to breakfast. It is time to interview dele-gates about both random and serious problems whilst he eats scrambled eggs to get some much needed ener-gy. The day has officially started.

08:30

Committee work starts. The journal-ists retreat to the Media Room where they start brainstorming ideas for the articles and videos. Once this is done, articles are allocated to each journo. It is then time to have a quick nap or a shower before the real work starts.

11:30

Journalists are also expected to be in their committee rooms to get in touch with the delegates and to cheer them up with some energisers. While the committee is discussing, the journal-ist has time to finish another article before the deadline or update the committee’s blog.

16:00

Afternoons are hard. The journal-ist gets tired again and would like to sleep, but he simply cannot do that. The article that was set on the morning is due for midnight and he suddenly realises that he has not even begun with it. Things start to accumulate: video shooting, article writing, being with the delegates, tak-ing pictures, etc. Journalists must be everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Do not worry if you do not see a journo for a while, they are probably working hard for you.

19:00

Having lost all notion of how fast time has passed, the evening programme is already there and the journalists have to leave aside their almost finished articles for late night. It is time to entertain delegates, have fun, and take more pictures.

Each committee has its journalist. You probably think they are the hap-py and crazy people in the session and in a way they are. However, a Journo also has a lot of work to do behind the scenes

A Day as a Journalist

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23:30

The farewell party ends. It is time to do all the work the journo has not been able to finish during the day. Ar-ticles are sent at the last minute to the Editresses who check them, layout them and finally publish the promised newspapers. The video clip is being edited into the final video for the next day. Things start to take shape.

03:00

Time to go to sleep for the journalists after finishing all work set. There are only four hours left until the wake-up call for another active day at the ses-sion. Meanwhile the Editresses have an umpteenth coffee and stay awake all night to publish the journalists’ work. The day has ended.

- DSC

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It is midnight and two organisers are sitting in the lobby, making sure that no one outside of the session enters the school. Instead of keeping constantly an eye on what is happening around, they seem to concentrate on something totally different. Only the sound of the computer breaks the thick silence. Everything seems very tranquil whilst elsewhere people are in a hurry.

In the gym hall, five organisers are tidying up after the party. They seem tired, but this needs to be done sooner or later. The committee on hygiene and cleaning, better known as HYLE, has been taking care of the tidiness of the school during the session. Their effort is often taken for granted, but the session with its 100 participants would fall apart without them.

On the other side of the school some organisers are printing resolutions. Paper goes in. Paper goes out. Staple. Paper goes in. Paper goes out. Staple. The process is time-consuming but necessary. Otherwise, the delegates would not have resolution booklets for the General Assembly. This is the task of the committee on sliding affairs, SLIF, responsible for the logistics of the session.

A few hours later, the pot is hot in the kitchen. Oatmeal is cooking and biscuits are in the oven. At least that is what it should be like. The committee on food and cooking, also known as FOCO, has slept in. They are half an hour late, but they need to make it work. They are currently preparing scrambled eggs for breakfast. One of the organisers has started to prepare the oatmeal. The situation is in every way hectic. FOCO has spent a lot of money to prepare a nutritious breakfast and tasty cakes. Buns, biscuits and Danish pastries have brightened up the long day of the committee work.

While the delegates, the chairs and the journalists take part in the General Assembly, the organisers clean up the entire school. People often forget the existence of organisers since they do their magic when others are not around. They often operate at night and sleep during the day if there is time to spare.

Even though the work oforganisers is time-consuming and challenging, there are many positive things involved as well. They face constantly the feeling of success. Seeing everything to tie up together because of the work of your team is one of the best things in the world. - SR

Organisers keep the tea hot – concretely and metaphorically. They work hard every day and night of the session so that the participants are happy and satisfied.

The Night of the OrganisersRegional Sessions of EYP Finland in 2013

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Count Me InThe exact numbers behind a session are seldom known. After going through the session material and asking organisers, the Media Team has been able to gather the statistics of the session.

Officials 48

Chairs

& Board16

Journalists& Editresses

10

Delegates81Organisers& Head-organisers

22

Plushies16

2 (m

alfun

ction

ing )

print

ers

12 reflex cameras

30 Apple MacBooks(lots of classy computers)

Committees + PLUR

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60 Operative Clauses in the Resolution booklet

7 550 hours of work for the organisers

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150 bananas

250 apples

600 eggs

2 880 minutes of Turku 2013

Hours 8sleep per journalist

1/2 of the above per Editress

48 kg of jam

Countless litres of coffeee

50 welcome issues printed

20 keyword searches per song before the Media Team found a decent one

6 hours to decide which one would make it to the videos

15 tennis balls for team

building

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Most of the youngsters have spent an ordinary weekend. You, on the contrary, experienced something very unique – a session of the European Youth Parliament. You spent the whole weekend with young Europeans discussing current political issues in English. You built friendships, improved your knowledge about the EU, developed skills and had fun. You can be proud of yourselves.

The majority of you were first-time delegates. You did not know what to expect but you took a crucial step – daring to come to the session. The atmosphere of a session is something that cannot be described with words. It has to be experienced first-hand. Now that it is over, post-EYP depression is threatening you. When you will miss the session, the people and the atmosphere, rest assured you are not the only one.

This is where the Media Team enters the scene. The issues, the pictures, the Facebook pages, the blogs and everything produced and published before, during and after the session, is for you. This material will help you to keep the memories alive. PED is going to hit all participants, but reading the issues and going through the photos

will remind you of the astonishing experience you had in Turku. To do so, do not forget to follow the Facebook page of the Media Teams of the Finnish Regionals.

The next piece of advice to fight PED is to stay involved in the organisation and begin planning your next steps. Those of you who were selected for the National Session already know what their next session is going to be. However, it does not matter whether you were selected or not. By participating in Turku 2013, you entered a world of opportunities to continue in EYP. All you have to do is apply for a next session. Many sessions like to invite international delegates – take advantage of it. Other positions available include those of organisers in Finland, journalists or chairpersons.

Of course, there is a possibility that your application will not be accepted. Keep in mind that this is not the end of the world. Today’s senior EYPers are those who persevered and did not give up after the first rejection of their applications – nor after the second, the third or the tenth. The EYP organises between 100 and 150 events every year, in Finland and

After coming back from the session, something very unpleasant is going to hit you. No EYPer is safe from the post-EYP depression, commonly known as PED. How should you deal with it and attenuate its effects?

EYP: The Way ahead

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across the Europe. There are various types and sizes of events. You have a large range of choice, from one-day session, which are ideal to start as an official, to sessions and forums with up to 300 participants. Besides traditional sessions, the Regional Committees of EYP Finland organise various kind of gatherings to bring Finnish EYPers together.

There are several places where you can find all the important information. EYP Finland is present on social media such as Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/eypfinland?ref=ts&fref=ts) and Twitter (https://twitter.com/eypfinland). Another source of information is the official website of EYP Finland (www.

eypfinland.org). The platform of EYP alumni, alumni.eypej.org, offers a calendar of events to come as well as regular updates on calls for delegates and officials. If you have questions, get in touch with your regional or national committee.

The Regional Session of Turku 2013 is now over. The best way to fight PED is to accept it and look ahead to your next EYP event. There are many more experiences awaiting you, friendships to build and memories to collect. The first step, which you took by coming to Turku, is always the most difficult to make. All you have to do now is take the next one.

-MH

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As the FPI unfortunately has a somewhat questionable reputation, a cover-up was required to get our officer in. The operation was extremely successful and the officer was even mistaken for a delegate. The success was not unexpected, though, as it was ridiculously easy to fit in the crowd. The most popular ensemble was unsurprisingly a black suit coupled with a white shirt and a neutral tie. The important question is whether this look is classy and classic or duplicable and dull. The FPI wishes to remain neutral towards this subject.

Among the other costumes were also a red dress, a black and white dress with a fancy print thingy and some fancy bow ties. In addition, not all of the shirts were white and the president’s tie could not have been any bluer.

There was arguably more variation in costumes within the female than the male ranks. However, it was interesting to note that a considerable amount of females were dressed up in a black-suit and white-shirt combination. Would you rather pick something colourful or play it safe and dress like the most people? The FPI is undecided on this question.

When it comes to the ever-lasting battle between ties and bow ties, it is all quiet on the Western front. In other words, the situation is unchanged: ties are still far more popular than bow ties. However, research conducted by the FPI suggests that bow-ties have gone underground and are currently organising their ranks. Do you really think that the members of the board can remain neutral on this issue, as the dress code requires males to wear a bow tie or a tie?

Only one serious crime against fashion was spotted. A journalist was seen bouncing around without shoes like a nuclear squirrel, and more shockingly he wore dotted socks. How can you wear anything else than neutrally coloured socks with suits?

The truth is that there are much better places to look for fresh, exciting fashion. At least these youngsters know how to dress for the occasion, though, and the black suits do look classy even if there are a few too many of them. Overall, the FPI is mostly satisfied with what they heard about this excursion.

- LL

The European Youth Parliament held one of its sessions in Turku during this weekend. The Fashion Police Incorporated (FPI) decided to have an officer sneak into the General Assembly, observe the fashion and report on every little detail. Though the dress code was strict, the FPI does not recall any guidelines focusing on hair. Still, nobody attempted to pull off the Robert Smith look.

A report on GA fashion

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2880 minutes – issue2

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