How to EYPAn introduction to the world of the European Youth ParliamentBrought to you by the Media Team of Braga 2015 – 33rd National Selection Conference of EYP PT

EditorialMy name is Nina, I am 19 years old and I currently study law in Vienna, Austria. I am more than happy to be the editor of Braga 2015 – the 33rd Nation-al Selection Conference of EYP Portugal over the upcoming weekend. So, what do I do at this ses-sion in particular? I am responsible for leading the media team, consisting of eight lovely people from all over Europe. You can have a look at our actual plans and tasks on the next page.

Dear Delegates,

With this booklet, we tried to give you an idea of how your experience might feel for you and wanted to provide you with something to make you look forward to the event even more. We are all getting into the pre-session mood already – we hope to see you as excited for Braga 2015, after you have read the articles on Teambuilding, Committee Work and General Assembly (to be found on the pages 4 & 6-9). Maybe you can also make use of our clothing article. I am certain that packing will be an easy task for you after having had a look at page 7.

The European Youth Parliament offers so many possibilities for you, over this weekend, and every year. Try to make something out of the things you learn in Braga and take them home with you be-cause most memories you make and skills you aquire are more than worth having. If you feel like you want more of EYP after the National Seelection Conference of EYP Portugal, how about trying other national as well as international events? We prepared an infograph with all the opportunities offered and a few tricks on how to stay involved on page 5. Have a look!

This booklet has been brought to you by A Vida – the Media Team of Braga 2015, the 33rd National Selection Conference of EYP Portugal.

Best wishes,

Nina ThomicEditor of Braga 2015

What does a m

edia team do?

by Inês Neves (PT)

The media team consists of internationally selected alumni of the European Youth Parliament. It will capture moments, flashes and gestures throughout the session. Lead by the editors, this team will try to store those memories, so that you may, one day, re-member the precise moment in which you met the person who has become a friend for life or another, speaking in front of an audience for the very first time.

EYP sessions may represent exhilarating and unforgettable moments in Officials’ and Delegates’ lives. However, there are a great amount of minutes that, due to tiredness, sense of responsibili-ty, focus, or even slight distraction, cannot be grasped at once. Therefore, EYP has come up with the solution of building media teams. Hence, there will always be someone next to you, some-one who watches out for those things you may one day forget. Someone who will try to capture every feeling, every expression, every thought, every smile that comes up at an EYP session. Those intense experiences you will be living through will easily disappear. At its end, you will probably simply remember some important flashes. However, you will also want to recall those instants when something has made you laugh, cry or think about giving up. The second when you found yourself in a position and you had to defend it, since the pressure on your committee was unbearable.The moment when something irreplaceable has occurred, but you were too busy to give it prop-er attention. Composed by Journalists and Editors, this team will be in charge of supporting your remembrance; it will work backstage, as to provide you with the stardom you deserve. You will be the subject of a quotidian job aiming to crystallise the unique experience in which you will take part. However, it is important to state some of the tasks you may expect from it: firstly, and being aware of the importance social media has in all our lives, the media team will be updating the session’s Facebook page. This is particularly crucial for the participants who always enjoy looking at beautiful photographs and videos about something they actually lived, and here. I would like to quote Ansel Adams, who once said: “You don’t take a photograph, you make it”. Indeed, a media team would feel empty if there was no substance, if there were no moments to capture or people to colour the pictures and write the words in amounts of texts, straining to give you a “welcome”, a “good morning”, or a “have a good sleep”.

Secondly, along with this important mission, the media team will also generate small videos. Indeed, it is undeniable that, though photographs and texts may be pretty touching, a video will always take the lead, especially when it mixes moments, music and quotes. Likewise, and since this group is not a shade in the session’s dynamics, its members will also have the job of analys-ing the session topics, not to mention two other important interventions that consist of building and boosting the website and the blog exclusively targeted for the session. In brief, you may now comprehend the goal of such a team that, apart from all the activities mentioned above, will con-stantly prepare media team projects, in order to colour your experience. We are waiting for you!

“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

TeambuildingTeambuilding is one of the first and main parts of each EYP session. You will gather in your assigned committees. You will be allocated in a committee, together with other delegates from different schools, whom you have probably never met before. Teambuilding usually lasts one day. As the word already says, the main aim of teambuilding is to build a team. Aside from that it is a great way to break the ice, get to know your fellow com-mittee members, improve the communication and teamwork within your committee and create a foundation where you can build upon, as a committee, for the remaining time at the ses-sion.

You will achieve this by carrying out sev-eral activities and playing many different games, all of them being engaging and fun. These activities can vary form intro-ducing yourself, getting to know one an-other to games where you need to think and solve a challenge to active, physical games where you go outside and focus on how to function as a team. All you need to do is having an open mind and attitude, engage in the activities and be yourself.There will be a chairperson present in every committee. The chairs will lead and explain the activities and games to the committee. Their role is to guide you thorugh the process of build-ing trust and to ensure that everyone is comfortable expressing their own opinion. At the end of the day, a group of mixed people has been transformed into a committed, well-functioning team. All of you will feel confident and ready to start committee work and create a resolution. It is a challenging, but mostly fun way to get to know your committee members and prepare for the rest of the session.

by Kimia Midavoodi (NL)

EYP Opportunities

You’ve met new people, made new friends.

You are more aware of European issues.

You’ve grown as a European citizen.You’re an Alumni!

What you’ve achieved

How to be a successful alumni

Get together with your new friends and at-tend trainings and forums to get involved in

EYP even more.Keep an eye on social media, and like

EVERY session on Facebook!Apply for as many sessions as you can, get

rejected, keep applying. Be yourself!

You broaden your international understanding and in-tercultural dialogue.

You get to share your own opinion with individuals from all over Europe.

You will represent EYP Portugal!You can visit incredible cities and meet sociable,

open-minded people like you.You get to drink a lot of coffee and it’s all acceptable!You get the opportunity to develop your skills even

more.

Why go abroad?

Follow your dreams.Achieve your personal goals.

Follow your journey.End up as President of the

European Parliament!

But, what after EYP?

by Asmara Leysner (NL)

Even if you’re not

selected, EYP offers

so many other op-

portunities.

Join the EYP “Ses-

sions!” Facebook

group!

CWVisiting beautiful Braga with creative young-sters from all over Europe and staying indoors all day long, is more fun only when you are at the most challenging committee work of the 33rd National Selection Conference of EYP Portugal. The event is going to take place from the 18 to the 22nd of November and will gath-er students from Portugal, Belgium, the Czech Republic and Sweden, who will tackle most im-portant issues trying to find solutions for tomor-row’s Europe.

Delegates coming from 13 high-schools will be allocated to 8 committees to debate vital prob-lems that concern education, regional and agricultural development and employment is-sues. This is further expanded by a committee on international trade, consumer protection, transport and, of course, human rights.

The committee work, which is a core element of every session of the EYP, will be lead by a so called chairperson and in it you will create a resolution on the assigned topic. The two day event will take place on the 20th and the 21st of November and will help you to challenge your creative skills and perspectives, trying to find a common solution and consensus. The resolution will have introductory and operative clauses: identifying the problems of the topic and finding solutions to those.

An important element of committee work is

the principle of consensus, which encouragesto take a step out of your comfort zone, learn to respect and understand others’ viewpoints, to think outside the box and to grow into the process.

Although each EYP experience is a new and unique one for every session participant, there is a general procedure that makes the committee work more effective, fun, challeng-ing and memorable for all.

The very first part of the work is brainstorm-ing when you will come together to share your ideas, learn from each other and try to look at the issues from various perspectives. You will brainstorm new and creative ideas that would become great solutions for many problems that the European society currently faces. Open-mindedness will help you a lot to grow into the procedure, learn and teach yourself, to give and to gain.

After a general round of brainstorming the grouping of ideas starts, when you more thor-oughly scrutinise the problems of your topic. The work in sub-groups is an interesting way of learning how passionate your fellow del-egates are or how strong their opinions and principles are on certain topics. The main achievement from this part is self-develop-ment and self-judgment. You will start to un-derstand others’ opinions, not giving up on

by Lilit Gizhlaryan (AM)

your own ones. Discussing, speaking out, opposing each oth-er, attacking, agreeing, coming to a common ground: this is what committee work offers to you, if you are willing to fully emerge into the process and take the role of changemakers.

Last but not least, one of the most interesting parts of committee work is the phrasing of the introductory and operative clauses, where the committee is best presented as a team. The result of the two days’ work will be seen dur-ing the phrasing of the final resolution when everyone takes part to finalize the work claus-es and the final steps towards a common mo-tive are taken: defend the resolution, defend your opinions and thoughts.

Committee work is a lot of fun, but it can be a bit tiring sometimes, and for sure gets diffi-cult at other times. Of course everyone finds their own solutions that are not necessari-ly the same as of others. The best way to get the most out of committee work is to be open and eager to constantly learn new stands on issues. It is all about being ready for new opin-ions and new challenges. Hence, the way we cope with them defines who we are.

When coming to committee work, don’t for-get your invisible hat of flexibility, tolerance, open-mindedness, respect and sense of hu-mor. The magic hat will help you to take the most of committee work and stand out with your unique way of dealing with a topic.

Clothing Guidelines

by George Stavrou

Each occasion requires a unique style. As in an EYP session there is a variety of occasions we have to adjust our style and clothing to. Given that proper clothing will facilitate both the dele-gates and the officials, those guidelines should not be considered advisory, but mandatory.

Comfortable.It is common knowledge that you should not judge a book by its cover. In fact, team-build-ing contains a series of activities which require comfortable, if not athletic, clothing that will allow you to be agile. Bear in mind that those clothes might get dirty in course of this pro-gramme. Possibly there will be rain too, so add a waterproof and warm sweater to your suit-case.

Smart-Casual.The biggest part of the session will be com-mittee work, during which you will have to get dressed in a smart way; neither too formal nor too casual. More specifically, suits would rath-er not be recommend: a dressier skirt, with a shirt and a jumper or an elegant and non re-vealing dress. High heels not recommended.

Formal.Formal clothing will be necessary for the Open-ing Ceremony, the General Assembly, and the Euroconcert. Men should wear a proper suit , a tie, a solid shirt and formal shoes, while wom-en can go for a formal and knee length dress, for example. In those occasions ladies may test their skills on high heels. In Euroconcert, everyone can show their unique styles, in the context of formal clothing, and add a pinch of glamour and finesse. Elegant bow ties could make the difference; ladies, always know how to distinguish themselves just by adding a de-tail. In all cases, keep in mind that too reveal-ing attires are not acceptable.

Theme.The most special occasion of the session will be the theme party. Over that night, you are asked to bring an accessory or an entire outfit of the country of your choice. Take this unique chance to wear a traditional costume that sym-bolises your country of origin. Theme clothing requires creativity, so , do not hesitate to think outside the box and stay classy!

Casual.During the inofficial moments of the session – for example at the accommodation – do not hesitate to get cosy. Night-shifts are so much more enjoyable in your pyjamas.

BE A GA EXPERT!

You’re probably feeling nervous or uncertain about facing the General Assembly. If not, that’s great, but for those who are and don’t really know what to expect, don’t be – we’ve got something for you. The General Assembly (GA) is where it all comes down to at the end of a session. This is where you get the opportunity to defend your resolution and explain to the other committees why it is the greatest resolution ever made. Since this might be new to some, here is an explanation of how it all works and some advice from our side.

Before the GA, try to read the other committees’ resolutions and find points to make during open debate. If you disagree with a measure or have a suggestion, don’t hesitate to express your opinion. If you don’t understand something, you can always ask someone from your own committee, their an-swer can show you a different perspective on the topic and help you see some things clearer. Should you be unsure about the relevance of your point or argument, do not hesitate to approach your chair. If you have any further doubts, researching some points on the topic might make you understand the issue better.

Some final advice for the GA in general is to be prepared, speak clearly, project your voice, be confident, participate and most of all, have fun!

GA Procedure

1. Operative Clauses2. Defence speech3. Attack speeches4. Response to attack speeches5. Open debate6. Sum-up speech

by Carolina Sandeman (PT)

Overcoming being nervous can be difficult and honestly, there is no magic formula to conquer this problem. Some like to imagine people in their underwear but for some that just makes it worse. Oth-ers could find it funny and have a laughing attack. Don’t worry too much about it, everyone either is or has been in the same situation as you are. Remember to take a deep breath, make sure you know the key points you’re talking about. Another tip is to try not to read from your notes. You can glance down sometimes to keep yourself on track, but be careful with your “little helper”. If you do get lost or stuck, again, just take a deep breath, keep calm and carry on.

BE A GA EXPERT!

First, someone from the proposing committee will go up to the podium and read the operative claus-es. It’s important to keep in mind that you should read clearly. Don’t be afraid to speak up.

After that, someone from the proposing committee will go to the podium and present their defence speech. This speech is very important, since it serves as an introduction to the committee’s topic. It’s essential to explain the issue and why it’s important, show how the situation is either wrong or unfair, showcase the problem at hand or the main conflict and state what the committee stands for.

When they have finished, the board will let the other committees go to the podium and attack the resolution. These are the attack speeches. If you have points against the resolution as a whole or disagree with it in its entirety, don’t be afraid to write an attack speech. You should expose what you believe is wrong with the resolution and explain why you fundamentally disagree with the solutions. You can also suggest what they can change and how they can improve their resolution.

Once the attack speeches have finished, the proposing committee will then be able to deliver a response. This response is basically a small defence of your resolution. While the attack speeches are being presented, take notes of what your answer is for each point made. When delivering your response to the attack speech, sum up why you wanted to include these measures. It doesn’t have to be long, since you still have the whole open debate to defend your resolution.

Next up is the open debate. This is the time during GA where you defend your resolution. You will have several rounds where the other committees will ask questions, attack and praise your resolution, they may also give suggestions of measures you could include. After they have completed asking the questions, the proposing committee will have the chance to answer them. If you feel comfortable giving quick responses and if you are confident you know your topic well enough, this is your time to shine. While the other committees are making their points, make sure to write them down as well as who asked each question, so you can address them while answering. Make sure you speak clearly and make yourself heard, so that even people in the very back can hear you.

The last part of the GA is the sum-up speech. This speech is when you have to inspire others. This is the time to appeal to people’s emotions, so they’ll approve your resolution. Try to make people understand what the problem or the conflict is, show people how the situation is wrong or unfair. Ask people to put themselves in the situation at hand so they’ll empathise and sympathise with the resolution. In the very end, the GA will vote for or against the resolution proposed. Good luck!

A vida Braga 201533rd National Selection Conference of EYP PT

Photo Credits:

Media Team Article (p.3): http://blog.fotosonline.com.br/dicas-de-fotografias/digitalizar-fotos-antigas-partir-negativo/

Teambuilding Article (p.4): Lily Voge (NL), Powershifts Forum of the EYP in Lyon, Autumn 2015

GA Article (p.8&9): Louis Shankar (UK), International Forum Amsterdam of the EYP, Spring 2015