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20 years, 20 people
guy in the Goethe Institute in summer 2000 who was a member of the AEGEE-Ankara board. “I curiously asked him what the acronym stood for, but he couldn’t tell”, smiles Burcu. She was a bit disappointed, but the guy did not give up and brought her some Key to Europes. “I was so amazed by the AEGEE yearbook that just one week later I went to the AEGEE-Ankara office.” The rest is history. “My biggest achievement in AEGEE is the Turkish-Greek Civic Dialogue Project, which I had the honour to manage between 2002 and 2004. It opened up youth organisations both in Greece and Turkey”. Thanks to the experience she gained as manager of this project, Burcu was able to join the Comité Directeur of AEGEE-Europe in spring 2004, becoming responsible for European Institutions, grant applications and youth policies. What she likes most in the CD-house are the dinner time chats at the large kitchen table, singing in the house, the garden and the hammock in summer time. “It’s hard to believe, but I even like writing grant applications for the Youth programme”. Burcu has many bittersweet memories from her past four years in AEGEE. The most remarkable event she ever attended was Kayafest, a part of the Turkish-Greek Civic Dialogue Project. “I will always feel so sad that I could not see any performances by the participants, because I was so busy”. She will also never forget other precious moments in AEGEE, such as the enthusiasm of the participants of the ES2 in Rotterdam and the Planning Meeting in Helsinki with its sauna party, where she was running on the snow with bare feet, jumping from the hot sauna to the icy water. Burcu’s most mixed experience was the Planning Meeting in Magusa in 2003. “It was my first time in Cyprus. When I entered the country from the Turkish side, I had to sign a paper stating that I don’t recognise this part of the island otherwise I could not enter Greece with the same passport in the future”. The harsh, sad discussions in the network, on whether it is wise to organise an event in Famagusta, or a preevent in the buffer zone, will also stay with her forever. Outside her AEGEE life, Burcu has been working as a translator and interpreter for the last three years. “I speak English and German fluently and am trying to improve my French – and I still want to learn Greek,” she says. She is also music-addicted, still sings everywhere, enjoys playing guitar and almost worships Tori Amos. Reading is also a great passion for her, as are travelling and rock-climbing. What does she hate most? “Chewing gum that sticks to my shoes while walking on the street”. Burcu’s thoughts about 2004 remain a little bit sensitive. “This year was a final countdown in my life. I graduated from the university, so my passionate dance with AEGEE is slowly coming to an end”. The headlines, good and bad, in her mind from 2004 include al-Qaeda bombings, the Cyprus reunification referendum, the elections in Ukraine, the enlargement of
20th Anniversary
the EU on May 1st – and of course, the setting of a date for negotiations on Turkey’s accession to the EU. “I am very happy that accession negotiations are going to start in October 2005. Turkey has made a huge effort to fulfill the Copenhagen criteria and millions of young people in Turkey aspire to live in a more democratic society.” Burcu knows that it will be not easy for the current member states and Turkey to live in the same house. “We as AEGEE members have a lot to contribute with our activities.” Turkey is a part of the Socrates, Leonardo and Youth programmes of the European Commission only thanks to AEGEE members who worked hard for it, she stresses. Looking back, Burcu sees that she gained a lot of useful experience, both personally and professionally, from AEGEE. “I became an expert on grant management, project development, team building skills, networking and knowledge about institutions”. When it comes to her personal development, she needs time to reflect. “Firstly, I learned to keep on pursuing the things I believe in, no matter how impossible they may seem. I learned to respect others ideas as well as my own ideas. Also, I became more systematic and more tolerant”. So what are her plans for the future? “My dream is to work as an interpreter in the European Commission”. Her final destination, however, will be Istanbul – her favourite city in Europe. “My favourite way to relax is biking along the Princes Island in Istanbul and smelling the sea.” No matter what the future brings, though, Burcu will never be totally gone from AEGEE. “My heart will be with it forever.” Burcu will be waiting innocently for the people who will happen to sit next to her. Because she has a couple of words to tell them with a warm greeting and a smile. Gökhan Bozkurt
AUTHOR Gökhan Bozkurt joined AEGEE-Canakkale in 2003. This student of English Language Teaching helped to fully establish AEGEE-Canakkale, and coordinated one of the first Find Europe events – Troy Youth Festival. Gökhan is a board member of the Visa Freedom Fighters and is working to revive the Education Working Group.
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