Closing Ceremonies: Brussels
While Gülece was delivering her speech during the Closing Ceremony at the European Parliament, I remembered our trainings. The trainings, in which we learned more than they wanted to teach us… The trainings, where we discussed and stated our thoughts in a respectful platform... There, I realised that in contrast to what I used to believe, I was not an active citizen at all… Was 60 seconds actually equal to 1 minute? I was just a high school student; but I was at the Parliament. In my opinion, this is the first step of what I am going to do in the future… I feel this; because every end shed light on new beginnings… AyþeSavaþ
2008 many more AEGEE members from all over Europe and interested people from Turkey not only enhanced our happiness, but also was an indicator of the success of our project. The result Having started with the initiative of a couple of people, the Understanding Europe Project, gained new members and supporters day-by-day, ended with the Closing Ceremony in Brussels. The presence of Ayþe Savaþ and Ahmet Arýkan Özden at the Parliament (as representatives of the high school students, being from Antalya and Samsun, respectively) was a sign of the further steps the project took to achieve its aims. Furthermore, their presence not only drew the attention of the prominent figures in Brussels, but also pointed that in the future, youth in Turkey will continue to be active in the European society. Special thanks to:
since 2005, and at the end, expressed our gratitude to everyone that supported our project. The vivid movie clip, prepared by Buðra Ahlatcý, one of the team members, had a special contribution to the joy of evening. Among the participants, there were high illustrious personalities both from European and Turkish institutions such as Andre De Munter (European Parliament), Gisela Gauggel-Robinson (European C o m m i s s i o n ) , De n i z De v r i m ( E u ro p e a n Parliament), Aslýhan Tekin (KAGIDER), and Ender Mersin (TÜSÝAD). Important figures from the Turkish media in Brussels such as Vakur Kaya (abhaber.com), Yusuf Cinal (Hürriyet ve Yeni Haber - Belgium), Ender Duruel (Doðan News Agency) were also with us. Moreover, the participation of
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A. Cem Gündoðan - AEGEE Europe - Public Relations Director (2007 Spring Term) Andre De Munter - Acting Head of the European Parliament Brussels Information Office Berkan Saðlam - TEMSA Europe- Dealer Development & Market Research Executive Gülece Þenel - Understanding Europe Project Manager Kader Sevinç - Advisor of MEP Vural Öger - MEP Zeynep Karasu Secretary General