I just received this article from Winterthur: I thought it would have been nice to let you know..
Winterthur, Switzerland, Sept. 27th, 5 pm: After speeches by the major, principal, main sponsors and our ESN President, it was time for Jonas Epp, head of the OC, to officially open the first Council of National Delegates. With virtual Champagne, a real birthday cake and a long evening in the students Pub, the birthday party continued…
How come?
One year ago, the "Long term vision" working group proposed to the CNR to establish a further international ESN Event – the CND. It should be a response to the rapid growth of ESN during the last years and involve the National Boards which will play an important role in the future of ESN. The CNR supported the ideas and it was proposed to the AGM 07 in Prague, where a strong majority of the sections voted in favour of the event. Soon after, ESN Winterthur offered to host the first CND and started with the preparation.
Work professionally and party professionally
The agenda of the CND was similar to a CNR including presentations of the International Board, discussions about budget, the distribution of AGM places (an evergreen!), etc. Plus the working groups informed about their work and plans for the future. An important decision with a lot of media attention (even in Turkey) was taken on Sunday, as the NR's accepted Azerbaijan (ESN Baku) as a new Member of ESN. Nevertheless there was time for workshops about specific topics of National Boards in which the National Delegates could exchange their opinions and experiences.
But let's not forget about the cultural events and the parties! City tours and Eurodinner are definitely a must on an international ESN event, whereas parties just happen when open minded students from 27 countries meet somewhere in Europe!
As two years ago (Cultural Medley 05), the highlights were probably the Welcome Party by ESN Zurich and the goodbye evening at Albani Club (just have a look at the online gallery).
Looking back and forward
The first CND was a great success, but can and must also be improved. In my view, there is no need that NR's and ND's work together all the time – they have different jobs and specific questions and topics. On the other hand, National Delegates need to be better involved in the preparation of the event – It's also the responsibility of the ND's to adjust the event to their needs.
It's going to be hard to improve the organisation of the event though! Food and beverages (free drinks?!), working rooms, accommodation, transport, parties, etc. were state-of-the-art!
Many thanks to the OC of ESN Winterthur: Jonas Epp (Head), Nicole Gerber, Corinne Bryner, Remo Weber, Thomas Thür and Alex Paur!
