An article by Peter Guidikov, AER youth delegate at the Europa Forum Wachau
Every year, the Europa Forum Wachau brings together youth and politicians from all over Europe to discuss our common future. It takes place in scenic Göttweig Abbey, on the hills of Lower Austria. We wear dresses and ties to impress important people, and we chat about the economy and the historical significance of Taylor Swift. Once drinks are served and music starts playing, it begins to feel like summer camp for politically-minded young Europeans.
In anticipation of the 2024 edition of the EFW, the AER delegation composed of two former AER interns (Joël and Peter) and two members of the Youth Regional Network (Maylinda and Hugo) was invited alongside other young Europeans to spend a capacity-building weekend together in Bratislava. It was an opportunity to get to know each other and discover a beautiful city at the heart of Europe. This pilot “youth pre-event” (“EFW x Erasmus+ goes Bratislava”) had us thinking and exchanging on a number of crucial topics as well as forging connections that we hope to pursue in Göttweig in June.
The Slovak capital welcomed us in its lovely Chors hostel – artfully decorated and accepting Bitcoin (!) as well as cash – not far from the city centre. The first order of programme on Friday afternoon was an exchange of views with member of the European Parliament Vladimír Bilčík on the upcoming elections and the concerns of EU citizens. Opinions were diverse and eloquently expressed!
We also met representatives of Bratislava’s House of the EU and the Old Town’s vice-mayor before heading to the Austrian Cultural Forum for a movie night. Dinner was good and had vegetarian options; the Austrian wine was… not quite French. But there were CRATES of it.
Though most were admittedly tired after a day (or more) of travel, there was still a bit of partying that night in the hostel’s game room, which was cut short by sleepy neighbours. On Saturday morning, some of the boys had the pleasure of being awoken by Hugo’s uranium-powered alarm clock…
After breakfast and plenty of coffee, a hard day of work awaited us at Pistori Palace. Split into smaller groups, we spent the morning formulating proposals on a range of topics, from enlargement policy to brain drain and the EU’s economic future. Another round of diverse and thoughtful opinions!
It was now time to work our bodies after working our minds: two guides expertly walked us through Bratislava’s monuments and history, its castle and mediaeval alleys. Few of us left this experience without sunburns – but the pictures made it worthwhile.
We closed out the day with a “traditional” Slovak dinner at a local restaurant before heading for a night out. The brave went for a beer at KGB Pub, others at [help me out here!], but all converged on the Trafo nightclub. It was understandably hard to get some out of bed on Sunday, despite the coordinated efforts of the rest of the AER delegation (and the atomic alarm clock).
Our last moments together were spent preparing and presenting the proposals that we had formulated on Saturday to the rest of the group. After lunch, some stayed the day in Bratislava, others made their way to Vienna. It was time to say goodbye.
See you in June!
