at SZIGET FESTIVAL, 11-16 AUGUST 2010

We are safe to say that the participation of JEF in the biggest Central European cultural and music festival - SZIGET Festival in Budapest, Hungary is a real success story. Every year, this one week long cultural cavalcade and one of the biggest summer youth events in Europe provides us with great opportunity to share our ideas on Europe with a vast number of festival-goers from all over the world, and from Europe in particular.
 
With the participation of fellow Belgian JEFers, as well as Ruben, JEF-Europe's incoming secretary general, JEF-Hungary seized the opportunity at SZIGET 2010 between 11-16 August in Budapest, to be present at the "NGO Sziget" section, to have a word with young adults from all around Europe and to offer a great number of activities for our visitors. With our programmes and our group picture featured in the official festival booklet, as well as our radio ads JEF has eventually introduced itself to tens of thousands of youngsters. Among our other activities, such as discussing current European issues, quizzes about the EU, or filling in the enormous interactive map of Europe, during the course of the entire week we have organized free alternative small group visits to Budapest to the interested -mostly foreign- Sziget-ers, and showed what we like especially about the Hungarian capital and to have serious and less serious conversations in the best bars downtown.

JEF-Hungary also took advantage of the presence of about one hundred other NGOs (be it local ones or members of INGOs) at SZIGET festival to foster the networking between them and to play a flagship role in strenghtening the interaction between such organisations that might carry out similar activities parallelly.

If you were not there this year, do not mind, since it is only one year until the next SZIGET and you can get to know how it feels like being part of the biggest cultural blast of Central Europe, in the heart of the capital of Hungary. Hope to see you next year!


 

JEF Hungary @ Sziget 2010!

JEF - Young European Federalists can be found at this year's (2010) Sziget Festival as well. We are looking forward to seeing you guys at our tent in the sector 'Civil Sziget'. Throughout the entire week we'll offer you FREE SMALL GROUP VISITS TO THE CITY in English, German, French, Spanish etc, so that you can get to know the genuine Budapest feeling, with some of the hidden treasures of the town and some of the classiest bars around. Don't forget, if you're looking for official and guided sightseeing visits to see all the monuments, you're at the wrong place. For such needs 'Magyar Turizmus Zrt' will also be present. This is about having fun, seeing a bit more of the capital besides the festival, feeling its captivating atmosphere and hanging around with nice young people - that is to say, with the members of JEF!

 

 Essay Contest with JEF-Hungary! 

Win some Hungarian Festival tix -

Deadline extended until 15 June!

Hi there!

Apropos of the forthcoming Day of Europe and European Parliament Elections, in the Hungarian media all we keep hearing is either some shiny Euro-blahblah or a bit of eurosceptic conspiracy theory. Is that what Europe is about? Sure?

Make Your Voice Be Heard, it's up to You now! 

Be creative and/or ironic, speak out loud, however you want it!!! In exchange we offer:

  •  

    1. Sziget festival daily ticket (HUF 10.000)

    2. BalatonSound daily ticket (HUF 9.990)

    3. VoltFesztivál daily ticket (HUF 6.990)

  •  

      + books, opportunity to publish your essay online and in international reviews as well as in publications of JEF Hungary, invitation to our Day of Europe celebration and many more!! 

What you need to do?

Choose one of the following essay topics:

  • Does euroculturalism exist? And what does it mean?

  • What bugs me about EP elections?

  • How to make Europe sexy?

  • What is the „European interest” and from whom to defend it?

  • Who do I call if I want to call Europe?

 

Write us in English, Hungarian, French or German an essay longer than a page and a half (A4 size),but not longer than 5 pages (Times New Roman fonts, font size 12,  line distance .,5 , Word2003 or 2007).

We appreciate if your paper:

  • uses well constructed and logically presented arguments,

  • gets straight to the point,

  • demonstrates various points of view,

  • is based on actual knowledge,

  • throws new light upon the topic

  • is daring

    Essay contest

    Also if you have any questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us. 

 

Our programs

JEF Europe Manifesto - FOR THE 2009 EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT ELECTIONS  
 


We young Europeans believe in the values of peace, freedom and solidarity.
 
We recognise the success of European integration in securing democracy and prosperity in Europe through the unification of the continent.
 
The European Union is our present and a federal Europe our future, but the rapid evolution of globalisation presents new challenges. The crises are evident in economic, financial, security and ecological matters. We can successfully face these challenges only if the EU is able to speak and to act as a real Union.
 
It’s time to act!
 
We expect brave and innovative decisions. We want concrete benefits from the EU in our everyday life. Therefore, we demand:
 
•    a European Economic Policy for ensuring growth, employment and sustainable development, in particular to benefit young people;

•    a European Energy and Environmental Agency for ensuring global leadership in the battle against climate change and managing a European Energy Reserve to guarantee a strategic independence of the EU;

•    a Solidarity Clause to ensure Member states protection against terrorism and natural catastrophes;

•    European Blue Helmets enabling the EU to contribute to peace-keeping in the world in the framework of a real European security and defence policy;

•    a Citizens’ Right of Initiative in order to listen to the voice of European citizens;

•    a European Civilian Service to promote EU citizenship among young people;

•    European symbols to be officially recognised by all European institutions.
 
We ask the candidates for the next European Parliament elections (June 2009) to support these proposals. Furthermore, we ask the European parliament to exercise the right to initiate a treaty change process - as established in the Lisbon treaty – to produce the necessary constitutional and legislative framework for these reforms and to give the Europeancitizens a true federal government.
We invite European citizens and civil society to sign up to our Manifesto.
 
IT’S TIME FOR CHANGE… IT’S TIME FOR EUROPE!






5 days in 8 languages at the Sziget Festival

What we offer:
•    Hiking in the Buda Hills (travelling by cog-wheel railway or chair lift to the top of Széchenyi hill for a magnificent view of the city.
•    Take a walk in the underground world of Budapest: the Pál-völgyi dripstone cave and the Szemlő-hegyi cave
•    Cultural pub tours in downtown Pest and Buda
•    Showing the values of the town as we see them.
•    Programmes in English, Dutch, French, German, Hungarian, Polish, Russian and Spanish.

Don’t expect:
•    Official guided tours (we recommend the services of Magyar Turizmus Zrt.);
•    Solemn atmosphere when staying with us;
•    Abstinent afternoons

Prepare for:
•    getting familiar with real city life in Budapest;
•    getting to know the hidden corners and little-known places and objects of the town;
•    taking a charming hike in the hill’s 500 meters above Buda;
•    Trying strange Hungarian meals;
•    Visiting our favourite places: pubs, cafes, squares

Let’s meet at the JEF-Tent (tent nr. 18), Civil-Sziget (NGO-Sziget), where you can register for our free programs! Tours start at 11:00 am every day!

How you can find us:


We are waiting for you with games, gifts, interesting discussions and information on JEF activities the whole day during the whole week.

Other programmes in English organised by JEF-Hungary at the Civil (NGO) Stage:

13 August, 15.30
Do you hear their voice? Darfur's silent genocide. Presentation and roundtable discussion with the representatives of Amnesty International and other NGOs on the humanitarian crisis in Sudan.

17 August, 15.00
Art is hard. Changes of paradigm in contemporary action films
An exciting presentation offering a short overview of the birth and constant change of an important  genre of popular cinema, followed by a detailed discussion of stylistic elements and idiosyncrasies of action films from the Seventies on to current movies showing new directions.

www.jef.org.hu
www.jef.eu

For further information during the festival please call: +36 20 221 9021