Vienna: a political symphony. Academic trip for international master students

“Dream on, but don't imagine they'll all come true. When will you realize... Vienna waits for you.”

Hi!

We are eight international students enrolled in the Erasmus Mundus Master of Arts Euroculture, currently spending our second semester at the Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Germany. This Master has been recognized by the European Commission as an Erasmus Mundus Program of Excellence. We are an international working-group made up of people coming from all over the world: US, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Turkey and Russia. We need your help to make our dream come true!

As part of our Project Management course, we have been tasked with organizing and implementing a project of academic and cultural value. So, for the past several months, our group has been planning an ambitious four-day educational trip for ourselves and our classmates to Vienna! The former heart of the Austro-Hungarian empire is a melting pot of cultural and historical significance – a place of tradition and heritage that one immediately associates with Mozart, Schubert and classical music; Walzer and Sacher Torte; and, of course, Wiener Schnitzel... but that’s not all! What motivated us in choosing this city as our destination is the high concentration of European and international organizations which are based or present in the Austrian capital. We believe that Vienna is a prodigious example of a glorious past, present and future mixed together, and will be a unique opportunity to enrich our group of 18 students, hailing from 11 different countries across four continents!

Moreover, we have another ambitious aim: In these days of rising populism and nationalism throughout different parts of Europe and the world, we would like to use our academic excursion to spread knowledge and understanding of the different institutions and organizations that we plan to visit. To achieve this goal, we will produce a booklet and a trip report which we will share on social networks, as well as distribute physical copies. This document will be available on the Euroculture Göttingen website and on social networks including Vkontakte (Russia), Weibo (China), Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter. Furthermore, printed copies will be sent to our supporters to give them a clear and tangible representation of our approach and experience. Our main focus is to contribute to making EU and international institutions more easily understandable and closer to their citizens, and to promote the EU and its values outside of Europe.

In order to realize this project, we are responsible for collecting the necessary funds, and it’s here that you can make the difference for us!

Every euro – even if you only spend the price of a coffee! – will be of great help, and here is what we offer in exchange of your contribution:

• If you spend up to €5, we will send you a picture of our group on our recent trip to Weimar with a thank-you note;
• If you spend between €5 and €15, we will send you a postcard from Vienna;
• If you spend between €15 and €30, you will receive a pen or magnet from Vienna;
• If you spend between €30 and €50, we will send you a hard copy of our booklet with personal thanks;
• If you spend between €50 and €100, we will send you a hard copy of our booklet with personal thanks AND a personal gift from Vienna;
• If you spend more than €100, we will send you a hard copy of our booklet with personal thanks AND we will quote your name as a major sponsor in the newspaper articles that we are going to write for German and Austrian publications to report on our trip.

From €5 on, each name will be listed in our booklet, which is going to be spread on international social networks and distributed to our partner organizations and institutions.

Thank you for your help, and hopefully see you soon in your mailbox! (When donating, please do not forget to write down your name and mailing address!)

Vienna is waiting for us, help us make it happen!

Jules Striffler, Anna Krämer, Kirill Zarifulin, Aslı Nazlı Altay,

Cinzia Miatto, Flavio Previtali, Erica Panfili, Alexander Pitts

Erasmus Mundus Master of Arts in Euroculture