Greetings dear readers!
I want to thank you for taking your valuable time to read my thoughts! Hopefully we will have the opportunity to meet at one of the RYEurope events or somewhere in European Youth Forum – I am looking forward to it. I would also like to use this opportunity to thank all of the organizations that have supported me, especially my home organisation ZSPM, for thrusting and believing in me – HVALA!
Who are you?
My name is Anja Mager, a 24-year-old Agriculture and Food Economy student, who comes from a small town in Slovenia, called Ravne na Koroškem. Rural youth represents an essential part of my life and gives me a place where I can share my youthful energy with other team players that are also passionate about agriculture.
What’s your background on rural matters?
I have been involved in the youth sector since the beginning of high school through various forms of pooling in youth organizations at a local level. I seriously began to deal with rural issues in 2016 as a board member of the Slovenian Rural Youth Association (ZSPM), where I have been active as a regional representative for the region of Carinthia and, from this year on, as a youth worker in the sphere of rural youth clubs.
What’s your best Rural Youth Europe memory?
The best RYE memory I have is my first European Rally 2017 in Latvia. I was astonished how close people could get within a week. Furthermore, I started to understand what breaking boundaries and building bridges really meant to me: it is not just about knowing each other; it means that together we are part of something bigger and united we can provide positive changes for rural youth.
Why did you decide to run to become a board member?
I decided to run for the position of a Special Interest board member: youth policy, because it not only represents an ideal complement to my previous experience in non-formal learning and personal interests, but also gives me a possibility to start achieving my goals towards equalization of opportunities between rural and urban areas. I am aware that living in rural areas sounds less attractive than living in a big city to a lot of young people. As a representative of RYE in the European youth forum, I want to help creating an environment that would reflect a positive image of rural areas, so young people would remain there.
A hidden talent of yours?
If I told you, it would no longer be hidden.
Favourite quote / saying?
“If you don’t go after what you want, you’ll never have it. If you don’t ask, the answer is always no. If you don’t step forward, you’re always in the same place.” Nora Roberts
What is the most important reason why we do human rights education?
Human rights are essential because they guarantee equality and fairness for all – without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, and religion, political or other opinion. Despite a growing awareness about the meaning and the importance of human rights, their aim is still not clear to everyone and that is one of the main reasons why we do human rights education.