“Going to Offenburg and meeting the other ambassadors was definitely amazing as it opened a new world for me” – writes Georden Shaw from University of Warmia and Mazury, who took part in the ambassadors’ meeting at the HSO in Germany.
Myself and two other ChallengeEU Ambassadors from UWM had the opportunity to participate in 1st Student Ambassadors Meeting that was held at Hochschule Offenburg, Germany from December 4-5, 2025. We embarked on our journey on December 3rd, from Warsaw to Frankfurt after which we took a train to Offenburg. We made our to our accommodation where were warmly greeted and welcomed by Zina Qabbani – Communications Officer WP6. She then took us to dinner at Brassiere Engel where we met with all the ambassadors. It was such a special evening filled with many introductions, laughter and many pictures/videos.
Over the next 2 days, we had roughly 6-8 sessions which covered a formal introduction to ChallengeEU, a content creation and social media training, sharing of cultural experiences, intercultural communication and inclusive language workshop, creating content and lastly reflection exercises. Through these sessions, I learnt different skills in photography, way to create and post engaging content, what language is and is not inclusive among a myriad of things. These sessions were not only interactive but very insightful as we were able to explore and discuss various topics, concerns and ultimately create solutions which would aid in us ultimately achieving our goals as ChallengeEU ambassadors.
Going to Offenburg and meeting the other ambassadors was definitely amazing as it open a new world for me. I love experiencing new cultures and getting the opportunity to network and connect with them was not only exciting but insightful as we shared how we were all honouring our responsibilities as ambassadors differently and this allowed us to learn from each other as well.
Two of the most memorable moments from the trip were:
- The group activity – Cultural Icebreaker with Emotion Cards with Ilona Maier. The way we were all able to connect through different shared emotions as individuals with different cultural backgrounds and interest was beautiful and highlighted how much we all fit in terms of being ambassadors.
- Reflection & wrap-up with Zina and Lynn. This gave us the opportunity to share what was most insightful, inspiring and aided in creating bonds between us as Ambassadors and as friends.
Overall, the trip to Offenburg not only gave me intercultural connections but equipped myself and the other ambassadors with skills that will be extremely beneficial in us achieving our aim to “Challenge the Now. In Unity.”
Georden Shaw, ChallenegeEU student ambassadors
