On the 4 and 5 of November, Novastan held its annual congress. About 30 committed volunteers assembled to exchange ideas and work on the structure of the Central Asian platform.

In its existence for a good ten years, Novastan has grown to have a complex, international structure. Two organisations – Novastan Germany and Novastan France – and three editorial teams (German, French and English) stand behind the articles on the collective news website Novastan.org. Additionally, the Novastan community regularly hosts activities, such as film screenings, meetups with guest lectures and parties. The platform’s common goal is to bring Central Asia and Europe closer together.

Altogether, dozens of dedicated volunteers form the large Novastan family, spread across numerous cities in multiple countries. While most of the work is organised online, a significant portion of members come together at the “Congress” once a year, a workshop held alternately in Germany and France since 2018.

Improving Novastan together

On the 4 and 5 of November, it was time again: Nearly 30 Novastanis met at iac Berlin to discuss the small and large questions regarding collaboration within Novastan. As in previous years, the conference was made possible through the generous support of the German-French Citizens’ Fund.

Alongside current reports from the individual sections of Novastan, everything revolved around key points like internal communication, knowledge sharing, and the integration of newcomers – questions that every organisation must ask, and which constitute a very special challenge in a voluntary context. A new design of the partnership agreement for the Novastan institutions was drawn up, and the organisational structure was updated.

Last but not least, the meeting dealt with the topics that unite the Novastan family: a passion for Central Asia and the abundant motivation to stand up for a diversified picture of the region and its exchange with Europe!

Your Novastan Team