On 19.4.24, the time had finally come: I was able to pass on my newly acquired knowledge from my training as a democracy mentor to the participant representatives and offer a two-day training course.

Strengthened with coffee and cookies (thanks to Ms. Lange and her HW team), we started with a get-to-know-you bingo. Yes, of course the participants already knew each other more or less, but they didn't yet know whether any of them spoke three languages, had ever lived abroad for four weeks or had more than three siblings. This led to some interesting conversations.

The next task had to be completed by the whole group. Are there (discussion) rules during a TNV meeting? Does someone moderate or take minutes? Who checks the results? How are conflicts dealt with?

I was an observer during this task and was amazed at how respectfully the participants treated each other. Every suggestion was listened to and all the rules of discussion were adhered to. The TNV achieved good results for itself. In this group, everyone is really allowed to be who they are!

Of course, we also looked at the principles of democracy, which is more important than ever in these times.

After enough chocolate (the lecturer probably wanted to play it safe and provided plenty of sweets) and coffee, we practiced how best to deal with "regulars' table slogans" and show attitude. It was not for the faint-hearted!

The topic of "attitude" is very important to the current TNV. This quickly became clear to me when they talked about their motives for getting involved on behalf of other participants and being an important link in mediating between participants and employees.

The best way to show attitude is to have your own solid moral values. Of course, these are different for many people. That is why we have learned strategies for putting up with other opinions and adopting different perspectives. And to resolve the resulting conflicts appropriately.

Where many people come together, rules can sometimes be broken. At this point, it was important for me to sensitize the TNV to first form hypotheses before judging someone's behaviour. Here too, the TNV were very open and solution-oriented.

At the end of the second training day, everyone looked at their own role models. What defines me? Which roles do I fulfill and which ones was I allowed to choose myself? Are there roles that empower me? This led to interesting discussions and self-reflection.

Finally, we checked whether everyone in Germany - regardless of gender, origin, sexuality or wealth - has the same opportunities. All the participants were surprised by the result and thoughtful.

Now it was time for the last round of coffee and the weekend was just around the corner. The TNV reported back to me that they had a lot of fun at the training and would like to see it repeated.

I would like to thank the TNV for the two inspiring and interesting days. You are a great group and I'm sure you will implement a few more projects during your term of office and provide advice and support for other participants.