Greens on a study trip

Lena Schilling gets to know Brussels

Lena Schilling, candidate for the EU elections(Bild: Grüne)

The Green top candidate for the EU elections, Lena Schilling, is getting to know the European capital Brussels. On a four-day trip, she will meet Green MEPs, the former ÖVP mandatary and Vice-President of the EU Parliament Othmar Karas, a Ukrainian aid organization and schoolchildren.

The Belgian Marta Barandiy is the founder of the NGO "Promote Ukraine" and organizes international aid for the war-torn country from Brussels. "It was very exciting for me to learn first-hand from Marta Barandiy how we can support Ukraine. As a neutral state, we can also continue to support Ukraine in its fight for freedom, for example with humanitarian aid," says Schilling.

Barandiy and Schilling(Bild: Grüne)

Schilling and Barandiy have one particular thing in common: both started out in politics as activists, Barandiy with her Ukrainian NGO, Schilling in the climate and environmental movement. Now both are running for the EU Parliament - Barandiy for the liberal party "Voor U" in Belgium, which was founded in December 2023.

Core team of 15 volunteers
Since 2014, "Promote Ukraine" has been a hub for coordination and cooperation between volunteers and civil society organizations in support of a democratic and sovereign Ukraine. After the Russian invasion on February 24, 2022, the Coordination Centre was established. The core team of fifteen volunteers manages programs for fundraising, humanitarian aid and refugee support.

The Green travels "exemplary" by train.(Bild: Grüne)

Schilling traveled to Brussels by train and also met Terry Reintke, leader of the Green Group in the European Parliament, Othmar Karas, the first Vice-President of the EU Parliament, and a group from the Young European Greens (FYEG). After her faux pas with Norway, Schilling is now well prepared for questions about the European Union.