My first memories of Bogdan are from his video and from the third round, when for the first time I was able to connect the faces with voices from the recordings I was previously grading. Now, once accepted at UWC SEA, Bogdan still leaves the same impression on me – he has views on a wide range of topics and is ready to continuously develop them. When we spoke on zoom, there was a storm in Skopje. The contrast between what was happening outside and how Bogdan expressed himself was very evident to me – outside it was loud and chaotic, and he was calm and collected, focused on speaking with me. The conversations were not meaningless, we immediately got down to business and discussed important topics.

If you ask Bogdan what is most important to him in terms of personal progress, he would tell you that he always tries to be open to new experiences and conversations, and self-expression is very important to him. Usually when I think of self-expression, I think of personal style and creativity, but for him it means more than that. Self-expression, according to Bogdan, includes activism, attending events, actively listening to people and topics that are important to you, and choosing to expose yourself to certain types of art. I really like this approach to the definition, because, as Bogdan says, it doesn't limit people and things, but leaves room for freer, more personal expression. For him, this includes places and events where he can express his opinions on topics and issues that are important to him, but also where he can learn from others and enjoy the people around him – protests and demonstrations, theater performances, as well as simply socializing with different groups.

Bogdan says that he is always in the mood for debates and discussions. "I always criticize myself and everything around me - I expect perfection or something close to it," said Bogdan. It annoys him a lot when activist movements are associated with stereotypes about the people who stand for that movement, because in this way it creates an unrealistic image that everyone associated with that movement should look and act alike. As he says, such things result in stigmatizing movements or lead people to give up on activism. Apart from larger movements, Bogdan also thinks critically about local and personal problems – he easily points out things that his peers face at school and how they can be improved. However, his criticisms are not expressed in vain, but he always tries to find alternative solutions to the problems he identifies.

On a slightly lighter topic, Bogdan shared his favorite place to hang out – the roof of GTC, but in the evening when it's quieter and darker. At that time, the view towards Vodno and the surroundings looks its best, when lights around the city are lit up and make you, as he says, "feel some type of way". I thought again of the contrast I mentioned at the beginning of this text. Bogdan, in the most positive way, has a storm inside of him – he always thinks about something, debates, strives for perfection – which leads to his stability and maturity on the outside, because he has already carefully considered everything he will share out loud.

Jana Kraleva,
August 2024