THINK GLOBALLY, ACT LOCALLY Members of COMMON EUROPE may participate in activities at country level and at international level. The country level being the base, where people need fast and easy solutions to daily problems, and where communicating it in one's native language might be easier. Only a local, national structure can offer this facility. Moreover, these activities can cater to the national culture and flavour. Depending on the geography and on the economic situation, the activities offered in the various countries vary. Large countries organise conferences of two or more days with exhibitions and parallel sessions, while small countries offer workshops, often on a regional level. All countries have established and cater for special interest groups. At the European level, the official language is English. Once a year, COMMON EUROPE organises an international congress in one of the member countries, and members from all countries are invited. When appropriate, an international delegation is chosen to form the 'European Advisory Council', a forum for a dialogue with IBM on strategic and long term issues. Through COMMON International COMMON EUROPE is part of a forum, which influences the support of members worldwide. Being aware of the fact that the continents are no longer economically self-sufficient, three important usergroup organisations: COMMON EUROPE, COMMON USA and COMMON AUSTRALASIA have combined to pursue common interests. The main goal is to create a higher level of communication and to focus influence on our main partner, IBM.