Ex-post control (e.g. Ministries, the highest courts, regional governments, municipal administration authorities). In the past working year, the exchange of information and ideas continued as in previous years and was maintained and expanded. In 2014, encounters with school children and students as well as universities and other institutions of higher learning were increasingly pursued and practiced. The AOB welcomed school classes primarily from Vienna and Lower Austria. The AOB opens these possibilities, which are based to a large degree on its cooperation with the Federal Ministry of Education and Women’s Affairs, to all educational institutions in the country. The AOB also welcomed youth organisations and representatives of administration and cultural associations. In these encounters, an awareness of the law and citizen’s rights and the knowledge of democracy, politics and citizens’ rights, especially in young people, were in the focus. Meeting with members of the AOB and its employees is a real-life complement to teaching content and learning in school. The AOB publication “Young people and their rights” (Edition Ausblick, Vienna 2013) has been and continues to be a helpful guide for young people. Taking into consideration its voluntary commitment in accordance with the targeted outcomes under the Federal Budgetary Framework Act (Bundesfinanzrahmengesetz), in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Education and Women’s Affairs, the AOB has made the fact that more men than women file complaints with the AOB a topic for debate. In this context, hypotheses were discussed and facts interpreted. In a concluding round-table, gender-specific attitudes were identified and further steps in the process considered. 1.3.5 Further activities In preparation for an eight-month cooperation project with the ombudsman institution in Macedonia (EU twinning project), AOB employees were prepared and trained for the linguistic challenges of specialist terminology in an international human rights training programme in a series of seminars. Invitations to the AOB, as an expert organisation, and its members and employees to publish in various specialist media were gladly accepted. To increase the professionalism of its employees, the AOB offered communication workshops (“Training on the Job”) to enable them to be confident, friendly, competent and efficient in their interaction with citizens. A priority was increased competence in telephone conversations. 37