Honorary Consulate of Republic of Lithuania in Tanzania

Weekly News from Lithuania, October 2

POLITICS

Lithuania allocated humanitarian aid to help Palestinians in need

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania allocated EUR 17, 000 in humanitarian aid to Palestine, in order to help reduce the disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The funds will be transferred to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

A joint declaration of intent on cooperation in the development of offshore wind in the Baltic Sea was signed today in Szczecin, Poland. The declaration was signed by the European Commission and eight countries: Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Germany.

On 1st October 2020, Lithuania took the floor at the 45th session of the Human Rights Council (HRC) in interactive dialogue with the Dėputy High Commissioner for Human Rights on the human rights situation in Ukraine.

Romain Gary, a two-time winner of the Prix Goncourt who was born in Vilnius, was remembered today as President Gitanas Nausėda and First Lady Diana Nausėdienė welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron and his spouse Brigitte Macron on an official visit to Lithuania and exchanged official gifts.

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President of France Emmanuel Macron visited NATO enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup in Lithuania and French soldiers, currently residing in Rukla | @LRMOD

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BUSINESS & SCIENCE

Sun, water and ice: Lithuania tests floating solar power

In a renewable energy experiment combining sun, water and ice, a Lithuanian power firm aims to install floating solar panels on a lake at a hydroelectric plant this year as part of a small but booming global market for “floatovoltaics”.

Solar panels mounted on pontoons, on lakes or at sea have been fitted in recent years in places ranging from a California vineyard to polluted industrial ponds at disused coal mines in China.

Med-Tech business is one of the prioritized and high-potential sectors in Kaunas. The potential for the development and growth of this sector is created not only by Kaunas University of Technology (KTU) and the University of Lithuanian Health Sciences (LSMU) but also by the synergy of medical innovation companies already operating here, business and science partnerships, and talented specialists living in Kaunas. One of them is the Vaizduotė UAB, which has united developers of innovative technologies, currently working on promising technologies not only in the field of medicine but also in the field of defense.

The airport of Kaunas, the second biggest in Lithuania, intends to build a solar power plant.

Lietuvos Oro Uostai (Lithuanian Airports), the operator of Lithuania’s three airports, had launched market consultations on the construction of such a facility within the territory of the airport in order to reduce spending on electricity bills and to contribute to the promotion of green energy, the airport said.

Imagine yourself walking city streets and immediately knowing what lies behind the walls of an old town building. As you move around, a voice in your head tells you a secret history fact, directs you to a scenic route or gives an insider tip on what to try in a local restaurant that you are passing by right this moment. According to the co-founders of the startup Near, Donatas Vainilaitis and Karolina Rapalytė-Masilionė, that is exactly how we will be travelling after this global pandemic.

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Lithuanian - French Business Forum | @Enterprise Lithuania

CULTURE & HISTORY

Beba’s Story Tells of Jewish Life Before the Nazis

An exhibition based on the recently found autobiography of Beba Epstein, a fifth grader in Europe in the 1930s, has been posted online by the YIVO Institute.

Three years ago, a large cache of artifacts, including poems, letters and notebooks by some of the greatest Yiddish writers of the first half of the 20th century, was discovered in the basement of a church in Vilnius, Lithuania. In scouring through them and other artifacts that had been rescued from Nazi efforts to destroy all traces of Jewish culture, researchers discovered a more humble document: the writing of a fifth-grade girl telling of her daily life in Vilnius in the 1930s.

The Vytautas the Great War Museum – virtual tour

The Vytautas the Great War Museum is one of the oldest museums in Lithuania.

After the Act of Lithuania’s independence was declared on February 16, 1918 and the establishment of the Lithuanian Armed Forces started by the Order from November 23, the Command of the Armed Forces decided to establish a Military Museum in Kaunas, the provisional capital, understanding the importance of military history and the commemoration of the merits of each officer and soldier to their homeland. However, the ongoing fights for independence stopped the process of the Museum establishment, which continued only after the struggles had ended.

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NY Baltic Film Festival is going virtual & all across the U.S., October thru November.
See the world through Baltic eyes | @NY Baltic Film Festival

October 2-4

Contemporary Art Fair Vilnius

International contemporary art fair ARTVILNIUS is the only contemporary art fair in Lithuania and the largest art fair in the Eastern Europe region

Find out more

October 9-10

Social Tech Hackathon “Experience Laboratory”

SOCIAL TECH hackathon “Experience Laboratory” will be looking for solutions to reduce racial, age, appearance, gender discrimination, domestic violence, and other social problems.

Find out more

Highlight of the Week

French President Emmanuel Macron commemorates victims of totalitarian regime during his visit to Lithuania

Vilnius
Photo credits @ URM

Oct 02 2020

POLITICS

Linkevičius: We reaffirm our support for multilateralism, as we mark the 75th anniversary of the United Nations

On 21 September, a high-level event ‘The Future We Want, the UN We Need: Reaffirming our Collective Commitment to Multilateralism’ in New York at the opening of the 75th session of the United Nations General Assembly marked the 75th anniversary of the establishment of the UN. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this event took place primarily in a virtual format, with pre-recorded statements by heads of state and government.

"One year ago, nobody could have imagined that this anniversary would be marked by a global challenge unseen since the very foundation of this Organization. But here we are, unable to meet face to face, and yet ready to make our contributions to solving the most pressing global issues..."

Minister of Energy Žygimantas Vaičiūnas delivered a national statement at the 64th Annual Regular Session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference. The minister noted that countries developing a nuclear energy programme must adhere to the principles of transparency and accountability.

On 24 September, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius held a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands Stef Blok. The meeting focused on bilateral relations, the situation in Belarus and Ukraine, the relationship with Russia, the security situation in the region, and topical items on the EU’s agenda.

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BUSINESS & SCIENCE

Lithuania to contribute €2.5m in EU's search for Covid-19 vaccine

The Lithuanian government has agreed to contribute 2.5 million euros to the EU's Emergency Support Instrument (ESI) to accelerate the creation of a Covid-19 vaccine.

ESI funds are used to support potential vaccine producers, and finance part of development as well as production capacity costs.

Director General of the elite European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) Prof Edith Heard signed an agreement with Vilnius University (VU) on the establishment of a Partnership Institute in the Life Sciences Centre (LSC) of VU. This is an extraordinary achievement in the history of Lithuanian science.

September 24 marked the start of the joint scientific conference “Adjustments in and to an Uncertain World”, organised by the Bank of Lithuania, the National Bank of Poland, CEPR and CEBRA. In addition to experts from Lithuania and Poland, presentations were given and discussions moderated by researchers from the central banks of England and Canada, the Federal Reserve Banks, as well as the best European and US universities.

Continental Automotive Lithuania announced today that its plant in Kaunas has been awarded LEED Gold. This is the highest rated LEED Gold manufacturing building in Lithuania so far and the first Continental plant in the world to be LEED Gold certified.

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Dogo - Lithuanian-born app for dog training - announced its launch for Japanese market

CULTURE & HISTORY

'Tokens of rare humanity': Kaunas conference honours families who saved Jews

A conference in Kaunas, dedicated to the Japanese diplomat Chiune Sugihara, paid tribute to Lithuanian families who saved Jews during World War Two.

Four families and eight individuals were given awards that were presented to their grandchildren.

Lithuanian silk designer Grete Svegzdaite was recognized at the New York Fashion Week. Lithuanian “GRETES SHOP” brand was selected among 70 young designers from all over the world to show their collections in this year’s New York Fashion Week.

The game Bad News, at first launched in Lithuania, is now being introduced in Latvia and Estonia, and becoming even more relevant and interesting to the public, because of the increasing amount of unconfirmed news that are circulating in the media space. The topics are usually very sensitive – vaccinations, coronavirus, news about Belarus, etc. It is sometimes difficult for the young, not to mention the elderly, not to get lost in the flow of information.

Lithuania has revealed its dancing stork mascot, nicknamed Ivartito, as the country gears up to host the FIFA Futsal World Cup championship in 2021.

Ivartito, which can be loosely translated as Goalito, danced around in the three host cities – Vilnius, Klaipėda, and Kaunas.

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September 25

TECHNORAMA Innovation Fair

The innovation fair Technorama 2020 opens a unique platform of innovative technologies in the virtual space. Visitors will have a chance to take a close look at the innovation on display (even take them into hands!), get acquainted with the activities of innovative companies in Lithuania

Find out more

October 16-18

Hack4Vilnius 2020

Hack4Vilnius - Vilnius city hackathon, happening for the third year in a row with a goal to find bet solutions for Vilnius to become a healthier, cleaner, more mobile and more innovative city.

Find out more