Bibliotekėles atidarymas Raseiniuose - Little Free Library opens in Raseiniai

Šiandien mūsų kultūros atašė Sarah Talalay rašo apie kelionę į Raseinius.

Siekdamas pasidalinti su kitais savo meile knygoms ir bendruomeniškumo jausmu, Raseinių liberalus jaunimas neseniai džiaugsmingai atidengė pirmąją miesto Bibliotekėlę arba Mažąją nemokamą biblioteką („Little Free Library“) Dominikonų gatvėje esančiame parke. Idėja „Pasiimk vieną knygą ir palik kitą“ atsirado Viskonsino valstijoje JAV 2009 m., kai Todd Bol savo kieme pastatė ant kojelės miniatiūrinį nameliuką – mokyklėlę ir užpildė jį knygomis. Taip gimė socialinė iniciatyva. 

Šiandien pasaulyje yra daugiau nei 32000 Bibliotekėlių, ir keletas jų jau veikia Lietuvoje.

Prieš atidarydami Bibliotekėlę savo mieste, Raseinių liberalaus jaunimo atstovai pakvietė JAV ambasadą sudalyvauti atidarymo šventėje. Prašymas buvo perduotas man, kultūros atašė, ir man ši idėja pasirodė įdomi. Bibliotekėlei padovanojau dvi knygas – žymaus JAV virtuvės šefo Art Smith receptų knygą ir rašytojos – iliustratorės  Mairos Kalman knygą „Thomas Jefferson: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Everything" – tinkamą pasirinkimą šia proga, nes Prezidentas Jeffersonas itin mėgo knygas. Dienai baigiantis spėjau aplankyti ir anksčiau šiais metais Kaune atidarytą Bibliotekėlę, įkvėpusią Raseinių gyventojus.

Jūsų dėmesiui abiejų Bibliotekėlių nuotraukos. 


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Today, our cultural attache Sarah Talalay writes about a trip to Raseiniai.

Seeking to share a love of books and a sense of community, the Raseiniai Liberalus Jaunimas (Raseiniai Liberal Youth) recently unveiled with fanfare, the town's first "Bibliotekele" or "Little Free Library" in a park off Domininku gatve. The "take a book, leave a book" concept was launched in Wisconsin in 2009 when Todd Bol built a model of a one-room school house, filled it with books and put in on a post in his front yard. A social enterprise was born.

Now, there are more than 32,000 Little Free Libraries across the globe, including several in Lithuania.

Before opening their Bibliotekele, the Raseiniai Liberal Youth sent an email to the Embassy asking if someone would attend the opening. It seemed like a good idea for the Cultural Attache. I donated two books - a cookbook by US celebrity chef Art Smith and writer-illustrator Maira Kalman's book, "Thomas Jefferson: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Everything," which seemed appropriate since President Jefferson loved books. Before the day was over, I took advantage of an opportunity to see the inspiration for Raseiniai's Bibliotekele - one that opened earlier this year in Kaunas.

Check out photos of both.

Raseiniuose - in Raseiniai

Kaune - in Kaunas

Culinary Culture Tour with Michael Laiskonis

Clay Moore here, the current American intern with the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy Vilnius.

Last week I got to experience not one different culture, but two!  Lithuanian-American pastry Chef +Michael Laiskonis was here on a media tour and it was my responsibility to escort him around the nation and take lots and lots of pictures.  As a man ashamed to admit that I can’t cook very well, I was thoroughly impressed by the skill and talent that Michael showcased for his relatives (he still has family in Lithuania) and other residents of his ancestral land.

Michael Laiskonis (left), His Uncle (right)

Michael was joined by his uncle who lives in Kaunas, an eccentric but delightful older gentleman.  The only language that Michael had in common with his uncle was French, as his uncle did not speak any English.  Even further, the only language I had  in common with the uncle was Russian!  I am so happy to use my Russian here, even more so if its use is related to work.  As I enjoyed kibinai and beer on the shore of Lake Trakai, I listened to Michael’s uncle tell me about the history of the partisans who hid in the hills around the lake and fought foreign invaders.  (They are referred to as “Forest Brothers”, look forward to a post on their history soon).

Michael visited Kaunas Kollegia (College) where he gave a presentation about his own path to success to up-and-coming culinary students.  They reacted with interest, asking many questions and more or less hanging onto Michael's every word.  After his presentation to over 300 people, he met students and sampled their creations in a meeting with faculty and staff.

Michael inspects the spread

Following Kaunas, we went to a Sodziaus Meistrai, a small school in the village, Rudiskes.  The students watched with excitement while Michael was crafting culinary delights and teaching them techniques that many had not heard of in their lives yet.

It was a long day full of traveling around beautiful Lithuania.  The weather was a snowy, wet mix, however the countryside looked great!  I am so happy that I have work-related opportunities like this to travel and see not only Vilnius, but the entire country!

Reflections of American Culture at Janina Monkute-Marks Museum: The Creative-Educational Children Camp

In early June, a two-week Creative-Educational Children’s Camp for the pupils of Kedainiai Foster Home “Saulute” took place at Janina Monkute-Marks Museum. During this time, children and youth had the unique opportunity to try out a variety of artistic techniques. Their works were then exhibited at the museum until 30 June, and are now on display at Kedainiai Foster Home “Saulute,” where they will remain until 30 November.

The project “Reflections of American Culture at Janina Monkute-Marks Museum:  The Creative-Educational Children’s Camp” was primarily designed to introduce students from Kedainiai Foster Home “Saulute” to American culture and its manifestations in the works of Lithuanian diaspora artists while also providing them with a rewarding pastime. It further aimed to develop cultural consciousness and initiative, and create conditions for self-expression and realization. To achieve these objectives, three art branches—pop art, graphics and stained glass – were taught.

Over the course of the two weeks, the students painted on water, carved linoleum, created graphic works, made collages, and produced stained glass works and mosaics. The children then visited Kaunas, where they toured the M.Zilinskas Art Gallery, the Kaunas Ceramics Museum, T.Ivanauskas Museum of Zoology, as well as a graphics gallery of well-known Kaunas artist Egidijus Rudinskas, who himself introduced youngsters to his own artwork and etching technology. Afterwards, participants flew kites near Kaunas Castle!

Special thanks to the director’s assistant—Jovita Buineviciene of Kedainiai Art School and her four volunteers—all alumnae of the Kedainiai district municipality project “Future Museum Open for Youth,” who assisted children with the day-to-day camp activities. The success of the project is due, in large part, to their contribution.

Having experienced its debut at Janina Monkute-Marks Museum on 15 June with an accompanying concert, the gallery, which features selected works by the students, has since been moved to Kedainia Foster Home “Saulute” and will continue to be exhibited there until 30 November. Two Kedainia region televisions made reportages and almost all Foster Home children took part in the opening!

If I’m lucky, I’ll go back to Lithuania someday. Until then, iki!

Even after nearly a month home from Lithuania, I still think about it every day. My experience interning at the US Embassy was incomparable and I really value the opportunity I had to learn about diplomacy as well as the culture, government and history of the region.

My 12-week experience in Lithuania really flew by. I stayed busy and had the opportunity to do a myriad  things, from representing the Embassy at cultural programs and outreach visits around the country, to leading discussions at movie nights, and even dancing around Vilnius for Violence against Women awareness.  I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to travel to several towns and cities, including Kaunas, Kėdainiai, Tytuvėnai, Panevėžys, Šiauliai, Rokiškis, Trakai, and Marijampolė. 

I saw inconceivably beautiful cathedrals, frozen lakes and rivers, astonishing forests, and fascinating museums and cultural sights. I learned about an array of things, including the path to the restoration of independence in 1990, the Jewish history, the thriving art scene that exists in Lithuania, and so much more. This internship marked my third trip to Lithuania, but I continue to learn about and love Lithuania more and more with each stay.

My favorite part of my experience in Lithuania by far was the people. There is truly something special about those who I had the opportunity to meet in Lithuania, whether it was local staff and local interns at the Embassy, the attendees of the movie nights and other events, or the numerous students and teachers that I met during outreach visits. There was a human spirit and feeling of hospitality that is unlike anywhere else. Some of my best memories are times spent with local staff at the Embassy, like spinning eggs on the floor around Easter time and even just drinking coffee and hearing their stories. 

I was provided insight about the history, language and culture that would be impossible to learn from a class or museum, and my colleagues at the Embassy really became some of my best friends by the end of it. These relationships are invaluable and they made my internship experience and time in Lithuania all the more enriching.

This was a great opportunity to expand and grow, personally, academically and professionally. What I gained while I was there was more than I could have ever imagined or wished for and I hope that all future Embassy interns and visitors to Lithuania will have a similar great experience!

If I’m lucky, I’ll go back to Lithuania someday. Until then, iki! J

// Sara

TEDx Vilnius - Hungry for Action

Have you heard of TED? Chances are that the answer is "John... of course." With conferences happening all over the world, at every time of the year, and a website that hosts over one thousand free speeches by famous or up-and-coming intellectual champions, there is no denying that the TED brand has gone global. If you haven't heard of it before, then you need to get it together; and if you have no idea why I am talking about TED... well I haven't told you yet. The short answer is that I finally attended a TEDx conference, right here in Vilnius, and it was a great experience.

The fantastic organizers - note how everybody is so young (source: flickr)

In 2006, TED conference speeches known as "TED talks" became available online for free. Giving the public free access to quality content usually has a positive effect, and in this case the move took a California-based tech conference for CEOs and turned it into a phenomenon discussed in classrooms and around dinnertables around the globe. Young people especially are attracted to the conferences, which I believe has a lot to do with the enthusiasm and optimism that TED speakers evoke when they discuss the present and future. Maybe it's the positive energy that attracts an audience, or maybe it's the ability to watch light particles move at one-trillion frames per second. You decide.

It is incredibly easy for a student to learn from these "talks". I can regularly sit down on my couch, turn on my Xbox 360, open Netflix and find an interesting topic to learn about. One talk takes maybe 15 minutes of your time and there are over a thousand to choose from! (There is a Seinfeld episode for every social situation, a Mythbusters episode for every good story, and now a "TED talk" for every intelligent discussion) So take yourself back twenty years and listen to this prediction: "Couch + television + gaming console will be the perfect medium for students to watch lectures on business, science, culture, and ethics. Young adults and teenagers, of their own volition, will watch these lectures, talk about them, and be inspired." Even today you probably don't believe it, but it is completely true.

Segueing into this recent event I attended, independent TED events have been popping up everywhere. The people who run TED realized that other people were getting really excited about the concept. They created the TEDx brand, setting up guidelines for anyone to independently host a proper conference. People in nearly every major country (with notable exceptions) are hosting events now, and lots of them. You can see for yourself on this map of upcoming conferences from the TEDx website, where the red X indicates a sold-out event.

There is currently one green circle on the city of Kaunas, Lithuania. Another TEDx event has been planned for November 17. This one was planned by youths and focuses on the positive impact young people have in Lithuania. Seats are still available, but probably not for long.

So the TEDx event in Vilnius took place on October 6th. While TED's slogan is "ideas worth spreading", TEDxVilnius took that in a different direction. The organizers wanted to move beyond ideas and focus on results, and so the event's catchphrase became "Hungry for Action". Speakers were asked to bring their subject into the context of a growing intellectual and entrepreneurial spirit in Lithuania. It is a country in the infancy of its modern independence with one of the most highly educated young populations in the world. People are indeed hungry for action here, and the speakers did their best to deliver.

From Saturday morning until late evening, many people spoke on a wide variety of social, cultural, and scientific topics (women in science, the effect of foreign media in Lithuania, a perspective on the 2008 economic crisis). There were artists, musicians, businessmen and scientists who all had something meaningful to share. Being a junky for speeches on science and tech, here were a couple of my favorites, who formed an impromptu one-two punch on the future of the technology industry:

Andrew Hessel (source: singularityhub.com)

• Self-proclaimed "genomic futurist" Andrew Hessel took the conference into the future in his discussion of biotechnology and genetic engineering. Hessel is an American microbiologist and geneticist who has dedicated his life to the advancement of genomics. At TEDxVilnius, he described the blurring line between men and machines, as scientists begin treating DNA like a programming language. By controlling DNA, scientists are able to radically change life and even custom-build new lifeforms in the interest of modern medicine. Hessel also described the ongoing and breathtaking advancements being made in computer "intelligence". As computer capabilities increase exponentially, computers will be able to help scientists achieve new breakthroughs across the board.

Paulias Briedis (source: vz.lt)

• While Hessel's speech was incredibly cool, it took a Lithuanian to bring the technology sector back home. Paulius Briedis made a huge impression when he challenged Lithuanians to compare their technology industry to Japan's. A young guy himself, Briedis recently went hitchhiking through Japan for three years. Along the way, he made the observation that the research being done on robotics was happening in university laboratories. Lithuania's own university system is fairly advanced, and its student workforce highly motivated, leading Briedis to conclude there was no good reason for Lithuania to be left out of the tech sector while the Japanese flourish. Briedis focused in on AI and robotics as sectors that Lithuania could master, if only given the chance. He is not just talking about it, but rather he is living it: this last spring he co-founded a robotics start-up company that builds 3D printers and scanners, and writes curricula for inventive teachers and students. Briedis also has plans to open a school where robotic programming and engineering are a major part of the curriculum.

Speeches like Hessel's and Briedis' made TEDxVilnius worth the early Saturday morning. They were one part inspiration, one part rallying call. If enough Lithuanians believe in people like Briedis, then 20 years from now we could be looking at a booming robotic/technology sector in the Baltic region. You could feel this raw potential energy hanging around the auditorium that Saturday; on that note, what may be the most invigorating part of living in Lithuania is the inspiring freshness of people's ideas. Everything is new, few concepts have been tried before. You stand at a reception like the ones between speeches at TEDxVilnius, and you can see the Lithuanians who have fire in their eyes - who are ready to take ownership of their country and their ideas and do something great. It was pretty cool.