Rugpjūčio 15 – 17 d., 2014, Šiaurės Amerikos ateitininkai suruošė konferencija Vašingtone vardu “Profesionalų kelias.” Kanados Lietuvių Jaunimo Sąjungos pirmininkė Vida Naudžiūnaitė dalyvavo konferencijoj, ir pristato skaitytojams savo įspūdžius. Skaitykite toliau.
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“Professional Paths” – A Conference Hosted by the North American Lithuanian Youth Association “Ateitis”
From a report by Vida Naudziunas
The conference took place August 15-17 in Washington, DC, organized by the Lithuanian Catholic “Ateitis” Association and was chaired by Torontonian Stasys Kuliavas.
The theme of the first day of the conference was “Leadership,” led by Gytis Mikulionis. The goal of this seminar was to share information about leadership techniques and styles, as well as advice and experience.
The first speaker that day was father Ed Putrimas from Toronto, Canada. He spoke about human trafficking in South America, and the many Lithuanians who are still prisoners today in Lima, Peru, accused of attempting to smuggle drugs from South America into Lithuania or other countries. Rima Gungor of Chicago spoke to the group about her documentary film – “Game Changer: Lithuania’s Non-Violent Revolution” – a film supporting her Bachelor’s thesis which claims that countries should not engage in violence while seeking freedom and independence.
Next, Marius Vismantas of Washington, DC, shared his experience as Senior Finance Secretary Specialist at the World Bank.
The evening program of the first day’s session took place at the Republic of Lithuania’s Embassy headquarters in Washington. Participants had a chance to meet with ambassador Zygimantas Pavilionis, and enjoyed pianist Edvinas Minkstimas’ performance.
The next day began with a profound seminar on choices, decisions, and their consequences, by Juozas Polikaitis (Chicago).
Andrius Anuzis, a school principal from Detroit, gave a speech about education in Detroit, and included some shocking facts about the state of the education system there.
The conference continued with a seminar by Tomas Jonaitis of Toronto, a toxicologist, who spoke about risks from various substances in our daily lives, and how we can effectively deal with them, the key being information and healthy choices.
Indre Biskys (New York) followed with a talk on intent and how it guides us in our actions. Indre, who has 20 years of experience in international development, worked with the Peace Corps in Lithuania for three years. She spoke about how she came into this field and how fixating on her goals helped her achieve them.
Taddes Korris (Edmonton) is a bass soloist. In his speech “Music as a Way of Life: Lesson, Low Notes, and Invention,” Taddes spoke about the influence of classical music in everyday life, and how it affects the human soul, without us consciously noticing.
Lithuanian ambassador Zygimantas Pavilionis spoke to the group in a seminar entitled “Is it time for valuable Lithuanian youth to return to Lithuania?” He began by mentioning the 25 year anniversary of the Baltic Path, and posed the important question, “Will we rise to the challenge again, with the Russian threat looming once more?”
Many other participants spoke that day, including Mons. Rolandas Makrickas (Washington) about his religious mission and the history of the Vatican; Tadas Kasputis (Omaha) about nanotechnology; Simona Minns (Boston) about the importance of having a mission or vision to strive for in achieving life goals; Audrius Kirvelaitis (Washington) about the importance of independence to the survival and longevity of a nation; Lina Talvaisas (San Francisco) about the non-for-profit Global Lithuanian Leaders program which connects international specialists with economic opportunities; Dr. Edis Razma (Durango) spoke about the importance of sleep; Marius Markevicius (Los Angeles) film director of the famous movie “The Other Dream Team” spoke about his future film endeavours and encouraged participants to continue spreading news and information about Lithuania.
The conference received many positive reviews in the Lithuanian press, and was the first in what will hopefully be a series of meetings that will draw young professionals from the Lithuanian community. The full report by Vida Naudziunas, president of the Canadian Lithuanian Youth Association, was published in Lithuanian in “Teviskes ziburiai” on September 16, 2014.
