Athens, 8 April 2024
The 12th Training Seminar of the Educational Program “SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER” was organized by the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation” at the NJV Athens Plaza hotel, in collaboration with the “Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights” on April 8th 2024
The Seminar was held in the memory of the late Marianna V. Vardinoyannis, founding president of the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation”, who had the initiative to implement the Program in Greek schools in order to instill the value of the protection of human rights in the new generation.
Ms. Kerry Kennedy, President of “Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights”, addressed the event and spoke with great emotion about the personality, work and contribution of Marianna V. Vardinoyannis: “In our time there is a lack of solidarity and compassion. We must always remember to be in solidarity with our fellow human beings, as Marianna always did, who had a heart that embraced us all”. Ms. Kennedy made special reference to the great work of Marianna V. Vardinoyannis, who was honored in 2020 by the United Nations Organization with the “Nelson Mandela Award”, and announced the decision of the “Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights” to add a new chapter in the STTP Curriculum dedicated to her.
The “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation”through its representative Ms. Nouli Manolis, thanked Ms. Kennedy for this initiative: “The announcement of the creation of a new chapter dedicated to Marianna Vardinoyannis is a great honor for our Foundation, the Vardinoyannis family, but also for Greece. Many thanks to Kerry Kennedy for this thought. It is a small tribute to this international Greek woman that her work will be taught and analyzed alongside the work of the greatest human rights activists. We wish the example of her life and the hope she always generously offered to illuminate the lives of our teachers and students”.
Mrs. Karen Robinson, Director of the “SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER” Program at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, presented the main directions and proposals for more effective teaching of the Program. She emphasized that the teaching of human rights can to be done through all the lessons and that most of the time the teachers actually teach the children in their own way that we should respect human rights. She made a special reference to Marianna V. Vardinoyannis saying that: “We have a phrase in USA that says “Let your life speak for you”. So let’s let her life and work speak for this great personality and let them be an example for all of us”.
The President of the Institute of Educational Policy, Mr. Spyridon Doukakis, delivered a greeting in the context of the Seminar and spoke about the great importance of teaching the “SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER” Program in Greek schools: “This Program is the best we can have in Greek society, in the Greek reality. We have a motto at the Educational Policy Institute, “Together for Education”. What the late Marianna V. Vardinoyannis advocated: the right of all children to education. Something that is the goal of all of us”.
The Greek NGO “AXION Hellas”, which is a constant ally of the “Marianna V. Vardinayannis Foundation”, was represented at the Seminar, as it is taking care of the spreading of the “SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER” Program in the most remote areas of Greece, especially in the islands. The President of “AXION Hellas” Mrs. Aliki Drakoulis emphasized that: “It is up to us to continue the vision of Marianna V. Vardinoyannis and we will make it happen because we owe it to her, and we owe it to society. On behalf of the Board of Directors of “Axion Hellas”, and the Special Advisor Prince Nikolaos, I would like to thank you for the perfect cooperation all these years. Your contribution to our journey is invaluable!”.
PRESENTATION OF SCHOOL ACTIONS:
In the second part of the Seminar, teachers and students had the opportunity to present the actions they implemented within the framework of the Program.
The following schools presented their actions:
– College of Psychiko, represented by Philologist Mr. Iordanis Papadopoulos, who spoke about the “Methods of Implementation of the SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER Program at the College of Psychiko”
– Arsakeia Schools, represented by the Supervisor of Arsakeia Schools Mrs. Kiki Papapetrou-Mourselas and the Philologist Mrs. Evdokia Giannikopoulou, Director of the 2nd Arsakeia High School of Ekali, who presented the “Review of the Pan-Arsakeia Conference on Human Rights”
– 2nd High School of Volos, represented by Philologist Mrs. Xanthoula Dimaraki who presented the “Comparative research of students on the position of women in two different generations”. Moreover, the 17 students who participated in the research were present.
– 2nd High School of Alexandria Imathia, represented by Philologist Mrs. Eleni Angeli who presented a beautiful song created by the students on the occasion of the Program, entitled “Let’s give hands, let’s be a voice”
– Art High School of Gerakas, represented by teachers Terpsichori-Ersi Giannopoulou, Cleo Bolerakis and Aikaterini Varela who presented the way the students transformed human rights into artistic creation
– Evening EPAL of Preveza, represented by the Director Mrs. Viki Gaki and the teacher Evaggeli Thanasara who presented the actions of the students talking about “Utilization of Art in Adult Education of Secondary Education”. The student of the school Arthur Tsoko, was present at the Seminar. He was the soul of the initiative to paint school rooms with inspiration from well-known works of art and human rights
– 3rd Lyceum of Serres, which was represented by Philologist Mrs. Eleni Lioussa who spoke on the topic “War and Human Rights: from Thucydides to today”
– Alikianou High School of Chania, Crete, which was represented by Principal Georgios Karkanis and Professor Argyro Tzagarakis, who presented the original edition with mandinades (traditional Cretan songs) inspired by human rights, an edition made in collaboration with the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation”.
The Seminar was moderated by the representatives of “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation”, Mrs. Ino Konstantopoulou and Mrs. Georgia Stathopoulou, Co-ordinator of the STTP-Greece.
On behalf of Axion Hellas, in addition to the President Mrs. Aliki Drakoulis, Special Advisor of the organization Prince Nikolaos and Mrs. Neni Doukas were present at the Seminar.
On behalf of the “ELPIDA-Association of Friends of Children with Cancer” Association, Mrs. Eleni Samara-Konstandakatou, member of the Board of Directors, was present.
The event was recorded in order to be watched by all the educators of the STTP network around Greece.
INFORMATION ABOUT THE “SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER-GREECE”:
The SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER Program is a groundbreaking human rights program of the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights taught to millions of students around the world. The Program is based on the book by Kerry Kennedy, daughter of the late Robert F. Kennedy, and is taught in Greek schools at the initiative of the late Marianna V. Vardinoyannis for the eighth consecutive years with a large participation of schools from all over Greece. The program is held under the auspices of H.E. the President of the Hellenic Republic Ms Katerina Sakellaropoulou, and it is approved by the Greek Ministry of Education.
The Program is not an additional subject, but a teaching tool in the hands of teachers that can be used in all subjects and aims to familiarize students from an early age with the concept of human rights so that, as future citizens, they ensure the creation of a better and fairer society. More than 100 public and private schools from all over Greece, as well as schools from the diaspora, participate in the Program in the Academic Year 2023-24.
The next goals of the STTP-Greece:
- To create the English version of the STTP-Greece web information at the www.mvvfoundation.gr
- Apart from the Greek STTP book, to provide the English version of the chapters to the educators of the English speaking schools or school subjects.
- To publish a new Greek book of the program with the special addition of the new chapter dedicated to Marianna V. Vardinoyannis
- To create educational material on human rights friendly to pupils of Primary Schools.
- To organize STTP Seminars and events in different cities and towns of Greece in order to reinforce local communities.
The SPEAK TRUTH TO POWER-Greece Program can be registered for free by any educator through the website of the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation”: