The Annual Meeting of UNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors was held at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris on 20 April 2017, with all eyes on the transitional phase people across the globe are currently going through. Distinguished figures from around the world attended the meeting, including the Greek Goodwill Ambassador, Ms Marianna V. Vardinoyannis.

The Director-General of UNESCO, Ms Irina Bokova, started the proceedings with a short speech, thanking the Ambassadors for their passion and enthusiasm when serving UNESCO’s values and programmes, spreading its messages to the four corners of the world. She added that she was touched,

With the participation of Heads of State, Prime Ministers, Ministers, leading figures and experts in global politics and Civil Society, the proceedings of the 5th Global Baku Forum, entitled “The Future of International Relations: Power and Interests,” opened its proceedings on Thursday, 16 March 2017.

The Forum was hosted by the “Nizami Ganjavi International Center,” under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, for the purpose of exploring and assessing the new global state of affairs and new threats being faced by humanity, and elaborating positions and actions for facing these challenges and enhancing international security and peace.

The events marking the 190th anniversary of the 3rd National Assembly of 1827 culminated splendidly – and in presence of the President of the Republic, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, and His Eminence Metropolitan Ephraim of Hydra, Spetses, Aegina, Ermionida and Troezen – on Sunday, 12 March 2017, in Ermioni. The 3rd National Assembly of 1827 was held at Ermioni and is an important historical event, as it sent the great national message of the unity of all Greeks in their support for the continuation of the Struggle to liberate our homeland, marking the creation of the new Greek state.

Within the framework of the collaboration between the Philanthropic Organization of the Archbishopric of Athens, “Apostoli”, and the “Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation”, on 23 February His Beatitude Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece and UNESCO Good Will Ambassador Mrs. Marianna V. Vardinoyannis visited the “DIMITREIO” Children’s Creative Activity Centre in Moschato, where 60 children, from 6 to 12 years of age, from socially vulnerable families, are fed daily, after school, and take part in educational, interactive and creative programmes.

Archbishop Ieronymos and Mrs. Vardinoyannis received a warm welcome from the Centre’s children, volunteers and staff, who expressed their heartfelt thanks for the visit.

The Vardinoyannis Foundation and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina signed the renewal of their collaboration for the next five years on 7 February 2017, in Athens. The agreement concerns support for the scientific work carried out by the Alexandria Center for Hellenistic Studies and was signed during the meeting between the Director of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Dr. Ismail Serageldin, and UNESCO Good Will Ambassador Marianna V. Vardinoyannis.

Also present at the meeting were the members of the Center’s BoD, professor Christos Zerefos, Dr. Mohamed Award, Dr. Ashrah Farrag, Mr. Haris Tzalas, Center Director Dr.  Mohamed Kenawi, and the Center’s Educational Advisor,

For the second year in a row, the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation organized an event in honour of the students who distinguished themselves in the 2016 Painting Competition sponsored by the Children’s Gallery of Greece, whose theme was “Christmas.”

On 22 January 2017, 49 young artists participated in the event which took place at the NJV ATHENS PLAZA Hotel, all primary school students, along with their parents, many of their teachers, as well as art workshop representatives. They gathered in Athens from various parts of our country, including Thessaloniki, Crete, Euboea, Rhodes, Amphiali, Larissa, Andravida, Paros, Serres, Farsala,

Acknowledging her social work, UNESCO appointed Mrs. Marianna V. Vardinoyannis as Goodwill Ambassador, in a ceremony held at UNESCO Headquarters in Paris, in 1999. Since then, she participates in the Annual Meetings of the Goodwill Ambassadors and in many events and programs organised by UNESCO, contributing to issues of social, humanitarian, educational and cultural value, especially the promotion of peace, the protection of children’s rights, the protection of the world cultural, natural and intangible heritage, education for all and of the dialogue among civilizations. She empowers these actions with activities of her Foundation as well as with her mission as board member in prestigious charitable foundations.