It was the younger generation, and specifically the students of the Primary Schools of the entire country, which Mrs Marianna V. Vardinoyannis, President of the foundation with her name and President of the Honorary Committee of the “Thermopylae – Salamis 2020” Anniversary Year, chose to launch the activities and events of the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation for the Anniversary of the 2500 years from the Battles of Thermopylae and Salamis.

With this highly symbolic move, the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation launches its activities with the Panhellenic Art Competition for Primary school children, on the subject: “The Battles of Thermopylae and Salamis as the triumph of will and the cornerstone of Western Civilisation”, wanting to send a powerful message that it is primarily the younger generation, both in Greece and in the Greek diaspora, that should become aware and take ownership of the legacy of ideas and celebrations for the 2500-year Anniversary from these two epic moments for our country, for Europe and for the entire world.

The Panhellenic Art Competition of the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation starts on Monday 13 January 2020 and will run until 12 April 2020.

It has been approved by the Ministry of Education and Religious Affairs, and schools in Greece as well as schools of the Greek diaspora will be notified. The main purpose of the competition is to cultivate the national awareness of the students and to encourage them to engage in an intercultural dialogue through artistic creativity. The competition is organised in cooperation with the Children’s Gallery of Greece.

Note that this action will be complemented soon with a Panhellenic Essay Competition for students in the 3rd year of Junior High School, and the 1st and 2nd year of Senior High School, while the school play The Persians by Aeschylus will be staged by Senior High School students, under the auspices of the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation.

The intention of the Marianna V. Vardinoyannis Foundation is to award educational trips involving visits to Museums and Archaeological Sites as the four top prizes for the students taking part in the Essay Competition, and specifically trip to: Paris, London, Rome and Egypt. For the students of the schools of the diaspora, the prize will be a trip to Greece and visits to archaeological sites.

In her announcement of this decision, Mrs Vardinoyannis stated, “Speaking in modern terms about the age-old values which these two epic moments for our country and the entire Western Civilisation symbolise, our aim is to encourage the younger generation to become partakers in our great effort to send a global powerful message of Democracy, peace, dialogue and high ideals.”