Dr. Marco Berni, coordinator of European and special projects at partner Museo Galileo, presented VAST during his participation in the online workshop A European Collaborative cloud for Cultural Heritage in the frame of the European Research and Innovation Days on 28 & 29 September 2022.

Dr. Berni spoke on 29 September about the need for data aggregation at European level by means of automatic tools connecting heterogeneous data models. He also referred to the need for developing a long-term storage policy and mentioned that Museo Galileo participates, in various European projects dedicated to creating and managing shared data, such as in VAST thus highlighting the project’s scope and tools.

A few words about the event

European Research and Innovation Days, the European Commission’s annual flagship event,  brings together policymakers, researchers, entrepreneurs, and the public to debate and shape the future of research and innovation in Europe and beyond.

For more info regarding the event, visit the link: https://ec.europa.eu/research-and-innovation/en/events/upcoming-events/research-innovation-days.

On the 21^st and 22^nd of September 2022, during the Kastelorizo Puzzle Festival, the VAST Project task force carried out, as announced, educational activities addressed to the island’s high school students.

During the first day at the local school, the VAST team motivated students to participate in brainstorming and discussing sessions and create mind maps regarding moral values.

The second day’s activities brought high school students in contact with values conveyed in Sophocles’ tragedy “Antigone.” Additionally, students participated in a workshop organized by NGO Cinemathesis, where they had the opportunity to film a scene, adopting different roles with the assistance of the actress Fotini Baxevani.

The days after, VAST Team had the opportunity for a constructive discussion with mathematician Pantazis Houlis, the inspirer and generator of the Kastelorizo Puzzle Museum. Mr. Pantazis Houlis talked about his inducement regarding the museum, his background, as well as his view on values and moral culture. Finally, he brought out the very interesting issue of how people feel and act when they cannot manage to solve a puzzle.

Through its participation in the Kastelorizo Puzzle Festival, VAST Project contributes, among others, to the Greek celebration of European Heritage Days that were held between 23-15 September 2022.

More info about the Puzzle Festival and the program: https://kastellorizofestival.com/2022/ken/

TV SPOT

Press release by the Puzzle Festival

The festival is organised by the Union of Ideas, Puzzles and Mathematics EN.I.G.MA

European values make an exciting journey to the frontier Greek island of Kestellorizo in Greece with VAST Project as a vehicle.

During the Festival, on the 22^nd and 23^rd of September, our project’s task force represented by NCSR Demokritos will carry out educational activities addressed to high school students, contributing to the Puzzle Festival objectives to convey knowledge and raise critical thinking in an interactive and enjoyable way.

A few words about the event: A variety of impressive experiments, scientific games and theatrical narratives, cinematic and music labs, stand-up science for children, island tours, treasure hunts, interactive discussions, concerts, guided visits to the puzzle museum, and numerous puzzles will be some of the festival activities. Moreover, there will be a live connection with CERN and a virtual tour of our solar system through the interactive exhibition “Planets In Your Hand”.

More info about the Puzzle Festival and program: https://kastellorizofestival.com/2022/ken/

TV SPOT

Press release by the Puzzle Festival

The festival is organised by the Union of Ideas, Puzzles and Mathematics EN.I.G.MA

CALL FOR PAPERS

INTERNATIONAL THEATRE CONFERENCE

Values of Ancient Greek Theatre Across Space & Time: Cultural Heritage and Memory

6 – 7 November 2021

Online

We live in a time marked by physical distancing, isolation, and quarantines. A time that makes us more aware of the multiple boundaries that surround us: geographical restrictions and borders, boundaries in human relations but also in the Arts.

With the above in mind, the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) will be hosting the International Conference named Values of Ancient Greek Theatre Across Space & Time: Cultural Heritage and Memory. The conference will focus on the lasting and, at the same time, ever changing values of ancient Greek theatre which are also research in the context of the three-year long H2020 European programme VAST (Values Across Space and Time) which kickstarted in December 2020.

The conference aims to create space for the presentation of scientific work in the field of Values. More specifically, organisers are interested to explore how these “old” values concerning Democracy, Human Rights, Freedom, Peace, Rational Thinking, Hegemonic Discourse and Equality, amongst others, travel through time and space, how they are recalled or forgotten, how they are engaged with our variously enclosed existence, by what method they are performed, and how they evolve and/or transfigure in the context of post-modern and post-humanist world boundaries.

Academics, young researchers, postgraduate students, and artists are invited to propose and present topics that fall under the aforementioned areas of interest and thinking. Those interested in participating might consider, but are not limited to, the following themes:

• Ancient Greek world as global cultural heritage
• Ancient Greek theatre: moving across place, space and time
• The problematics and challenges of adaptation: a matter of choice or a necessity?
• Re-reading ancient Greek theatre’s values: about limits and possibilities
• Educational values of ancient drama in the post-postmodern and post-humanist era
• Classical studies and theatre in education: what is new in the old?
• Digital humanities, digital drama/theatre and the study of ancient Greek culture: New paradigms of accessibility
• Cultural consciousness and theatre memory
• Tragic violence: an all time classic
• Ancient drama and contemporary views about gender, race, family, body, sexuality, diversity, nature, ecology
• Ancient drama and popular culture
• Ancient drama vis a vis the contemporary social diversity/alterity/multiplicity
• The classics and the new generation

Important dates

30 May 2021: Submission of abstracts (approx.150 words) and a short CV (approx. 50 words)

30 October 2021: Final paper submission

6 – 7 November 2021: Conference

How to apply

Submission of abstracts (about 150 words) and a short biographical note (of no more than 50 words) should be submitted to the organising committee (see emails below) by 30 May 2021.

Place: Online

Presentation time: 15 minutes (including use of videos, projections, Q&A etc)

Language(s): Greek, English

Participants: University teachers, PhD scholars, PhD Candidates, postgraduate students, researchers, theatre critics, artists

Fee:  Free of charge

NOTE 1: The conference proceedings will be published in the form of an e-book.

NOTE 2: All abstracts and final papers should be sent to the members of the Organising Committee.

NOTE 3: Due to the pandemic restrictions, the conference will be held online.

Organising Committee

• Theodoros Grammatas, Emeritus Professor, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (tgramma@primedu.uoa.gr)
• Savas Patsalidis, Emeritus Professor, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (spats@enl.auth.gr)
• Aikaterini (Kaiti) Diamantakou, Associate Professor, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (diamcat@theatre.uoa.gr)
• Mary Dimaki Zora, Assistant Professor, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (mzora@primedu.uoa.gr)
• Takis Tzamarias, Special Scientific Stuff, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens – director (ptzamar@primedu.uoa.gr)