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Slovenian
Presidential
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AFI - EU
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2nd
at the iGEM
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NEWSLETTER
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, VOLUME 8, NUMBER 43
FRU FRU
Theatre
at the
Euro Kids
Festival
The Millennium Stage
in the Kennedy Center hosted
Slovenian FRU FRU Puppet
Theatre as part of a month
long Euro Kids Festival. Taking
place in various locations
around Washington, DC, area,
including venues in Maryland
and Virginia, the fifth annual
Kids Euro Festival is one of the
country’s largest performing
arts festivals for children, with
more than 200 free events in
the area.
The month long event,
Embassy of Slovenia
2410 California Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20008,
USA
T: +1 202 386 66 01
E: vwa@gov.si
washington.embassy.si
FRU FRU on stage at the Kennedy Center Millennium Stage.
geared to kids ages two through
twelve, features artists in almost
every performing genre, whose
talents range from bubble-blowing
to a virtual orchestra to storytelling
to acrobats. Kids Euro Festival was
staged through cooperation of the
27 Washington-based European
Union embassies and 30 major local
cultural institutions.
Slovenia was represented by
Irena Rajh Kunaver, Marjan Kunaver
and Jur Kunaver of the FRU-FRU
twitter.com/SLOembassyUSA
facebook.com/SLOembassyUSA
Puppet Theatre that started in 1984
as a typical suitcase theatre and
became a professional family theater
in 1993. Their shows are trying to
combine famous children’s stories
with suitable puppet images. Their
combination of acting, puppetry and
live music unveils the magic world of
objects which come to life. Child-like,
simple objects magically become
puppets and thus part of the world
reality.
The theater presented a puppet
Young audience at the Greenbelt Branch Library.
show Videk’s New Shirt, premiered
in October 2012 and adapted after
an old Slovenian story by writer Fran
Levstik. Listening to the story about
friendship, kindness and how to live
in harmony with nature and animals,
children also found out about the
Videk and bush.
processes of weaving, making a
fabric, tailoring, and sewing.
More than 1000 people
altogether have seen the show
that was showcased in La Maison
Française, Artisphere arts center,
Georgetown Neighborhood Library,
Potomac Lighthouse Public School,
Greenbelt Branch, and Kennedy
Center Millennium Stage.
The
Slovenian
show
performed at the Kennedy Center
counclused the Kids Euro Festival
2012 on Wednesday, November 14.
ANNOUNCEMENT
Slovenian Presidential Elections
Slovenia
held
its
presidential elections on Sunday,
November 11. Former Prime
Minister Borut Pahor came in
first with 39.98 percent of votes
cast, followed by the incumbent
president Dr. Danilo Türk with
35.86 percent, and center-right
candidate Dr. Milan Zver with
24.16 percent.
Voter turnout, at less
than 48 percent was recordlow as none of the candidates
won the majority of the votes,
a runoff between the top two
candidates will be held on
Sunday, December 2.
Borut Pahor, supported by
the Social Democrats, expressed
surprise at the size of support in
the first round and stated that
he will aim to continue to be a
candidate that is not limited to
one side of the political spectrum,
while current president - and
independent candidate - Dr.
Danilo Türk, expressed concern
about the low voter turnout.
Dr. Milan Zver, candidate
of
two
coalition
parties,
Slovenian Democratic Party and
Nova Slovenija, thanked his
supporters and stated that he
has not yet decided which of
the remaining two candidates
he would endorse in the second
round.
Second
round
of
elections, on December 2,
will also be held at the Embassy
of the Republic of Slovenia in
Washington and at the Consulate
General of the Republic of
Slovenia in Cleveland. Voting at
the Embassy of the Republic of
Slovenia in Washington, located
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 2
at 2410 California Street, NW,
Washington, DC, 20008, will be
possible between 9:00 a.m.
and 5:00 p.m. local time.
Slovenian citizens with
registered residence (»stalno
prebivališče«) in the United
States can vote in person at the
above listed representations,
or by mail. Voting procedure at
the embassy is the same as in
Slovenia - voter identification
with a personal ID, signature
of the voter, voting by written
ballot. If voting by mail,
instructions and voting material
have been sent to the voter’s
permanent residence address.
More
information
is
available on the website of the
National Electoral Commission
www.dvk.gov.si.
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
Diplomats to Schools
Within the European Union
Educational Outreach Program
that provides classroom visits
by senior European diplomats
and experts to American high
schools Ms. Ondina Blokar
Drobič, Deputy Chief of Mission
at the Slovenian Embassy in
Washington, D.C. addressed
the 12th grade students of the
Archbishop Carroll High School
on Thursday, November 15,
2012.
The
object
of
the
Diplomats to Schools outreach
program is to deepen student
and teacher understanding
of the European Union by
presentations
that
include
information about the European
Union’s history, current events,
12th grade students of the Archbishop Carroll High School.
and culture, moreover the
information of the respective
countries of the EU member
states. This year’s program has
been structured around the
significance of the fall of the
Berlin Wall and subsequent EU
enlargements which brought
Central and Eastern European
countries into the EU family, as
well as the dynamics of the EUUS Transatlantic Relationship.
PUBLIC DIPLOMACY
Ambassador Kirn Lectures at AU
Ambassador
Roman
Kirn, upon invitation by William
E. Lucas, U.S. diplomat and
adjunct instructor at the School
of International Service at
the American University in
Washington, DC, on Wednesday,
November 14, 2012, addressed
the students of the European
Foreign and Security Policies
course at the University.
Ambassador Kirn’s lectured
about Slovenia and Euro-Atlantic
integration processes.
A
guest
speaker,
Ambassador Kirn discussed
Europe’s transition, including its
historical context with emphasis
on the post-Cold War era, as
well as the role of E.U. and NATO
enlargements. Ambassador Kirn
Ambassador Kirn addressing the AU students.
emphasized Slovenia’s positive
experience in the E.U. as the
integration enables diverse yet
constructive and democratic
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 3
dialogue among all member
countries
while
preserving
cultural and linguistic identity of
each of them.
CULTURE
Bread and Circuses at the AFI – EU Film Festival
As part of the AFI
(American Film Institute) - EU
Film Showcase Festival, on
view from November 9 through
20, 2012, in AFI Silver Spring
Theatre and Cultural Center in
Maryland, Slovenian film Bread
and Circuses (Kruha in Iger),
directed by Klemen Dvornik,
was screened on Saturday,
November 10 and Tuesday,
November 13.
The story Bread and
Circuses is a comedy with a
scent of nostalgia about socialist
Yugoslavia’s last breaths, looking
forward into brighter future days
as, in 1987 Communist Slovenia,
the Novak family wins a spot
on the popular quiz show and
a trip to the big city. But their
experience of appearing on the
program turns out to be much
different than their perception
of the show as seen on their
television set at home. Still, the
power of the medium makes a
mighty impression on teenage
son Simon (Jurij Drevenšek), a
valuable lesson for the changes
to come to Slovenian society
in the 1990s. The film received
Introductory remarks by François Rivasseau, Deputy Head of the EU
Delegation to the U.S. at the opening night of the AFI - EU Festival in
Sliver Spring.
the Audience Award at the 2011
Slovene Film Festival.
The AFI European Union
Film Showcase is traditionally an
autumn signature cultural event
for Washington, DC, moviegoers
and the area’s diplomatic
community.
The
festival’s
opening night on November
9 featured the U.K. produced
film Quartet, directed by Dustin
Hoffman.
A scene from the Slovenian film Bread and Circuses presented at the festival.
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 4
The AFI European Union
Film Showcase, now in its 25th
year, has featured more than 40
films drawn from 24 countries
of the European Union. The
selected movies have included
multiple
award
winners,
international festival favorites,
local box-office hits, debut
works by promising new talents
and even many countries’ official
Oscar submissions for the Best
Foreign Language Film.
The full schedule of films
and additional information are
available at http://www.afi.com/
silver/.
The AFI European Union
Film Showcase is supported in
part by the embassy cultural
counselors of the E.U. member
states and the European Union
Delegation to the United States
in Washington, as well as the
Ambassador of the European
Union Delegation to the U.S.
CULTURE
Zdravko Zupančič Presents His Book Marks under
the Skin in NYC
A writer in spirit, a poet at
heart, and a lecturer at a school
of rhetoric he co-founded in
Ljubljana, Zdravko Zupančič has
devoted most of his professional
life to teaching the art of speaking.
Despite his busy work schedule,
he finds time for side projects
that are personally dear to him,
and Marks Under the Skin/ Stories
from a Children’s Home: Diary of
a Teacher of Blind and Visually
Impaired Children, a collection of
stories based on his experience
as a young teacher nearly three
decades ago, is one of them.
The presentation of the
book translated into English by Karin
Žontar was held at Bluestockings
bookstore on Manhattan’s Lower
East Side on November 4, 2012,
where Zupančič read a few stories,
answered questions and signed
book copies.
A heartwarming book good
to pick up when things aren’t
going that well, Marks Under the
Skin, which was also made into an
audio book read by Erica Johnson
Zdravko Zupančič presenting his new book at the Bliestockings bookstore in NYC.
Debeljak with music by Lado
Jakša, is a unique collection of
poetic and often humorous stories
that capture the complexity in the
lives of bright young children living
in perpetual darkness. Now a
father of five himself Mr. Zupančič
felt a special connection to the
children he taught in the mid 80s.
The lasting impact they have had
on him is reflected in his writing:
“Little Petrina was the first
to leave a mark under my skin. I
didn’t even realize the children got
under my skin until later, after the
long hot summer holidays during
which I hardly thought of them
at all. That afternoon the children
had not yet returned, and the
entire children’s home—the dining
hall, the gym, each room and all
the hidden corners—smelled of
Petrina. Every child leaves his mark
under your skin and it remains
there forever. You can swim in the
sea all you want and it won’t wash
off. Even if you travel all the way
to America, the marks will travel
with you.”
EVENTS
Slovenia Presented at the National Defense University
National
Defense
University at Ft. McNair offers
1-year fellowships to select
senior officers from more than
60 countries, all invited by the
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff. The fellowships provide
an opportunity to study in the
Eisenhower School, the National
War College, or the College of
International Security Affairs. The
program conducts extensive travel
within the United States to military,
cultural, and industrial locations.
International fellows of the
2013 class presented Appreciation
Luncheon for their American
fellow-officers and NDU staff
on October 8, 2012. The event
was attended by more than 300
guests, as Slovenian officer colonel
Peter Zakrajšek together with his
spouse Sandra Anderlič, presented
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 5
traditional Slovenian cuisine.
Moreover, on November 8,
2012 National Defense University
in Washington D.C. organized so
called Spice event (The Spouses
International Culture Exchange)
for the spouses of the participant
international
officers
when
Ms. Sandra Anderlič presented
Slovenia, its culture, traditional
food and wine.
Ms. anderlič presented Slovenia within The Spouses International Culture Exchange program at the NDU.
Food and wine tasting.
EDUCATION
Slovenia Presented at the Education Abroad Fair in
San Diego, CA
On October 23, 2012, the
international student center at
San Diego State University hosted
an Education Abroad Fair. Every
year, around 2000 international
students from more than 100
countries participate in the SDSU
programs; however, only a limited
number were given their own
stands and a chance to represent
their country and to invite
American students to consider
studying abroad.
This fall semester, Slovenia
was represented by Barbara
Dmitrovič, a senior exchange student
from the Faculty of Tourism Studies,
Portorož - Turistica; and an English
language professor, Živa Čeh, also
from the Faculty of Tourism Studies,
Portorož. With the help of the
Slovenian Embassy in Washington,
they were able to promote the
beauties and opportunities of
Slovenia to the people who know
very little about the country.
Slovenian booth at the Education Abroad Fair.
Ms. Dmitrovič and Ms. Čeh
presented Slovenia to the visitors
of the fair and handed out lots
of promotional material. There
were quite a few people who
expressed interest in visiting the
country, especially Ljubljana, Bled,
Portorož, and Postojna. They
were amazed by how green the
country is and how many diverse
regions Slovenia has – from the
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 6
Alps to the Adriatic Sea. Next
semester, the Faculty of Tourism
Studies, Portorož - Turistica, will
receive its first exchange student
from SDSU; there were also
students interested in studying
at the University of Primorska.
There is hope that, in the future,
firm cooperation between the two
universities can be established.
(Barbara Dmitrovič)
TOURISM
Mirna Valley (Mirnska dolina)
The Mirna valley is located
southeast of Ljubljana, as part of
the Dolenjska region, and covers
roughly 115 square miles of land.
Despite its small size it is extremely
diverse due to its position in the
meeting point of three European
regions – the Alpine, Dinaric and
Pannonian world. Its advantages
are in its rock composition,
relief, hydrographic and climatic
characteristics, in the types of
soil, vegetation and animals found
there, and also its economic and
cultural aspects.
The central part of the area
is occupied by the basin of the
Mirna valley which experiences
some flooding of the River Mirna
and its effluents. While there used
to be a floodplain forest of oak
and hornbeam, today the wet
basin is mostly used for pasture.
People moved their villages to the
raised terraces, which are more
suitable for living as they do not
get flooded.
Among
the
villages,
Gothic church of St. John the Baptist.
Mirna castle with a pond.
scattered along the sunny peaks,
ridges and terraces, there are
many picturesque wine roads
(famous for the Cviček wine)
and footpaths. Following these
paths, one can see churches at
vantage points, many ethnological
objects, old houses, farmhouses,
granaries, hay-racks, hay barns,
cottages and other exciting sights.
Until the middle of the
19th century, the inhabitants of
Mirna Valley made their living by
farming. Then, a spinning mill and
a tannery appeared in the Mirna
settlement. The central bridge over
the Mirna River, was built in the
18th century as a wooden bridge
on the order of Maria Theresa
of Austria, and later rebuilt in
limestone blocks with excellently
executed chamber arches and a
unique feeling for the architectural
integrity of the town.
Since 1908, a railway has
connected Mirna with the towns
of Trebnje and Sevnica, with
a station in the southern part
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 7
of the settlement. Due to the
development of infrastructure, the
existence of trades, the start of
industry, and a clear vision, Mirna
surpassed nearby Šentrupert and
Mokronog as the centre of the
Mirna Valley.
One of the touristic sites to
visit in the valley is Mirna Castle –
also known as a Sleeping Beauty;
right outside the Mirna village,
near the western border of the
settlement. The 12th-century
castle was destroyed in 1942 and
has been restored since 1962 by
Dr. Marko Marin. It is situated
on a relief pier, at the extreme
edge of the Upper Hill (Gorenjska
Gora). The other site - Mirna Pond
(ribnik Mirna) was once used
as a swimming pool by the local
people, but nowadays it is mostly
occupied by fishermen, and is to
be found under the castle. It was
created at the end of the 1960s by
damming of the Vejar.
The Gothic parish church
in Mirna is dedicated to Saint John
the Baptist and contains 15thcentury and 16th-century frescos.
Another historic site - the Zapuže
Manor in the southeastern part
of Mirna was built by Erhard von
Pelzhofer in 1578. The manor
was a refuge of Lutherans in the
17th century.
Another very interesting
facility is the Ocvirk hayrack
(Ocvirkov kozolec) at the southern
entrance to Mirna. The hayrack
was first erected in the second
half of the 19th century, however,
it was significantly renovated after
1923.
An old postcard of Mirna from the first half of the 20th century.
CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE
Centre of Excellence for Low-Carbon Technologies
Centre of Excellence for
Low-Carbon Technologies (CoE
LCT) is a consortium of 5 research
and 10 industrial partners focused
on two emerging low carbon
technologies:
hydrogen
and
lithium. It covers a broad range
of activities from fundamental
research to development of real
device and systems as well as
demonstration activities.
The Centre covers the
whole scope from basic to
applied research, development
of prototypes and modules
and systems, and combines
complementary knowledge from
practically all areas vital for the
development of lithium and
hydrogen technologies on the
basis of the primary solar energy.
The goals of the Centre
of Excellence are to unite leading
researchers and producers of
new technologies that will replace
the current fossil fuel based
technologies in the medium or
long term; furthermore to carry
out facilitated and harmonized
A hydrogen bus in Bled.
research and the development of
new technologies.
It is more than reasonable
to rapidly pursue the development
of alternatives today. In the future,
lithium and hydrogen technologies
will cover a large range of energy
consumers such as hybrid and
electrically driven cars, and the
energy supply of buildings. In the
transitional period, hydropower,
biomass and other energy sources
will be used for the same purposes.
CoE LCT is looking for
partners in both industry and
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 8
academia who are interested
in joining new projects (purely
technical but also disseminational,
demonstrational,
educational)
on solar, hydrogen and battery
topics. The topics can extend from
basic research to development
of new materials, components,
devices and even larger systems
(our consortium offers a variety
of expertise of 15 academic and
industrial partners).
For more information, please visit
http://www.conot.si/eng/.
SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Slovenia 2nd at the iGEM 2012 World Championship
The Slovenian team was
first runner up at iGEM World
Championship
International
Genetically Engineered Machines
(iGEM) Competition. Held at
Massachusetts
Institute
of
Technology (MIT) in Cambridge,
MA, from November 2 to 5, 2012,
iGEM Slovenia team reached the
finals and the second absolute
position among 190 iGEM 2012
teams, thus affirming itself as
one of the best teams in the
world. The Slovenian team was
also awarded the best Health
and Medicine prize, the best
Model prize and the prize for the
best Wiki page.
The
Slovenian
team
was led by Professor Roman
Jerala and consisted of the
following
members:
Urban
Bezeljak (Biochemistry), Anja
Golob (Biotechnology), Miha
Jerala
(Medicine),
Lucija
Kadunc
(Biotechnology),
Zala Lužnik (Medicine), Fedja
Pavlovec (Medicine), Boštjan
Pirš (Medicine), Maja Somrak
(Computer Science), Martin
Stražar (Computer Science),
Dušan
Vučko
(Computer
Science) and Uroš Zupančič
(Biotechnology).
The
iGEM
World
Championship
is
an
undergraduate
biotechnology
“Olympics” and the pre-eminent
international event for synthetic
biology. iGEM challenges teams
of students from universities
around the world to design and
implement a synthetic biology
project over the summer and
present their results in juried
competition in the fall.
Slovenian Team at MIT.
The
teams
first
presented their work in Regional
Jamborees.
The
Slovenian
team was chosen as one of the
three finalists among 54 teams
from the entire Europe at the
European iGEM 2012 Jamboree.
Overall, a total of 71 teams
qualified to participate in the
World Championship.
The challenge of the
Slovenian team addressed the
problem of biological drugs
such as hormones, enzymes,
cytokines or antibodies which
are increasingly being used to
treat different diseases. Due to
systemic administration, these
drugs often have adverse effects.
Additionally, the high cost of
biopharmaceuticals
imposes
a heavy burden on health
systems. The Slovenian team’s
goal was to use the principles of
synthetic biology to develop an
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 9
advanced and safe method of
in situ production of biological
drugs to increase the quality
of patients’ lives. This system
should increase compliance
with therapy, decrease the
number of required invasive
drug administrations and enable
advanced multistage therapy,
while local administration could
reduce side effects.
More about Team Slovenia
http://2012.igem.org/
at:
Team:Slovenia/Team
TO DO LIST
Vlado Kreslin in the U.S.
Vlado Kreslin is one of the most influential Slovenian musicians, whose distinctive style combines
elements of folk, pop and rock music, American blues and even gypsy music. He began as a singer
in rock groups (Martin Krpan), gradually breaking through to the foreground also as the author of
numerous unforgettable songs. He shared stage with R.E.M., Bob Dylan and many more.
When & Where: Tuesday, November 20, 2012, at 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Embassy of Slovenia,
2410 California Street, NW, Washington, DC-- an evening of music and poetry, featuring the new
English translation of his collection Instead of Whom does the Flower Bloom
When & Where: Wednesday, November 21, 2012, at 6:00 p.m at the Millenium Stage at John F.
Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington, DC.
When & Where: Friday, November 23, 2012, at Cafe Marlene, 41-11 49th Street, Sunnyside, NY.
Presentation of the book Instead of Whom does the Flower Bloom and concert
When & Where: Tuesday, November 27 at the SNPJ, Pittsburgh, PA
When & Where: Wednesday, November 28 at 7:00 p.m., St. Mary’s, Cleveland, OH
When & Where: Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH
More information: www.kreslin.com
Martinovo in Seattle, WA
Slovene Society Slovenska miza invites you to the traditional celebration of St. Martin’s Day. This
celebration was made possible in part with the generous support of the Republic of Slovenia’
Office for Slovenians abroad.
When: Sunday, November 18, 2012 from 2:30 pm to 6:30 pm
Where: Anderson Park, Adair House (the biggest log cabin in the park) in downtown Redmond.
More information: slovenska.miza@gmail.com
Polka Hall off Fa
Polk
Fame 25th Anni
Anniversary and
d th
the Aw
Awards
ds Sho
Show
Join the silver celebration! The American Slovenian Polka Foundation marks the 25th anniversary
of its National Cleveland-Style Polka Hall of Fame and Museum with a three-day Thanksgiving
weekend polka festival.
When: November 22, 23 and 24, 2012
Where: Different venues: Marriott Hotel on Public Square in Cleveland, OH, and Euclid Auditorium,
711 East 222nd Street.
More information: www.polkafame.com and polkashop@aol.com
Beyond by Michael Benson
A spectacular photography exhibition of images from space.
When: Monday through Friday 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
Where: Embassy of Slovenia, 2410 California Street, NW, Washington, DC 20008
More information about the work of Michael Benson on: http://www.kinetikonpictures.com/
SlovenSki Program fo
for 2013
Schedule:
February: 1-3, 2013, SlovenSki weekend Windham, NY
February 15-23, 2013, SlovenSki trip to 3 Vallees, France
March 18-24, 2013, Nastar Nationals Aspen/Snowmass (qualified racers)
April 1-7, 2013, SlovenSki week in Sun Valley, ID
More information and application form: John F Kamin, 61-32 75th Place, Middle Village, NY 11379,
phone: (718) 424-2711, email: Jfkamin@verizon.net
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Editor: Nuška Zakrajšek
NOVEMBER 16, 2012, PAGE 10