Lithuanians in the News
7th September 2008
Australian Lithuanian Dr. Algimantas Taškūnas Honoured with a Major Award from Lithuania
Dr. Algimantas Taškūnas OAM
The Lithuanian Ministry of Education and Science has announced five major prizes to Lithuanians abroad in science and arts. Dr. Algimantas Taškūnas OAM, an academic from Hobart, Tasmania, has been awarded one of the prizes for disseminating Lithuania’s achievements and fostering academic links between Lithuania and other countries.
Dr. Taškūnas was with the University of Tasmania for 25 years, first as an administrator and then as an academic. At the university he founded the Lithuanian Studies Society (LSS) in 1987, with the aim of encouraging an academic interest in all aspects of Lithuania. LSS publishes books on Lithuania and a highly respected annual journal "Lithuanian Papers", circulated round the world. For many years he was the editor of the magazine "Baltic News", which campaigned very effectively for the restoration of Lithuania`s independence. In 2005 he published the book ”Lithuanian Studies in Australia”, which in addition to Lithuanian studies, contains a wealth of other information on Lithuania and its people. In 1991 he was awarded the OAM for services to the university and the Baltic Community.
The other four Ministry of Education and Science prizes went to philosopher Prof. Kęstutis Skrupskelis (USA), engineering academic Dr. Romualdas Kašuba (USA), historian Dr. Bronius Makauskas (Poland) and physicist Dr. Saulius Juodkazis (Japan). The prizes are each worth 13,000Lt and are meant to encourage Lithuanian scientists and intellectuals to promote Lithuanian achievements abroad and maintain closer links with Lithuania’s scientific and intellectual community.

Further information: www.lmm.lt 28/08/08   www.delfi.lt 29/08/08
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