Naturalist Selemonas Paltanavičius Received the President Valdas Adamkus Prize for Long-Standing Educational Work

In a ceremony at the Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) Botanical Garden on 5 June, World Environment Day, the Environmental Prize of Valdas Adamkus Presidential Library-Museum and Dana Gedvila Fund was awarded to naturalist Selemonas Paltanavičius.

“As I research nature, as I defend it, protect it, and tell everyone about it, I've always pursued one goal: we must learn to live in such a way that neither we nor nature feel wronged; that we understand one another and are able to live in harmony”, Paltanavičius stated.

Set an example for future generations

The naturalist was awarded the prize for his educational work and long-standing efforts to nurture responsible and nature-loving individuals. During the ceremony, the laureate was awarded 5,000 euros and a sculpture by Kęstutis Dovydaitis.

President Valdas Adamkus, who attended the event, emphasised that caring for nature has no end, because its protection has always been and will always remain a part of human and Lithuanian culture. 

“Selemonas Paltanavičius not only takes care of the environment but also encourages the youth to do the same. Protection of nature is every young person’s commitment to the future. I am certain that our work has helped youths not only discover what is nature, forests, and rivers, but also to look at the world, and Lithuania as well, with new eyes. I sincerely congratulate the winner for his work, merits, and contributions to our culture and environmental protection. May these traditions continue to be preserved in Lithuania. May our citizens, young and old, appreciate and protect our wealth that we call nature of Lithuania”, Valdas Adamkus said.

In his congratulatory speech at the ceremony, VMU Rector Prof. Juozas Augutis noted that environmental protection is an exceptional field and the work done in that field have a great impact on the future of all humanity.

“We often like to highlight the beauty of our country’s nature to our guests from abroad. However, we had to put in a lot of effort into making it that way. Unfortunately, for a long time, because of their curiosity or desire for a better life, people failed to understand that we must preserve nature. It is gratifying that, thanks to our active citizens, we are repaying our debt to nature by striving to take care of it as much as possible. Today, I’d like to congratulate Selemonas Paltanavičius, whose care for nature is expressed not just through his environmental work. Most crucially, by his example, he instils love of nature in future generations of Lithuania”, VMU Rector said.

Other participants of the ceremony, who also congratulated the winner, included Member of the European Parliament Virginijus Sinkevičius and Minister of Environment Povilas Poderskis.

Creating prosperity consists of small things

Thanking the ceremony’s attendees, Selemonas Paltanavičius remembered the start of Lithuania’s independence when he and his colleagues had to create the country’s legislative framework of environmental protection from the ground up.

“We were creating it, arguing, making mistakes – after all, everything was a first. It was hard work, but also nice. We saw a lot of potential in it and knew that we were doing it for ourselves, for Lithuania, for nature. I remember that my colleagues were surprised how, while doing bureaucratic work, I also had time to write books for children. I replied that, after returning from work, I simply “switched over” [to it], because I found it important to tell children about nature and its preservation in a way that they understand. And I write for children because children grow up to be adults. That is our best investment”, Paltanavičius explained.

The naturalist also stressed that he cannot imagine his life without nature. “It’s important to work in a field you find enjoyable, and for that work to invigorate you from the inside. Now, after over 40 years of public service, I’d like to devote my spare time to working with youths and continuing to write books. I’m sure that there’s no need to move mountains. Each of us can create prosperity by contributing at least a little bit”, emphasised Paltanavičius, the laureate of this year’s Environmental Prize of Valdas Adamkus Presidential Library-Museum and Dana Gedvila Fund.

Selemonas Paltanavičius is a naturalist, writer, photographer, environmentalist, radio host, and VMU teacher. He has written over 100 hundred books, prepared more than 5,000 publications, and worked on a thousand radio shows and over 200 TV shows. He was awarded the Medal of the Order For Merits to Lithuania (2015), the Children’s Literature Prize of the Ministry of Education and Science (2016), and the Pranas Mašiotas Prize (2020). Two of his books have been selected as the best children’s books of the year. Paltanavičius has also been recognised for long-standing work in the Ministry of Environment of the Republic of Lithuania and the Žuvintas Reserve and for the projects he has implemented.

12 nominations were received

The winner of the prize was selected by a committee made up of professionals from different fields: Prof. Birutė Galdikas (distinguished Lithuanian Canadian anthropologist and ecologist, VMU Honorary Doctor), Dr. Nerijus Jurkonis (Director of VMU Botanical Garden and teacher at VMU Department of Environmental Sciences), Dr. Visvaldas Varžinskas (Director of KUT Centre for Packaging Innovations and Research), Donatas Puslys (journalist and Head of Media and Democracy Programme at Vilnius Institute for Policy Analysis), Virginijus Sinkevičius (Member of the European Parliament), and Arūnas Antanaitis (Head of the Valdas Adamkus Presidential Library-Museum).

According to the prize’s founders, in order to preserve the environment, it is vital to not just deal with the consequences such as waste, pollution, and deforestation but also to take a long-term view, educate a responsible society and encourage care for nature from an early age. The lifelong mission and work of Selemonas Paltanavičius are exactly what helps nurture an individual who is responsible and appreciative of nature as a value.

“From a very young age, children who discover nature’s secrets and greatness from over a hundred of Selemonas’ written and published books will transform into people who will no longer need explanations or lessons about how nature needs to be preserved. For this reason, it is difficult to measure the direct impact of Selemonas’ environmental activities today. However, it is evident that early education is the key to encouraging a different perspective and behaviour towards our environment in the future. This is a change in causes, which will determine that, in the future, we won’t need to fight the same consequences of environmental destruction that are fought by today’s society”, the prize’s founders said.

This year, the founders of the Prize and the Committee received 12 nominations. In total, 10 individuals were nominated. The nominations covered all four categories of the prize: scientific achievements, environmental innovations in business, public activity, and environmental policies and governance. While assessing the nominees, the committee paid special attention to the nominated individual’s or organization’s impact on driving change: how widely it resonated with the public, the level of public engagement, and whether the activity has ongoing continuity.

The prize was awarded for the fifth time

The prize’s founder Gabrielius Gedvila, who lives in the USA, a long-time friend of Valdas Adamkus and head of his election headquarters when Adamkus ran for the Board of Trustees of the Sanitary District of Chicago in 1968, is convinced that environmental protection was, is, and will remain a global issue requiring special focus; therefore, in order to give meaning and attention to environmental achievements in Lithuania as well as to honour the memory of his late wife, he set up a 100,000 dollar fund, which will be allocated for the President Valdas Adamkus – his friend, a well-known environmentalist and the President of Lithuania – Prize. Dana Gedvila Fund is managed by the Lithuanian Foundation in the U.S.

The Prize of the Presidential Library and Dana Gedvila Fund has been awarded since 2021 for laudable and noteworthy achievements and efforts to protect and restore the natural environment in Lithuania and its neighbouring countries, and to ensure the sustainability of resources. In the coming years, the Prize will continue to welcome submissions of environmental initiatives in research, civic activity, business, and politics.

In 2021, Mindaugas Survila, the director of the documentary film Sengirė, became the first winner of the renewed President Valdas Adamkus Prize. In 2022, the second winner of the Prize was Giedrius Bučas – the founder of the social initiative “Creative Corner 360°” (Kūrybos kampas 360), change leader, social activist, social entrepreneur, and initiator of the sustainable hike around the country “For a Clean Lithuania!” (Už švarią Lietuvą!) in 2020. In 2023, the winner of the Prize was the scientist Prof. Tatjana Paulauskienė. Last year’s laureate was Algirdas Reipas for his merits and contribution to the development and modernisation of the waste management system in Lithuania.