“Light to those who truly bring light into our lives” is the motto of this year’s Athenian Christmas tree lighting ceremony which took place amidst the lockdown and without the usual crowds due to Covid-19 restrictions.

The Municipality of Athens choose a different way to share the lighting of the tree in Syntagma Square with everyone this year. A short film tells an Athenian Christmas story about the real heroes of the municipality, coming to light what most of us haven’t had the opportunity to see this year - Syntagma Square all bright and beautiful!

 

The protagonist is Dionysis Nikolaou, an electrician engineer and the oldest employee of the municipality. A born and bred Athenian, just like his grandfather was, he lives in the neighborhood of Sepolia with his wife and son. After he completed his education, he began working in the electricity department of the municipality and learned the secrets of every corner of the city. Over the years he’s learned not to throw away anything that is made; he’s worked in just about all positions - on the road for repairs, in the warehouse for recording and receiving orders, making sure that nothing is missing when needed. Today he chooses to work mainly at night, so that his younger colleagues can have the ease of working the morning shift.

 

The one thing that he hasn’t ever changed is the lighting of the city at Christmas time, which culminates with the lighting of the tree in Syntagma. This little film captures the route of bringing this light so that we can all share in the special moment of lighting up the streets of Athens!

 

The Mayor of Athens, Costas Bakogiannis, emphasized this message on the occasion of the lighting of the Christmas tree by saying, "This year, the Municipality of Athens addresses the great thanks it owes to its people…The invisible heroes, who tirelessly remain on the front line, not only at Christmas but every day, in order to break the darkness of this unprecedented time for the inhabitants of this city. This year the lights are on those who really give light to our lives. Merry Christmas!”

The Municipality of Athens and UNICEF have joined forces to transform Athens into a city where every child would love to live!

A Memorandum of Cooperation between the Municipality of Athens and UNICEF has been signed which states that the Greek capital is officially participating in the Child-Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI); this is a UNICEF-led initiative that supports municipal governments in realizing the rights of children at the local level.

Athens is participating for the first time in this global program, which aims to put children's needs at the forefront, adjusting its services, facilities, programs, and public spaces to serve this purpose. With the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as their guiding principles, the Municipality of Athens and the newly-established UNICEF office in Greece will work together to ensure the well-being of children and young people living in Greece's capital. 

Through joint awareness initiatives and meticulously planned actions, this program aims to: 

• Reduce child poverty through targeted interventions. 
• Promote access and enhance educational opportunities. 
• Prevent violence against children, including children who are victims of domestic or community violence.
• Promote education through continuous skills development. 
• Promote youth employment.
• Promote the participation of children and young people in decision-making processes.
• Encourage healthy eating habits.
• Promote gender equality. 
• Enhance environmental awareness.

The Child-Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI) was launched in 1996. It includes a network of 47 countries that brings together government and other stakeholders such as civil society organizations, the private sector, academia, media, and, importantly, children themselves who wish to make their cities and communities more child-friendly.

The candidacy of the Municipality of Athens marks the beginning of the program in the country with five more municipalities being added to it in the coming months.

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Citizens can now be issued a special pass for the free movement in downtown Athens of environmentally friendly vehicles, according to the criteria set by the Transport and Infrastructure Ministry.

The usual restrictions on vehicles entering the city center took effect on Monday, October 25, 2021.

The restrictions are enforced every year and are designed to reduce traffic congestion in the downtown area.

According to the Daktylios system, vehicles with license plates ending in even numbers can only enter the downtown area on even days of the month, while those ending in odd numbers can only do so on odd days.

Vehicles excluded from the measures are electric, hybrid, gas, or LPG cars, as well as Euro 6 cars that emit pollutants below 120 gr CO2 and drivers with special permits.

The process of obtaining a special pass has been simplified.

Interested parties can access the service by logging on to daktylios.gov.gr, entering their Taxisnet codes and then submitting an application for the issuance of the special pass, after stating the registration number of the vehicle and their tax number (AFM).

The data of the vehicle are extracted from the registers of the Transport Ministry through the Interoperability Center of the Digital Government Ministry’s General Secretariat of Information Systems.

Originally published on: ekathimerini.com

December is always special in Athens. As Christmas approaches the city is decorated with beautiful Xmas lights and tons of fun things to do! 

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The established annual appointment of book lovers, the Zappeion Book Festival, turns 50 this year and will celebrate its established journey with a record attendance of publishing houses. The festival will open its gates on September 2 and will run through September 18, with thousands of book titles for every taste and age and dozens of presentations, discussions with authors, and parallel events.

On the occasion of the centenary of the Asia Minor Catastrophe, this year’s festival will host a variety of events related to the Asia Minor Catastrophe as an identity element in today’s Greece with the participation of renowned speakers and cultural institutions. At the same time, reading the signs of the times, the festival will also pay tribute to Diversity and Racism in its various aspects. Given that 2022 has been declared as Literary Year of Iakovos Kambanellis by the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the festival will organize a tribute to the great academic, playwright, and lyricist for his contribution to the Hellenic nation both as an artist and as a man.

The Zappeion Book Festival is an organization of the Association of Book Publishers (S.EK.B) and the Ministry of Development and Investments, in cooperation with the Organization of Culture, Sports & Youth of the Municipality of Athens (OPANDA), the National Historical Museum, the National Theatre of Greece, the Greek Art Theatre Karolos Koun and the Athens Culture Net. It is held under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture & Sports, the Municipality of Athens, the Hellenic Foundation for Culture, and the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry, with the support of TikTok and the Greek Collecting Society for Literary Works (OSDEL).

Originally published on: greeknewsagenda.com

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