For the 2009 Athens Fellows, some very special doors were opened on Capitol Hill, by some very special friends of the Next Generation Initiative — including our own Advisory Board member, the senior Senator from Maine, Olympia Snowe.

Whether you read the excerpts below about their visits to Capitol Hill — or follow the Athens Fellows day by day as they blog about their Fellowship in Washington, DC — you will get an idea of the what an honor it is to be an Athens Fellow.

In the Senate with Sen. Olympia Snowe

Sen. Snowe

Located directly off the Floor or main chamber of the U.S. Senate, and the cloaked-in-mystery Senate Cloak Room, the official Senate Reception room with its richly decorated interior is one of the few places you can catch a Senator whose constantly changing schedule demands proximity to the floor of the Senate.  In this case, it was the the perfect place for the…  [read the full story]

In the Office of the Speaker of the House

Tom Manatos

Up the steps of the Capitol, through a discreetly-marked doorway tucked into a corner of the Rotunda, and up a narrow, winding stairway led the Athens Fellows to the dramatic location of their next Master Class — the private balcony of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, with an amazing view of Washington… [read the full story]

With Florida’s Rep. Gus Bilirakis

Rep. Bilirakis

After questioning each Athens Fellow about his or background, and their career interests, Rep. Bilirakis shared his own career path that led him to public service, first as an intern in the Reagan White House and the NRCC, before graduating from the University of Florida… [read the full story]

With Nevada’s Rep. Dina Titus

Rep. Titus

Surprisingly relaxed (for a “freshman” Representative) and engaging, it came as no surprise to the Athens Fellows to learn that Dina Titus had been a college professor (of political science) for 30 years… [read the full story]

With Ohio’s Rep. Zack Space…

Rep. Space

They say that as Ohio goes, so goes the nation — and Ohio’s 18th District maybe even more so. A Democrat elected (and recently re-elected) in a district long considered safe for Republicans, Rep. Space gave the Athens Fellows a glimpse of how he looks at his job of representing his constituents… [read the full story]

Rep. Sarbanes

…and Maryland’s Rep. John Sarbanes

As if on cue, in walked Congressman John Sarbanes, who jumped right into the discussion with Rep. Space, and picked up the theme of public service, and how it often meant crossing party lines and working with colleagues and leaders on both sides of the aisle… [read the full story]

On the steps of the Capitol with Rep. Niki Tsongas

Rep. Tsongas

Standing in the shadow of the Capitol’s dome, the Athens Fellows met on the steps of the Capitol with Rep. Niki Tsongas, Congresswoman from Massachusetts… [read the full story]

Greek Embassy

Before leaving for Athens, the Athens Fellows received a series of in-depth briefings at the Greek and Cypriot embassies, at the U.S. Department of State, and Master Classes with leaders from Washington, DC think-tanks. Click on the excerpts below to get a flavor of their meetings — or follow the Athens Fellows day by day as they blog about their Fellowship in Washington, DC.

On Embassy Row

The Athens Fellows start off their visit to Washington, DC’s Embassy Row with briefings at the Embassy of Greece… [read the full story]

With Ambassador Kakouris: Cyprus’ Man in Washington

Around the corner on Embassy Row at the Embassy of Cyprus, the Athens Fellows were treated to an enlightening hour and a half with the charming, witty and very eloquent Cypriot Ambassador Andreas Kakouris… [read the full story]

At the European Institute: a Washington “think-tank”

The Athens Fellows join the European Institute’s Maria Papathanasiou for lunch and a Master Class on Washington “think-tanks” and how they shape public policy… [read the full story]

The View from the State Department

The Athens Fellows meet at the State Department for a briefing on U.S.-Greece relations by Greece Desk Officer Adam Scarlatelli… [read the full story]

Master Class at the Woodrow Wilson Center

Woodrow Wilson Institute

First stop for the Athens Fellows this morning was a breakfast briefing led by John Sitilides, chairman of the Southeastern Europe Project at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars… [read the full story]

Dinner in Baltimore at Senator Sarbanes' favorite restaurant

With their first day in Washington nearly complete, the Athens Fellows broke into small groups to drive through the shaded blocks of 19th century townhouses that make up the local neighborhoods that stretch across Capitol Hill, to Baltimore, Maryland and a memorable dinner with former Sen. Paul Sarbanes — a founding Advisory Board member of the Next Generation Initiative — in a lovely restaurant owned by the brother of Hamid Karzai, the current president of Afghanistan.  The food was delicious, the discussion was boisterous, and the company was delightful.

A Classical Setting, an Imparting of Wisdom

This amazing dinner was followed by a short stroll through the cobble-stoned streets of Baltimore with the Senator, up to Baltimore’s Washington Monument and its obelisk-like monument to the nation’s first president, where the Athens Fellows gathered to sit on marble steps underneath a statue of the Marquis de Lafayette to hear Senator Sarbanes talk about his distinguished career in public service, with personal stories about his three terms of service in the House of Representatives — which included his service on the House Judiciary Committee during the impeachment of Richard Nixon, and his unprecedented five terms as a U.S. Senator from the state of Maryland, which included his role in leading efforts to bring reform and transparency to the U.S. financial industry in the aftermath of the Enron scandal, especially his authoring of the Sarbanes-Oxley legislation.

Students listening to Senator Sarbanes

As it grew dark, the Athens Fellows peppered Sen. Sarbanes with questions on his experience raising the alarm and fighting for the rule of law during the invasion of Cyprus, his perspective on the expansion of the EU, and his thoughts on the current economic crisis and the need for both greater transparency and oversight of a complex financial system.

Finally, the Fellows’ first, full day was over and a long drive was ahead to get back to Washington, DC — and another exciting day for the Athens Fellows.

Students with Senator Sarbanes at the Washington Monument

Click on the excerpts below — or follow the Athens Fellows day by day as they blog about their Fellowship in Athens  — and you will see for yourself how these leaders are taking Greece in a new direction.  You will probably agree with the Fellows — this is not your Papou’s Greece!

Panos Livadas

With Panos Livadas at the Secretariat General of Communication & Information

How does a University of Florida grad and a U.S. Senate intern end up handling Greece’s image around the world? With a modern attitude, forward-looking ideas and a whole lot of smarts, it turns out… [read the full story]

Athens Fellows with Miltiadis Varvitsiotis

With Miltiadis Varvitsiotis at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The young and very personable Deputy Minister launched into a discussion with the Athens Fellows describing his responsibilities as the government’s point man for all issues regarding international trade and development… [read the full story]

Fellows with Dimitri Tzianninis

With Dimitri Tzianninis at the Ministry of Finance

Don’t get to meet for an hour and a half with the Chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors? Well, the Athens Fellows did today… [read the full story]

Giorgios Anastasopoulos

With Giorgos Anastasopoulos at the Ministry of Development

Once they were seated in the fifth floor conference room of the Ministry, Secretary General Anastasopoulos arrived with a presentation in hand, and proceeded to greet with Fellows with an urgent question: “Why aren’t you guys at the beach?”… [read the full story]

Athens Fellows with Mr. Katsoudas at the Foreign Ministry

With Dimitrios Katsoudas at the Foreign Ministry

Another visit by the Athens Fellows to the Foreign Ministry, and a rare chance to sit down with Greece’s point man in Europe for a Master Class on the European Union as a “web of relations”… [read the full story]

Sofia Daskalaki-Mytilineou

With Sofia Daskalaki-Mytilineou at City Hall

What is it like to run the largest city in the country, which is simultaneously a world capital, a major center for tourism, the leading center for business and finance in the region — and a city whose 6,000 years of history make it one of the great centers of western civilization?… [read the full story]

George Papaconstantinou

With George Papaconstantinou at PASOK party headquarters

Young, handsome and articulate, Mr. Papaconstantinou has been compared to “Sam Seaborn” — the White House Communications Director as played by Rob Lowe on the American television show West Wing… [read the full story]

With Stefanos Vlastos at the Ministry of Education

Meeting with Stefanos Vlastos

Secretary General Stefanos Vlastos addressed what would prove to be a pressing issue in nearly every discussion the Athens Fellows would have in Athens… [read the full story]

Click on the excerpts below — or follow the Athens Fellows day by day as they blog about their Fellowship in Athens  — to get a picture of the modern Greece that our Athens Fellows saw.

Lunch with Nikos Tsakos

With Nikos Tsakos at Tsakos Shipping headquarters

Tankers as tall as the Empire State building, $100 million cargoes, pirates running amok on the high seas, a Greek shipping tycoon known to all as “the Captain” — and an offer to take on Next Generation interns. What’s not to like?…  [read the full story]

Nikos Konstandaros at Kathimerini

With Nikos Konstandaros at “Kathimerini” newspaper

A Master Class with the Managing Editor of Greece’s standard-setting newspaper, an interview by one of the paper’s correspondents — and a surprise visit from the paper’s publisher, the paradoxically publicity-shy Greek tycoon, Aristides Alafouzos… [read the full story]

With Prof. Couloumbis at Greece’s leading think-tank, ELIAMEP

As in years past, the Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy, was the scene of the 2009 Athens Fellows first Master Class in Athens. Home to scholars and analysts who have earned a well-deserved reputation for their thoughtful, non-partisan approach… [read the full story]

Athens Stock Exchange

With Spiros Capralos at the Athens Stock Exchange

Once inside the gleaming high-tech headquarters of the Athens Stock Exchange, the Fellows were ushered upstairs to the Exchange’s boardroom and an informal lunch with the Exchange’s affable CEO, Spiros Capralos… [read the full story]

With Yanos Gramatidis at the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce

With Mr. Gramitidis

The Athens Fellows took advantage of Mr. Gramatidis’ expert insight into the business environment in Greece, and let loose a barrage of questions on everything from business and high-tech trends in Greece, and Greece’s progress on adopting alternative energy sources, battling corruption, and tackling the “brain drain”… [read the full story]

Christos Gortsos

With Christos Gortsos at the Hellenic Bank Association

A university professor in his other life, the young and congenial Secretary General rolled up his sleeves to give the Fellows an incisive introduction to the workings of the European banking system, and how the Eurozone works… [read the full story]

Alexis Phylactopoulos

With Alexis Phylactopoulos at the International Center for Hellenic & Mediterranean Studies

Meeting in the Center’s beautiful offices overlooking the historic and emotionally-stirring site of Athens Panathinaiko Stadium — home of the ancient Panathenaic Games, and site of the first modern Olympics in 1896… [read the full story]

What could be more evocative of the lost spendors of ancient Greece than examining fragments from a shipwreck once explored by Jacques Cousteau — or more amazingly modern than seeing the computer which archeologists have reassembled from those fragments?

What could be more moving than climbing down from the Acropolis and the remnants of the Parthenon — and walking into the new Acropolis Museum and its remarkable reconstruction of this ancient wonder?

And what could be more timeless than sailing the wine-dark seas of the Aegean itself?

Whether it was skimming the Aegean from island to island, venturing within the historic halls of the Hellenic Parliament (where an unexpected honor awaited the Fellows), or looking deep into the excavations revealed during the construction of the Athens Metro system — with the engineer/CEO who built it and the Athens 2004 Olympic stadiums — the Athens Fellows had unparalleled opportunities to see the best of Greece, from the ancient to the modern.

At the Acropolis

At the Acropolis

Where else in the world can you be surrounded by ancient landmarks like the Odeon, the Areopagus the Agora, and the Pnyx — the birthplace of democracy — and still be awestruck when you walk through the gates of the Acropolis and see the Parthenon?… [read the full story]

At the New Acropolis Museum

Athens Fellows at the just-opened New Acropolis Museum

Words simply cannot do justice to the experience of walking down from the familiar ruins of the Acropolis, and into the museum which so perfectly displays the great treasures and fragments that once graced the hill just outside the new museum’s windows… [read the full story]

Dinner looking up at the Acropolis

What could be better for a group of Greeks than sharing a lovely dinner (and great conversation) while sitting together under the stars — with the breath-taking sight of the Parthenon gracing the Acropolis just across the way, and the moon gently rising above it all?… [read the full story]

The Antikythera Mechanism at the National Museum of Archeology

Looking at what is now considered the world’s first mechanical computer — and considered by at least one expert as being “more valuable than the Mona Lisa” — one is flooded with dozens of intriguing questions: Who made it?… Who owned it?… What if it had not been lost? What kind of world would we be living in today?… [read the full story]

With Leonidas Kikiras at the Athens Metro

With the builder of the of the Attica Metro, Leonidas Kikiras

Standing in front of a 20-foot tall glass wall revealing the multiple layers of Athenian history uncovered by the Metro project’s excavations — a wall stretching the entire length of the Syntagma Square station — Mr. Kikiras explained how teams of archaeologists worked ahead of, then alongside of, engineers for a total of six years… [read the full story]

Live! from the Hellenic Parliament at Syntagma Square. It’s…

The Athens Fellows go from being silent observers of a session of the Hellenic Parliament, to being the honored guests… [read the full story]

An Aegean Adventure

Out to the islands!

By 8:30 we were underway, cutting across the dark waters of the Saronic Gulf (named for the  mythological king Saron), past the island of Salamis, famous as the locale of the world-changing Battle of Salamis. [read the full story]

Learning about current events and policy issues firsthand from the top political and business leaders of the country, allowed me to see Greece through a new lens…

 

Yelena Cvek

The Next Generation Athens Fellowship has been an incredibly eye-opening experience for me. Growing up Greek-American, I have always heard stories of Greece, and I have been to Greece with my family on vacation, but everything I knew about Greece was through the eyes of my grandparents and the older generations — most of whom have moved to the States. Going to Greece with the Next Generation Initiative and learning about current events and policy issues firsthand from the top political and business leaders of the country, allowed me to see Greece through a new lens — not that of my ancestors, but with my own eyes as part of generation that are the future leaders of the world.

Seeing Greece in this light reminds me that Greece is not a cultural wonder frozen in ancient history, but a dynamic bustling society dealing with everyday current issues just like the rest of the world. This opened my eyes both to the tremendous achievements made in the past decades, and challenged me to ask questions and search for answers about how to improve the world for future generations.

My Athens Fellowship has changed me in a number of ways. First, Greece has become more real and alive to me after taking part in the Athens Fellowship. I am  much more aware of the modern day issues facing my family’s home country. Secondly, as a consequence of becoming more aware of these issues… I am really proud of the progress that Greece has made in the past 20 years – from its membership in the EU and NATO, to its domestic achievements with the metro system and the new acropolis museum. It is this progress that makes me genuinely concerned about reform in those areas that still need improvement.

I’m also proud because we saw a common thread of hard work, hospitality, and determination to overcome any adversity throughout all of our meetings and people we were lucky enough to meet. I have experienced these qualities before… but to see them in all the leaders we met and saw during our trip really tied these characteristics together and allowed me to identify with them as “Greek.”

The most memorable experience from my Athens Fellowship — which will stick with me for years to come — are the people that I was able to meet, both professionally and personally. The network I was able to build during my Fellowship will become part of my network when I travel, when I look for career opportunities or need advice. The leaders we met were so welcoming, and I know I will be in touch with these people for years to come.

On a personal level, I was able to connect with other Greek-Americans of the same generation — something that was lacking from my life back at home. We started off by just sharing a common bond from our heritage, but left with a rare network of friendships that spans the nation and beyond — which is a rare opportunity that very few programs can truly offer. These friendships will continue for a long time, as evident in the plans we have made to meet up, and the messages we have all exchanged since the program has ended! I look forward to staying in touch with everyone.

Two issues that struck closest to home for me were issues concerning the state of the education system in Greece, and the situation in Cyprus.

First, education is very important to me because it has shaped the last 20 years of my life and has opened many doors for me — including the Athens Fellowship. I went through public school in America until high school, and then had to jump through hoops and pay a great deal of money to go to a good private college in the States.

Learning about the Greek system, which is completely different than anything we are used to in the States has made me re-evaluate my view of America’s educational system and weigh the good and the bad of both… There may be great attributes to the theory behind the Greek system, but after going to the Ministry of Education, learning about the situation behind [last year’s] student riots, and meeting a few Greek students and parents myself, I learned that in practice there is a great deal of room for reform.

Secondly, the Cyprus issue became very real to me after meeting Fellows on the trip whose immediate families were from Cyprus. I had heard about the issue before, but after hearing from the leaders we met who were involved with the issue… and listening to personal stories of how the occupation has affected the lives of family in Cyprus, the issue resonates with me much more deeply than before.

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Yelena Cvek graduated from Brown University in May 2009, with a double concentration in Commerce, Organizations & Entrepreneurship and Visual Arts. In college she managed the Varsity Football Team for four years, was the co-president of Brown’s UNICEF Chapter, and was a member of the Hellenic Student Association. She also founded a wedding and event planning company called Infinitely Yours. Her parents live in Lexington and Boston, MA. Her mother is 100% Greek from Athens and the island of Sifnos, and her father is from Belgrade, Serbia. Yelena is currently working as an intern for CES Boxing while pursuing her career in Sports Management. She hopes to one day reside in Greece.

Although this was my second visit to Greece, my first was when I was only seven years old, so I don’t remember much. I had forgotten how integrated the ancient and modern are, and how powerful that is…

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Marissa Glynias

The Athens Fellowship showed me so much that modern Greece has to offer, and has given me tremendous insight into the many issues that face the country. To be honest, I didn’t know much about the current state of Greece, beyond the success of the 2004 Olympics… Learning in such depth about modern Greece, and how the the Greek government approaches a range of foreign and domestic issues has really helped me understand and appreciate today’s Greece.

Although this was my second visit to Greece, my first was when I was only seven years old, so I don’t remember much. I had forgotten how integrated the ancient and modern are, and how powerful that is, visually. I was also impressed by the cleanliness of Athens, since I had been warned by some that Athens was a “dirty” city. For me, the most memorable experience was our dinner looking up at the Acropolis — not only because of the amazing company, with the Athens Fellows, but also because it incapsulated the beauty of Athens.

Last year, I paid close attention to news about the campus riots that occurred in December, because my Greek instructor at school brought it to our attention. But actually being in Athens, and hearing for myself how people felt, and how the government handled it, helped me understand why the riots took place…  Although my opinion of Greece had been extremely low at the time, my experience during Athens Fellowship has raised my opinion of the country and how it functions.

I am still thinking about our many conversations about education, at the Ministry of Education and elsewhere with other leaders. I had heard and read about problems with the Greek education system, but speaking with leaders first-hand really gave me an idea of how serious the issues are. I consider myself extremely lucky to have been educated at my high school, where my teachers cared only for my success — and even luckier that I’m able to attend Harvard, where I can study what I want with help from world-class professors. I can’t imagine having limited opportunities, or living in a place where the system itself seemed to work against me in my quest to study what I want. I hope that soon this system can be fixed, though it seems that it will take a long time to improve the teaching in secondary and higher education.

It has been amazing to have be part of a group of intelligent young Greek-Americans who really care about their heritage.

Being an Athens Fellow has made me want to be more in touch with my heritage. As someone who is not fluent in Greek, my experience during the Athens Fellowship has made me want to continue my studies in the language, so that one day I can work, as an intern or otherwise, in Greece.

Also, my Athens Fellowship has tied me to other Greek-American students like myself who want to learn more about Greece. I know that the friendships I made during my Fellowship will last. It has been amazing to have be part of a group of intelligent young Greek-Americans who really care about their heritage. I was never lucky enough to have such a group at home or at school, because my church’s programs were not as open as I would have liked them to be. So I feel blessed to have been part of this group, and the experience has encouraged me to help start an official Hellenic group at Harvard. ________________________________________________

The Athens Fellowship gave me my first chance to see Greece for myself… [to see] the country where my parents were raised and that I feel so much a part of… It was a breath of fresh air to be in a place I feel so attached to. It put all the Greek news and Greek television shows I watch into perspective.

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Tammy Ikosipentarhos

The Athens Fellowship gave me my first chance to see Greece for myself. Before the Athens Fellowship, I had a very different vision of the land my parents came from. I have become much more informed about the country where my parents were raised and that I feel so much a part of. Though it surprised me, it was a breath of fresh air to be in a place I feel so attached to. It put all the Greek news and television shows I watch into perspective.

Through all our briefings and Master Classes on the issues regarding Macedonia, Turkey and more specifically Cyprus, I have certainly become much more informed about the problems that need to be addressed.

One of the subjects I followed closely during my Fellowship was the Macedonian name issue. This hit home with me more than some of the other subjects we discussed with leaders because last year I spoke with a NATO representative in Amsterdam who bluntly stated, “The Greeks are making a big issue over the name that Macedonia should have, and we don’t understand why.” It was frustrating to hear because I wanted to defend Greece, but I didn’t know what to say. If I were in that meeting today, I would know exactly what to say. That is the kind of new knowledge and understanding I am bringing home with me from my Athens Fellowship.

My opinion of Greece also changed, as I heard both Greek and American leaders discuss modern Greece and relations between Greece and the U.S. I used to feel differently about Greece… that it was being mistreated and neglected…  Now that I look at both sides… I see there are two sides of a coin… Likewise, my overall experience of Athens was surprising. Before I came, I had an idealistic view of what it would be, and that did not match what Athens is actually like. So modern. It reminded me of a smaller version Los Angeles. It has an incredible nightlife, a very urban feel, and the surrounding islands were beautiful.

The Athens Fellowship is an experience you will never forget.

For me, the most memorable Master Class of the Athens Fellowship would have to be our Master Class with Nikos Tsakos at Tsakos Shipping. We sat down in the office of a billionaire, spoke with him candidly, and came away the understanding that we could be sitting right where he was — if we really want to. That is what this Fellowship is all about — learning that we are just as capable and just as qualified to become amazing leaders, like the ones we met.

My experience meeting so many leaders throughout the course of my Fellowship has definitely changed the way I view leadership and leaders... Now I see them as people, just like you and me, and I envision how I could become a leader myself, and accomplish great things the way they have. I have also gained great contacts and opportunities for possible internships in Greece, which is an asset in itself.

Lastly, through my peers on the Athens Fellowship, I have truly realized what it means to be Greek. Where I live in California there is not a large community, so it was nice to be immersed in an all-Greek American student atmosphere. I would recommend applying for the Athens Fellowship to anyone who is Greek-American and wants to get in touch with their roots. The Athens Fellowship is an experience you will never forget.

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The access we were given to Greek government officials and prominent business leaders was extremely beneficial in allowing us an inside look into the policy issues facing Greece. It is one thing to read newspaper articles, and very much another to gain first-hand knowledge, directly from the source.

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Nick Koumoulis

My Athens Fellowship was an overwhelmingly positive experience. It is clear that Greece is alive and well, despite the image that may exist throughout the U.S. for many of those who left Greece in the past.

The access we were given to Greek government officials and prominent business leaders was extremely beneficial in allowing us an inside look into the policy issues facing Greece. It is one thing to read newspaper articles, and very much another to gain first-hand knowledge, directly from the source. The Athens Fellowship reinforced my understanding of modern Greece, and gave me a broad overview of many of the challenges it faces, including illegal immigration through Turkey and the naming of FYROM, and enhanced my understanding of Greece’s growing economic influence in the Balkan region.

I was very impressed with the extremely open and candid briefings we were given by the leaders of the government ministries we visited.

The issue that struck closest to home for me was the Cyprus issue. Being a Cypriot-American, I have long sought to understand the motives and goals of a unified Cyprus. Hearing the accounts from a wide range of experts and leaders — including the Cypriot Ambassador to the U.S. himself — was valuable in being able to understand all of the interests at play. Beyond that, I would have to say that I was very impressed with the extremely open and candid briefings we were given by the leaders of the government ministries we visited.

The Athens Fellowship was an unforgettable experience that has created a greater connection to my Greek heritage. Being a part of this Fellowship has expanded my interests in understanding modern Greece. The Athens Fellowship has created a new perspective for me in looking at the issues which face Greece today. I hope to one day be in a position where I can use my background and position to further the goals of a stronger and more prosperous Greece.

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Nicholas Koumoulis is a third year student at New York Law School. He is a 2007 graduate of The George Washington University, where he majored in political science and minored in business.  Nick is from Oyster Bay, New York. His father Tasso is Cypriot-American, and his mother Nina is Greek-American. Upon graduation, Nick plans to pursue a career in corporate law.

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