Simona Vaitkutė

Simona Vaitkutė has BA in Philosophy and MA in Diplomacy, combining studies in international politics, history, and law. Deeper understanding of the intersections between economics, politics, and the environment gained through studies brought with it awareness of the precariousness of our civilization, which has guided Simona’s professional  journey, leading her to work as an educator, journalist, researcher, and entrepreneur focused on various aspects of sustainability and environmental stewardship.

For nearly two decades Simona has been an active contributor to the development of ecological thinking and environmental policy in Lithuania and internationally. She has co-founded and contributed to the first Lithuanian environmentally focused publications Green’as and Ozonas, and more recently co-founded Šimonių girios bendruomenė, a community that advocates for forest protection through cultural initiatives and political action.  At her family homestead in Šimonių forest (Natura 2000 protected area) she runs a small enterprise focused on sustainability consulting   and running artist residencies, courses, camps, and other events. There she also organises Miško Festival, an annual international event that focuses on environmental stewardship.

As a teacher she has served in various roles. At Green School in Bali she co-created and co-taught a course on adaptation to climate change to high school students, mentored seniors on their capstone projects, and mentored young Indonesian professionals in  Environmental leadership projects. She has also created and led environmentally focused courses, camps, and educational workshops for children and youth in Lithuania, including groups of high school students.

She believes that learning needs to be relevant to our lives and we best learn from real world experience and dialogue. In the classroom she creates conditions for experimentation and freedom for students to follow their interests and curiosity.