See the International Friends’ image gallery on the BA website: www.bibalex.org/English/friends/invitation.htm

Australia

Mr. Lorenzo Montesini was invited to dinner at the Embassy in Canberra by H.E. Ambassador Mohamed Tawfik in the honor of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Numerous eminent Australians attended this event which was followed by a talk after dinner. Another dinner will be held in Sydney and Melbourne, in July and in August, respectively. Mr. Montesini was invited to dinner too, in London at the embassy, for the launch of the Egyptian Palaces book on the 29 June 2006.

Baltimore

EGYPTIAN CORNER
The Baltimore-Luxor/Alexandria Sister City committee in partnership with the Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt will soon be sponsoring a major public diplomacy initiative – “ EGYPTIAN CORNER” -- in the Baltimore and Washington, DC Metro area. The purpose of the initiative is to forward information about Egypt, past and present to American citizens. This initiative mirrors “American Corner”, created by the State Department, to bring a cultural understanding of the United States to other countries around the world.

EGYPTIAN CORNER will offer comprehensive Internet access to reliable information about the political, economic, cultural, educational and social life in Egypt. On its Web Page, EGYPTIAN CORNER will present a full range of English language materials, including Internet links, CDs, DVDs, and “hard copy” documents from internationally recognized academic and cultural institutions.

In September 2006, EGYPTIAN CORNER will launch an “Images of Egypt” contest for local university students who will be invited to carry out original research on the EGYPTIAN CORNER Web Page, and produce an original “project” relating to some aspect of Egyptian life or culture. The students may enter works in one of three categories: Arts (musical, graphic, sculpture); Website Design/Multi-Media Design; or Literature (poem, essay, short story). One “First Place” winner from each category will be selected in January 2007. Each of the three winners will be awarded an “all expense paid” two-week trip to Egypt, including a special tour of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, during Spring break 2007.

During the coming decade, it is envisioned that active EGYPTIAN CORNER sponsors will be established in many major American cities, with appropriate Egyptian counterparts. By 2008/2009, several more contests at the university level may well be leveraged into fundraising for scholarships for outstanding young scholars to study at selected Egyptian universities.

PATROLOGIAE CURSUS COMPLETUS
The BFBA will contribute $2,000 toward the purchase of the Patrologiae. It is their intention to raise this issue during the next BLASCC formal meeting, on 20 June 2006; thereafter, they will formally notify the BA of the BLASCC's intention to make this donation, in time for the BA's annual meeting, in November 2006.

California

The California Friends are preparing for the training visit of Engineer Hoda ElMikaty of the PSC and ALEXploratium at the Exploratorium in San Francisco in July. Carmela Ruby has been coordinating the intern program. Rosalie Cuneo Amer is communicating and working on avenues for fundraising in San Francisco and Sacramento for the Patrologaie.

We are pleased to announce that on 6 June, California Friend Helen Angelides’ son, Phil Angelides, won the Democratic Party Primary for Governor of the State of California, and will run against Arnold Schwarzenegger, Republican candidate for Governor, 7 November. Phil has been a supporter of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina.

Germany

Since the beginning of the association’s activities, the following projects have been undertaken:

• The Egyptian-German Friends of the BA have been trying to acquire book donations for the BA.
• Presenting their association in different cities, like Bonn, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, and Darmstadt.
• Supporting the Media presentation "100 days imachinations" of the artist Tim Otto Roth, in 2005 at the BA, as well as, the presentation of "The Bibliotheca Alexandrina" film of Mrs. Anke Limprecht in Alexandria, during the International Friends’ last meeting.
• Preparing and executing a series of reading evenings in Frankfurt, Berlin and Hamburg, for Mrs. Samia Serageldin’s book entitled "The Cairo House", which was translated into German.
• A series of lectures is intended to be given in future, as well as, organizing a journey for interested people to Alexandria and to the newly opened exhibition in Berlin on "Egypt's Sunken Treasures".
• Obtaining sponsors for the different requirements of the BA, i.e. books, receptions, accommodating the concerned BA staff during their visit to the next Book Fair in Frankfurt, in October 2006.

Italy

The Italian Friends of the BA, I.S.E are organizing an important event revolving around Lord Guglielmo Marconi. Marconi’s daughter, Countess Electra and his grandson Prince Gugleilmo Giovanelli Marconi, would like to give a talk at the BA, present the book “My beloved Marconi” by Italian Countess Bezzi Scoli, published by Boston University and probably donate some of Marconi’s documents.

THE I.S.E HAVE ALSO GIVEN THEIR SUPPORT TO:
1. IV International Exhibition of contemporary Art, Rome, 1-9 June 2006, at the Museum of Information.
2. The restoration of Carlo Lizzani’s film “Country Life”.
3. A Video initiative “Egypt at Rome” and “Rome at Egypt” with copyright to Mrs. Elena Panarella, ISE member and eminent journalist.

New Jersey

BAYONNE PUBLIC LIBRARY TO ESTABLISH TIES WITH LIBRARY IN ALEXANDRIA, EGYPT
The Bayonne Public Library announced that it is establishing a program, Young Friends of the Library. This program is open to children 8-13 years of age, who are interested in getting to know children in Alexandria, Egypt, through e-mail. The Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Bayonne Public Library will work together to locate children who have similar interests and hobbies and to write to each other.

Mayor Joseph V. Doria, Jr. stated “This program will provide the children of Bayonne the opportunity to learn about children in Egypt and to establish international friendships. The Young Friends of the Library will also learn about the Library of modern Alexandria, the successor to the Ancient Alexandria Library of the ancient world. Doria continued, “I would like to thank Bayonne resident Dr. Gamil Sedrak for suggesting the idea for this program”. Dr. Sedrak is a former resident of Alexandria.

Children who are interested should come to Children’s Room of the Bayonne Public Library and register, if they do not have an e-mail address, when they come to the Library to sign up for the Young Friends of the Library, the librarian will set them up with one.

Norway

The Norwegian Friends are working on a donation of books for the Playwright Henrik Ibsen (1828-1906), his works and biographical material, etc. This in connection with the celebration of the 100th anniversary of his death. Ibsen will be celebrated in Egypt towards end-2006, in Cairo as well as in Alexandria at the Library.

For your information:
Visits to the Library: Entrance fee: EGP 10; Museums: EGP 20; Planetarium show: EGP 25.
The Library is closed to visitors on Tuesdays. Opening hours are 11:00 am - 7:00 pm. Friday and Saturday, opening hours are 3:00 - 7:00 pm.
Library Membership card for the International Friends is $100. This provides free access to the Library (not the Museums or Planetarium).
Associations may issue their own membership card and can negotiate the privileges that may be extended to their members during visits to the Library.

Digitization of Description de l’Egypte Selected Finalist for the Stockholm Challenge Award
From among 1,155 projects worldwide, Digitization of Description de l’Egypte was selected along with 151 ICT projects as finalist for the Stockholm Challenge Award. It is also competing for the trophy in the WSIS Challenge Award which is a side event of the Stockholm Challenge 2006. The WSIS Challenge Award jury will select the best African ICT project from among 30 African finalists.

The project was enrolled under the cultural category and it met the standards the jury set for selection, the first of which was the project impact and sustainability as the project showed potentials for long-term survival, development and self sustainability. The second standard was empowerment which is meant to measure the project ability to raise the level of its audiences’ knowledge and social status. The last standard was how far the project meets the users expectations and needs in social and cultural aspects.

The Stockholm Challenge Award celebrations took place in the evening of 11 May in the venue of the Nobel Banquet in the Stockholm City Hall. The winners of the Challenge trophies and cash awards of 5,000 Euro will be announced there with the presence of a large number of guests and world media. Moreover, the winner of the WSIS Award will receive a prize worth 10,000 Euro, sponsored by SPIDER, the Swedish Program for ICT in Developing Regions. For more information about the two prizes please visit http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/.

The project was implemented by the International School of Information Science (ISIS). The valuable collection of Description de l’Egypte containing text and images related to antiquities, natural history, and the modern states of Egypt, was fully digitized, digitally restored, and integrated on a virtual browser with the objective of preserving it and making it publicly available. For more information about the project, please visit http://www.bibalex.org/isis.

Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Library of Congress sign a Memorandum of Understanding to create the World Digital Library
Bibliotheca Alexandrina and the Library of Congress signed a memorandum of understanding by which the BA is going to be one of the founding institutions of the World Digital Library. The World Digital Library will contain content related to the history and culture of peoples and countries around the world.

The two institutions will exchange information and ideas on issues such as standards, selection and presentation of content, multilingualism, and system architecture. They will also embark on completing a joint digital library project that will serve as one of the building blocks of the future digital library, and that will be used to develop and test standards, technologies, and procedures. The project will involve the digitization of rare and unique materials from the collections of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina relating to the history and culture of the city of Alexandria, Egypt, and the Middle East in general.

The two institutions will also collaborate to create two identical mirrored websites, one to be hosted at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, the other at the Library of Congress. These websites will present to the public, free-of-charge and in multilingual format, the digitized collections. The agreement will also cover issues such as standards, copyrights, maintenance of the sites, the relationship between these sites and the future World Digital Library, and financing and other support for the creation of these sites.

Stockholm Challenge Award
From among 1,155 projects from all over the world, the online information system about endangered plant and animal species in Egypt: "Our Natural Heritage at Risk" was selected along with 151 ICT projects as finalists for the Stockholm Challenge Award 2006. The celebration took place in the evening of 11 May in the venue of the Nobel Banquet in the Stockholm City Hall. Dr. Hala Barakat, CULTNAT Deputy Director, was awarded on behalf of CULTNAT, a diploma for excellence in the use of Information Technology in the Culture Category of the Stockholm Challenge 2006. More information is available at http://www.cultnat.org/ and http://www.stockholmchallenge.se/

Conference: Arabic Calligraphy Aesthetics Conference
A conference on “The Aesthetics of Arabic Calligraphy” was held for three days, 9-11 May 2006. This conference was organized by the Arabic Calligraphy Unit of the Calligraphy Center in cooperation with the General Egyptian Society for Arabic Calligraphy under the auspices of Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director, Bibliotheca Alexandrina. The Center invited a group of specialists in calligraphy, Arabic language, curriculum and teaching methodology, university professors and media, in addition to Education and Arabic calligraphy experts. An exhibition of “Arabic Calligraphy Aesthetics” was held to cope with the title of the conference. It included the work of some famous calligraphers.

The Bibliotheca Alexandrina Second International Biennale for the Artist’s Book
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina hosted the Second International Biennale for the Artist’s Book during the period from 15-25 April 2006. Sixty-six artists from all over the world participated in the Biennale. It has included several activities including, workshops for children of different nationalities with the aim of restoring the cosmopolitan spirit of the city.

Several famous artists participated in the international seminar held on 16 April 2006, International Biennale for the Artist's Book. The French Association of the BA Friends participated in the Biennale with an exhibition entitled “All the States of a Book”. The exhibition aimed at presenting to the public how Artists’ books are made; and present an overview on the history of the artist’s book in the 20th century. The Biennale selected two pioneers in that field: Louis Jou and Pierre Andre Benoit.

Dubai Police Academy donates books to the BA
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina received the Minister of Internal Affairs of Dubai. During the visit, he donated a collection of books from the Dubai Police Academy. The donation, which is around 100 books, covers different subjects such as politics, economics, military, culture, religion, and sociology.

Signing an Agreement between the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (BA) and Alexander S. Onassis Public Benefit Foundation
During the visit of His Excellency President Carolos Papoulias, President of Greece to the Library of Alexandria, Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of the Library of Alexandria and Anthony S. Papadimitriou, President of Onassis Foundation signed a cooperation agreement at the BA.

As part of the agreement, Onassis Foundation will participate in reconstructing Antoniadis Villa and in establishing a unit for Hellenic studies affiliated to the BA specializing in arts, architecture, antiquities, literature, and culture. The unit will be part of the Alexandria and Mediterranean Research Center.

BioVisionAlexandria 2006 Conference: New Life Sciences: Changing Lives
During the period 26-29 April 2006, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina organized the BioVision Alexandria 2006 Conference, "New Life Sciences: Changing Lives" in partnership with The World Life Sciences Forum BioVision. It brought Nobel Laureates and distinguished speakers including Dr. Philippe Desmarescaux, Chairman, The World Life Sciences Forum, BioVision (France), and Mr. François Gros, Secretaire General, Honorary Permanent Secretary, Académie des Sciences (France) in discussions commemorating science and the finest achievements of the human intellect. The Conference focused on two main themes: Health Discoveries and Agri-food and Environmental Discoveries.
For more information, please visit: http://www.bibalex.org/biovisionalexandria.

The President of Cyprus at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina
H.E. Tassos Papadopoulos, President of Cyprus, visited the BA on 6 May 2006, accompanied by the Cypriot Minister of Transportation and a delegation of senior officials. The delegation presented a valuable donation to the BA amounting to 320 historical and literary books.

Eternal Egypt receives the Arab e-content Award
In April 2005, Dr. Fathy Saleh, Director of Center for Documentation of Cultural and Natural Heritage (CULTNAT), a center affiliated to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, received the Arab e-content Award 2005 for the website Eternal Egypt.

Eternal Egypt brings the wondrous experience of Egypt to the world. It represents a unique partnership where innovative IBM technologies and services were applied to create an interactive, multimedia experience of Egyptian cultural artifacts, places and history for audience all around the globe via the Internet. It is worth noting that Eternal Egypt, the project funded by IBM through a US $2.5 million grant of technology and expertise from its Research and Services teams in USA and Egypt, also won the World Summit Award (WSA) in the e-Culture category, along with four projects from Armenia, France, Russia and USA. Visit: http://www.eternalegypt.org/.

Arabic translation of Shakespeare’s works and its discontents
As part of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina’s effort to enrich the Arabic culture, the Dialogue Forum, an affiliate to the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, organized a seminar regarding the Arabic translation of Shakespeare’s works and its discontents, on 3 June 2006. The seminar congregated authors and writers specialized in English literature and specifically in Shakespeare’s works. The seminar focused on the problems and obstacles that arise in the translation of Shakespeare’s work.

El-Mikaty represents the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in a Discussion Meeting on Science in Muslim Countries in Bellagio
Engineer Hoda El-Mikaty, Director, BA Planetarium Science Center, traveled to Bellagio in Italy to participate in the meetings held 15-19 May 2006, under the theme State of Science in Muslim Countries. The Bellagio meeting brought together leaders and representatives from science, government, and civil societies in Muslim countries to reflect on how they might strengthen their science and technology bases and to promote greater international collaboration; and to reflect on the underlying causes of the generally weak funding, training and infrastructure for science and technology in these countries. Participants exchanged reports on existing cooperation in the region and case studies on some countries including Iraq, Pakistan and Egypt. In the meetings, issues such as creativity in the Muslim World and Muslim culture, and ethics in new technological discoveries were discussed.

BA receives donation from the General Egyptian Book Organization
The Bibliotheca Alexandrina recently received a donation from the General Egyptian Book Organization. The donation comprises 500 books which cover a variety of subjects.

EUMEDIS: EU-MIDDLE EAST DIGITAL PARTNERSHIP PEACE AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN THE MEDITERRANEAN REGION
The Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Dr. Tarek Kamel inaugurated the EUMEDIS Final International Conference held at the prestigious venue of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, Alexandria, Egypt, 11-12 June 2006. The main objectives of the Conference were to present the final results and best practices of the EUR 64 million “EUro MEDiterranean Information Society” – EUMEDIS – Programme launched by the European Commission in 1999 in order to create prosperous working relations among countries in the Mediterranean area.

At the Conference, EUMEDIS stakeholders had the opportunity to work closely together, to exchange experiences and to discuss the future prospects, as the projects were coming to a close. “It is essential that the efforts exerted throughout the past 5 years be consolidated and continue to contribute to a lasting partnership across the Mediterranean”, says EUMEDIS Operations Manager, Mr. Diego MELLADO, Head of Section, Operations II in the EC delegation in Egypt.

The EUMEDIS programme is the largest initiative ever undertaken by the European Commission in the development of the global Information Society in order to foster a peaceful Mediterranean environment. Twenty-one pilot projects were selected to act in five priority sectors: (i) Healthcare Networks; (ii) Electronic Commerce (iii) Tourism and Cultural Heritage; (iv) Industry, and SMEs; and (v) Education.

Distinguished Guest Lectures

Lecture: The Importance of Intercultural Dialogue
H.E. Mrs. Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European Union Commissioner for External Relations and Neighbourhood Policy gave a lecture on “The Importance of Intercultural Dialogue”, 6 May 2006, 10:00 am at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina, and Comments were made by H.E. Mr. Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Viewing the life of Jorge Luis Borges
On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the death of the Argentinean poet Jorge Luis Borges, the Bibliotheca Alexandrina organized a lecture entitled Viewing the Life of Jorge luis Borges, on 14 June 2006.

Deepening The Dialogue: The Future of Muslim–Christian Relations
Lord George Carey, Former Archbishop of Canterbury and Patron of the Alexandria School of Theology gave a lecture entitled “Deepening The Dialogue: The Future of Muslim–Christian Relations” on 23 May 2006 at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina. Lord George Carey's lecture focused on the importance of religious dialogue to foster respect and understanding. This is a particularly important and timely issue that will enhance the spirit of national and international peace and cooperation.

Yasmine Samir - Head of the Visits Unit
Tours Department

I was born in Alexandria, Egypt, July 1976, completed my high school studies at Sacred Heart School, and graduated from Faculty of Arts, Greek and Roman Archeology in 1999. I am married and have a son (8 years old). I enjoy being responsible, conscientious in taking care of people (hospitable); all the above originates from my ambitious and sensitive nature.

I joined the Library in October 2002, a week before the inauguration. My job description was a tour guide responsible for orienting the guests/visitors (of different categories) with the Library, starting with the history of the Ancient Library, then the new vast complex, and all the activities provided by the different sections. In addition, I worked as a receptionist, being a part of my Job.

Throughout the years, I always believed that the impression any guest takes about the place he/she visits, comes mainly from the staff who orient him or he meets, therefore I was devoted to provide all the information about the library in the best way I could during the tour, which led me to be promoted as Head of Tours Unit in the Visits Department in September 2005 (following the recommendation of my Director who has always been motivating and supportive).

One of the projects I am working on now is upgrading the children presentations, which is a PowerPoint presentation for children ages 4-8 years that explains to them the history of the Ancient Library and the new Library with all its sections and services; in the form of a simple story provided with pictures and animated cartoons.

Finally, we are working on preparing a PowerPoint presentation of all monuments of Alexandria to be displayed in the main entrance of the Library, and it is my favorite project.

Inspiration varies from one person to another, so what has been my inspiration so far is the constant support and advice of my mother, that pushes me to be ambitious, direct and clear. What I dislike most is not working as a team, because teamwork is of the elements of success.

One of the obstacles I faced in my pathway was fear of not succeeding, but in this case and through experience I advise that one should keep trying to reach their aims and never give up regardless of the time it takes. With this concept I believe that what I have achieved so far is a good beginning. I am always keen to carry on with the goal of our Library being Egypt's window on the world, and also the world's window on Egypt, by serving our guests and fulfilling their needs in the best manner that always gives the best impression about our Library.

By Dr. Ismail Serageldin
The Tides of Change: Reflections on Arab Reform: http://www.serageldin.com/SpeechDetail.aspx?SID=9

(visit our website www.bibalex.org/English/Calendar/ShowEvents.aspx?today=1)

Letters to the Editor are welcome (dina.abdelmoneim@bibalex.org). Suggestions for the newsletter and items may also be sent to Dina Abdelmoneim. The deadline for each newsletter is four weeks before the quarterly publication is issued, i.e. the last day of February (for the April issue), May (for July), August (for October), November (for January). To subscribe or unsubscribe to this newsletter please contact Dina, dina.abdelmoneim@bibalex.org