Projects 2013 - The Nikola Tesla association | Genius for the future

The traditional celebration of Nikola Tesla's birthday in the Esplanade Hotel, Tesla in Zagreb Conference, the Quiz in Physics and General Knowledge about Nikola Tesla, cooperation with distinguished individuals and organizations from Croatia and abroad, are just a few events that marked the activities of the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future in 2013.

The representatives of the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future, Dragica Mihajlović, President of the Association and Don Markušić, Honorary Member of the Association, President of Asia-Pacific Chamber of Commerce in Croatia and Vice-President of Transparency International visited Mr Lal Thla Muan, Ambassador of India to Zagreb. During the reception they informed the Indian Ambassador about the activities and projects of the Association and discussed the possibilities of mutual cooperation. The Ambassador supported the projects and initiatives focused on the promotion of Nikola Tesla in Croatia and worldwide as well as on the promotion of knowledge and innovations in general.

The Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future presented itself to visitors and exhibitors at the International Innovation Exhibition ARCA 2013 which was held from 3rd to 5th October, 2013 at the National and University Library in Zagreb. Ivan Kožar and Tino Herljević, winners of Nikola Tesla - Genius for the Future Awards 2013 also took part at the Exhibition. They were given the opportunity to participate at this well-known Exhibition on the occasion of receiving rewards from the Union of Croatian Innovators during the event on July 10th. This year more than 150 innovators from Croatia and abroad gathered at the Exhibition with more than 200 innovations.

On the occasion of Croatia's entry to the European Union and in cooperation with the Croatian Lexicography Institute and Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs, the informative web page about Croatia got started in English, French and Croatian and a German version is also expected.

Owing to the activities related to the promotion of Nikola Tesla, the web page in the category of Inventions and Inventors includes the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future as well.

The Nikola Tesla Association- Genius for the Future organized a three-day event Tesla&Friends 2013 in Zagreb to mark the 157th anniversary of the birth of the Croatian and world-famous genius. Tesla's achievements were celebrated by speeches held by members of the Academy and scientists, exhibition of the well-known sculptor Pero Jelisić, laying flowers on Tesla's monument as well as by a gala event and giving Nikola Tesla - Genius for the Future annual awards in the Esplanade Hotel in Zagreb.

The International Conference Tesla in Zagreb opened the celebration of Tesla's birthday . Prof. Vladimir Paar, D.Sc., Member of the Academy, Prof. Davor Pavuna, D.Sc., a physicist, Luka Boršić, Ph.D. of the Philosophy Institute and Goran Marjanović, B.S. the explorer and innovator from Belgrade, participated  and held speeches at the Conference. On July 10th, Tesla's birthday, Milan Bandić, Mayor of the City of Zagreb, together with the representatives of the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future and Ruđer Bošković Institute laid flowers on Tesla's monument. Inspired by Natalija Princi's novel Tesla's Frequency of Peace, Dragica Mihajlović, President of the Association, made a performance of the same name in which the participants were Dragica Kopjar, a gong player, Ljerka Končar, a cellist and Ivan Vukelić, a young Croatian actor.

The most important part of Tesla&Friends event took place in the Esplanade Hotel in Zagreb in the presence of Milan Bandić, Mayor of the City of Zagreb, Stanislav Vukičević, Ambassador of Serbia in Croatia, Jozef Zaravecky, Deputy Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Croatia, members of the Croatian Parliament Mirela Holy and Zdravko Ronko, Davor Bernardić, Vice-President of the Zagreb City Assembly, Don Markušić, President of the Asia-Pacific Chamber of Commerce in Croatia and Vice-President of Transparency International, Andrea Doko Jelušić, Executive Director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia, the representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Science, Education and Sport as well as other distinguished persons in the field of science and public and political life. Besides scientists and innovators, elementary and high-school students Marijana Mišić, Petra Tumir, Tino Herljević and eight-year old Nika Zlatar discussed Tesla's ingenuity. Nikola Tesla - Genius for the Future Awards were granted in three categories.

Marijana Mišić, a high-school student from Sesvete received the prestigious award in the Quiz in Physics and General Knowledge about Tesla. In the category of Creative and Innovative Product inspired by Tesla's inventions, Branka Čepuran got the award for innovative souvenirs and appliances, and Tino Herljević was awarded for the laser data transfer project in the category of Tesla's Extended Activities. Tino Herljević is a young innovator, the first year student at the American College of Management and Technology who has already received more than 35 medals and prizes for innovation in Croatia and abroad.

This year the celebration of Tesla's birthday was focused on the intitiative of the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future, to proclaim July 10th as the Nikola Tesla Day in Croatia and the International Science and Invention Day. The initiative was supported by Milan Bandić, Mayor of the City of Zagreb, Mirela Holy, Member of the Croatian Parliament and Louisa Vinton, UN Coordinator and permanent UNDP representative in Croatia, who made a welcoming speech and gave the Nikola Tesla - Genius for the Future Annual Award to the winner.

The speech made by Renato Filipin, Curator in the Technical Musem in Zagreb, closed the three-day event on July 11th. This year the celebration of Tesla's birthday was held under the auspices of Croatian President Ivo Josipović, Ph.D., the City of Zagreb, the Zagreb Tourist Board and the Croatian Chamber of Economy - Zagreb Chamber, and in cooperation with the Technical Museum, the French Institute and the American College of Management and Technology.

Lectures given in order to promote creative and innovative individual activities

The Croatian Union of Innovators and the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future, in cooperation with the Croatian Association of Technical Culture organized in 2013 a few lectures in order to promote creative and innovative individual activities. Martyn Carruthers, a nuclear physicist with more than 25 years of lecturing experience all over the world, held a speech in May, 2013. As a nuclear physics lecturer, he noticed that many people had problems in studying physics due to the negative convictions of themselves and their abilities.That fact inspired him to explore and apply the fast learning techniques, NLP, the family therapy and other methods related to changes of convictions and emotional patterns. In cooperation with therapists, Janell Doan from Canada and Annegret Hallanzy from Germany, he focused on studying the family as a system of the hidden family dynamics. In the past 25 years he has applied his knowledge and helped the individuals who have wanted to realize their potentials. Martyn Carruthers shared his experience with some 30 participants emphasizing the importance of creativityin expression and activities.

Some fifty participants were present at the lecture "A Body- A Creativity Portal" given by Zrinka Buljan,M.D.,and about thirty participants attended a very interesting speech held by Nikoleta Vujović, a psychoorientologist at Silva Methods of Healing School who spoke about stress, its causes and elimination, emphasizing that stress could be one of the main obstacles to creative activities.

The Competition to report projects for the Nikola Tesla Award was opened from January, 2013 and the Quiz in Physics and General Knowledge about Nikola Tesla for elementary school pupils and high-school and college students was held on March 12th at the Faculty of Textile & Technology in Zagreb. More than 90 students from all over Croatia took part in the Quiz, and there was the opening ceremony before the Quiz started. At the opening ceremony the students were approached by Tanja Pušić, Vice-Dean of the Faculty, Tatjana Holjevac, Vice-President of the City of Zagreb Assemby till May 2013, Andrea Doko-Jelušić, Director of American Chamber of Commerce in Croatia and Silvana Svilar representing the Union of Croatian Innovators. The representatives of the City of Zagreb and the City of Gračac, as well as many scientists and innovators were present at the Quiz opening. Prof. Mladen Martinis, D.Sc., Member of the Association, informed all present about the initiative to found the Nikola Tesla Institute in Zagreb in cooperation with the scientists and innovators from Belgrade and Brazil. Dragica Mihajlović, President of the Association, asked the Croatian Parliament and the present to support the initiative to proclaim July 10th as the Nikola Tesla Day in Croatia prior to the proclamation of July 10th as the International Science and Invention Day in the UN.

In full auditorium of the Technical Museum in Zagreb, two scientists held very interesting lectures, prof. Mladen Martinis,D.Sc. from the Ruđer Bošković Institute in Zagreb and prof. Velimir Abramović,Ph.D. the founder and director of the Nikola Tesla Institute for Cosmology Studies in Belgrade. They were speaking about the secrets in Tesla's life and Tesla's inventions not discovered up to now, which are the basis of further explorations of scientists and the basis, as Mr. Velimir Abramović said, of the new science - new physics. Ms Louisa Vinton, UN Coordinators and UNDP representative in Croatia was also present and gave her support to the work of the Association and to the initiative to proclaim July 10th as the International Science andInvention Day in the UN. During Nikola Tesla Days, the Association presented the projects planned for this year, and the representatives of the City of Zagreb, led by Slavko Kojić, Head of Finance Department, opened the competition for Nikola Tesla - Genius for the Future Award. The Association initiated the meeting of prof. Velimir Abramović with a few eminent Croatian scientists and inventors. Together with the Institutes in Belgrade and Brazil, they will cooperate on the new international project inspired by Tesla's work.

The Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future was presented at the Conference held on the  occasion of the 70th anniversary of Tesla's death which was organized by the Nikola Tesla Science Foundation in the USA under the name "Why Nikola Tesla Matters". The Conference gathered the brightest minds in the world : scientists, engineers, alternative energy entrepreneurs, artists, writers, movie people and a lot of Tesla's admirers. The President of the Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future presented the activities of the Association and their efforts in Croatia to promote Nikola Tesla and his inventions to numerous guests. Dragica Mihajlović, President of the Association, made a speech at the 1st International Commemorative Conference attended by the representatives of the UN, the UNESCO, the New Yorker Hotel, Tesla Motors, and other persons like Matt Inman, who collected funds to save the Long Island Museum within a week. At the Conference that took place from 5th to 7th January, 2013 in the New Yorker Hotel in New York, Dragica Mihajlović received the acknowledgement for her work in Croatia.

The President of the Association also made arrangements for the cooperation of Croatian organizations and associations with international institutions and eminent individuals, among the others, with the New Yorker Hotel which planed to open the museum dedicated to Nikola Tesla, Matt Inman, Jane Alcorn, Director of the Long Island Museum, producers of the film The Vision of Nikola Tesla and a famous film director Joseph Sikorski. Dragica Mihajlović also discussed the promotion of Croatia as the homeland of Nikola Tesla with Nena Komarica of the Croatian Tourist Office in New York.

The Nikola Tesla Association - Genius for the Future will, till the end of 2013, concentrate on the intensive preparations for the forthcoming activities in the year 2014. The Association will be presented at Nikola Tesla Days in the Technical Museum next year as well. On that occasion, the Nikola Tesla - Genius for the Future Prize Competition will be announced in public. The arrangements with partners and sponsors for the next celebration of Tesla's birthday in July 2014 as well as negotiations regarding the realization of the initiative to proclaim July 10th as the Nikola Tesla Day in Croatia, are in progress.