September 7, 2001
This project was started in 1999 by a group of Vilnius University students in the Department of Geology. Students organized successful clean-up actions in two parks: Pavilnys and Gariunai. After that, they started filming of these two sites, aiming to show the beauty of the natural surroundings.
However, this filming took place only during the end of the summer and early autumn. After the school year started, the students did not complete this project as they had initially planned. Thus, they only partially implemented their plans. They submitted a verbal summary, but not a written progress report. Subsequently, their group disbanded.
According to the policy of Consortium Member - ECOLOGIA Baltic Programs' Office - at the beginning of the project only one half of the total amount is given to the group, with the understanding that the rest of the money will be released after their written report has been submitted. Since the group did not fulfill their commitments, they did not receive the second installment. That money has been allocated to another Lithuanian Virtual Foundation project, organized by a more established group.
This experience has brought to our attention the difficulty of working with university student groups when their project spans more than one academic year. We will take this experience into consideration in the future, when evaluating university student proposals.
Report submitted by:
Giedre Donauskaite
Director, ECOLOGIA Baltic Programs