November 1st, 2021 is the new, extended deadline of the third annual Dr. Karl A. Lamers Peace Prize essay contest. The winner of the prestigious contest will receive a 1000 Euro check. The second place winner will be awarded 600 Euros, and 400 euros will go to the author of the third-best essay.

Prof. Dr. Karl A. Lamers is a long-time member of the German Bundestag and the former President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly. He is also an honorary doctor and an honorary professor of MRU.

Celebrating Dr. Lamers' commitment to security issues and work in the security area, the first Peace Prize Competition at MRU was launched two years ago, in 2019.

This year, for the third Peace Prize competition, students must write an essay on the following topic:

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg refers to 2021 as a year of opportunity to re-energize transatlantic relations and to strengthen the bond between Europe and North America. What significance would this have for the Baltic States and how can Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia contribute to strengthen the transatlantic partnership?

The contest officially began on February 10th, 2021, the day of the announcement of the competition. The deadline of the competition has been extended from July 10th, 2021 to November 1st, 2021, because of the pandemic situation and remote education mode last semester at MRU.

Essays should be written in English and not exceed 3,000 words. Harvard-style referencing and a literature list is recommended.

Essays should be submitted to: the Office of Academic Affairs of MRU at arc@mruni.eu

All MRU students enrolled in Bachelor's and Master's Degree programmes in the year 2021, are qualified to participate. All Erasmus and international exchange students, who study or have studied during the same year, are also invited to participate and are qualified to do so.

Any questions and inquiries on the competition should be sent to Virgis Valentinavicius, MRU’s coordinator of the Competition at: virgis.valentinavicius@gmail.com

(Info supplied by MRU Assoc. Prof. Dr. Virgis Valentinavičius, Lecturer at the Institute of Communication and MRU’s Chair of the Lamers Peace Prize Essay Contest)