About the Award “Danube Flower” and “Danube Captain”
The Award "Danube Flower" is awarded to outstanding institutions and individuals who, through their work, dedication and creativity have contributed to the development of the Danube Region, the Danube Strategy and the promotion of its values. Statuette "Danube Flower" is the work of painter Milivoje Unković from Serbia.
Award winners for 2014 are:
- Maestro Zubin Mehta, Conductor
- Prof. dr Sorin Frunzaverde, President Karas Severin Region, Romania
- Dr Kurt Puchinger, European Strategy for The Danube Region, Priority Area Coordinator, Austria
- Franc But, Ambassador, Embassy of Slovenia in Serbia
- Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia, Milivoje Miletic, President
- Telecom Serbia, Predrag Culibrk, General Director
- Misa Lukic, President of the Board, Publicis Group, Serbia
- Hydroelectric Power Plant Djerdap, Radmilo Nikolic, Director Assistant for exploitation, Serbia
- Djordje Cukovic, General Director, Naftacheam, Serbia
Some of the previous Award winners for 2012 & 2013:
"Accountability is today certainly the key word when thinking about sustainability of a single business as well as of limited natural resources available to us, as well. Therefore, this kind of regional initiatives are particularly important, because they focus us on issues that transcend limitations, whether we are individuals or business sector representatives. Categories such as sustainable development, water management, energy efficiency, have long been governed by a legal framework that obliges each country involved in this initiative. Their application, however, can be guaranteed only by strategic thinking and responsible approach, to which these initiatives refer us, with their expertise and dedicated action".
- Johannes Hahn, EU Comissioner
- Michael Davenport, EU Delegation Serbia, Head
- dr Kiril Kravchenko, CEO, NIS Serbia
- Ivo Gonner, Council of Danube cities and regions, Mayor of Ulm, Germany
- Banai Gabor, Bács-Kiskun County, President, Hungary
- Anica Macka Doider, Parlament, Austria
- Zekerijah Smajic, Bosnia and Hercegovina
- Krasimir Kirilov, President, Chamber of Commerce Bulgaria
For 14 years, the award "Captain Misa Anastasijević" has been given to the most successful individuals, entrepreneurs and institutions in Serbia within the project "Road to the Top". Besides this award, as of this year, the best representatives of the national businesses from Danube Region are awarded with the newly established "Danube Captain" Award.
The winners of "The Danube Captain" for 2014 are:
- Valeriu Nicolae Ionescu, Managing Director, Port Constantza, Romania
- Vladimir Lucic, Executive Director, M:tel Podgorica
- Mensur Brdar, Bekto Precisa, Bosnia i Herzegovina
- Prof. dr Ivan Misetic, Secretary General, Atlantic Group, Croatia
- Elektromreze Srbije - EMS, Nikola Petrović, General Director
- Trace International, General Director, Nikolay Kostadinov Valev, Bulgaria
"Nothing is more accurate than the statement that Rhine and Main have united Europe and that Danube keeps developing it. Thus, the Danube Strategy is one of the most important European development programs, both economically and politically. The countries of the Sava Convention joined this concept, so the entire area of the former Yugoslavia is included, which is very important for us, because the processes of stabilisation and association of the Western Balkans countries became more efficient and more significant. I am confident that the forthcoming gathering in Belgrade is another step towards better cooperation among countries which Danube connects, the development of European values and programs, improvement of the living conditions of the citizens of the Danube region and acceleration of the accession process of Serbia and other countries of the Western Balkans to the European family".
