A highly successful ceremony was held for the awarding of 130 scholarships for postgraduate studies by the Union of Greek Shipowners (UGS), for the academic year 2025-2026, on Tuesday, July 1, 2025, at the archaeological site of the Olympieion.
Read: +100 scholarships from the Union of Greek Shipowners for the academic year 2025-2026
At the iconic site dominated by the Columns of Olympian Zeus, Culture Minister Lina Mendoni greeted the event, emphasizing “Greek shipping, once again, proves to be socially sensitive and faithful to its values. Through ‘SYN-ENOSIS for Education,’ the support of young scientists takes on a structured form. Countless Greeks have studied and subsequently excelled thanks to the financial support of benefactors and maritime institutions, through dozens of bequests and scholarship programs that remain active today. This scholarship program demonstrates the care, now at an institutional level, of Greek shipowners for the future of the new generation. My belief is that the union of public and private initiative forces is now not simply desirable, but necessary. Culture is an excellent example, where our planning based on state funding is further strengthened by significant private sponsorships. The Union of Greek Shipowners is a valuable ally of the Ministry of Culture.”
Subsequently, the President of the Union of Greek Shipowners, Melina Travlou, during her speech, referring to the scholarship recipients noted “you are already bright examples of inspiration, excellence and prospects. You have managed to distinguish yourselves through your personal vision, persistence in your dreams, faith in your abilities and, above all, through your hard work. The world, today more than ever, needs people with your dedication, your passion and your strength. You have in your hands the ability to bring positive changes, to open new paths and to create a better world… Your success is the success of all of us, it is a guarantee for a brighter future for our nation. I wish from the heart, good strength in your new beginning and may you return to our homeland, full of knowledge, experiences and new ideas, to contribute decisively to the evolution and strengthening of our country’s progress.”
The event concluded with the absolute protagonists, the scholarship recipients, taking the floor. The honor students, young women and men, emphasized the importance of recognizing and rewarding their efforts, sending a unified and strong message: “dreams are worth pursuing.”
The Union of Greek Shipowners has consistently placed education and scholarship provision at the center of its social work, practically supporting the country’s new generation.
Following its commitment “Maritime and Society Always Together,” it has established the particularly expanded program “SYN-ENOSIS FOR EDUCATION +100 SCHOLARSHIPS,” as well as the scholarship with the symbolic name “Excellence,” for the best of the best, for the first among firsts. The scholarships cover studies in Greece and abroad, in postgraduate programs at pre-doctoral level, full one-year or two-year studies. As the President of the Union of Greek Shipowners, Melina Travlou mentioned, the total investment for this specific program exceeds 5,000,000 euros.
This year’s program was numerically strengthened and amounts to 130 scholarships, including the “Excellence” scholarship. Specifically, scholarships were awarded to 130 young honor students from 21 regions of our homeland, to pursue their postgraduate studies in 10 scientific fields, in 11 countries, at 6 Greek universities and 45 abroad, according to their choice.
It is worth noting that the 130 scholarship recipients meet the announcement criteria and have achieved particularly high academic performance, selected from among a total of 800 candidates. The evaluation was undertaken by the relevant Committee, which consists of members of the Administrative Councils of the Union of Greek Shipowners and SYN-ENOSIS, chaired by Mr. Yannis Xylas, as well as Mr. Nikolas Veniamis, Dinos Karousis and Alexandros Pappas. The Evaluation Committee’s work was assisted by academic advisors Andreas Papandreou, Professor of Environmental Economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Elias Papaioannou, Professor of Economics at London Business School, and Meletios-Athanasios Dimopoulos, Professor of Therapeutics – Hematology – Oncology and Director of the Therapeutic Clinic of the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, as well as the artistic director of the Athens Concert Hall, Yannis Vakarelis.
The Union of Greek Shipowners’ postgraduate scholarship program is the country’s most comprehensive, constituting a strong pillar of its enduring humanitarian footprint, which “embraces” the sectors of health, education, social welfare, food aid, public interest projects as well as crisis management, having offered over 130,000,000 euros in recent years.
What Lina Mendoni emphasized
In her greeting, Lina Mendoni, Minister of Culture, stated:
“Madam President of the Union of Greek Shipowners,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends,
It is with particular joy that I attend tonight this important and moving celebration, which combines the strongest symbolism and the deep essence of excellence. The continuation of the Union of Greek Shipowners’ initiative to support young people in one of the most decisive steps of their lives is just one aspect of the enormous social work performed quietly and substantially by the leading institutional body of our shipping industry. At the same time, it is an action that has not only the character of social reciprocity, but undoubtedly a multiplier effect, and moreover long-term, as it invests in the future of the new generation, in the future of our homeland. This symbolism is maximally strengthened by hosting the event at the Olympieion, the great landmark of ancient Athens that embodies the ideal of excellence.
For the third consecutive year, the Union of Greek Shipowners provides, through the “SYN-ENOSIS for Education” program, material support to more than 100 graduates to continue their studies in one-year and two-year attendance programs, at postgraduate and pre-doctoral levels, in Greece and abroad. And it doesn’t only concern maritime, economic and polytechnic studies, but also the humanities and arts, and indeed in the broadest spectrum of cognitive subjects, crowned by the “Excellence” scholarship, awarded to the candidate who achieved a perfect 10 in their degree.
The Union’s scholarship program for young scientists who wish to accumulate knowledge by acquiring additional skills in preparation for entering the professional arena is becoming established and evolving as a reference point. This generous stance is part of the multifaceted social contribution of Greek shipping, as in recent years it has offered more than 130 million euros in corporate social responsibility actions, supporting education, culture, health, social structures, as well as vulnerable or affected areas and their people.
It is a precious and irreplaceable contribution, with truly long-standing roots, as since the era of ship captains, our shipping industry and its people have been at the forefront of service to the homeland, to intellectual and social life, even with their decisive contribution to the expansion of national wealth. Greek shipping, once again, proves to be socially sensitive and faithful to its values. It has invested, for two centuries, in excellence, in leveraging innovation and assimilating every new knowledge, so that today it dominates global maritime transport. It is undisputedly in first place.
Through ‘SYN-ENOSIS for Education,’ the support of young scientists takes on a structured form. Countless Greeks have studied and subsequently excelled thanks to the financial support of benefactors and maritime institutions, through dozens of bequests and scholarship programs that remain active today. This scholarship program demonstrates the care, now at an institutional level, of Greek shipowners for the future of the new generation.
My belief is that the union of public and private initiative forces is now not simply desirable, but necessary. Culture is an excellent example, where our planning based on state funding is further strengthened by significant private sponsorships. The Union of Greek Shipowners is a valuable ally of the Ministry of Culture.
Tonight, however, the evening belongs to the children we have the joy of having with us, as they now enter a new stage of their lives. With the scholarships awarded by the Union, it decisively assists them, freeing them from material concern for continuing their studies. It also rewards them morally, recognizing their effort and their desire to excel, confirming that excellence is not empty words.
In all of you, we also honor the previous generations who were called to spend their school and university years under difficult, rough and uncertain conditions, having experienced the burden of the long-standing Greek economic crisis from a young age. As students now, you felt its overcoming and the opening of more favorable prospects for both you and the homeland. It is, however, this experience of hardships that prepared you for the next stages of life which you reach with confidence. You have passed through multiple evaluation filters, one of which is the scholarships granted to you today. You have realized the value of hard work, continuous judgment and the reward of your efforts.
You rightfully deserve our congratulations. I am certain that you will make the most of the new opportunities opening up for you. We wish you to see your plans realized, however much hard work may be required, but you already know this well.
To the President of the Union of Greek Shipowners Melina Travlou, with whom we are connected by deep respect and close cooperation, I would like to thank, once again, the Union for its multifaceted, valuable, essential social contribution.”
Everything declared by the President of the Union of Greek Shipowners
Melina Travlou, President of the Union of Greek Shipowners, declared:
“Minister,
Chief Commanders,
Our dear scholarship recipients,
My dear colleagues,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Minister, Dear Lina,
I thank you warmly for your honorary words. We also thank you for giving us the opportunity to honor, here at the Olympieion, at this emblematic landmark of the timeless power of Greek culture, the excellence of our homeland’s new generation.
Deep is the pride and emotion of all of us, as members of Greek shipping, to see our Union’s scholarship family growing and strengthening year by year.
The syn-union of our forces in the field of Education is acquiring an increasingly powerful imprint on society and the future of our country.
A special ‘thank you’ to each of the 67 donors of this specific program of the Union of Greek Shipowners, who, all together, make it the most comprehensive, as well as the most dynamically developing scholarship program in the country. The program’s trajectory is steadily upward. It is worth noting that the total investment for this specific program exceeds 5,000,000 euros.
From 101 postgraduate scholarships, we reached 111 last year and this year 130.
Our 130 young honor students today, leaders of tomorrow, will travel from 21 regions of Greece to 11 countries around the world, will excel in 10 different scientific fields, at 6 Greek universities and 45 abroad, according to their choice.
Our dear scholarship recipients,
You are already bright examples of inspiration, excellence and prospects. You have managed to distinguish yourselves through your personal vision, persistence in your dreams, faith in your abilities and, above all, through your hard work. The world, today more than ever, needs people with your dedication, your passion and your strength. You have in your hands the ability to bring positive changes, to open new paths and to create a better world. It is your ability, but also your responsibility towards yourselves, your families and your teachers.
Just as our responsibility, as the shipping of the Greeks, as the shipping of the excellent, is to continue supporting our young women and men, who honor the value of excellence and put into practice ‘always strive for excellence.’
Your success is the success of all of us, it is a guarantee for a brighter future for our nation.
I wish from the heart, good strength in your new beginning and may you return to our homeland, full of knowledge, experiences and new ideas, to contribute decisively to the evolution and strengthening of our country’s progress.
My congratulations, congratulations from all of us and good progress to you!”
The event was coordinated by Mrs. Christina Karlafti, Flotilla Commander of the Coast Guard and Head of the Communication and Information Office of the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy.
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