The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (www.SNF.org) announced today that Ioannis Trohopoulos, a leading expert on libraries and previously Director of the Veria Central Public Library in Northern Greece, has been appointed the first CEO and Managing Director of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC) A.E. Mr. Trohopoulos will assume the directorship on June 1, 2012. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center A.E. is the nonprofit organization responsible for the planning, construction and future operation of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center. The Center, to be built on the Athens waterfront, will include new facilities for the National Library of Greece, the Greek National Opera, and the Stavros Niarchos Park.Development of the SNFCC has reached a critical juncture. The selection of a construction company is imminent, and construction is expected to begin in the fall of 2012, while advanced excavations are already in full progress at the site. With completion scheduled for the end of 2015, it is now time to focus on the occupational, operational and programmatic aspects of the Center. The appointment of a managing director is the next crucial step in establishing the SNFCC as a world-class cultural, educational and recreational center.“Mr. Trohopoulos is ideally suited to spearhead the development of this important cultural center,” said Andreas C. Dracopoulos, Co-President of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation’s Board of Directors. “He is an internationally recognized authority on libraries, since for 22 years, he guided the Veria Central Public Library on a remarkable path to national and international acclaim, culminating in its receipt of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s “Access to Learning” Award in 2010. We are delighted that he will now lead the management of the SNFCC.”In accepting the new position, Ioannis Trohopoulos said, “I am deeply moved and honored that I will be a member of the team that is making this extraordinary project a reality. The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center belongs to the creative forces of Greece. Together we will work methodically and with flexibility, dedication, imagination, and perseverance to ensure that the SNFCC meets the highest standards and becomes the symbol of Greece’s hope for tomorrow.”
Ioannis Trohopoulos’ brief CV:
Ioannis Trohopoulos, 52, was born and raised in Veria, Greece, and was Director of the Veria Central Public Library from 1990 to 2012. He holds a Law Degree (1982) from the School of Law of the University of Thessaloniki and a MLib from the University of Wales, UK (1990). From 1994 to 2004 he was the national coordinator for six EU projects, namely the MOBILE, PLDP, Publica, ISTAR, PULMAN, and CALIMERA projects. From 2004 to 2007 he coordinated the Light Project, which was funded under Interreg III C East. From 2007 to 2011 he managed the European projects ENTITLE and UNTOLD, both funded under Grudvtiq programs, and the EDLocal and AccessIT EU projects, which focus on the development of digital libraries. Today, he still oversees the implementation of the projects AccessITPLUS and Εuropeana Awareness. In August 2010, during the IFLA conference in Gothenburg, Sweden, he received the Gates Foundation's annual Access to Learning Award on behalf of the Veria Central Public Library.In 2011, with support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, he created and began implementing a highly original nationwide program titled Future Library. The program began with a feasibility study on the state and needs of municipal and public libraries across Greece and continues with the implementation of targeted actions to selected libraries so that they improve their operations and public programs. The overall aim of the program is to help libraries acquire the role of civic centers within their respective communities.
About the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center A.E.
The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center A.E. is an organization created under the legal status of a not-for-profit limited liability company, based on the Contract drawn up on March 2009 between the Greek State and the Stavros Niarchos Foundation. The Contract was ratified by the Greek Parliament under law 3785/2009. The purpose of the Organization is, on one hand, the planning, construction and outfitting of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center and, on the other hand, the overseeing, maintenance, security, organization and operation of the Center after its completion, so that it remains in an excellent state and fulfills completely its purposes. The Center includes new facilities for the National Library of Greece, the Greek National Opera, and the Stavros Niarchos Park.During the realization of the Cultural Center, the Organization is controlled by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation, which owns its only share and appoints its Board of Directors. During this period the Organization's only income is contributions and grants disposed exclusively by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation.Upon completion of the project, the Organization's only share will be donated by the Foundation to the Greek State. The Foundation (including the SNFCC's Board of Directors) will withdraw and, from that point onwards, will have no participation or any obligation in relation to the Organization's operation.
