Lithuania Residents: Submit a Map for the 2026 Andrew Kapochunas Environmental Map Award by November 15!

I have visited Lithuania ten times, beginning in 1996, and have always loved the many unspoiled parts of the country, from picturesque Neringa to the pine forests near the Belarus border, where I have gone mushroom-picking with cousins, cousins who always saved me from collecting inedible varieties. I knew that the land, forests, lakes, rivers, bogs and air needed preservation and maintenance. That's something that in 1996 understandably could not be a priority, but in 2026 must be, if Lithuania is to continue to be a place where residents can lead healthy lives, and where both residents and tourists can enjoy Lithuania's natural beauty.

I began offering a €500 prize for a map by a resident of Lithuania illustrating an environmental problem in Lithuania, and perhaps offering a solution, in 2020. You can see the winning entries and their creators every year since, chosen by a combination of Lithuanian Cartographic Society mapmakers and myself, here: https://lietuvoskartografija.lt/kapociuno-premija/istorija/

If you are a resident of Lithuania and a mapmaker, or know someone who is, I urge you to submit a map for this year's prize by November 15. Here's the poster in Lithuanian: