The exhibition features illustrations of 28 prominent women from Europe and Kazakhstan for the book “The Power of Inspiration”, published by the European Union. The book was published last year as part of Aisholpan project, an international girls' empowerment project supported by the EU. The exhibition also marked the second edition of this remarkable book.

The exhibition was attended by diplomats, representatives of state bodies, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan, international and non-governmental organizations, as well as residents of the capital.

The Ambassador of the European Union to Kazakhstan, Kestutis Jankauskas, noted the symbolism of this exhibition: “Each of the heroines represents one country of the European Union, and among them there is an outstanding woman, composer, dombra player from Kazakhstan Dina Nurpeissova. With this exhibition, we want to emphasize the importance of gender equality issues, the role of women in the modern world, her opportunities, and the fact that every woman can realize her any dreams.”

Andre Carstens, Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, said that the idea of ​​organizing the exhibition arose after the publication of the book “The Power of Inspiration”: “Empowering women and girls is one of the priorities of our Embassy in the framework of the public diplomacy program. One way to do this is to inspire others and ourselves. We liked the book so much, especially the illustrations of the artist Assem Kenesova, that we decided that they deserved a larger format and a real exhibition.” He also asked visitors to pay attention to Aletta Jacobs, one of the 28 women whose portraits were on display, representing the Netherlands. She was the first woman to graduate from a Dutch university and a leader in the Dutch and international women's movement. He also mentioned Berta von Suttner from Austria, one of the most prominent peace activists of her time, which, unfortunately, is again a hot topic.

At the opening, women who distinguished themselves in various spheres of Kazakhstan society also shared their success stories: Botagoz Kaukenova, MD, biologist and head of the Medsupport.kz project; Meruert Tlebaldy, head of the national para-taekwondo team and employee of the National Paralympic Committee of the Republic of Kazakhstan; Assiya Ermukhambetova - PhD in chemical engineering, co-founder and chairman of the Young Researchers Alliance.

The electronic version of the book “The Power of Inspiration” is available at the following link: https://eeas.europa.eu/sites/default/files/preview1.pdf

For detailed information, please refer to:

Yerkezhan Amriyeva, Communications Specialist, Delegation of the European Union to Kazakhstan: [email protected](link sends e-mail)

Amina Kussainova, Public Diplomacy Officer, Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Kazakhstan: [email protected]