An international scientific conference, BEYOND WORDS: PERSUASIVE NARRATIVES AND MULTIMODAL DISCOURSE, will be held at Vilnius University Kaunas Faculty on October 24–25.

The conference aims to reveal the symbiosis of language, visuals, and narratives in constructing persuasive communication. Experienced, renowned, and young scholars will present the results of their research on various topics related to multimodal discourse.

The conference program is available here.

Abstracts of the conference presentations will be published in an online publication. Articles based on the conference presentations may be submitted to the scholarly journal Respectus Philologicus.

Following the declaration of independence, the business sector in Lithuania experienced a period of rapid growth. The legendary “wild capitalism”, which refers to the transition from a command to a market economy, became a time of opportunity for all the ambitious and bold individuals. Today, 30 years later, only a small number of those businesses are still operational. Nevertheless, some of them are still led by the same people. One such person is Stepas Telešius. He is a Vilnius University (VU) alumnus, one of the founders, shareholders, and board members of ACME Group, as well as the chairman of the board of Vesta Consulting, a sustainable business consulting company. He will be speaking at the 19th Prof. Vladas Gronskas International Scientific Conference on 29 November about how he and his peers from university, when establishing a business in 1993, were learning the principles of Western business in order to help the country become more European, and how this is contributing to the development of sustainable in business practices in the present day.

On 24 October 2024 at 10:15 am, Professor Charles Forceville from the University of Amsterdam will give a plenary lecture On developing Multimodal Metaphor Theory into Multimodal Trope Theory at the International Conference Beyond Words: Persuasive Narratives and Multimodal Discourse (Auditorium of Jonas Jablonskis, Building No 4, Muitinės Str. 14, Kaunas).

Online link.

Charles Forceville is a prominent scholar in multimodal communication and cognitive linguistics, currently serving as an associate professor in Media Studies at the Universiteit van Amsterdam. His academic journey began with English studies at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, followed by teaching in the fields of literature and Word & Image. After completing a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Leiden, he focused on broadening his research on visual and multimodal metaphors.

Forceville has made significant contributions to understanding how metaphors function not only in language but also in visual and multimodal contexts, such as advertising, comics, and film. He is particularly known for his work on pictorial metaphors in advertising, later expanding into multimodal metaphors, exploring how different modes (visuals, text, sound) work together in meaning-making. His research has been published widely, including edited volumes like Multimodal Metaphor (2009), Multimodal Argumentation and Rhetoric in Media Genres (2017), Visual and Multimodal Communication: Applying the Relevance Principle (2020).

In addition to his research, Forceville has held numerous visiting professorships, including at Lund University and Universidad Autónoma Madrid. He is currently advancing his research on relevance theory, narrative across media, and multimodal rhetoric. Forceville's scholarship aims to bridge the gap between the humanities and social sciences, demonstrating how cognitive theories can be applied to the analysis of art, popular culture, and media.

On 4-6 October, Kaunas hosted the second cyber defence and security innovation hackathon "Fire Shield 2024", initiated by the Lithuanian Rifle Union (LRU). The hackathon was organised by Kaunas Science and Technology Park "Tech-Park Kaunas" and three investment funds. This initiative is under the patronage of the Ministry of Economy and Innovation. Vilnius University Kaunas Faculty (VU KNF) student team "Baubai" (Eng. “Bogy Men”) took second place in the cyber competition "Capture the Flag" (CTF) and confidently defended the position they won last year.

Vilnius University Kaunas Faculty (VU KNF) student team "Baubai" (Eng. “Bogy Men”; the team’s name last year was "Agresyvūs pacifistai", Eng. "Aggressive Pacifists") was brought together again by the second-year student Raimundas Mačiulis and his coursemates Matas Žukauskas, Adris Čypas and Paulius Turauskas. The team members were also the third-year student Rimvydas Čivilis and the fourth-year student Karolis Petniūnas. All of them are students of the VU KNF Bachelor's degree programme Information Systems and Cyber Security.

Every year on 30 September, VU Kaunas Faculty celebrates the International Translators’ Day with various creative initiatives. This year, students, lecturers, administrative staff and other members of the community are invited to visualise the professional activity of a translator using creative video, audio and language tools.

“We invite students to unleash their creativity and participate in our exciting contest. Show us what translation means to you by creating an original piece of art that represents the role of a translator!” says Assoc. Prof Jurgita Astrauskienė, the lecturer at the Institute of Language, Literature and Translation Studies.

“We encourage participants to explore audio, visual, or a combination of both mediums to express their understanding of translation,” explains Assoc. Prof Jurgita Kerevičienė, the lecturer at the Institute of Language, Literature and Translation Studies.

Vilnius University (VU) has opened admissions for international students for the 2025 academic year, inviting students from all over the world to join one of Europe's oldest and most prestigious universities. VU offers a wide range of study programmes: more than 60 Bachelor's and Master's programmes, as well as two prestigious joint "Arqus" master's programmes, which allow students to receive education in multiple European countries.

VU’s international community is growing rapidly—this year, over 800 new international students have joined the university. Among the most popular study programmes are International Business, Medicine, Information Systems and Cybersecurity, and Software Engineering. Next year, students will also be able to choose from new and highly relevant programmes such as Nursing, Sustainability and Future Societies.

"Choosing Vilnius University was a deliberate decision fuelled by a desire for academic excellence and a unique cultural experience. The university's rich history, esteemed faculty, and diverse academic programmes were irresistible attractions. I'm grateful for Vilnius University's transformative impact on my academic and personal development, which has prepared me to embrace the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead,” shares Aida Ahmadi, a medical student from Iran studying at Vilnius University.

The folklore ensemble "Uosinta" invites everyone to a fun dance evening on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the founding of the VU Kaunas Faculty.

We guarantee a good mood, fun dancing, festive meals, new friends and unforgettable experiences.

We look forward to seeing you on 16 October (Wednesday) at 6:30 p.m. at the Council Hall (Muitinės st. 12)

See you there!

Are you a Vilnius University student eager to harness your knowledge in a real business? If you dream of exploring entrepreneurship, the VU Tech Hub invites you to register for a 6-month pre-accelerator program. During this time, Vilnius University (VU) students will be guided through the startup creation process by experienced lecturers and mentors. The program offers 45 of the most motivated students the chance to not only develop essential entrepreneurial skills but also to find team members, join the startup ecosystem, and connect with investors.

"We see a strong appetite among students to learn more about setting up a business and to get help with their business ideas, so we want to help them do just that. Students will develop real businesses and solve real problems, but most importantly, they will have the opportunity to discover other motivated students who bring different competences and can become their business partners," says Gediminas Rumšas, Vice Dean of the VU Faculty of Economics and Administration.