The Greek Culture Minister visited Greek Orthodox Schools in Sydney. Credit: Culture Ministry
Greece’s Minister of Culture Lina Mendoni, concluded a trip to Sydney, Australia, solidifying plans for major cultural collaboration and receiving strong support from Greek-Australian government officials for a new virtual museum documenting the diaspora’s history.
The Minister held a working meeting with two New South Wales government ministers of Greek descent: Steve Kamper, Minister for Multiculturalism, Lands and Property, Sport, and Tourism, and Sophie Kotsis, Minister for Industrial Relations and Work Health and Safety. The meeting was also attended by Archbishop Makarios of Australia.
Major exhibition and cultural exchange between Greece and Australia
The three ministers engaged in extensive discussions on boosting cultural ties between Greece and New South Wales. Ministers Kamper and Kotsis showed particular interest in hosting exhibitions that trace the entire long arc of Greek history, linking it specifically to the Greek element within Australia.
Minister Kamper proposed that such an exhibition could be housed at the massive new Powerhouse Paramatta Museum, slated to be the largest museum in NSW. Both sides also discussed the possibility of the Greek National Theatre performing an ancient Greek drama in Sydney.
A consensus was reached to sign a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) to facilitate the exchange of exhibitions and best practices between the two entities.
Reviving Greek handicrafts
Minister Mendoni also presented Greece’s extensive program for the revival of Greek handicraft, which aims to create a new generation of professionally trained, certified, and internationally networked artisans. The program has established 19 educational structures across Greece.
Minister Kotsis acknowledged the program’s crucial role in preserving traditional arts, while Minister Mendoni emphasized its impact on supporting local economies and communities. As part of the exchange proposal, the Greek Minister suggested organizing a major handicraft exhibition in Sydney.
Praise for the virtual museum of the Diaspora
«Our People, Their Stories» exhibition. Credit: Ministry of Culture
A significant focus of the meeting and the trip was the virtual museum, “Our People, Their Stories”. This project, an initiative of the Holy Archdiocese of Australia under Archbishop Makarios, documents the history of the Greek diaspora.
Both Greek-Australian ministers expressed full support for the virtual museum, which is already under the auspices and cooperation of the Greek Ministry of Culture, underscoring the importance of preserving the cultural identity and heritage of the Greek community in Australia.
Minister Mendoni’s visit coincided with the official one-year anniversary presentation of the virtual museum, held in a deeply moving atmosphere at the packed auditorium of the Australian National Maritime Museum in Sydney.
Launched globally a year ago by the Ecumenical Patriarch, the virtual museum has recorded an astonishing 11 million visitors in its first year of operation.
Archbishop Makarios and Greek Culture Minister Mendoni. Credit: Ministry of Culture
Archbishop Makarios described the project as a “living museum of the immigrants’ adventure,” noting that it projects the universality of Hellenism as a linguistic and cultural ideal, rather than a narrow ethnic concept.
Minister Mendoni praised the initiative as a work of “exceptional significance” and a “living archive of memory.” She stated that the museum is a valuable repository of personal narratives and experiences that highlight the strength, resilience, and unceasing connection to their roots of Greek immigrants who built new lives in Australia.
The project meticulously preserves the oral history of first and second-generation Greek immigrants, providing a scholarly yet empathetic record of the migration experience—not only as a socio-economic phenomenon but as a profound personal and familial human epic.
Minister Mendoni emphasized the museum’s commitment to involving the new generation of the diaspora in its future development, ensuring its sustainability and continued relevance.
The Greek Ministry of Culture confirmed its commitment to the project, stating that its support is not merely symbolic but substantive, pledging to back all efforts that strengthen the cultural identity of the Diaspora and promote Greek culture globally.
Related: The Legendary “Patris” Ship: Uniting Greece and Australia in an Epic Journey