Tomas Martinaitis is the Deputy Mayor of Akmene District Municipality in Lithuania. In this role, he represents the district, coordinates the education system in the region, implements various integration programs, oversees the quality of public service administration, and coordinates youth activities in the region. He previously served as Adviser to the Mayor. Tomas studied at Vilnius University, receiving both a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Relationships (2020) and a Master’s degree in Public Governance (2021). He is currently earning his Ph.D. in Political Science at Vytautas Magnus University. Tomas was a 2022 member of the McCain Institute Global Leaders Program and a 2021 Lithuanian youth representative to the Community of Democracies program in Warsaw. He also served as the 2018 Lithuanian delegate to Committee of Regions in Brussels and a 2019 member of Brussels’ Young Elected Politician program.

IVLP Impact Award Project: Stronger Together

The project battles disinformation with the help of Ukrainian refugees and young NGO leaders of Lithuania’s Akmene and Mazeikiai municipalities. Through regional media campaigns fighting disinformation, young people’s media literacy levels are increased, and Ukrainian refugees are integrated into Lithuania by connecting them with youth NGOs and young leaders.

The project’s main event, a two-day workshop focused on bringing youth together to combat disinformation, took place in September and gathered 40 people from the Akmene and Mazeikiai regions and Ukrainian refugees in Lithuania. Former IVLP participants and other U.S. exchange alumni joined and presented topics related to disinformation and their own experiences with the matter. After the workshops, the participants held events in their communities to present on disinformation and how to recognize and combat it.

These sessions engaged about 200 community members. Additionally, the project produced three local radio podcasts and four articles in local newspapers about disinformation and the stories of Ukrainian people migrating and living in Lithuania. Though Tomas just published the podcasts and news articles this month, he expects them to reach 6000 views/listens.

“My idea is to show that with the support of [the] U.S., we can…address and solve [the] important challenges [in] our community.” – Tomas Martinaitis

IVLP Exchange Experience

Tomas participated in the IVLP Project 21^st Century ChangeMakers: Engaging Youth in the Battle against Disinformation organized by the U.S. Department of State and Meridian International Center, in partnership with Global Ties Alabama, WorldDenver, WorldBoston, and Global Santa Fe.

Tomas’ exchange experience led to the development of his project: “During [my IVLP] trip, [I] met different actors from [the] U.S. State Department, different media outlets in America, and leaders of different NGOs who [make] enormous effort to educate people, [and] fight [against the] disinformation and radicalization of our societies. [For example], Pat Duggins, news director of Alabama Public Radio…showed the importance of radio podcast in the education of people. This encouraged me to face the reality we have now in my own country and region…[and] to empower [young people] with the tools that are working in America.”

“[My] IVLP experience helped me to understand how important [it] is to take responsibility for your own community.” – Tomas Martinaitis

U.S. Communities Visited 

Birmingham, AL; Denver, CO; Washington, DC; Boston, MA; Santa Fe, NM

Country: Lithuania

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