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Rikke Marianne Helms (born 25 February 1948) is a Danish cultural worker and leader of the Danish Cultural Institute's office in Saint Petersburg.
Rikke Helms was born in 1948 in Skive, Denmark to Dr Peder Georg Helms (1920–2005), a physician, and Sara (née Tønnesen) Helms (1911–1999); she has two brothers. She spent most of her childhood in the eastern Greenland in connection with her parents work as physicians.
In 1966, she took the studentereksamen [ clarification needed ] at the Horsens Statsskole. In 1976, she was awarded cand.mag. in Russian and Danish language studies from the University of Copenhagen. Following a one-year study at the Leningrad State University, she worked as a travel guide for tourists and congresses in the former Soviet Union in the period 1970–75 during her years of studies.[ citation needed ]
From 1977 to 1985, she worked in Denmark's educational system. She returned in 1985 to the Soviet Union to work as a rector at the Moscow State University until 1990, when she was appointed as the first leader of the newly created Danish Cultural Institute's office in Riga, during a turbulent period when Latvia regained its independence. Helms held this position until 2003 when she was appointed as leader of the Danish Cultural Institute's office in Saint Petersburg.[ citation needed ]
Rikke Helms has been the recipient of several civilian awards for her work. In 1993 she was awarded the Ebbe Muncks Hæderspris. She was awarded the Order of the Three Stars, 3rd Class on 7 November 1994, and was the first foreigner after Latvia regained its independence to do so. [1] In 1996 Helms was awarded an honorary Doctorate by the Latvian Academy of Culture. In 2011 she was awarded the Order of the Dannebrog, 3rd Class.[ citation needed ]
Baltic Germans are ethnic German inhabitants of the eastern shores of the Baltic Sea, in what today are Estonia and Latvia. Since their resettlement in 1945 after the end of World War II, Baltic Germans have markedly declined as a geographically determined ethnic group in the region.
The Baltic states or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term encompassing Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, Council of Europe, and the OECD. The three sovereign states on the eastern coast of the Baltic Sea are sometimes referred to as the "Baltic nations", less often and in historical circumstances also as the "Baltic republics", the "Baltic lands", or simply the Baltics.
Rēzekne is a state city in the Rēzekne River valley in the Latgale region of eastern Latvia. It is called The Heart of Latgale. Built on seven hills, Rēzekne is situated 242 kilometres east of Riga, and 63 kilometres west of the Latvian-Russian border, at the intersection of the Moscow – Ventspils railway and Warsaw – Saint Petersburg Railways. It is the 7th largest city in Latvia.
The Singing Revolution was a series of events from 1987 to 1991 that led to the restoration of independence of the three Soviet-occupied Baltic countries of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania at the end of the Cold War. The term was coined by an Estonian activist and artist, Heinz Valk, in an article published a week after the 10–11 June 1988 spontaneous mass evening singing demonstrations at the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds.
Saint Petersburg State University is a public research university in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and one of the oldest and most prestigious universities in Russia. Founded in 1724 by a decree of Peter the Great, the university from the beginning has had a focus on fundamental research in science, engineering and humanities.
Sandra Kalniete is a Latvian politician, author, diplomat and independence movement leader. She served as Foreign Minister of Latvia 2002–2004 and as European Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development and Fisheries in 2004. Since 2009, she has served as Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for the European People's Party.
Sportin Latvia includes basketball, football, ice hockey, athletics (track), rugby, tennis, cycling, and others. Ice hockey is the most popular of the Latvian sports and is closely followed by basketball. Some of Latvia's most notable athletes include hockey player Sandis Ozoliņš, football player Māris Verpakovskis, Olympic javelin thrower Jānis Lūsis, two-time Olympic BMX champion Maris Strombergs, and basketball player Kristaps Porziņģis. The national sport of Latvia is ice hockey.
Galina Vasilyevna Starovoitova was a Soviet dissident, Russian politician and ethnographer known for her work to protect ethnic minorities and promote democratic reforms in Russia. She was shot to death in her apartment building in 1998.
Vilhelms Purvītis was a landscape painter and educator who founded the Latvian Academy of Art and was its rector from 1919 to 1934.
Peter the Great St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, abbreviated as SPbPU, is a public technical university located in Saint Petersburg, Russia. The university houses one of the country's most advanced research labs in hydro–aerodynamics. The university's alumni include Nobel Prize winners, such as Pyotr Kapitsa and Zhores Alferov, physicists and atomic weapon designers such as Yulii Khariton, Nikolay Dukhov, Abram Ioffe, Aleksandr Leipunskii, and Yakov Zeldovich, aircraft designers and aerospace engineers, such as Yulii Khariton, Oleg Antonov, Nikolai Polikarpov, and Georgy Beriev, and chess grandmasters, such as David Bronstein. The university offers academic programs at the Bachelor, Master's, and Doctorate degree levels. SPbSPU consists of structural units called Institutes divided into three categories: Engineering Institutes, Physical Institutes, and Economics and Humanities Institutes. In 2022, the university was ranked #301 in the world in the Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, #393 in QS World University Rankings, #679 in Best Global Universities Rankings by U.S. News & World Report, and #1,005 by Center for World University Rankings.
Valentina Ivanovna Matviyenko is a Russian politician and diplomat serving as a Senator from Saint Petersburg and the Chairwoman of the Federation Council since 2011. Previously she was Governor of Saint Petersburg from 2003 to 2011.
Tatiana Viktorovna Stepanova, also Tetiana Stepanova, is a Ballet master, choreographer, ballet dancer, critic, essayist and historian of the dance.
The three Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania – were re-occupied in 1944–1945 by the Soviet Union (USSR) following the German occupation. The Baltic states regained independence in 1990–1991.
Denmark–Latvia relations refers to the historical and current diplomatic relations between Denmark and Latvia. Denmark has an embassy in Riga and Latvia has an embassy in Copenhagen.
Helēna Demakova is a Latvian art historian, curator of art exhibitions, and politician. She served as Culture Minister of Latvia from 2004 until 2009 and was a Member of the 9th Saeima and lecturer at the Art Academy of Latvia.
Lidija Liepiņa was a Latvian physical chemist, Academician of the Academy of Sciences of the Latvian SSR, professor, and one of the first women to receive a doctorate in chemistry in the USSR.
Ivande Kaija was the pen name of Antonija Lūkina, Latvian writer and feminist, who fought for the independence of Latvia. Through public works and writing, Kaija advocated Latvians to donate assets to the "Gold Fund" which became the gold reserve of the country in 1920. Her public service was honored when she was bestowed the Order of the Three Stars in 1926. Though many of her works were destroyed during the Soviet period, they have seen a resurgence in recent years.
Anna Bērzkalne was a Latvian teacher and folklorist who founded the Archives of Latvian Folklore in 1924 and headed the organization for its first five years. Her analysis of Latvian folk ballads was awarded the Krišjānis Barons Prize in 1933. She was the first Latvian to earn a degree in Folkloric Studies and is recognized as one of the central figures in developing folkloric study as an academic discipline in Latvia.
Olha Petrivna Kosach-Kryvyniuk was a Ukrainian writer, translator, and physician.
Gothards Vilhelms Nikolajs Munters was a Latvian diplomat who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia from 1936 to 1940. He was also a member of the Council of the League of Nations from 1936 to 1938, Chairman of the Far East Commission and the President of the 101st Session of the League in 1938.