BRIEF BIOGRAPHY OF CONTRIBUTORS

MARIA LUKA

Maria Louka was born in Nicosia and studied Greek Literature in Athens. She taught in Secondary Education in Cyprus and retired as a School Director. She served in the Program Development Service of the Ministry of Education, where she participated in the writing of school books. She collaborated with the Cyprus Radio Foundation, presenting children's books on the show "Orizontes".

She has written and directed plays, participating in the Pancyprian School Theatre Competitions with significant distinctions. She was a member of the Board of Directors of the Cyprus Writers' Union and the Cyprus Children's and Youth Book Association. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the Pancyprian Literacy Promotion Organization and is responsible for the Reading Club of the Lakatamia Municipal Library.

Her works have been honored with state and literary awards, such as "Stories of Little Filio" and "The Mistress of Lara". Her recent publications include the poetry album "White Mountains" and the novella "Sixteen Characters Seek an Author" (Vakchikon, 2025).

HELENA PERIKLEOUS

Elena Pericleous is an educator and writer. She studied Pedagogy and holds a Master's degree in Environmental Education. She is the Coordinator of Cultural Education at the Deputy Ministry of Culture of Cyprus and President of the Cyprus Book Board for Children and Young People (IBBY Cyprus). She writes regularly in the press and writes mainly for children but also for adults.

She has been honored with state and literary awards for many of her works, such as:
"Through the Eyes of a Dog" , "The Boy Who Was the Star of the Earth" , "Green Knights on a Secret Mission" , "The Tree That Listened" , "A Chest Full of Stories" , and more.
Her writing includes over 20 titles, with themes that touch on social sensitivity, the environment, human rights and imagination.

ANDREAS NIKOLAIDES

Andreas Nikolaidis Biography:

Andreas Nikolaidis studied History and Politics at the Department of Turkish and Middle Eastern Studies of the University of Cyprus. He is also a graduate of the Vladimiros Kafkarides School of Drama and holds a Master's degree in Directing and Acting from the Open University of Cyprus.

As an actor, he participated in theatrical, film and television productions, while he directed the plays "Maria Callas, Before the End" and "The Jewess" by Bertolt Brecht at the Roi Theater.

As a screenwriter, he collaborated with the Cyprus Radio Foundation to write and edit scripts. He has also written and adapted plays that have been performed on the theater stages of Cyprus.

In 2019, he published his first novella entitled "The Cranial Hippocampus" and in 2021, the bilingual play, in Greek and English, "Maria Callas, Before the End" and the novel "The Island of Chalcountain, a Tragic-Comic Story". In 2024, he was awarded the First Prize for short story by the cultural magazine "Nea Epoch" for his work "The Man with the Bird".

SUNNY CANARY

Iliana Kanara is a kindergarten teacher and actress, a graduate of the University of Cyprus (Education Sciences) and the "Vladimiros Kafkarides" Theater School, from which she graduated with honors. She has participated in theatrical performances of the Hellenic Theatre Company and television productions. She is particularly interested in the connection between theater and education and utilizes theater as a learning tool in public schools.

He was a member of the theater group "SKINOVATES" of the Cyprus Theatre Association for 9 years, participating in festivals in Cyprus and Greece. He is an active member of the Cyprus Theatre Association, having served in the Nicosia District Office and currently on the Executive Board. He served the Local Government as Vice President of the Lakatamia School Ephorate and has participated in education and culture committees.

A mother of two, she volunteers in activities for children and continues to educate herself in theater and education, which she considers fields with continuous development and transformative power.