Bond University director of the Institute for Evidence-Based Healthcare and clinical epidemiologist Paul Glasziou is among them.
Glasziou collaborated on one of the first reviews of the critical question of how many people who contracted Covid-19 were asymptomatic.
The 2020 paper was picked up by the World Health Organisation.
He also co-wrote a highly cited paper with colleague Iain Chalmers in 2019.
“We calculated that about 85 percent of research goes to waste because of nonpublication, poor reporting, or avoidable serious flaws in the design of the research,” Glasziou tells the Australian.
Pharmacology and pharmacy researcher Arthur Christopoulos was recognised in the health and medical sciences category.
Professor Christopoulos is a leading figure in pharmacology and is Dean of the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Monash University.
“Ever since I was in high school I wanted to be a pharmacist. There is a rich history here of primary health care that always drew me to the profession,” he said in a Monash article.
As the son of Greek migrants, Christopoulos is highly rewarded for his study of the G protein-coupled receptors, the largest class of protein targets for medicinal agents.
“I studied hard and I found that I loved it. What I was drawn towards in particular was pharmacology; the science of how drugs work,” he said.
UNSW’s Nicole Kessissoglou was recognised in the acoustics and sound category.
Her research interests include structural vibration and transmission, fluid-structure interaction, and active noise and vibration control.
She is the author of several journal articles, books, and papers.
Australian ambassador to the US Arthur Sinodinos has ruled out buying nuclear submarines from the US or UK.
He suggested the vast bulk of the new fleet promised under the AUKUS security pact would be built in South Australia.
“This is not about cannibalising American and British submarine fleets or taking the next one that comes off the assembly line or anything like that,” he said, speaking as part of an online panel at the Hudson Institute on Tuesday.
“This is about developing a capability, which augments what is available to allies and partners in the region.”
Sinodinos said the government hoped to sort out the details of construction in sooner than 18 months.
“We‘re hoping to do it as quickly as possible and not have to use the full 18 months,” he said, referencing the 18 month period in the deal.
“We‘ve got people coming into the embassy, help with this work here in Washington, the White House, the Pentagon is staffing up as well.”
“The UK is doing the same thing.”
“So watch this space.”
Twelve new submarines were being constructed in Adelaide by French shipbuilder Naval Group, but that project is now likely to be scrapped (Commonwealth of Australia: Navy Imagery Unit)
Submarine workers in South Australia will be reassured and the capability of the Australian submarine industry and workforce will be under the microscope.
The Ambassador said the submarines would enable Australia to “project power”, but shouldn’t be seen as a threat to China.
“We want to move on. We‘re happy to have a dialogue, a dialogue without preconditions. And we want to just normalise relations again. This is not about us seeking to regime change or anything like that,” Sinodinos said.
Tensions between the two countries have deteriorated in recent years. We’re currently in the middle of a trade dispute with Beijing.
“We want to be able to … project our power further up rather than taking an approach that all our defence has to be a defence of the mainland,” Mr Sinodinos said, pointing out defence spending was increasing towards 2.5 per cent of GDP.
“We‘re doing that because we want to be more proactive in shaping the environment in our region … the challenge for us in the region today is not to sit back and be the passive recipient of whatever may be happening, but seeking to shape events.”
KAZ founder Peter Kazacos is using quantum security technology to upgrade the cryptography of Bitcoin.
Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin rely on cryptography to ensure security and trust and prevent breaches.
Kazacos says advances in technology present new risks for the cryptography of this new currency.
“…particularly with the advent of quantum computing, which could break current implementations of cryptography,” he said.
KAZ’s solution “uses quantum technology to upgrade the cryptography of existing protocols like Bitcoin and Ethereum,” Kazacos says.
KAZ proposes using quantum technology to protect against the threat of quantum computers.
“We are solving this [threat] by using real quantum phenomena, quantum tunneling of electrons which are totally unpredictable and entirely random to produce quantum cryptographic keys,” he said.
“If something is truly random it follows that it cannot be reverse-engineered and is theoretically impossible to breach.”
Cue the first crypto to use quantum tech: Quantum Assets Token.
“Quantum Assets on the Binance Smart Chain are the first crypto to adopt KAZ’s quantum technology and are using it to launch Quantum Bitcoin in a bid to ensure the cryptography of Bitcoin remains safe and secure.”
Quantum Digital Assets Limited is the corporation behind the recent launch of the Quantum Assets token on the Binance Smart Chain.
Quantum Assets is levering KAZ’s core platform quantum technology to launch Quantum BTC and Quantum ETH each on their own Quantum Mainnets, with more protocols to follow in the future.
“We are proud to be leveraging and deploying KAZ’s quantum technology security solution to bring the world Quantum Bitcoin,” a Quantum Assets spokesperson said.
South Australia’s Riverland produces 60 per cent of Australia’s wine, by volume, and many Greek families who migrated to the region from the 1950s to the 1970s have contributed to its recognition as the engine room of the country’s wine industry.
The Koutouzis family is one of them.
“My parents, Theodora and George, immigrated to Australia from the Peloponnese in the 1960s and 70s and they moved to the Riverland to work in factories and pick fruit,” John Koutouzis, the heart and soul of the family’s handcrafted boutique wine brand, Sixty Eight Roses, tells The Greek Herald.
From the mid 1900s many Greek arrivals in South Australia were employed on two-year contracts with the Australian government.
They worked in ship building in Whyalla, fishing in Port Lincoln and as fruit pickers and growers in the citrus, stone and dried fruit industries of Renmark and Berri. Others migrated to Port Pirie and joined the substantial Greek community already there.
In 1961 there were 9,528 Greek South Australians. By 1966 there were 14,660.
“My parents met each other in the factories in Berri in the early 1970s. They got married, had their first child and together they opened a Greek Deli. Shortly after, they sold the Deli and in the mid 70s, they bought the family farm at Chilton Road in Berri,” John said.
Theodora and George Koutouzis used to cut apricots by hand and then dry them in the sun
“We [John and his three siblings] grew up in a 20-acre farm full of different varieties of wine grapes, table grapes, dried apricots and peaches. It was a beautiful country lifestyle away from the big smoke among many other migrants and with an annual multicultural festival.”
The Koutouzis family business was and remains one of the biggest distributors and suppliers for major wineries and winemakers in the area.
Ditching the corporate life for winemaking
In the 2000’s after two significant droughts a global over supply of wine grape and the shortage of water saw the demise of Riverland’s wine industry boom.
It was then that the region’s multicultural community started to lose its vibrancy and colour.
“After a while the community got smaller. The children of the people who migrated to the Riverland went to university and moved to big cities.”
In 2016 there were only 1,278 people of Greek descent living in the Murraylands and Riverland region.
The Koutouzis family having a traditional souvla on their farm for Easter, 1980s
John Koutouzis finished high school and then went to University of South Australia where he completed a commercial law degree.
“Then I went to the banking sector and corporate life in Adelaide and then to Melbourne for four years. But this lifestyle didn’t satisfy me at all,” he said.
“From a country boy, living in a farm to wearing a suit and being restricted to a 9-5 job wasn’t for me. So, in 2010 I left Melbourne and came back to the Riverland where I started working on the farms again.”
“It is the best decision I’ve made. On the farm I can be myself, work my own hours and have that freedom, fresh air and space.”
When Sixty Eight Roses Wines was born
The Riverland has been for some years now redefining itself as an inland cluster of viable, smart vineyards and wineries and has proven that resilience and perseverance is a key to success.
So has John, who left behind a busy lifestyle to go back to his roots and pursue his passion for organic, handmade wine.
“Growing up on the vineyard we grew a lot of red varieties, especially shiraz and grenache and we’d make wine every year. When I came back from Melbourne, I thought to make a ton. It became popular, I made some more and now I’m slowly branching to more varieties,” he said.
And this is how his brand, Sixty Eight Roses came about.
“We launched our product in February 2020 and in March the pandemic happened. We had to focus on domestic South Australian sales and branch our product locally because the big states were in lockdown. It was super stressful but this experience taught me how to be resourceful and resilient.”
South Australia has a new generation of winemakers who want to breathe new life into one of Australia’s oldest wine regions and John Koutouzis’ brand is certainly one to look out for.
“As a nano-producer I make roughly 2-3 tonnes per variety and I want to keep it quality high. I want it to be personal, handmade and something unique,” he said.
I asked him how he came up with the name of the brand.
“Sixty-eight is our farm allotment number,” he said.
“Our family home where we were born, grew up and lived is surrounded by so many varieties of roses that grow on our front yard. This is where I come home after a hard day’s work and I can switch off, I can relax and come up with ideas.”
For John and all the Greek Australian winemakers and producers who keep the family traditions going and create small brands with big impact I think we should raise a glass.
The Greek Community of Melbourne (GCM) is calling on the federal government to negotiate a bilateral health care agreement with Greece.
Minister for Immigration Alex Hawke met with GCM President Bill Papastergiadis, as well as board members Marinis Pirpiris, Chris Sikavitsas, and Greek Centre director Jorge Menidis, at the GCM Greek Centre on Tuesday.
“The Morrison government and the Greek Community of Melbourne have had a strong relationship for a number of years and with the help of the Morrison government negotiations have commenced with the Greek state for a double taxation agreement,” Papastergiadis said.
(Photo: Supplied)
“This is fundamental for developing the relationship between two countries who have been allies in world wars, have a shared migration, but now, equally, will have a strong economic footing between the two countries.”
Minister Hawke outlined Australia’s close relationship with Greece.
“As Bill says, we continue to work closely with the Greek government,” said Minister Hawke, who was presented with a commemorative plaque.
(Photo: Supplied)
“We will work … with the Greek government, given our strong history, how long we’ve been partnering together; there are great arguments to fix these things that need fixing so that we can strengthen the relationships between our people on tax, in health, and all the things that are barriers for travel.”
“I look forward to those negotiations continuing.”
The GCM also announced it will host the Global Hellenic Medical Conference in September 2022.
Greece will launch a public campaign urging victims of domestic violence to “speak up” after a spate of femicides.
The initiative will try to ram home the message that there is help for women in abusive relationships, Greece’s gender equality minister told the Guardian.
“What we are seeing is very worrying, and our message is ‘speak up, we are here to assist’,” said Maria Syrengela.
“It’s very important that women understand the warning signs.”
Television channels, social media and the mainstream press will be enlisted as part of the effort to highlight a nationwide network of shelters and counselling centres set up to provide psychosocial and legal support.
A free helpline offering support has also been established.
The drive, described as unprecedented for Greece in scope and scale, will expand on a pilot programme activated during the pandemic, when cases of abuse, attributed to long months of confinement, began to soar.
“So often women have been scared to speak. It was such a taboo they remained silent,” Syrengela said.
“Now, even in the last village of Greece, we are saying there are services that can help, that they can start a new life.”
Greece’s gender equality minister Maria Syrengela (Photo: Maria Syrengela on Facebook)
Never has domestic violence been so publicly discussed in a country where entrenched patriarchal views have been slow to change and, outside towns and cities, traditional mores still hold sway.
“There’s been an increase in women coming in,” said Katerina Kostaki, a psychologist at a counselling centre off Syntagma Square in Athens.
“All these incidents have brought up a lot of angst and pain even for victims who may have completed their therapy.”
“Many feel guilt and shame that they are with violent men and anxiety they could be next [to be killed].”
From January to October this year, 12 women aged 19 to 75 were allegedly murdered by husbands or partners.
Femicides have not only piled pressure on the Greek government but led to fervent calls for changes to Greece’s penal code.
There are demands for femicides to be classified as a distinct crime to stop perpetrators using legal loopholes in an attempt to get more lenient sentences.
But Athens’ supreme court prosecutor weighed in last week, ordering jurists to fast-track cases of domestic abuse by adopting a system that would allow suspects to be indicted, arrested and tried within 48 hours of committing a crime.
The intervention was described as groundbreaking for a criminal justice system that is not only notoriously slow but regularly compared by legal experts to a relic of the 19th century.
“It’s a turning point,” said Maria Gavouneli, president of the Greek national commission for human rights.
“He has instructed prosecutors across the country to pay special attention to cases of domestic violence and reminded them of the [legal] toolbox.”
Greek prosecutors would now be encouraged to use every legal provision in the criminal code when dealing with femicides, Gavouneli said.
“They won’t just prosecute for murder but [will also] take aggravating circumstances into account. It’s very significant,” she says.
“The Greek justice system is extremely slow. It literally doesn’t work anymore.”
The government campaign is to be followed by other initiatives that will aim to convey the message that women are every bit equal to men.
Greece accused the Turkish coast guard on Tuesday of pushing migrants into Greek waters.
The Greek coast guard posted a video of Turkish patrol vessels accompanying an inflatable dinghy holding dozens of migrants to Lesbos early Tuesday.
They say they prevented the dinghy’s entry, and the Turkish guard eventually picked up the migrants after initially refusing to do so.
“(The video) shows, beyond any doubt, the clear attempts by Turkish coast guard craft, using dangerous maneuvers, to direct the dinghy that they are escorting towards Greek territorial waters so that they could illegally enter,” a Greek coast guard statement said.
Minister for merchant marine Yiannis Plakiotakis said Turkey “once again, behaved like a pirate state”.
“The European Union must exert much greater pressure on Turkey to comply with its international obligations,” he said.
Thousands of people fleeing conflict or poverty in the Mideast, Africa, and Asia try to enter Greece every year from regional rival Turkey. Under a 2016 agreement with the European Union, of which Greece is a member, Turkey vowed to stem the flow of migrants.
But Greece has repeatedly accused Turkey — which has its own large migrant population — of encouraging and facilitating the attempted crossings. Last year, tension spiked on their land border after Turkey waved thousands of migrants towards Greece and Greece deployed police and military to thwart what it called a “hybrid attack.”
Turkey, in turn, accuses Greece — which has stepped up its border patrols — of illegally sending back migrants who make it onto its territory.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis denied that claim during a press conference Tuesday, arguing that his government follows a “tough but fair” migration policy.
“We are intercepting boats that come from Turkey, as we have the right to do in accordance with European regulations, and waiting for the Turkish coast guard to come and pick them up to return them to Turkey,” he said.
Greece and Turkey, both NATO allies, are also at odds over undersea gas and oil exploration rights.
For his journey from Thessaloniki to becoming the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of one of the world’s leading biopharmaceutical companies, to COVID vaccine equity and his passion to invest in Greek talent, Pfizer CEO Dr Albert Bourla addressed Australia’s Hellenes and Philhellenes on Tuesday, 9 November in an online event organised by The Hellenic Initiative Australia (THI Australia).
In the nearly 60-minutes long discussion Dr Bourla was joined by THI Co-Founder and Global Chairman, Andrew N Liveris AO while THI Australia Director, Dr Helen Zorbas opened the fourth of the digital conversation series which aim to celebrate outstanding members of the Greek Diaspora who share a passion for Greece.
“We are who we are because of our experiences,” said Dr Bourla referring to his heritage before he went on to talk about his upbringing, the journey to deliver the first COVID-19 mRNA vaccine and the recent opening of the Pfizer innovation hub in Thessaloniki.
Memories of growing up in Thessaloniki
“I was born and grew up in Thessaloniki and this is where I studied.”
“I was playing in the city’s main squares and I have great memories from my childhood,” Dr Bourla said and shared with the audience the story of his Jewish parents, who were among the 2,000 survivors from a community of 50,000 nearly eradicated in the Holocaust.
“The experiences of the environment and the family you grow up in puts a stamp in your life…the family is fundamental to who you will become in life.”
“I was very much into the Greek culture to start with. All my life until now I was not one who would listen Rock’n’Roll. I was listening Rebetika…I am in love with the Greek culture,” the CEO said and explained how the hardships his family went through equipped him with resilience and optimism.
“I try to see the glass half full rather than half empty,” he stated.
A Greek immigrant on a mission to save humanity
Asked about the tipping points that opened up a way to an international career, Dr Bourla identifies the move from Thessaloniki to Athens as the first one and later on the relocation to Brussels to pursue a promotion.
“Since then, I have lived in eight different cities and five different countries. Very big part of my career was the fact that I was exposed to different cultures,” said Dr Bourla highlighting that his family’s support has been instrumental.
Referring to the Pfizer’s success and his book entitled ‘Moonshot’ that describes the behind-the-scenes story of how the company raced to create the first Covid-19 vaccine, Dr. Albert Bourla credited his team that made “the impossible possible” by testing and manufacturing a safe and effective vaccine that previously would have taken years to develop.
“Pfizer’s success wasn’t due to luck; it was because of preparation driven by four simple values—Courage, Excellence, Equity, and Joy,” he said.
“The world was facing something that nobody thought we would. Everything was collapsing. Then I thought, if not us then who? We did not have an option to not do it.”
Equitable vaccine access and distribution
“Equitable access is very important to me and needs to be for everyone,” said Dr Bourla.
“I know there is a lot of discussion about whether we [Pfizer] did well or we succumbed to pressures from high income countries. There is a lot of misinformation, so let me set the record straight.”
“We provided the vaccine to high income countries to the cost of a take away meal. This is how much we charged. A fraction of what a COVID test costs to these countries. And we priced it like that because we knew we would have way less than people would like to buy,” he said.
“What people may not know is that for the middle-income countries we priced it half of that and for the low-income countries we gave it at cost. With these prices we went to governments and we asked them to place orders.”
“Only the high-income countries placed orders and that became a concern to me.”
Dr Bourla said that when some of the countries that in the beginning put their bets in producing their own vaccines ended up turning to Pfizer.
“We made a deal with the Biden administration and we will give them a billion doses at cost that they can only give for free to the world’s 93 low-income countries.”
Referring to the vaccine rollout he said that the most possible scenario will be an annual revaccination.
Prompted by Mr Liveris regarding the way different governments approach to the vaccine rollout, Dr Bourla clarified that “Australia didn’t place orders with Pfizer in the beginning so all doses were allocated. I think they bet to another vaccine that was going to be manufactured in Australia. Then they came back to us. Now they have vaccines.”
Today, we celebrated the formal opening of our new strategic site in Thessaloniki 🇬🇷 with @PrimeMinisterGR.
My Pfizer career began in 1993 in Greece and I am extremely proud to create more opportunities for Greece’s young talents and the next generation. pic.twitter.com/GFZJq8y65g
Talking about Pfizer’s digital innovation hub in Thessaloniki Bourla said it has nothing to do with philanthropy or his ties to the country.
“We see an opportunity to have access to great, talented people,” he said.
“I want to emphasize; this is not a gift we made to the country because I am Greek.”
“The last decade many young people had to leave not by choice, like me, but they were forced to go. I knew that and I also knew that if I took the bet the people would not disappoint me.”
From the 550 employees currently working in Thessaloniki’s newly launched hub 15% are Greek professionals who used to work abroad and repatriated, 70% are locals and the company plans to hire 150 more in the near future.
Referring to Greece’s future Dr Bourla says that the country is on its way to financial recovery that seems to be based on stronger foundations and encouraged businesses and individuals to explore investing options.
In his message to the audience he said “let’s all try to do the best we can where we live but never forget the ‘patrida’ (home country).”
On October 25, 2019, Nikolaos Kontou and Anthi-Maria Pallas were surrounded by their family and friends on the Greek island of Rhodes as they vowed to be there for each other for better, for worse, in sickness and in health.
Only hours later, Nick dove into the pool at their wedding reception and broke his neck. He sustained a cervical spinal cord injury and was diagnosed with incomplete quadriplegia.
It was from this moment on that he and Anthi realised just how much of a support system they would need to be for each other in the years to come. The Greek couple not only had to start Nick’s rehabilitation, but they also had to navigate the trials of newlywed life.
Still, they never gave up and today they’ve even launched Rolling Ever After with Nick & Anthi – Greece’s first YouTube channel showcasing the everyday life of someone with quadriplegia and their spouse.
To celebrate their courage, The Greek Herald spoke with Nick and Anthi about how the diving accident changed their life and what their future plans are.
1. Tell us a little bit about the accident on your wedding night. What happened?
NICK: It was the day I realised nothing in life is predictable and that anything can happen to anyone at any time. This day was the day of our dreams. The day that we were going onto the next chapter of our lives. It was an amazing day that we will cherish forever.
From a very young age, my wife had a dream to get married at this specific wedding reception venue. When we got engaged, she showed me the venue and I loved it too. On the same day that we decided to host our wedding reception there I told her that 15 minutes before we leave, I was going to dive into the pool.
So, our day arrived and the time had come. It was 15 minutes before we were due to leave the reception venue and I dove into the pool like I said I would but instead of coming out of the water to leave like planned, I broke my neck. As a result, I sustained a cervical spinal cord injury at the level of 5th and 6th vertebrae and was diagnosed with incomplete quadriplegia. What this means is that I can no longer use my hands, fingers, thumb, wrist flexion, triceps, and legs. No one ever imagines something like that happening to them, but more so on a day like this. Life is unpredictable and in one second everything can change.
ANTHI: To be honest it is very hard for me to bring the exact moment of the accident to my mind and to talk about it. Everything happened so fast.I remember I was sitting on the bench near the dancefloor and Nick was dancing with his friends. I knew he was going to jump, he had told me many times before, so I didn’t really think much into it. I was just waiting for him to jump, come out of the pool and then go home. Then everything is kind of blurry. I remember the moment he was out of the pool and I was touching his legs asking him if he could feel where I was touching him. The next thing I remember is telling someone to call an ambulance to go to the hospital. I was in shock.
2. As newlyweds, it must have been difficult to hear that Nick was diagnosed with quadriplegia.
N: It was very difficult and at the start we didn’t know what we were up against. We were just determined to try our best, but we didn’t know what to expect in return with regards to my progress. Every member of our family, everyone was dealing it in a different way. We honestly had no clue. It’s hard to explain it now, but back then we just didn’t know what was going on.
A: It was only when we went abroad at the rehab centre that we fully understood and we realised somehow. Because there were other people there that had similar injuries with Nick. We knew where the injury was from the beginning and the diagnosis mentioned quadriplegia in it, but we just thought that things would be different in our case and just had a lot of hope. I personally still do.
3. What were those first few months as a married couple like?
N: We spent the first year as a married couple in hospitals and rehab centres in Greece and abroad. It was hard with lots of ups and downs. But how we got through it is with being open with each other, like we had always been. Anthi is a very, very positive person that gets very excited with the smallest thing, so this certainly helped a lot with my confidence and spirit.
It was challenging to be a couple and to go through this. We were scared that it would create a distance between us and we were talking about it a lot. But instead, it brought us closer. We were achieving things together as a team and that is what kept us going. It was our love and the support of our family. There were a lot of challenges and days that we would cry non-stop.
I remember the day that an occupational therapist told me to find a new signature because I wasn’t going to be able to do my signature ever again. I cried for the whole day. Today, I can do my old signature. This is what I mean. We cherish the small wins and move forward.
A: Certainly not the way that anyone ever imagines spending the first year being married to their soulmate. However, we found ways to have a good time. We always do. The first few months were the hardest. We were more vulnerable and clueless. Even lost. I remember, I bought a diary the first month we were at the hospital and I was writing down everything that Nick was doing for the first time after his injury. From having his taste back and being tickled to being able to lift his left arm. We were happy for every single, little thing. That’s how we got through the first months.
We know each other so well, we have been together for 9 years, so we would share everything with each other, if one of us wanted to cry we would cry. The unknown is always scary, there were times that we were terrified of what’s to come. I don’t think that we will ever realise what has happened to us. We just decided to deal with it and move on. Life goes on and we decided to go on too. Together.
4. We’re also currently going through the COVID-19 pandemic and Greece was in lockdown for many months. How did both of you navigate that?
N: When the first lockdown happened, we were at the rehab centre in Switzerland. Suddenly one day the primary doctor visited me to say that it would probably be a good idea to consider going back to Greece due to the pandemic. Nobody really knew what was going on and he thought that maybe we would have trouble going back to Greece in the future.
On this day, it was also decided from hospital that visitors were not going to be allowed anymore. So my wife couldn’t visit me anymore and it was just the two of us there. For two weeks we didn’t see each other. Anthi was by herself in a studio nearby and I was at the hospital. Every night we were facetiming and then when we were going to bed, we would leave the camera on, because we wanted the last thing to see before we go to bed to be each other. It was a way that made us feel closer as we couldn’t sleep together.
A: I was by myself in the studio with just my laptop there and literally no one to talk to. Nick had a very busy schedule in the morning so I couldn’t talk to him. So, I made a spreadsheet of things I always wanted to do but never had the time to try them out. And then when I would do them, I would cross them out. I tried meditating, a 2-week yoga challenge, many online courses for various subjects and learning Spanish.
I watched the full series of ‘13 reasons why’ on Netflix in four days. I was chatting with family and friends and then one day I told Nick ‘that’s it, we are going back to Greece.’ He was surprised at first but then he agreed. The situation was very uncertain, and we were in a foreign country. So, we booked the tickets to fly back home after five days. It was an important decision for us because we were going to fly again on a regular plane just the two of us. We love to travel so that gave us a big confidence boost to see that we can do it again.
5. Quadriplegia and disabilities in general are quite taboo in Greek culture as they are not understood well. Why do you think that is the case?
N: I believe that Greek people just have more hope, and we are more loving, and we believe in god’s miracle. I think the taboos around quadriplegia and disabilities in general have more to do with the ignorance than with anything else. We don’t mind people being curious, it is part of the reason why we decided to do our YouTube channel. This is just what they have been brought up to believe. Like the mentality that disabled people are sick people and they should be in a hospital to get better or to not get worse. But generally, that’s the magic word. Ignorance.
But I think the new generations now are more aware of what is happening around them. They have more respect, and this is what we believe is the aim to focus on, educating the new generation. Taboos are slowly, slowly being broken one by one.
6.Tell us a little bit about your YouTube channel ‘Rolling Ever After with Nick and Anthi.’
A: Back when we were in Switzerland, Nick was watching a lot of YouTube videos to try and learn as much as he could about quadriplegia and to see how he can be more independent during his daily routine but also to maybe find information about a few things that we didn’t feel like asking anyone.
What he realised was that no one was sharing their journey at the early stages, which was the stage that we were, around 4-5 months after the injury and that there weren’t any YouTube channels like those in Greece. So, when we went to the rehab centre in Athens during the lockdown, Nick suggested to me to create our own. So we did. We just felt that we had a lot to talk about and we were receiving a lot of messages from our family and friends. The first video we filmed was at the cafeteria of the rehab centre and we put my phone on a carton box and added a carton of juice behind it to keep it stable.
When we first started the channel, we did it in the hope that we will give to someone what he hoped we would find ourselves at the time. But we also did it for us. We felt the need to express what we were going through – it was like a virtual diary. In the first few videos, we were talking about our journey so far and those moments in front of the camera were the first times we were actually talking about it with each other in such detail. Now we have over half a million views across our channel. It’s unreal!
What we are now hoping to achieve is to spread awareness about accessibility, quadriplegia, and us as a couple. To give hope and positivity to anyone who needs it. When at times we are not feeling our best, we would watch one of our videos and feel better. We feel so proud!
7. It is known as the only YouTube channel in Greece featuring a wheelchair user and their spouse. Do you think you’re breaking the stigma around disabilities through the channel?
N: Definitely and we are very proud about that! From the very beginning, when we decided to launch the channel, we wanted to keep the ‘couple’ element alive. It was very important to us because we were going through it, but also to show to other people that we are still a couple, that we have fun, explore new things, go on trips, go out with friends, like any other couple. But most importantly that we are STILL a couple. And this is very important. People with disabilities go out, they have fun, they make friends, they travel, they drive, they form relationships. Just like everyone else. And this is what our channel is about really. The life of a loving couple.
8.What has been the response to your videos from viewers?
A: The response from the viewers and followers has been unreal. We are receiving so much love every day through the comments people leave on our YouTube videos and the messages they send us on Instagram and Facebook. We would like to say a huge thank you to every single one of them for their support.
People send us messages to say that they love our story and that they enjoy our content or, in some cases, they send us suggestions for videos or even for things that Nick should try to make his everyday life easier. Overall, very positive messages and we are so thankful for that.
People don’t realise how much their messages have helped us during our toughest times and how much they still do. But the best messages are from people who are going through something similar to us and say they have been helped by our videos and are thanking us for uploading them. Those messages are just priceless.
9.What are your future plans together?
N: We would love to grow our YouTube channel even more and help more people and spread awareness. We love travelling and never had our honeymoon so we would like to hopefully go on our honeymoon, travel the world together and show the accessibility levels in the places that we will visit.
My dream for the future is to go to the Paralympics in Paris in 2024. I got the silver medal at the swimming championship for the whole country of Greece, so the future is looking bright. Anthi will of course be my cheerleader, so we are doing this together as well. And of course, we would like to grow our family one day. But we still have time for that.
Andrew Pippos’ debut novel, Lucky’s, has been crowned the winner of the 2021 Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction.
Lucky’s depicts a multi-generational saga about a Greek immigrant who sets up a franchise of cafes in 1950s Australia.
“There is love, and loss, and a favourite television show we can all remember. There is humour and warmth in this story, as well as wisdom and madness,” Readings Doncaster manager, Kate McIntosh, said about why Lucky’s was crowned the winner.
“Pippos is never afraid to show a darker side to his characters. They can be unlikeable at times, but there is redemption too. He reminds us not to give up, to have hope, to trust.”
On hearing he had won the Prize, Pippos said it was ‘wonderful and humbling.’
“For a long time, the world of Lucky’s was a private space. Sometimes it felt like an extension of the daydreaming I did as a child – a world only I could visit, and which had worth only to me,” he said.
“It’s wonderful and humbling for my novel to be publicly recognised in this way. And the prize is recognition from an institution that I value a great deal.”
