Glögg Reception with SANI Speaker Event - Zülfü Livaneli

We had the opportunity to listen to Ömer Zülfü Livaneli, who is s the best- selling Turkish author and poet who is considered one of the most significant and influential authors and intellectuals of his time. His novels have been turned into theatrical movies, stage plays, and operas. He lived in Stockholm, Paris, Athens, and New York where he met and collaborated with artists and intellectuals such as Elia Kazan, Arthur Miller, James Baldwin, and Peter Ustinov among others. Livaneli returned to Turkey in 1984.

His works and cultural and political activities and contributions to world peace were recognized by UNESCO in 1995 when he was appointed Goodwill Ambassador to UNESCO -- a post he still holds today. He served a term in the Turkish Parliament as well as in the Council of Europe. His first collection of short stories, 'A Child in Purgatory', published in 1978 was turned into a movie by Swedish and German TV.