Count von Gravenreuth

The Chairman of the Bavarian Forest Owners' Federation, Count Marian von Gravenreuth has played an active role in promoting forest owners' cross border relations and mutual co-operation. For example, he has done a lot for promoting German - Finnish relations in the forestry sector.

Count von Gravenreuth has therefore been awarded the medal of honour "Suomen Leijonan komentajamerkki". Mr René Nyberg, Finland's ambassador to Germany, presented the medal at a ceremony in Berlin last week.
Count von Gravenreuth has been active in spreading information in Germany about the exemplary way that forests are managed in Finland. Thanks to him the German forestry sector and paper market actors are informed about how Finnish forestry operates. He has also played an important role in promoting the PEFC-certification system in German private forests and has actively participated in developing PEFC-certification. 
Marian von Gravenreuth: All I did was give a little money’
SINCE the Myanmar Foundation was created in 2000, its founder, Jurgen von Jordan, has raised the money to fund the opening of four schools and seven orphanages in some of Myanmar’s rural areas.
Mr Jordan is very passionate about his cause and has mastered the art of persuading people to part with their money for a very good reason. Many of his close friends from his homeland in Germany have found themselves donating schools to a country they know little about.
“A lot of my friends come here in doubt of the country and its political systems, but seeing is believing, and when they get here and see the needs of the people they immediately feel the urge to help,” Mr Jordan said.
One such friend, Baron Marian von Gravenreuth, recently visited Myanmar for the inauguration of a school he had donated to the village of Mandaw, just outside Bagan.
Mr Gravenreuth’s journey to the school must have felt strange at the least. Travelling to a tiny village in a distant country to see about 100 children and their families shout your name in celebration of your contribution is not an experience many can share.
“All I did was give a little bit of money, the foundation did the rest,” he said humbly at the schools official inauguration ceremony on February 1.
Mr Gravenreuth Gravenreuth donated the US$9000 that was needed for the school through the Myanmar Foundation.
The little village of Mandaw, home to 70 families and about 400 people, has never had their own school before. For the past nine years the children have had to travel one mile to the primary school in the neighbouring village of Tipu.
Having the Marian School in their own village will mean less travel time and better class sizes for the 85 children who are enrolled there.
Moses Aung Thein Myint, project manager for the Myanmar Foundation, said the school will provide a much-needed education for children, some of whom had not previously attended school.
“The children really needed a school in their own town because before some did not travel the distance to the other town,” he said.
“It provides for students from the ages of five to 11, from the first standard to the fourth.”
The school will employ two teachers and one headmaster to teach the students the national syllabus, and will come under the jurisdiction of U Aung Win of the local education department.
Two young boys, Win Taung and Maung Maung Myo, said they are very happy with their new school.
“We are very excited. Now we can study our favorite subjects, Myanmar and Mathematics,” they said.
Their enthusiasm seemed to rub off on the visitors the children were there to greet. The sight of 85 joyful children jumping around in their green and white school uniforms is enough to bring a smile to anyone’s face.
As the minibus that held Mr Gravenreuth and his friends entered the compound, the school’s 85 students and two teachers stood along the edges of the path to greet them, handing out flowers and shouting cheers.
With a snip of the scissors and hundreds of photographs the school was officially open and it was time for the speeches.
Among the bout of thank you’s and dedications, fast-paced dances and inspirational anecdotes, it was Mr Gravenreuth’s speech that stood out the most.
“Thank you to all of you for giving me this chance to contribute.”
As the children and their families continued to celebrate, it was time for Mr Gravenreuth and his friends to depart. To the sound of a hundred “Auf Wiedersehns” (See you again), their mini bus drove away.
Gravenreuth smiled and said, “That was all very strange indeed.”