Astronaut Sunita Williams to participate in Kerala Literature Festival 2026
New Delhi (PTI): Former NASA astronaut Sunita Williams is set to participate at the ninth edition of Kerala Literature Festival (KLF), starting January 22, announced organisers on Tuesday.
Williams, 60, who has spent over 300 days in space, is expected to reflect on her journeys beyond earth and speak about science, exploration, leadership, resilience, and the enduring power of human curiosity.
“The Kerala Literature Festival has always believed in expanding the idea of the fest to include science, discovery, leadership, and the human spirit. Sunita Williams represents the courage to explore the unknown and the discipline required to stretch human boundaries.
"She has also been a well-wisher of DC Books and KLF, which makes her presence at the festival especially meaningful. Her participation will inspire audiences across generations," said Ravi DeeCee, Managing Director of DC Books and chief facilitator at KLF.
On her third mission to the International Space Station in June last year along with Butch Wilmore, which lasted for 286 days, Williams created history by setting a record of most time spent spacewalking by a woman.
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She was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1998 and she underwent training at the Johnson Space Center. She also worked in Moscow with the Russian Space Agency on the Russian contribution to the International Space Station.
KLF 2026 will host over 500 speakers from across the world and will feature Germany as the guest nation for this year’s edition.
The festival’s speaker line-up include Nobel Laureates Abdulrazak Gurnah, Olga Tokarczuk and Abhijit Banerjee, Booker Prize-winning writer-activist Banu Mushtaq, Olympian Ben Johnson, former PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, artist Cheyenne Olivier, economist Arvind Subramanian as well as noted writers Gabriela Ybarra, Peggy Mohan, Shobhaa De and Amish Tripathi.
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First-ever life-size Vivekananda statue in US unveiled in Seattle
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New York (PTI): The first-ever life-size statue of Swami Vivekananda in the US was unveiled in Seattle, honouring the renowned Indian philosopher and spiritual leader.
The life-size bronze statue, installed at the busy Westlake Square in downtown Seattle, is the first such installation hosted by a city government anywhere in the US, officials said.
Sculpted by Indian artist Naresh Kumar Kumawat, it was jointly unveiled on Saturday by Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson and Consul General of India in Seattle Prakash Gupta.
"From Chicago 1893 to Seattle 2026! Seattle's skyline has a new Indian icon: Swami Vivekananda! City of Seattle becomes the first city government to host the Swami Vivekananda Monument in the heart of downtown Seattle," the Consulate General of India in Seattle said in a social media post.
Addressing the event, Wilson said the monument reflects Seattle's inclusive spirit and strengthens cultural ties between India and the diverse metropolitan tech hub in the US Pacific Northwest.
The statue has been gifted by the Indian Council of Cultural Relations (ICCR) to the City of Seattle in recognition of its "in recognition of the city’s rich multicultural character and spirit of inclusivity", the Indian mission in Seattle said in a statement.
The unveiling of the statue was held on the occasion of the celebration of ICCR Day and is part of India's broader cultural diplomacy initiatives aimed at strengthening people-to-people ties between India and the US Pacific Northwest, the Consulate said.
Located at the bustling Westlake Square, which sees over 400,000 visitors daily, the monument stands near prominent landmarks including the Amazon headquarters ‘Spheres’, the Seattle Convention Centre and the Seattle Centre Monorail.
The unveiling ceremony was attended by several local leaders, including mayors from cities in the Greater Seattle area, community representatives and members of the Indian-American diaspora.
Swami Vivekananda had delivered his historic address at the World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago in 1893, introducing Hindu philosophy to a global audience.
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