Maria Aksenova

Maria Aksenova
Native name
Аксёнова Мария Дмитриевна
Born23 February
Moscow, USSR
OccupationMedia personality, entrepreneur, publisher, encyclopedist, poet, sportswoman
LanguageRussian
Alma materMoscow State University
Notable worksThe Encyclopedia for Children [ru]

Maria Dmitriyevna Aksenova (born February, 23[1]) is a Russian public figure,[2] media personality, encyclopedist,[3] and businessperson.[4]: 40  She is best remembered for her fundamental[5] Encyclopedia for Children, a 63-volume edition of Avanta+ Publishing House [ru] (circulation – 20 million copies).[1]

According to books and famous magazines,[6][7]: 107 [8]: 98  Aksenova is a publisher, poet and sportswoman. As of 31 October 2001, she controlled 55% ($16.5 million) of the Publishing House's revenue.[9]: 23 

Aksenova was the winner of the Russian President's Award in the field of education (2001);[5] author of educational TV projects, an accredited MVP level investor of Moscow Seed Fund, and academician of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences.[1]

Personal life

Born and raised in Moscow,[10]: 27  USSR, Maria Aksenova graduated from the Moscow school with a Silver medal.[1] She graduated from the MSU Faculty of Mechanics and Mathematics, where she received a first-class degree. Maria studied Executive MBA at RANEPA.[2]

On March 7, 2001, Maria was speaker at the meeting of the President of the Russian Federation V.V. Putin with outstanding business women of Russia.[2][11][12]

She studied English and Spanish.[2] Hobby: ikebana, travelling (32 countries), rescue diver,[6] old daggers, ethnic jewellery,[8]: 98  Qigong.[10]: 27 

Family

Her paternal great-grandfather, Peter Evdóshenko [ru] was a Russian Silver Age poet of the 20th century. Great-grandfather's father, Ivan Evdóshenko was a nobleman and managed some gymnasiums in The Russian Empire.[2]

Her maternal great-grandparents, Alexei Plotnokov and Praskovya Danilova-Plotnikova were among of the leaders of the Revolution Movement in Podmoskovye, Riga and Minusinsk.[2][13]

Avanta+ Publishing House

External videos
video icon On September 1, 1997, President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin visited Moscow School No. 1253 and presented several volumes of the Avanta+ Encyclopedia for Children.[14]
Medal for Prize of the President of the Russian Federation Laureate

At the age of twenty, Maria came up with the idea of creating an encyclopedia for children, comparable to the Great Soviet Encyclopedia.[15] As a student at Moscow State University, she became a co-founder, then the chairman board of directors of the Avanta+,[10][2] a leading producer of children’s encyclopedias:[16]: 7 

  • "Encyclopedia for Children Avanta+" (many of them best sellers at top Russian stores[17]: 12 );
  • "Modern Encyclopedia";
  • "The most beautiful and famous" album book series etc.

Encyclopedia for Children Avanta+ is recommended by the Ministry of General Education of the Russian Federation[18] and the UNESCO Academic department by International Center of Educational Systems (ICES), and is also recognized as a national project.[2][15]

Maria Aksenova as an author wrote more than 50 popular science introductory[2] and 8 encyclopedic articles in The Encyclopedia for Children [ru].

Nine employees of the Avanta+ Publishing House and Encyclopedia for Children's authors have become laureates of the Russian President's Prize in the field of education. The winners of the Award were: Maria Aksenova, Viktor Volodin, Dmitry Volodikhin [ru], Andrey Gryaznov, Elena Dukelskaya, Lyudmila Petranovskaya, Georgy Khramov, ValerySanyuk.[5]

Publishing House team's mission statement: "We present in an accessible form the sum of all knowledge".[19]

My partners and I were not interested in money for the sake of money, but in business bringing positive changes to the world. In general, I believe that it is possible to speak of a business as successful only if it has both a financial and a social component.

— Maria Aksenova about publishing work.[20]

Maria can look at the problem from different points of view, find some aspects of the phenomenon under consideration that are not obvious at first glance.

— George Hramov, сo-founder Avanta+ Publishing House.[21]: 107 

The Printing Pioneer Fund

Since 2007, Maria Aksenova has been the chairman of the board of The Printing Pioneer Fund. Fund activities:[1]

The Fund became the initiator and creator of the intersectoral impact cluster in The Moscow Innovation Cluster.[22][23]

Entrepreneurial and investment activity

M. D. Aksenova is a co-founder and investor in a number of projects:[1]

As an investor, she has more than five exits. There are four startup impact in the current portfolio.[1]

Organizations and business communities

Maria Aksenova was and is a member of organizations and business communities:[1][2][15]

  • Business Women of Russia Confederation;
  • New Moscow Entrepreneurs Club;
  • a number of Boards of Trustees;
  • Russian Supreme Council of Ecology;
  • National Independent director Registry (as an Independent director since 2002);
  • AngelsDeck Investors Club (since 2020).

Research work

Maria Aksenova is a researcher of the cultural and religious traditions of various countries,[6] the author of a number of publications and speeches. In 1998, Obshchaya Gazeta published two articles on the death of Carlos Castaneda: Viktor Pelevin's "The Last Joke of a Warrior" and Maria Aksenova's "Who Left This World?"[24].

Maria Aksenova tells about unknown details of Classics writers' fates and their works in her book – "Do We Know Everything About the Classics of World Literature?" (ISBN 978-5-227-07865-0).[25]: 107 

Poetry

A book combining a collection of poems "Cascade Splashes" of the Silver Age poet, Peter Evdóshenko, and a collection of poems "Blues of Emptiness" of his great-granddaughter Maria Aksenova was published in 2007 (ISBN 5-98396-010-5).

Do We Know Russian?

In 2008-2012, Maria Aksenova and her colleagues conducted work on the study of the history of Russian words, names, adages. The work resulted in a cycle of television programs, events and books[26]:

On TV, Films and Radio

Author's and acting works:[29][2]

  • 2003 – "The Taming of the Success" talk show (TDK TV channel)
  • 2006 – "Outlook beyond the MKAD" on Moscow Speaking [ru] radio station;
  • 2008-2010 – a series of documentaries "A Novel in Stone" ("World masterpieces of love");[30]
  • 2008-2010 – poetic art videos based on the poems of Russian poets;
  • 2008-2012 – 168 episodes of "Do Russians know Russian?" TV show.[27]

Selected filmography

Year Title Role Notes
2010-2011 Institute of noble maidens Matryona (ru, 519 episodes)
2013 Puppeteers Senior lieutenant Maria Chub Russian: Кукловоды
2014 House at the River Veronika Russian: Домик у реки, romanized: Domic u reki

Sport

Awards and honors

  • Laureate of the Russian President's Prize in the field of education for the development of a scientific and methodological concept for the presentation of educational materials and the creation on its basis of the fundamental book series the Encyclopedia for Children (2001).[5]
  • Winner of Manager of the Year award in the nomination "Publishing Business" (2001, Kommersant Publishing House).[2]
  • Among the Top 100 businessperson of the rating "Who manages the finances of Russia" in 2001 – the first and only woman.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Government of Moscow. "Фонд развития венчурного инвестирования города Москвы. Инвестор Мария Аксёнова" [Investor Mariya Aksonova] (in Russian). Moscow Seed Fund.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Ralph Hübner 2007, p. 68.
  3. ^ Vasiliy, Danilov (2000-06-19). "«Человек книги»: Мария Аксенова, энциклопедист" ["Human of the book": Maria Aksenova, encyclopedist]. The Book Review (in Russian). 25.
  4. ^ Viktor, Menshov (2003-11-01). Alexandróvich, E. (ed.). "Инь и Ян Марии Аксёновой" [Yin and yang by Maria Aksenova]. Our School (in Russian). 48 (9): 40–43. Archived from the original on 2011-12-16.
  5. ^ a b c d "Указ Президента Российской Федерации от 03.10.2002 г. No. 1114 О присуждении премий Президента Российской Федерации в области образования за 2001 год" [Russian Presidential decrees, 3 October 2002 No 1114 On awarding the prizes of the President of the Russian Federation in the field of education for 2001] (in Russian). President of Russia. 2002-10-03.
  6. ^ a b c Marina Belova, Ludmila Chernova 2007, p. 25.
  7. ^ Alexei, Sedov (2002-04-01). Anna, Barinova (ed.). "Энциклопедия успеха" [Encyclopedia of success]. Marie Claire (in Russian). 100 (4): 107.
  8. ^ a b c Youlia, Makarova; Alexei, Antonov (2007-04-01). A., Zotikov (ed.). "Чётки и цели" [Prayer beads and Goals]. Career [ru] with Entrepreneur (in Russian). 100 (4): 98–99.
  9. ^ a b Dmitry, Butrin; Sevastian, Kozitsyn (2001-10-31). Sergei, Yakovlev (ed.). "Кто управляет финансами России" [Who manages the finances of Russia]. Kommersant Dengi (in Russian). 347 (43): 18–23.
  10. ^ a b c Marina, Skalkina; Sergei, Petrukhin (2007). ""Мы насадим новый сад, роскошнее этого..."" ["We will plant a new garden, more luxurious than this..."]. Persona (in Russian). 63 (2): 24–27. Archived from the original on 2007-10-24.
  11. ^ "В канун 8 Марта Владимир Путин встретился с представительницами деловых и общественных кругов" [On the eve of March 8, Vladimir Putin met with women's business and social community] (in Russian). President of Russia. 2001-03-07.
  12. ^ "Владимир Путин встретился с представительницами российских деловых кругов" [Vladimir Putin met with businesswomen] (in Russian). NEWSru.com. 2001-03-07. Archived from the original on 2004-10-25.
  13. ^ Ksenia Lipinskaya 1974.
  14. ^ Boris Yeltsin Presidential Center (1997-09-01). "Посещение Президентом РФ Б.Н. Ельциным московской школы № 1253 (видео c 13 мин 25 с)" [President of the Russian Federation Boris Yeltsin visited Moscow School No. 1253 (3m2s)] (in Russian). Цифровые копии видео документов Управления пресс-службы и информации Администрации Президента РФ (1996–1999).
  15. ^ a b c Marina Belova, Ludmila Chernova 2007, p. 24.
  16. ^ Lucas, Romriell (2002-12-06). "Readers choosing pulp over literature. The book-publishing industry has come to be dominated by detective novels and foreign writers – both of which have displaced the former state-run propaganda machine and producer of children's literature". The Russia Journal: 6–7.
  17. ^ Vladimir, Merkushev (1999-12-06). "Publisher finds knowledge is priceless. Kids' books prove a hit. A new way of thinking, learning". The Russia Journal: 12.
  18. ^ Edition notice in each volume of The Encyclopedia for Children
  19. ^ Olga, Utesheva (1997-07-01). "Мечта детства нашего общества" [The childhood dream of our society]. Domovoi [ru] (in Russian). 7: 6–7. Archived from the original on 2016-02-13.
  20. ^ "Maria Aksenova. Projects". Maria Aksenova Official website.
  21. ^ Ekaterina, Vinokurceva (2002-02-24). "Энциклопедический подход" [Encyclopedic approach]. Company [ru] (in Russian). 253 (7): 107. Archived from the original on 2017-01-06.
  22. ^ The Moscow Innovation Cluster. "Межотраслевой импакт-кластер / кластер социального воздействия. 41 участник. Рынки EdTech, HealthTech и др" [The intersectoral impact cluster: EdTech, HealthTech, etc. 41 members] (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2022-01-10.
  23. ^ Anastasia, Maryina. "Начался отбор российских EdTech-стартапов, которые будут выведены на экспорт" [The selection of Russian EdTech startups that will be exported has begun]. Rusbase (in Russian).
  24. ^ Maria, Aksenova (1998-06-24). "Кто покинул этот мир?" ["Who Left This World?"]. Obshchaya Gazeta [ru] (in Russian). 255 (25). Archived from the original on 1999-11-28.
  25. ^ Ekaterina, Vinokurceva (2018-11-14). "Книга недели: «Знаем ли мы всё о классиках мировой литературы?»" [The book of the week: "Do We Know Everything About the Classics of World Literature?"]. Literaturnaya Gazeta (in Russian). 6667 (46): 1.
  26. ^ Anastasia Litvinova (2013-02-23). "О премудростях русского языка. В книжном магазине «Москва» состоялась встреча с писательницей и телеведущей Марией Аксёновой" [On the difficulties of the Russian language. A meeting with the writer and TV presenter Maria Aksenova took place in the Moskva bookstore] (in Russian). Pionerskaya Pravda.

    «…книга, по… отзывам просвещённой публики, вовсе не похожа по своему содержанию на скучный учебник, а скорее на увлекательную и занимательную историю о нашем языке.» ["…the book, according to… reviews of an enlightened public, is not at all similar in its content to a boring textbook, but rather to a fascinating and entertaining story about our language."]

  27. ^ a b Телепрограммы «Знают ли русские русский?» playlist on YouTube
  28. ^ "Объявлены авторы 25 книг из длинного списка премии «Просветитель»" [The authors of 25 books from the long list of the Enlightener Prize have been announced]. Polit.Ru (in Russian). 2012-06-09. Archived from the original on 2019-10-15.
  29. ^ "Актёрские работы" [Acting work] (in Russian). Maria Aksenova Official website. Archived from the original on 2020-01-28.
  30. ^ Документальные фильмы «Роман в камне» playlist on YouTube
  31. ^ Marina Belova, Ludmila Chernova 2007, p. 24-25.

Works cited

  • Marina Belova, Ludmila Chernova (2007). Персона России: литературно-биографический альманах [Person of Russia: literary and biographical almanac] (in Russian). Moscow: Elite-Press Plus, Border Publishing Group. p. 24-25. ISBN 978-5-94691-270-9.
  • Ralph Hübner (2007). Who is who в России. Биографическая энциклопедия успешных людей России [Who is who in Russia. Biographical encyclopedia of successful people in Russia]. Encyclopedia of Personalities by Hübner Who is who (in Russian) (1st ed.). Moscow: Ralph Hübner. p. 68. ISBN 978-3-7290-0063-6.
  • Ksenia Lipinskaya (1974). Далеко в заснеженной Сибири [Far away in snowy Siberia] (in Russian) (3rd ed.). Krasnoyarsk: Krasnoyarsk Book Publishing House. p. 54, 58.