The Bureaucrat President

The new president of Lithuania credits his previous career at the Environmental Protection Agency with preparing him to run the Baltic nation.

Valdas Adamkus, a native of Lithuania, was elected president of that country in January after more than 25 years in the EPA's Midwest office in Chicago, 16 of them as regional administrator.

As president, Adamkus appoints the country's prime minister and helps select cabinet members. Greenwire's L.J. Headlee spoke to Adamkus this week about his unusual career switch and his vision for economic and environmental progress in the former Soviet republic.

Greenwire: Can you explain how you went from being an EPA regional administrator to president of Lithuania?

Adamkus: I never really broke away from the Lithuanian life. Even after I came to the United States, I kept in touch with the Lithuanian people, helping them out in their fight for freedom from the Soviet Union. When I joined the EPA, I began dealing directly with the Soviet Union under an environmental agreement between the U.S. and the USSR, which opened up the opportunity for me to visit Lithuania. Over the next 25 years of trips to the Soviet Union, I always spent a few days extra in Lithuania and worked to help the country change its environmental laws and restructure its environmental organization to more closely resemble the EPA. With that continuing exposure to the Lithuanian people, I was more or less accepted here as one who cares for Lithuania, its people and its future. With my experience as a Western bureaucrat, they viewed me as a possible leader who could lead them into a society in which democratic principles are the natural way to live. But I never thought I would end up in the presidency.

Greenwire: Was it your idea to run or did someone approach you?

Adamkus: No, it was definitely not my idea. In 1992, I was traveling around Lithuania campaigning for a friend of mine who was running for president. But people would ask me, "Why don't you run for president?" They'd say I had come to know the country's issues and problems over the past years. But I just rejected that idea and instead focused on my candidate. My friend lost the election, and I again immersed myself in environmental issues, coordinating the EPA's technical assistance program in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. As last year's elections came around, I was working in Lithuania for the EPA when the people and the press sparked a national movement of "Adamkus for President."

Greenwire: How big of a role did your environmental concerns play in your decision to run for president of Lithuania?

Adamkus: My environmental concerns definitely played a very significant role in influencing that decision. I felt that someone should consider and keep the environment as part of the country's overall policies.

Greenwire: How high of a priority is environmental protection in relationship to other concerns?

Adamkus: To be honest with you, when you have people looking for jobs and 50 percent of industry at a standstill, the environment is not number one. But I consider the environment part of all issues and a major concern of jobs and industrial restructuring. The environment plays an integral part in my decisions in establishing the policies of the country.

Greenwire: What are some of the hottest environmental issues in Lithuania right now?

Adamkus: We are combatting tremendous water pollution. In the US, water treatment is the typical way to handle such pollution. But in Lithuania, we do not have enough treatment plants, and I am looking for international funding to complete two large water-treatment plants. Air pollution from vehicle emissions is becoming a more serious problem because more cars are on the streets. And unfortunately they are older models, not the newer, less polluting cars. I plan on using my EPA experience to assist Lithuania's environment ministry in ensuring that our standards are equivalent to those of the West so that we can really combat pollution.

Greenwire: What is the general state of the environmental movement in Lithuania?

Adamkus: Very sour. The environmental movement was instrumental in the liberation effort to rid the country of the communist system. But unfortunately, economic and other concerns have dampened the movement's enthusiasm, and activism is at a low level. But I hope that with my leadership, it will again become an attractive field, especially for nongovernmental organizations. If I can contribute to that, I definitely will. I believe in a stronger emphasis on environmental education, from primary schools through universities. But environmental education in schools is in the beginning stages, I must admit. I also hope international organizations will establish a direct link with the Lithuanian public and help revive environmental activities and interest.

Greenwire: What lessons can you draw from your career with the EPA that you can apply as president?

Adamkus: I have experience in administering the big issues and a big agency like the EPA in the Midwest. My international dealings with Canada and with the Soviet Union have polished my diplomatic experience. My experience with state governments, Congress and federal agencies also gives me a very solid basis to guide a country and establish its policies. The EPA experience is invaluable and definitely something I can use to weigh my decisions and create a basis for good and solid government. I am coming here with quite a background and experience, and I am going to use it.