On 18 December 2025, the Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI) invited Lithuania’s education community to discuss why ethical judgement matters in a fast-changing, digital world—and why ethics and civic responsibility are essential.

The conversation took place during the awards ceremony for Lithuania’s national ethics competition for 7th–8th graders, “Beside Me: Another Person”, hosted by Vytautas Magnus University (VDU).

As Monika Sakalauskaitė, LFMI Head of Innovation Development said, “we didn’t gather only to hand out awards—we’re celebrating a thinking, acting person.”

The competition drew 200+ students from across Lithuania, inviting them to reflect on how social media shapes everyday choices and wellbeing, how they move between the real and virtual worlds, and the role of smart devices and AI.

As Polina Žemaitienė, Chair of the Kaunas Ethics Teachers’ Methodological Group, said, the goal is to help students build responsible moral reasoning and a democratic, values-based relationship with others: “We want students to share their ideas and experience the joy of learning ethics.”

For LFMI, the theme directly connects to its education mission: a free society depends on people who can filter information, weigh consequences for themselves and others, and choose to act responsibly.

In Sakalauskaitė’s words, ethics, civic thinking and economics are not separate topics—they all ask the same core question: “How do we live in a way that is good for me and fair to others?”

This is also the focus of Prospera Academy, established by LFMI for teachers, students and everyone working in economics, ethics and civic education, bringing together the institute’s education initiatives and tools for schools.

Reflecting on learning outcomes, Tomas Pažarauskas, Chair of the judging committee, emphasised that the competition helps students apply ethics to real situations: “It strengthens critical thinking—about social media, AI, and online dependence.”

And Monika Barasnevičienė of the Kaunas Education Innovation Centre highlighted the response from participants: “Students showed creativity and critical thinking—proving ethics is relevant and inspiring.”