#BEETHEFUTURE CALENDAR

Over 700 cities around the globe are singing, dancing, and playing music today. Some fantastic musicians also come from Slovenia. Let's mention just a few: Oberkrainer "folk-pop music" band Avsenik Ensemble, avant-garde band Laibach, percussion group The Story, acapella choir Perpetuum Jazzile, opera singer Irena Baar and electronic music maestro DJ Umek.

This day will be sweeter, for sure! It's the International Ice-Cream Day. Grab a friend and take them for a scoop of your favorite frozen flavor. Ljubljanske mlekarne was the first Slovenian company that started industrial ice-cream production in 1958. In that year, the legendary ice cream on a stick – Lučka was introduced

It's the Fathers' Day. Make some time to spend the day with your dad.

Let's think about our food! Why don't we use local produce – that's how we encourage the local economy and lower the amount of greenhouse gas that comes from transportation. That's the way to bring fresher food to our plates.

We honour the World Desertification and Draught Day to put international efforts in the fight against desertification under the spotlight. Have you heard about the Big Green Wall initiative? Google it!

On June 16, 1872, the first railway through a dripstone cave was built in Postojna cave. This railway was the first project of its kind in the world. The Postojna Cave itself welcomed its first visitors in 1819, and by now, this number has risen to more than 38 million people from all over the globe.

Have a piece of homemade bread with a slice of Karst prosciutto ham and a drop of original olive oil. On June 15, 2012, "Kraški pršut" became the 12th Slovenian product registered as a protected geographical indication.

Today is the day to save a life and donate your blood. Donating blood is undoubtedly one of the noblest ways to help fellow men. As far as blood supply goes, Slovenia is self-sufficient. The very first voluntary donors in Slovenia gave their blood on June 4, 1945.

Albinism is still widely misunderstood as it is rooted in false beliefs, myths, and superstitions. However, albinism is a rare, incontiguous, hereditary trait that can befall all living species. There are less than 100 albino donkeys in the world, but you can find one in Slovenia in Jareninski vrh, living on the farm owned by the family Tasič.

Celebrating World wellness day is an excellent excuse to indulge yourself with a relaxing treatment. Choose something special for your body and soul: a unique forest selfness or maybe apitherapy with its healing bee powers and products.

The Lynx is one of the most endangered mammals in Slovenia and thus protected. A project called LIFE Lynx has been operational since 2017 to save the Dinaric-SE Alpine Lynx population through reinforcement and long-term conservation. Did you know? The Lynx is the Slovenian national ice hockey team's symbol.

Do you want to rise into the clouds in an electric plane? On June 10, 2020, Pipistrel, a Slovenian manufacturer of ultralight planes, achieved fantastic success by being awarded type certification for its battery-powered aircraft Velis Electro as the first company to do so in aviation history. 

On this day, in 1508, the father of the standard Slovene language, Primož Trubar, was born. In 1550 he issued the first two Slovenian books: Abecedarium and Catechismus. There are four streets and two primary schools named after the great Protestant in Slovenia. And since he is well-regarded in Germany as well, there is a trail carrying his name between Nürnberg in Derendingen.

On World Oceans Day, the World Wildlife Fund calls our attention to the state of the Mediterranean Sea. Every year, 570,000 tons of plastic waste is disposed of, which equals 33,800 plastic bottles per minute. On this day, we should be more careful to use proper litter bins and go for sustainable packaging instead of plastic.

Go visit the oldest folk festival in Slovenia – Jurjevanje in the Bela Krajina region and sing your heart out at the tunes of the beloved traditional song: "Došel je, došel, Zeleni Jure!" The first Jurjevanje was held on June 6 and 7 in 1964 when 3000 people all together gathered to see it. Zeleni Jure, or Green George in English, is a mythological creature dressed in green birch branches that chases away winter and brings spring, happiness, and wealth to the people. Fun fact: did you know that the 54th Jurjevanje in 2017 was the first-ever zero-waste event in Slovenia?