On May 6, 2025, the Lidzbark Cultural Center hosted an academic lecture session inaugurating the Nicolaus Copernicus Academy’s project ” Following the Path of Nicolaus Copernicus” The event was organized in cooperation with the City Hall of Lidzbark Warmiński and the Museum of the Castle of the Warmian Bishops.

Lidzbark – the town where Copernicus spent ten years after obtaining his doctorate in canon law – became the first stop on this intellectual journey connecting cities closely associated with his work: Toruń, Frombork, Olsztyn, and Kraków.

The session, titled “Not just an Astronomer – Who Was Nicolaus Copernicus Really?”, featured four lectures that showcased the versatility genius of this remarkable scholar. The event was opened with a welcome address by the town’s mayor, Mr. Jacek Wiśniowski.

Damian Zawada, assistant curator at the Museum of Warmia and Mazury and an archaeologist, spoke about the Lidzbark Castle as a place that still remembers the great scholar.

Dr. hab. Mariusz Andrzejewski from the Cracow University of Economics presented Copernicus as an economist, discussing his contributions to monetary reform and tariff systems. As part of a small competition, he awarded one of the students with a banknote featuring Copernicus’ image for quickly calculating the time difference between the scholar’s birth and the founding of Lidzbark.

Prof. Dr. hab. Andrzej Rynkiewicz, a cardiologist and lecturer at the SGMK in Olsztyn, presented Copernicus as a physician, administrator, and clergyman. His reflections on how medicine at the time intersected with astrology and the spiritual dimensions of healing were particularly intriguing.

The session concluded with a remote presentation by Prof. Dr. hab. Krzysztof Marian Górski, an astronomer from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Caltech in Pasadena. He spoke about Copernicus’ contemporary legacy in the study of the universe. Participants also watched short videos showcasing the work of NASA teams.

The event at Lidzbark Warmiński marked the first stop on the Nicolaus Copernicus Academy’s lecture tour. The project aims not only at commemorating Copernicus but mostly to highlight the continued relevance of his legacy—in science, economics, medicine, and 21st-century technologies. This open and intergenerational initiative brings together scholars, educators, students, and seniors to reflect on how the modern world continues to draw from Copernicus’s achievements—not only as an astronomer, but also as a humanist, thinker, and true Renaissance man.

With heartfelt thanks for their organizational and logistical support to:
Mr. Paweł Sadowski – Head of the Promotion and Cooperation Department at the City Hall of Lidzbark Warmiński
Ms. Jolanta Adamczyk – President of the University of the Third Age
Mr. Łukasz Szymański – Deputy Director of the Lidzbark House of Culture
Ms. Katarzyna Radulewicz – Director of the Lidzbark Culture Center