Joanna Maria Pilecka (born 25 October 1976 in

Bydgoszcz Bydgoszcz ( , , ; german: Bromberg) is a city in northern Poland, straddling the meeting of the River Vistula with its left-bank tributary, the Brda. With a city population of 339,053 as of December 2021 and an urban agglomeration with more ...

) is a Polish diplomat, serving as an ambassador to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

(since 2021).

Life

Pilecka graduated from the

Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz ( pl, Uniwersytet Kazimierza Wielkiego w Bydgoszczy; UKW), also known as the Casimir the Great University, is a state-funded university in Bydgoszcz, Poland. It was named after Casimir III the Great ('' ...

and

English studies English studies (usually called simply English) is an academic discipline taught in primary, secondary, and post-secondary education in English-speaking countries; it is not to be confused with English taught as a foreign language, which ...

at the

Gdynia Maritime University The Gdynia Maritime University (Polish: Uniwersytet Morski w Gdyni) is one of two colleges in Poland which specialises in educating highly qualified officers for the maritime industry, especially for the merchant navy. History The university ...

. She began professional career at the Prokom company as deputy director of the Department of Promotion. In 2007, she joined the

Ministry of Foreign Affairs In many countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is the government department responsible for the state's diplomacy, bilateral, and multilateral relations affairs as well as for providing support for a country's citizens who are abroad. The entit ...

(MFA). She was posted at the Embassy in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

(2007–2012). In 2017, she started her work at the Consulate-General in

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

. Between 2018 and 2020 she was serving as a Consul-General there. Following her return to Poland, she was working at the Department of Consular Affairs. On 9 September 2020, she became head of the MFA Diplomatic Academy. In 2021, she was nominated Poland Ambassador to Portugal. She started her term on 6 August 2021 and presented her

letter of credence A letter of credence (french: Lettre de créance) is a formal diplomatic letter that designates a diplomat as ambassador to another sovereign state. Commonly known as diplomatic credentials, the letter is addressed from one head of state to anot ...

to the

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa Marcelo Nuno Duarte Rebelo de Sousa (; born 12 December 1948) is a Portuguese politician and academic. He is the List of presidents of Portugal, 20th and current president of Portugal, since 9 March 2016. He is a member of the Social Democrati ...

on 29 September 2021. In 2020, she was honoured by the Minister of Culture

Piotr Gliński Piotr Tadeusz Gliński (; born 20 April 1954) is a Polish sociologist, professor, university lecturer and politician. He served as president of the Polish Sociological Association from 2005 to 2011. He was the nominee of Law and Justice, the larg ...

with the

Decoration of Honor Meritorious for Polish Culture The Decoration of Honor Meritorious for Polish Culture ( pl, Odznaka Honorowa "Zasłużony dla Kultury Polskiej") or Meritorious for Polish Culture, is a Polish departmental decoration in Arts awarded by the Ministry of Culture and National Heri ...

in recognition for her work in Istanbul. Besides Polish, she speaks

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

, and

Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...

, as well basic

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Cana ...

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pilecka, Joanna Maria 20th-century births Ambassadors of Poland to Portugal Consuls-General of Poland Gdynia Maritime University alumni Kazimierz Wielki University in Bydgoszcz alumni Living people Polish women ambassadors Recipients of the Decoration of Honor Meritorious for Polish Culture Year of birth missing (living people)