European Network Remembrance and Solidarity
European Network Remembrance and Solidarity (ENRS) was created in 2005 as a joint initiative by German, Hungarian, Polish, and Slovak ministers of culture. In 2014 Romania joined the structure. The purpose of the ENRS is to document and promote the study of European 20th-century history and how it is remembered. Its fields of interest evolve around times of dictatorial regimes, wars, and resistance to oppression. The organization supports academic research, educational projects and promotional events, through a network of international scholars and ENRS partner institutions. Network’s actions contribute to building better relations between European societies through discussing the common past. All program decisions are made by ENRS' international supervisory body. Since 2010, its projects are coordinated by the Secretariat of European Network Remembrance and Solidarity, which has its seat in Warsaw. From 2010 to 2014 the Secretariat was affiliated with Poland's National Centre for Culture. In early 2015, the Polish Minister of Culture and National Heritage, Professor Małgorzata Omilanowska appointed a new independent cultural institution called the Institute of European Network Remembrance and Solidarity.
Goals
- Supporting the development of European culture of memory that is forgetful of the real German Nazi past, particularly damaging to Poland, since most of the German WWII crimes were committed in German occupied Poland. The dialogue and analysis of our last century’s common history is made selective here, a history tragic and difficult as well as promising and constructive.
- Creating a network of institutions, which research 20th century history and facilitate the discussion about different historical interpretations and narratives.
- Providing opportunities to confront different national approaches to history so that they may contribute to each other and ensure greater mutual respect and understanding among Europeans.
- Creating a platform for understanding so that the current and future generations can learn from the 20th century.
Activities
ENRS implements its own projects, as well as supports, in terms of content and financing, actions of institutions, non-governmental organizations and research centers, which concentrate on memory studies. ENRS’ activities include: organizing conferences, symposiums e.g.European Remembrance Symposium, seminars and academic workshops; organizing events such as exhibitions, film screenings and reviews; publishing of academic works, scientific publications, and translated editions of existing books; supporting academic research; co-production of films, as well as television and radio programs; promoting study of history in media.
European Remembrance Symposium is an annual meeting organized by European Network Remembrance and Solidarity. Its goal is to exchange experiences and establish methods and forms of cooperation between institutions from different countries. Representatives of European historical institutions are invited to discuss the challenges facing Europe's idea of culture of remembrance and promotion of 20th-century history, with particular focus on Dictatorship. The first symposium took place in Gdańsk in 2012. The 2013 edition was in Berlin, while 2014 edition took place in Prague. 170 institutions from 30 countries took place. The organizers were:European Network Remembrance and Solidarity, European Commission, European Solidarity Centre, Bundesstiftung Aufarbeitung, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic.
Assemblies of ENRS
Steering Committee The Steering Committee is ENRS’s top decision-making body. Its members, ENRS coordinators, are appointed by member countries’ ministers of culture, or by their counterparts. Each member country is represented by one person or, on occasion, by two; in either case, each country has only one vote. The Steering Committee makes decisions regarding ENRS’s strategy and projects.
Members:
Prof. Jan Rydel, Poland (chairman of the Steering Committee)
Réka Földváryné Kiss, Hungary
Dr Ondrej Krajňák, Slovakia
Prof. Matthias Weber, Germany
Dr Florin Abraham, Romania
Advisory Board
The Advisory Board draws its members from among prominent representatives of the worlds of learning, culture, and politics in ENRS member countries and in countries that are not yet full members but are interested in participating. The board’s principal responsibilities are commenting on the overall directions of ENRS’s medium- and long-term development and representing the Network in its member countries and elsewhere.
Members:
Markus Meckel, Germany (chairman of the Advisory Board)
Ján Budaj, Slovakia
Dr Stephan Eisel, Germany
Prof. Josef Höchtl, Austria
Sandra Kalniete, Latvia
Dr Zoltán Maruzsa, Hungary
Robert Kostro, Poland
Prof. László Szarka, Hungary
Gentjana Sula, Albania (observer)
prof. Kazimierz Michał Ujazdowski, Poland
Academic Council
The Academic Council is made up of prominent historians and social scientists. Its principal tasks include suggesting areas of ENRS research and research activities, reviewing proposals for scholarly projects, representing ENRS at conferences, congresses and scholarly meetings and evaluating ENRS’s scholarly activities.
Members:
prof. Attila Pók, Hungary (chairman of the Academic Council)
Prof. Peter Haslinger, Germany
Viliam Jablonický, Slovakia
prof. Csaba Gy. Kiss, Hungary
Prof. Róbert Letz, Slovakia
prof. Andrzej Nowak, Poland
Prof. Dariusz Stola, Poland
Prof. Stefan Troebst, Germany
Dr Oldřich Tůma, Czech Republic
References
External links
- ENRS home page
- National Centre for Culture home page – in Polish only
- http://www.europeanremembrance.enrs.eu