The year 1989 became a turning point in the history of Europe. Communist regimes in Central and Eastern Europe began to falter, Hungary opened its border with Austria, Poland held its first semifree parliamentary elections, many East German refugees in Prague and Warsaw speeded up the changes in East Germany, and then the Berlin Wall fell. This departure allowed for a new beginning of Polish-German relations.
In November 1989, Chancellor Helmut Kohl visited Poland and met with the first non-communist Prime Minister of Poland, Tadeusz Mazowiecki. Their embrace during the service in Krzyżowa in Lower Silesia went down in history as a symbol of Polish-German reconciliation.
Today, 30 years later, we would like to recall this history and ask what it means for us. Is reconciliation between Germans and Poles still an issue? How well have we managed to use the last 30 years to create a friendly coexistence between a free Poland and a united Germany? What are the challenges facing the German-Polish neighbourhood today? These and other questions will be answered by the participants of the meeting.
Read more: „Breakthrough year 1989 - semifree elections in Poland and Polish-German new beginning in...
On 20th May at the International Youth Meeting Center in Krzyżowa another international school exchange will start. For the 7th time, as a partnership, a group of young people from the High School Complex in Kłodawa and Erich Kästner Gymnasium from Laatzen will come to Krzyżowa.
65 pupils will face the themes of World War II in order to create a better common future.
Organizers: ZSP Nr. 5 Kłodawa, Erich-Kästner Gymnasium Laatzen, "Krzyżowa" Foundation for European Understanding.
Read more: Polish-German school exchange Kłodawa-Laatzen - Krzyżowa, 20-25.05.2019
From 20 to 24 May a German-Polish school meeting took place between 2 primary schools in the International Youth Meeting Centre in Kreisau. The participants from Hamburg and Gdansk got to know each other in art workshops, cooperation games and during the joint activities. It was a very special project for us in Kreisau, as two primary school classes met. The school meeting revolved around the topic underwater world and in workshops the children dealt with the topic sustainability. Together the students discussed in workshops about children's rights and visions, wishes and dreams for the future. The time spent together enabled new acquaintances, the dismantling of language barriers and many football tournaments.
Read more: German-Polish school exchange Gdańsk-Hamburg - Krzyżowa, 20-24 May 2019 (VIDEO)
Krzyżowa Foundation for Mutual Understanding in Europe, the Magyar Bibliodráma Egyesület (Hungarian Society for Bibliodrama), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Bibliodrama (The German Society for Bibliodrama) and Polskie Towarzystwo Bibliodramy (The Polish Society for Bibliodrama) were organizers of an ecumenical, international bibliodramatic workshop in Krzyżowa from 4 to 8 August this year.
This year's 30th anniversary of the Reconciliation Mass in Krzyżowa, the beginnings of the Foundation Krzyżowa and the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of the Second World War were for us above all an opportunity to reflect together more intensively on the theme of reconciliation. The issue was dealt with both in the theoretical part in the form of lectures and in the practical part, i.e. the bibliodramatic workshops.
Read more: International, ecumenical bibliodramatic workshop "Bibliodrama. Krzyżowa. Reconciliation" -...
