The European Commission has announced the list of winners of the 2019 Altiero Spinelli Prize. The Krzyżowa Foundation for Mutual Understanding in Europe is one of the 16 winners from all over Europe, thereby the first Polish organization in the history of this competition to receive such a distinction.
The Altiero Spinelli Prize has been awarded since 2017 and is a recognition of outstanding activities that promote understanding of the European Union as an integration project and its values. It focuses in particular on initiatives that help young citizens to engage in the democratic processes shaping the future of the EU. In the last edition of the Altiero Spinelli Prize, the activities undertaken in 2019 were assessed, and the work of the International Youth Meeting Center in Krzyżowa was recognized as outstanding in Europe.
The part of the ceremony with the announcement of the winners, including the Krzyżowa Foundation for Mutual Understanding in Europe, starts at 1:04 of the broadcast. We invite you to watch an interview with the winners - including Anna Kudarewska from the Krzyżowa Foundation.
Expert jurors paid particular attention to the very ambitious nature of the IYMC projects, the basis of which are meetings of young people from Poland, Germany and often also from other countries. Young people participating in these projects receive a unique chance to learn in an informal atmosphere to discuss, understand people with different views, experiences and expectations, as well as express their opinions and confront them with the opinions of peers in order to build consensus around different views. In this way, young people can better understand their own role in contemporary Europe.
During 30 years of operation, the International Youth Meeting Center in Krzyżowa has cooperated with over 250 schools and institutions, mainly from Poland and Germany, implementing projects with the participation of young people from various backgrounds, with different material status and experiences, also addressed to people with disabilities and disadvantaged groups. Many of them, participating in the projects of the Krzyżowa Foundation, had a chance to meet their peers from other countries for the first time and could overcome barriers created by tragic events in the past. Joint talks about the history and future of Europe, as well as everyday life as seen through the eyes of teenagers, contributed to strengthening the European dialogue by continuing it through the young generation.
Altiero Spinelli (1907–1986) was an Italian politician and political scientist considered to be one of the founding fathers of the European Union. He is the co-author of the Ventotene Manifesto, played a significant role in the federalist movement, had a strong influence on European integration in the first decades and in the 1980s. The main building of the European Parliament in Brussels is named after him.
The list of all winners is available on the website of the competition organizer.
Let's bring the local story to Instagram. Let us try to consider how we remember historical events that took place in our area and how the culture of memory influences our view of the past. These were the main messages of the project "Local History on Instagram". As part of the project, there have already been 2 editions of online workshops via the Zoom internet platform: 5.02-5.03.2021 and 11-28.06.2021.
Why do we suggest you move your local story to Instagram? Because on the one hand, historical and civic education is increasingly dependent on the use of various types of media, and on the other hand, the Internet, especially during a pandemic, has become a kind of educational institution. This is perfectly reflected in Instagram, where museums and educational centers are increasingly represented. On the occasion of current debates on social participation and democracy, Instagram is used more and more often, discovering new opportunities created by this social network for serious historical and civic education.
Read more: ||PROJECT|| “Local History on Instagram”
"We thank you, with our partner from Germany, for a fantastic meeting.
It was nice to feel part of the Krzyżowa Community again..."
On 24th February, on the initiative of "Krzyżowa" Foundation, an information meeting about Polish-German youth exchanges online took place. 50 participants representing schools from Poland and Germany took part in event organized on Zoom platform to plan upcoming season of youth meetings. Specialists from International Youth Meeting Centre in Krzyzowa presented innovative forms and themes of proposed meetings such as "Global Education", "Ethics in Internet", "History of inequality and discrimination".
Read more: REPORT || Online youth exchanges. Information meeting - 24.02.2021
On 23 February, a webinar devoted to the challenges facing the education of schoolchildren on the culture of dialogue and historical education was held with the participation of 46 teachers and educators from Poland and Germany.
During the webinar, the participants:
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listened to a lecture 'The significance of Krzyżowa for Polish-German relations' given by Prof. Krzysztof Ruchniewicz (UWr, Director of the Willy Brandt Centre for German and European Studies at Wrocław University),
took part in a virtual guided tour of Krzyżowa prepared by Dominik Kretschmann (Director of the Krzyżowa Memorial Site of the Krzyżowa Foundation),
listened a presentation on 'The Significance of International Youth Meeting Houses' by Eva Feldmann-Wojtachnia (Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München),
took part in two parallel discussions:
1. historical education and the culture of remembrance. Polish and German perspectives.
2. How to teach dialogue? Practical tips and experiences from working with young people.
Read more: REPORT || Webinar "Education. Dialogue. Memory. Workshops in Krzyżowa "- 23.02.2021
