Initiatives

»Connecting Memory« is aimed at developing self-directed local initiatives and community expertise, and providing advice in the fields of history, education, law, construction and architecture. 

Today, the »Connecting Memory« community consists of more than 40 initiatives (guided by 20 mentors), Jewish community representatives, experts and activists; it has established itself as a leading actor in Ukrainian commemorative culture with regard to the Holocaust and the Roma genocide. The project supports and strengthens civil society in Ukraine and seeks modern and appropriate ways to preserve the memory of victims of crimes perpetrated during the German occupation. Local project initiatives are most often centred around committed teachers, museum workers, local historians and ethnographers, librarians, and in collaboration with local authorities.

One of the central components of »Connecting Memory« is the concept of mentoring. Each initiative has the opportunity to work with an experienced cultural manager, a historian, a researcher, or a project manager who specializes in commemorative culture and Holocaust studies. Mutual exchange between mentors and local activists becomes a model for learning from experience and leads to closer ties between local civil society and national and international experts.

The project has established a financial support programme for the initiatives: in 2022, for example, 51 applications were funded, and support was granted for work to rescue museum collections, events to honour the memory of World War II victims, public historical and educational events, the development of historical excursions, the creation of educational materials, historical research, as well as the establishment of cultural and social spaces within communities.

Since March 2022, in response to the new experience of combat operations, we set up a safe online space where participants in the »Connecting Memory« project can share experiences, articulate their feelings and focus on their mental health and emotional wellbeing, and we offer regular online meetings and individual counselling to those who need it.