Last 3rd of November, François Moyse, president of the Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Jewish and European Culture and Heritage, participated as a speaker at the colloquium on Moroccan-Jewish culture held at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, where he spoke about the missions of the AEPJ and its actions to promote initiatives that foster a better knowledge of European history and awareness of cultural diversity. The colloquim highlighted the dimension of “Living Together” and the intercultural dialogue: the model of Judeo-Moroccan culture.

It was organised at the initiative of the Enlarged Partial Agreement on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe (EPA) in cooperation with the Consulate General of the Kingdom of Morocco in Strasbourg.

The NOA (Network Overcoming Antisemitism) project had its first in-person meeting on the 27th and 28th October since the pandemic began. The two day-long meeting allowed partners to review and discuss the first research findings and to plan ahead more in-person activities. Representatives from the 6 networks that work in the project met at the CEJI‘s and B’nai B’rith Europe offices in Brussels. In addition to AEPJ and the aforementioned institutions, the other partners of the NOA project are the European Union of Jewish Students, the European Union for Progressive Judaism and the World Jewish Congress.

The NOA Project, offers a pioneering approach to tackle the problem of rising antisemitism in Europe. With its unique partnership of major Jewish networks, it will evaluate EU Member States’ policies across areas, from education to culture and security, and help them to develop holistic national action plans to address and prevent antisemitism.

Our partnership with the National Library of Israel has meant growth in every way in the development of the European Days of Jewish Culture. Caron Sethill and his team from the Gesher L’Europa program at the National Library of Israel are a constant source of inspiration. Their educational approach to archival work for heritage practitioners has facilitated the creation of a unique bridge to the general public, in the transmission of Jewish heritage.

We are very proud to report that in the framework of the European project WalkEUR, part of the Creative Europe program, the National Library of Israel has been selected as a good practice in the field of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.

Based at the University of Oxford, the Jewish Country Houses Project takes country houses as a starting point for opening up a much broader intellectual agenda at the interface between Jewish history, art history and heritage culture. A distinctive feature of this AHRC-funded project is the way in which it brings scholars and heritage professionals together to map out a new heritage landscape. Before the pandemic we met at conferences which we organised in partnership with historic houses like Waddesdon Manor and Villa Kerylos: this proved a very powerful way of fostering personal and intellectual connections. Now, many events are held over Zoom, which allows us to create a more regular contact, one that renders the network meaningful in a different way.

On Sunday 10 October Italy opened the national Days of Jewish Heritage as a part of the European Days of Jewish Culture which started on 5 September with the European opening in Luxembourg.

The president of AEPJ François Moyse had been invited by UCEI, the federation of Jewish communities of Italy to attend the opening of the Giornata Europea della Cultura Ebraica in Padova.

Prior to his coming, he visited the community of Venice. Thanks to board member Annie Sacerdoti, a tour of the ancient Jewish cemetery on Lido island had been organized, with explanations of a guide, showing the great variety of tombs belonging both to sefardi and ashkenazi families. The most impressive were the signs of different families put on the stones.

On September 30, the Israeli House held an exhibition of the Jewish Cultural Heritage, along with a business forum, within the “Israeli Week”, which was opened in accordance with pandemic-related regulations. The pictures of the winners of the Parallel Traces contest as well as photographs of Jewish Heritage locations in Georgia taken by the “Israeli House” were presented at the exhibition. The event was attended by 120 people from Israel, including Parliamentarians and Businessmen.

The “Israeli House”, a member of The European Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Jewish Culture and Heritage (AEPJ)/Cultural Route certified by the Council of Europe and, has held many events in cooperation with AEPJ. The organization in Georgia officially supervises the European Route of Jewish Heritage in Georgia, which has been operating for five years.

Last September 5, in the heart of the city of Luxembourg, the kick-off of this year’s European Days of Jewish Culture was held, with the central theme of Dialogue.

In the event, the AEPJ and the Administration of Public Buildings installed a plaque that recalls the exact location of the first synagogue of Luxembourg, which occupied the premises of the former refuge of the sisters of Differdange from 1823 to 1894. This plaque marks the second step out of 30 on the Jewish heritage itinerary through the UNESCO zone “Luxembourg, old districts and fortifications”. The route can be followed with an audio guide on izi.travel or with a specially trained guide.

The launch of the Luxembourg route also marks its official integration into the European Routes of Jewish Heritage.