During the week of 23-27 May 2022, AEPJ, network carrier of the European Routes of Jewish Heritage, participated in the training week of the Fab Route project in Rimini, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. The AEPJ team was able to receive training and share knowledge in the areas that the project defines as priorities for the creation of the professional profile of the Route Manager of a Cultural Route of the Council of Europe; in addition to testing the training methodology itself.

As part of the consortium of this project, the AEPJ delivered a theoretical session on Governance and member’s participation, with the collaboration of the expert Montse Crivillers. This was followed by a presentation by the AEPJ team on member participation through the Task Force of the European Days of Jewish Culture as a Best Practice in this field and finally a practical workshop in collaboration with the Via Regia team.

On the first weeknd of May 2022 the last face-to-face seminar of the Mi Dor Le Dor programme was celebrated in Palermo, which offers training in Jewish heritage to young people from all over Italy, offered in collaboration between UCEI, the Taube Center in Poland and AEPJ.

During the three-day programme, participants had the opportunity to discover the impressive Jewish heritage of the Sicilian city, as well as to receive sessions from experts and finally, to present the projects they have been working on throughout the programme.

Victor Sorenssen, director of the AEPJ, as well as Federica Pastoret, project manager of the European Routes of Jewish Heritage attended, and witnessed first-hand the success of the seminar and the programme in general.

The need to combat antisemitism is an urgent concern for all – both Jews and non-Jews – who wish to live in societies that are free from hatred.

Led by the trainers of CEJI – A Jewish Contribution to an Inclusive Europe, the ‘Overcoming Antisemitism TTT’ trains two new cohorts of educators, one in English and one in French. These new trainers throughout Europe have been equipped to collectively reach 1,000 people during the NOA project and remain an anti-bias resource for the long-term. The training and manual is based upon the two-times award winning project Belieforama, focusing on educational approaches to change biased attitudes and discriminatory behaviors in order to create inclusive and equitable environments.

The Overcoming Antisemitism training course was developed within European Commission funded projects, most notably known as Belieforama: A Panoramic Approach to Issues of Religion and Belief, which was the first prize winner of the BMW Group Award for Intercultural Commitment.

A national trail in development and turning attention to Poland and Ukraine

Belarus remains a hidden gem on the landscape of Jewish cultural heritage in Europe. The Together Plan charity, member of the AEPJ since 2019, has a dedicated team in the country working to bring a national Jewish heritage route into focus. The Together Plan team comprises a Jewish author and historian, an experienced heritage coordinator specialising in the field of Jewish partisans and an administrative team. Across the country we refer to local archivists, tour guides and academics and outside of Belarus we look to collaborate with historians and specialists at the National Library of Israel, Yad Vashem and museums and libraries across the Diaspora.

Through our office in the UK, we broker connections to Jewish Belarusians across the globe, in search of stories and family archive information.

AEPJ participated last week in the first coordination meeting of the Erasmus + KA2 project “Youth4Culture”, which also includes the Routes of Emperor Charles V, the Route of the Olive Tree and the European Route of Ceramics, with the participation of the Jaranda Secondary School in Jarandilla de la Vera.

The project initiative aims to promote the participation and involvement of young people in cultural activities and tourism promotion, through the cultural routes of the Council of Europe.

Victor Sorenssen, director of AEPJ and Michelle Nahum Sembira, coordinator of the project Mi Dor le Dor Italy, attended the coordination meeting in the region of La Vera in Extremadura, Spain. During the week, the participants visited some of the sites that are part of the Emperor Charles V Routes Network, such as the Monastery of Yuste or Garganta La Olla, as well as Jarandilla de la Vera, the venue of the meeting.

Last Thursday 31st March we had the great pleasure to hold our annual Coordinators’ Meeting where, among other things, the official image of the European Days of Jewish Culture 2022 Festival under the theme Renewal was unveiled. The event was attended by more than 70 coordinators from all over Europe who will organise conferences, concerts, performances, guided tours and other activities, which take place simultaneously throughout the continent. Next to these lines you can see the poster illustrating this year’s festival, created by the Red de Juderías de España – Caminos de Sefarad and designed by Antonio Serrano (Por Fin Lunes).

We also had the always helpful presence of the staff of the National Library of Israel, Caron Sethill and Olga Lempert, who presented the procedure for requesting resources and content from the NLI, which will offer them tailor-made for each activity and programme of the festival.

Note: This article will be updated periodically as more news becomes available.

[Updated: 04/04/2022]

From the moment we became aware of the war situation in Ukraine, AEPJ members have been in contact to provide assistance in a coordinated manner to both members of the association on Ukrainian territory and those in neighbouring countries who are providing humanitarian services to refugees. We list below the actions that are being carried out as well as the indications to support these actions.

We want to thank and honour the work and support that all AEPJ members are doing in these difficult times and we invite and encourage you to collaborate with them through the following channels.

Heritage Springs – Vilkhivtsi Community (Ukraine)

The Board of Trustees of Heritage Springs has temporarily suspended work on the Jewish Museum to concentrate efforts on assisting Ukrainian refugees arriving in cities within the Maramorosh area of Western Ukraine.