28/01/2025

Welcoming Sonja Viličić as Project Manager for “Cities Embracing Jewish Heritage”

The AEPJ is delighted to announce the appointment of Sonja Viličić as the new Project Manager for the groundbreaking initiative Cities Embracing Jewish Heritage. With her extensive experience in cultural management and community-driven projects, Sonja brings a wealth of expertise and enthusiasm to this pivotal role.

Sonja’s professional journey has been nothing short of remarkable. Having worked across Europe, she has spearheaded initiatives that bridge cultural heritage, local development, and social inclusion. Her previous projects include collaborations with Jewish communities,  municipal governments, and grassroots organizations. Her ability to connect diverse stakeholders has consistently resulted in innovative solutions that celebrate cultural diversity while promoting sustainable growth.

In her new role at the AEPJ, Sonja will lead the Cities Embracing Jewish Heritage project, a visionary program designed to strengthen the relationship between municipalities and local initiatives dedicated to preserving and promoting Jewish culture and heritage.

24/01/2025

Celebrating 20 Years of Jewish Heritage, Dialogue, and Exchange Across Europe

Strasbourg, January 23, 2025 – The European Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Jewish Culture and Heritage (AEPJ) marked its 20th anniversary with an extraordinary gathering at the Council of Europe, bringing together approximately 100 distinguished guests, including ambassadors, prominent members of the French Jewish heritage sector, representatives of the Council of Europe, and AEPJ members from across Europe, including Greece, Georgia, Italy, Spain, Germany, Lithuania, and Belgium.

 The event featured an inspiring opening session with speeches by Mr. François Moyse, President of the AEPJ, who stated, “Over these two decades, we have built bridges between cultures and generations, from Spain to Poland, from Italy to Lithuania across the European continent. This date is more than just a celebration, it is a recognition of the collective efforts made to preserve and promote Jewish heritage as an integral part of European culture and our shared history.”

22/01/2025

Open registration for the EDJC Organisers & Coordinators Meeting 2025 in Barcelona

The AEPJ is delighted to announce that registration is now open for the EDJC Organisers & Coordinators Meeting 2025, which will take place on March 25–26, 2025, in Barcelona, Spain.

This meeting is a key moment in preparing for the European Days of Jewish Culture, an annual festival that begins on the first Sunday of September and celebrates Jewish heritage through a wide variety of cultural and educational activities across Europe. By fostering inclusion, promoting dialogue, and combating antisemitism, the EDJC continues to make a meaningful impact in building a more cohesive and understanding society.

This year’s festival will explore the theme People of the Book, a reflection on the central role of the written word in Jewish tradition and its deep connections with interfaith dialogue and cultural exchange.

08/01/2025

Jewish heritage mediators from Spain and Portugal meet at Centro Sefarad to kick off MiDorLeDor Europe training programme

In the framework of this first meeting, several session on the educational scope of the project have been held, followed by a series of presentations of good practices that opened the debate around the change of paradigm that MiDorLeDor Europe proposes: to not only focus on the historical narrative but to put citizenry in the focus of Jewish heritage mediation, to generate an educational impact in order to raise awareness about cultural diversity in Europe, and more specifically dealing with antisemitism. In addition, the event was attended by Marta Eichelberger-Jankowska, Head of Educational Projects at the Taube Center for Jewish Life & Learning, and Marc Francesch-Camps, coordinator of the European Routes of Jewish Heritage by AEPJ, who presented the pillars of the project with the aim of framing the process in the European context.

30/12/2024

NextRoutes: Upskilling staff with gamification and innovation to boost EU Cultural Routes

The Next Routes Transnational training for cultural routes staff took place in Selinunte (Sicily, Italy)in early December, hosted by the Phoenicians’ Route, lead partner of the project, and was designed to enhance digital, creative, and gamification knowledge, skills, and competencies of staff working in various capacities in six Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe.

The training featured four workshop modules developed by the Breda University of Applied Sciences, intended specifically for the representatives of the Cultural Routes participating in the project. The training for representatives of the Cultural Routes addressed the development of digital competencies for marketing, promotion, and communication of cultural heritage, to foster audience engagement. On behalf of AEPJ, The Together Plan, developer of the Jewish route through Belarus, in the framework of the European Routes of Jewish Heritage, participated actively in the full programme, and will be planning subsequent activities throughout 2025 to disseminate the outputs of the project.

23/12/2024

European Days of Jewish Culture 2025 central theme: “People of the Book”

The AEPJ has officially announced the theme for the 2025 European Days of Jewish Culture:

“People of the Book”

This theme was selected by the EDJC Committee after careful consideration of its rich potential to explore Jewish heritage, foster interfaith dialogue, and inspire innovative programming across Europe.

“People of the Book” highlights the profound role of the written word in Jewish tradition, encompassing sacred texts like the Torah, literary contributions, and the broader cultural and historical context shared with Christianity and Islam. It underscores the transformative power of words to connect communities, preserve memory, and foster mutual understanding. The theme “People of the Book” invites local organisers to explore the shared heritage of Jewish, Christian, and Islamic traditions, promoting interfaith dialogue and cultural understanding.

23/12/2024

Mi Dor Le Dor Europe: Shtetl Routes Network Incubator seminar

On November 2024, a Shtetl Routes Network Incubator seminar took place at the ‘Grodzka Gate – NN Theatre’ Centre in Lublin with the aim of building and strengthening a community of people from Poland and Ukraine involved in working with Jewish cultural heritage through various activities (cultural, educational, artistic, museum, ethnographic, tourist, documentary, Internet, other).

The three-day program of the seminar included workshops on the MiDorLeDor methodology for Jewish heritage education, lectures intended to highlight the specificities of the Shtetl Route, unique as it connects Jewish legacy in the transborder region with Ukraine and Belarus, discussion panels regarding the current deals for Jewish heritage education, and showcases of cultural products that are contributing to the Jewish culture dissemination such as concerts and visits to places and memorials related to the history of Lublin’s Jews.

18/12/2024

Mi Dor Le Dor Europe: Taube Center for Jewish Life & Learning launches its training for educators programme in Warsaw with a diverse training program

The AEPJ member Taube Center for Jewish Life & Learning launched the training for educators of Mi Dor Le Dor Europe. A diverse group of 28 professionals, including experts in Jewish heritage, educators from both formal and informal settings, tour and museum guides, and members of Jewish community organizations, came together in Warsaw to embark on this new edition of the training programme.

The program began with a warm welcome from Helena Czernek at the Mi Polin Mezuzah Center, located on Złota 62 Street. This unique space serves as both a Jewish mini-museum and a design store. Participants engaged in a workshop and explored the center before taking a short tour of one of the most significant surviving remnants of the Warsaw Ghetto, located in the courtyard of the building at Złota 62.

17/12/2024

Mi Dor Le Dor Europe: First seminar for Jewish heritage educators of Route du Judaism Rhenan

As along Autumn the members of MDLDE programme have been launching the training for educators events, recently in November Route du Judaisme Rhenan organised the opening seminar for the Upper Rhine, a transnational programme mixing Jewish heritage edcuators and guides from France, Germany and Switzerland. The event was hosted by the Blaues Haus in Breisach (Germany), a key remembrance and education centre for the exploration of the region’s Jewish cultural heritage.

The day began with avisit to the iconic St. Stephen’s Cathedral, where participants explored medieval representations of Jewish communities. This was followed by a formal opening at the Blaus Haus conference hall, featuring insightful presentations. Françoise Elkouby offered an Alsatian perspective on the Baden region, while Christiane Walesch-Schneller highlighted Breisach’s connections to Alsace.

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