Obs attended the online info session for the European Remembrance 2025 call for proposals, organised by the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). This initiative is part of the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme, which supports transnational projects that encourage a critical look at Europe’s complex and often painful history.
The European Remembrance strand focuses on engaging citizens with topics such as the Holocaust, totalitarian regimes, colonial legacies, and forced migration—histories that continue to shape our societies today. There was an emphasis on how remembering the past can help strengthen democratic values, especially in a context where disinformation and polarisation are growing concerns across Europe.
One of the key messages of the session was that this funding isn’t just for traditional historical research. The programme is looking for projects that connect history with civic engagement—especially with young people—and that promote dialogue across borders. In other words, it’s about bringing memory to life in ways that are participatory, inclusive, and impactful.
The info session also offered practical guidance: how to apply, what criteria to meet, and how the new lump-sum funding model works. For those of us new to EU calls, this part was especially useful. It helped demystify the application process and clarified the kinds of partnerships and outputs the agency is looking for.
From a communication perspective, it’s clear that memory is not just something we preserve, but something we shape, share, and mediate. This has everything to do with the work we do at the Observatory—examining how narratives are constructed and circulated in media, how communities negotiate identity, and how collective memory can either divide or bring people together.
Overall, the session offered both inspiration and a concrete opportunity. For those interested in how history, media, and democratic participation intersect, this call could be a powerful space to turn theory into practice.