The eighth meeting of the European Observatory on Memories (EUROM) network will take place on 9 and 10 October at the Historic Building of the University of Barcelona, under the title “Democracy at stake? Memory in times of uncertainty.” The event will bring together academics, journalists, and Members of the European Parliament to discuss current challenges and strategies to foster more inclusive and resilient societies through memory work.
The European Observatory on Memories (EUROM) of the Solidarity Foundation of the University of Barcelona organises its eighth annual meeting under the theme “Democracy at stake? Memory in times of uncertainty.”
This edition, held at the University’s Historic Building, is organised in collaboration with the Commissioner for the commemoration “Spain in Freedom. 50 years”, and supported by the Barcelona City Council and the European Union’s Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) programme.
Opening and keynote speakers
The opening session will take place on Thursday, 9 October, at 9:30 a.m. in the Aula Magna of the University of Barcelona, with the participation of Raúl Ramos, Vice-Rector for Internationalisation Policy of the UB; Carmina Gustrán Loscos, Commissioner for the commemoration Spain in Freedom. 50 years; Zuzana Dorazilová, Deputy Head of Unit for Non-Discrimination: Anti-Racism Coordination, European Commission; Xavier Menéndez i Pablo, Director-General for Democratic Memory at the Department of Justice and Democratic Quality of the Government of Catalonia; and Jordi Guixé, Director of EUROM.
The inaugural session will feature lectures by Georges Mink, emeritus researcher at the CNRS and professor at the College of Europe (Natolin), who will address memory at the European level, and Matilde Eiroa San Francisco, scholar at the Carlos III University of Madrid, who will analyse the management of the Francoist legacy in Spain.
The Franco-German journalist and writer Géraldine Schwarz will deliver the keynote lecture “Rethinking memory work and the European narrative” on Thursday, 9 October, at 3:30 p.m.
On Friday, 10 October, at 10:00 a.m., a round table with Members of the European Parliament will explore the future of European memory policies.
The discussion, moderated by Marije Hristova, postdoctoral researcher at the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), and expert in exhumations and transnational memory policies in Spain and Poland, will feature Ana Miranda Paz, Diana Riba, Jaume Asens, and Juan Fernando López Aguilar.
Click here to download the press kit
This press release is also available in Spanish and Catalan. Graphic materials and pictures will be available on Flickr.
Cover picture: Demonstration in Madrid demanding full rights at age 18 and solutions to youth unemployment. June 11, 1978. Archivo de la Transición.