At the end of last year, PTHM had the opportunity to present its activities at the forums of two oral history associations. The first occasion was a workshop organised by Oral History in Sweden (OHiS, http://www.oralhistory.se/), which was held on 29th November at Södertörn University in Stockholm. After a longer break, the Swedish oral history and memory studies communities came together to activate joint efforts in the field of oral history. The presentation of ongoing research, documentation and museum projects provided an opportunity to learn more about what individuals are doing in different venues around the country. The workshop began with Jakub Gałęziowski presenting our Associations’ activities and achievements over almost fifteen years of existence. As it turned out, these can provide inspiration for colleagues from Sweden, as can the Norwegian experience (members of the Memoar, https://www.memoar.no/om-oss/ about, also talked about their projects). In the discussion that followed both presentations, similarities emerged in terms of the challenges faced by oral history practitioners in Poland and Norway. Other contributions provided an overview of research and various initiatives, including projects on migrants or ethnic minorities in Sweden and the oral history programme of the newly established Swedish Holocaust Museum. We hope that this meeting will result in deeper cooperation between our organisations.
The second occasion to talk about oral history in Poland was a conversation between Emma Zohar and Jakub Gałęziowski as part of annual lectures organised by The Israel Association for Oral History (http://israeloralhistory.org/) and the Leo Baeck Institute Jerusalem (https://leobaeck.org/?lang=en). The meeting was held on 21st December online and gathered a large audience, who then took part in a lively discussion focused in particular on ethical issues and the role of emotions in the oral history practice. We are very pleased to see such interest in oral history in Poland and that we can share our experiences abroad.
