EUROPAST Online Workshop “Open Archives, Accessible Research, and Public History”

November 18, 2025, 13:00 to 17:00 CET on ZOOM (https://lu-se.zoom.us/j/64779939772)

Organized and convened by Dr. Victoria Van Orden Martínez, Lund University, Sweden

Hosted by The North European Center for Research on Antisemitism and the Holocaust (NORAH) at Lund University, Sweden.

Chair: Dr. Victoria Van Orden Martínez, Researcher in History, Lund University and NORAH

Speakers:

Professor Thomas Cauvin, Professor of Public History, University of Luxembourg

Dr. Laura Aguiar, Lecturer in Cinematic Arts, Ulster University, Northern Ireland

Tomasz Lesniak, Library assistant, Lund University Library, Sweden

Dr. Ming Gao, Research scholar of East Asia studies, Lund University, Sweden

Description:

Archives are where researchers of all types – students, practitioners, academics, and the public – gather and mediate knowledge of the past. In turn, this knowledge forms the narratives that shape societies and our increasingly transnational and globalized world. The openness and availability of archives and the research that stems from them are thus of vital importance to the creation of balanced and nuanced narratives that promote democracy and equality. This begs questions about how to achieve open archives and accessible research that engage the public through different media, resulting in more inclusive public history engagements. This workshop, hosted by the North European Center for Research on Antisemitism and the Holocaust at Lund University (NORAH), is geared towards academics, practitioners, archivists, students, and others who engage with archives, research, and/or public history or want to reach the public. Participants have the opportunity not only to listen to experts in public history education, open archives, multimedia content creation, and public history writing share their experiences and best practices, but also to interact with them personally for meaningful personal advice and expertise.

Program:

13:00 – Welcome and Opening Remarks: Professor Barbara Törnquist-Plewa, Professor of European Studies, Lund University, and Dr. Victoria Van Orden Martínez, Researcher in History, Lund University and NORAH

13:30 – Dr. Thomas Cauvin, Professor of Public History, University of Luxembourg (lead, Public History and Outreach research area) and Dr. Laura Aguiar, Lecturer in Cinematic Arts, Ulster University, Northern Ireland (Multimedia producer)

Archives in Public History

The presentation explores what makes archives truly public within the context of public history. It examines how archives have evolved from static repositories to dynamic spaces, questioning issues of selection, censorship, accessibility, and corporate control. Through examples of inclusive and community-driven practices, we’ll consider how archives can engage the public, challenge dominant narratives, and activate their role in shaping collective memory.

14:30 – Break

14:45 – Tomasz Lesniak, Library assistant, Lund University Library, Sweden (authority on the UNESCO Memory of the World-designated Ravensbrück Archive at Lund University Library)

A Short History of The Polish Research Institute in Lund

In the final months of World War II, thousands of survivors from Nazi concentration camps were evacuated to southern Sweden through large-scale humanitarian operations led by the Red Cross and the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration (UNRRA). Among those who stepped forward to support these survivors was Zygmunt Lakociński (1905–1987), a Polish lecturer at Lund University. During his visits to refugee camps housing Polish citizens, Lakociński encountered many survivors and listened to their deeply personal and harrowing stories. Driven by a commitment to preserve these vital testimonies, he founded the Polish Research Institute in 1945. The Institute’s mission was to document the experiences of Polish survivors, especially those who had endured the horrors of Nazi concentration camps. Since 2015, I have had the privilege of overseeing the archive of the Polish Research Institute in Lund. This archive preserves an invaluable collection of personal histories and research materials that continue to shed light on the resilience and suffering of Polish survivors during and after the war.

15:15 – Dr. Ming Gao, Research scholar of East Asia studies, Lund University, Sweden (leading writer for The Conversation)

Connecting the Past, the Present, and the Public

This talk explores how historians can bridge the gap between scholarship and public life, transforming academic research into narratives that resonate with contemporary issues. Drawing on personal examples from platforms like The Conversation and other forms of public scholarship, it considers how public history can inform debate, influence policy, and make an impact both domestically and internationally.

15:45 – Break

16:00 to 17:00 – Discussion/Break-out rooms

Victoria ("Tori") Van Orden Martínez, Ph.D.

Researcher, Department of History

North European Center for Research on Antisemitism and the Holocaust (NORAH)

Lund University

LUX, Helgonavägen 3, Lund

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