The Launch of the Forum for Dialogue Network

The 9th National Leaders of Dialogue Conference took place on June 16-18, 2023 and brought 85 activists from all over Poland, including 25 new network members. It was a very special event, not only because of the two important anniversaries we celebrate this year – the 25th anniversary of the Forum for Dialogue and the 10th anniversary of the Leaders of Dialogue program – but also because it was an opportunity to announce the official launch of the Forum for Dialogue Network, marking a key change in the Forum’s strategy.

The Forum for Dialogue Network was launched on the second evening of the Conference. It brings together people in Poland and abroad working to improve Polish/Jewish relations, and henceforth will be the framework for of all activities undertaken by the Forum.

For the launch, the activists and Forum staff were joined by Forum’s friends, supporters, and allies from Poland and abroad, as well as members of the Scholarly Advisory Board, and representatives of our partner organizations, including the POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews, the Association of the Jewish Historical Institute in Poland, and the Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland. Together they celebrated the launch during an inaugural ceremony and a reception marking the 25th Anniversary of the Forum. The ceremony was hosted by Katarzyna Kasia, while the activists from the Forum for Dialogue Network shared their oftentimes very moiving testimonies of being part of this community.

Robert Augustyniak from Grodzisk Mazowiecki, Teresa Jabłońska from Września, Piotr Jakoweńko from Będzin and Gliwice, Dariusz Mielcarek from Inowrocław, Kamil Mrozowicz from Jedwabne, Karolina Panz from Nowy Targ, Marek Rekucki from Mszana Dolna, Anita Rucioch-Gołek from Zbąszyń, Mirosław Skrzypczyk from Lelów and Szczekociny, Mariusz Sokołowski from Białystok and Wasilków, and Anna Włodek from Tarnowskie Góry talked about what this membership in the Forum for Dialogue community has given them in their daily efforts to commemorate Jewish communities in their towns.

Apart from the celebrations, the three-day conference offered a rich program of panel discussions, workshop sessions, lectures and meetings aimed at helping activists have the sustainable impact in their work. We addressed issues relevant in activism dedicated to Polish/Jewish dialogue, such as creation of social archives, effective ways to engage local communities, establishing relations with descendants of Polish Jews, and preventing burnout. Coordinators of regional groups introduced the ways in which newly added Network members may seek support and assistance at the regional level in their daily activities to restore the memory of Jews.

The 9th National Leaders of Dialogue Conference ended on a field trip to Góra Kalwaria, a Mazovian shtetl of immense significance for the history of Hasidism in Poland.

Photos by P. Banasik

photo: P. Banasik

When one deals with difficult subjects, one may feel lonely … We have been afraid of loneliness, so from the beginning those of us who work with Jewish heritage knew that we had to connect. We needed a community. And Forum for Dialogue gave us such an opportunity: to be together. This Forum for Dialogue Network is something really important. We are a big group, we are a network spread out all over Poland, in different places … We are strong. And I can even say – not out of hubris, but pride and joy – tikkun olam, we’re fixing the world. And this gives me strength. We meet so that we can share our stories. So that we can hear what’s going on in our country, and support each other.

Mirosław Skrzypczyk, activist from Szczekociny and Lelów

Contributors

In 2023, the Leaders of Dialogue program, including grants and scholarships, is financed thanks to the generosity of Friends of the Forum, LEDOR WADOR Foundation, United States Commission for the Preservation of America’s Heritage Abroad and individual donors and institutions from Poland and abroad supporting Forum for Dialogue. Scholarships for personal development are possible thanks to The David and Anna Dlugie Kliger Scholarship Fund.