Task Force For International Cooperation On Holocaust Education, Remembrance and Research

Research

The Academic Working Group (AWG) was created in July 2000 at the Plenary held in Berlin.

The first Chairman was the Academic Advisor Professor Yehuda Bauer. Professor David Bankier suggested compiling a list of all ongoing research projects on the Holocaust and Holocaust-related subjects. This list was published on the Task Force website.

At the meetings in The Hague in May and October 2001 the question of the accessibility of archives was on the agenda. Funding research projects was discussed as well. The same questions were discussed in Paris and in Strasbourg in June and October 2002. Consensus was reached to send an official letter to the International Tracing Service in Bad Arolsen.

The changing nature of the AWG

When Juliane Wetzel took over the duty of Chair of the AWG from Professor Yehuda Bauer in Washington 2003, the AWG was still a relatively small group of participants (10-12). Only a few academics who specialised in history or political sciences attended the meetings. Most of the participants were diplomats from the different ITF member delegations.

During Dr. Wetzel's three years as Chair of the AWG this changed, and an increasing number of academics with expert knowledge attended the meetings of the AWG. It was a long and difficult process to convince the member states that the AWG not only needed academics in general, but also delegates who were able to expertly evaluate the different project proposals on Holocaust and Holocaust-related issues.

The input of each member of the AWG is important both because each representative brings special talents to the general discussion and because delegates know local conditions and affairs as only people from a specific country or region can. In addition, much of the work can be shared, not only in relation to the reviewing of projects submitted to the committee for approval and funding but also in relation to promoting the Task Force's activities.

Today, every member country is obliged to have a delegate represented at the AWG.

The opening of all Holocaust-related archives

While Juliane Wetzel's was Chair of the AWG one of the main issues taken up at the biannual meetings of the AWG members was promoting the opening up of all Holocaust-related archives. Foremost among these was the archive of the International Tracing Service (ITS) in Bad Arolsen.

As a result of the efforts of the AWG, along with other interested parties, the rules and administration of the archives of the ITS were changed and this major repository of Holocaust-related material is now fully open to scholarly (and other) research.

Repositories in three countries have received copies of the material at Bad Arolsen, and each country that is a member of the ITF may receive a copy of the material upon request to the authorities.

Accessibility of Holocaust-related archives

From 2006 to 2008, under the guidance of Paul Dostert, the main focus of the working group was directed towards the issue of the accessibility of Holocaust-related archives in the member countries. Despite generally good collaboration between most of the delegates, some country reports regarding the status of archives in their country are still outstanding.

In keeping with a decision taken at the Prague meeting of the AWG in December 2007 the next chairs of the ITF will continue to work towards the opening of Holocaust-related archives in the Vatican and in North African countries.

The AWG and EWG joint working group

Other AWG initiatives also promoted the creation of a joint working group with the Education Work Group (EWG). This collaborative effort, known as the 'Special Working Group on Resistances to Learning and Teaching about the Holocaust', was formed in Rome in May 2004.

This working group has, to date, discussed the new challenges facing Holocaust education and research in a multicultural society. It has, in particular, been concerned with the problem of teaching the Holocaust to a younger generation that is resistant to learning about it. Even listening to survivor testimonies and participating in national Holocaust remembrance days has become problematic in some locations.

The AWG was also involved in the preparation of the conference "Memory of the Holocaust: Culture of Remembrance" held in Vienna in April 2006, and attended by a number of ITF members. Lectures were given by members of the AWG, the EWG and the MWG.

A compilation of websites in different member countries is also at the disposal of the delegates.

Conference on new Holocaust research

After several years of discussions the AWG is planning to sponsor a conference on new Holocaust research each year. The conference will be hosted, with financial support from the AWG, by the country hosting the ITF for that particular year. The first such conference is planned for June 2009 in Oslo, Norway. Its program is being constructed by a sub-committee of AWG members, and is chaired by Dr. Odd-Bjørn Fure of the Norwegian Holocaust Centre.

The future of the AWG

At its meeting in Linz in June 2008 a new Chairman, Professor Steven T. Katz, was elected. Among the issues facing the AWG as it goes forward are:

An expansion of its support for scholarly work in and across borders. This includes discussion of new ways of maximising the use of our limited financial resources in the production and circulation of new scholarship by scholars working at all levels.

The increased funding of translations of important books and other research both from major languages into less well-known languages and from less well-known languages into major languages. The latter is especially important as it brings valuable scholarship not generally accessible to the wider world of international research.

The continuous effort to assure that all archives and official repositories of material in relation to the Holocaust are open and fully accessible for scholarly research.

The publication of the proceedings of the scholarly conference that it is now planning. This will make available the research presented at these meetings to an international audience.

As part of its obligations, the AWG will need to organise a publication sub-committee and establish viable working relations with a publisher of international reputation.

Continued financial and academic support for the many local initiatives that seek the counsel and professional advice of the AWG. This includes local museums, Holocaust Centres, University departments and centres and state organisations.

The need to serve as a medium for the flow of important information on Holocaust-related issues between scholars in all the member states of the ITF.

The need to be vigilant regarding issues of Holocaust revisionism and denial as they are manifest inside (and outside) the member states of the ITF. This concern is consistent with the mandate of the ITF as set out in its original Stockholm Declaration.