LRE Foundation

The LRE Foundation is a growing international, inclusive network that connects people and organisations dedicated to preserving and valorising the tangible and intangible cultural heritage related to World War II, its memory and meaning. The organisation’s main objective is to make this history relevant and accessible, especially for the younger generations.

The LRE Foundation promotes diversity by developing a multi-perspective understanding of the history of World War II. As each country had a different wartime experience, it is our goal to present each perspective in relation to each other.

Its main projects are :

• Liberation Route Europe

A certified Cultural Route of the Council of Europe that connects people, places, and events to mark Europe’s liberation from occupation during World War II.

In order to make the route a physical part of the European landscape, LREF is developing a network of Liberation Route Europe trails that allows new ways of experience the route by hiking, walking, and cycling.

Renowned architect Daniel Libeskind has designed a symbolic family of trail markers called the ‘Vectors of Memory’ that will honour people, places, and stories found throughout the European landscape.

www.liberationroute.com

• Europe Remembers

Europe Remembers is an awareness and information platform that brings together commemorative sites and events in a collaborative, inspirational remembrance portal. Europe Remembers seeks to create a global commitment to preserve history and eyewitness memories for future generations, and call for an active participation.

It enables diverse communities to reflect on the complex heritage of World War II from multiple historical perspectives. The aim is to teach, to share experiences, and to encourage mutual understanding of our shared past. With fewer eyewitnesses each passing year, Europe Remembers seeks actively to promote new ways of commemorating and remembering World War II for the future.

• Youth Programme

The LRE Foundation is committed to promoting innovative active remembrance and memory transmission projects targeting the younger generations through the LRE Youth Programme. An essential feature of these initiatives is the inclusion and sharing of diverse experiences, applying a multi-perspective approach to WWII history and remembrance.

With HistoryTreks, funded by the Erasmus+ programme, students of different countries get together to reflect on the history and impact of WWII on their regions with formal and non-formal learning methods, including hiking the Liberation Route Europe and visiting remembrance sites along the way.

In turn, with EASTory through their Eyes and Persecution through their Eyes, young Europeans are invited to learn about personal stories of people who experienced WWII and its consequences across Europe, reflecting on the complexity of such shared history. The ‘through their Eyes’ series combines an online and travelling exhibition with youth events in partner locations and is funded by the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme of the EU.