European Holocaust research: the new EHRI-ERIC was launched shortly before the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz

The aim of EHRI-ERIC is to bring together documents and sources on the Holocaust that are scattered around the world, make them accessible to researchers and the public and preserve them permanently for posterity. The founding members of the new European Research Infrastructure Consortium are Germany and nine other European countries.

27 January 2025, the International Day of Commemoration in Memory of the Victims of the Holocaust, marked the eightieth anniversary of the liberation of the German concentration and extermination camps. On the eve of the commemoration day, the founding of EHRI-ERIC, which will strengthen the scientific reappraisal and remembrance of the Holocaust in the long term, was celebrated with a festive event at the POLIN Museum in Warsaw. High-ranking representatives of all ten member countries, including the Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to Poland, Viktor Elbling, signed a joint declaration in which they emphasised the importance of Holocaust research and documentation and their long-term support for EHRI. The signing of the declaration was framed by speeches from representatives of the host country Poland, the Netherlands as EHRI's host country, the European Commission and the European Parliament (see EHRI press release of 26 January 2025). The guest of honour was contemporary witness Krystyna Budnicka, an honorary citizen of Warsaw, who was the only child of eight siblings to survive the horrors of the Warsaw ghetto and the Holocaust. Her impressive account of life and survival in the ghetto reminded those present to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive for future generations.

EHRI becomes the 30th ERIC

EHRI has been networking important archives and institutes since 2010 in order to counteract the spatial fragmentation of Holocaust documentation and research. After the inclusion of EHRI on the European Roadmap for Research Infrastructures of the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI) in 2018 confirmed the high scientific relevance of the project, the recent recognition as a permanent European Research Infrastructure underlines the crucial role of EHRI for the scientific and social reappraisal of the Holocaust.

EHRI is the thirtieth Research Infrastructure in Europe to be recognised as an ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium) by the European Commission since 2011. An ERIC is a special European legal form with the aim of establishing and operating transnational research infrastructures. Germany is one of the founding members of EHRI-ERIC and also one of the largest donors. Together with Germany, Israel, Croatia, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Romania, Slovakia, the Czech Republic and the United Kingdom participate in the Holocaust research infrastructure. The BMBF contributes to the funding of EHRI-ERIC with an annual membership fee of around €400 thousand and represents Germany on the supervisory board of the research infrastructure.

Preserve - research - remember

The joint European Research Infrastructure EHRI-ERIC drives modern research, trains experts and networks national centres of excellence. It also opens up access to extensive data sets distributed across Europe, thereby facilitating scientific analyses.

At the same time, EHRI-ERIC preserves Europe's cultural heritage, keeping previously scattered sources on the Holocaust in one place and ensuring that they remain relevant and accessible for present and future generations. A decisive contribution to combating Holocaust denial and anti-Semitism and instead strengthening Holocaust education and remembrance work.

The economy also benefits: EHRI-ERIC modernises archival practice by promoting knowledge exchange and new ideas, for example on standards. EHRI-ERIC also creates jobs in the archive, creative and digital sectors. EHRI-ERIC brings institutions together and strengthens their cooperation (see European Commission press release of 20. January 2025).

EHRI-ERIC offers

The EHRI-ERIC online portal provides access to archive holdings on the Holocaust stored in institutions within and outside Europe. Researchers will find a wealth of resources there: country reports, an archive index and digital editions of historical sources. The portal offers more than just documents - it networks and promotes. In addition, the Conny Kristel Fellowship Programme enables exchange with leading institutions, while workshops and seminars convey new digital methods and innovative approaches in Holocaust research. Anyone who immerses themselves in the diverse offerings of EHRI-ERIC quickly realises that the Holocaust Research Infrastructure is far more than an academic topic - it forms a sustainable basis for open and non-discriminatory societies throughout Europe and worldwide.