Since 1 May, Nico Wouters is the new director of CegeSoma. His appointment marks the beginning of a new phase in which the institution will be able to fully develop its mission as a centre of expertise in public history, research, and valorization regarding the history of the two world wars and other twentieth-century conflicts. CegeSoma will continue to function within the institutional framework of the Belgian State Archives.
NEW MANAGEMENT for CegeSoma
NEW RESEARCH PROJECT – The transition from war to peace in Brussels, 1918
In the coming months, CegeSoma will investigate one of the most turbulent periods in Belgian history: the transition from war to peace at the end of the First World War. For the purpose of an exhibition for the BELvue Museum (2018), we will focus on the last months of the German occupation in Brussels, as well as on the troubled societal context of the months surrounding the liberation. Furthermore, we want to retrace how the Belgian polity underwent crucial democratic reforms during this period. The daily life of the inhabitants of the Belgian capital - which was characterized by a peculiar combination of joy and grief - will be a prominent theme in the upcoming exhibition.
TRANSMEMO: New Research on the Memory of Collaboration and Resistance during the Second World War
In September 2017, the new research project TRANSMEMO will be launched. The project will examine the way in which memories of resistance and collaboration during the Second World War in Belgium were passed on from parents to children and grandchildren. For this purpose, CegeSoma will engage a new researcher for a two-year period (the deadline for submission of applications is 2 June 2017).
ARCHIVES – UGESCO project : High-quality Spatial-temporal Metadata for the Digitised Collections
On 1 April, CegeSoma, in coordination with a multidisciplinary team (Ghent University, Université Libre de Bruxelles, and KU Leuven), launched the UGESCO project (Upscaling the Geo-temporal Enrichment, Exploration and Exploitation of Scientific Collections). UGESCO is dedicated to improving the quality of geo-temporal metadata of digitized audiovisual collections.
Open WORKSHOP ‘Scope and Limits of Reconciliation’
On 29 May, CegeSoma and CECRI (Centre d'étude des crises et des conflits internationaux, UCL) will organize an open workshop on the scope and limits of reconciliation ('Scope and Limits of Reconciliation'). Sandra M. Rios Oyola and Björn Krondorfer will exchange views on the subject.
