Cecilia Badano

The LRE Foundation team continues to raise awareness of the Liberation Route network in Europe and beyond!

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

As the LRE Foundation continues the important work of furthering the network’s activities and the expansive Liberation Route Europe project, here’s a summary of our colleagues’ participation in several networking events in Europe to increase the Foundation’s visibility and build strong relationships with the Travel & Trade industry. 

From 5-7 October, the Annual Forum of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, of which the Liberation Route Europe has been an official route since 2019, took place in Chania (Crete), Greece. This included panel sessions, workshops, and best practices on heritage and culture, discussing relevant topics such as safeguarding European values and cultural heritage, promoting intercultural dialogue, and developing sustainable tourism products. 

Communications Manager, Cecilia Badano, spoke on behalf of the LRE Foundation on the panel ‘Promoting European Values’, where she presented the work of the Liberation Route Europe as an international network of remembrance institutions and trails system and talked about the shared values behind the network mission and ambitions. Project Officer, Emme Johnson, attended B2B networking sessions with ministry representatives from several countries (Austria, Finland, Greece) to discuss the Liberation Route Europe and the LRE Foundation‘s work. This was a valuable opportunity to consider how we can work together in the future to expand the route and engage a larger audience throughout Europe. 

From 8-11 October, the largest European bicycle touring trade show, the CycleSummit, took place in Chambéry, France. Project Officer, Emme Johnson, attended this major business meeting for bicycle travel professionals, which brings together over 80 national and international tour operators representing 25 different nationalities, to exchange, share and market. With 125 people attending and 90 tables on the conference floor, this was the most extensive edition yet and provided a perfect moment to increase the visibility of the LRE hiking and cycling trails among tour operators specialised in the sector. 

Later this year, the LREF team will attend more travel trade events to spread awareness of the Liberation Route Europe and network with relevant industry partners. These include the ETOA Global European Marketplace from 2-3 November and the World Travel Market from 7-9 November, both in London, where Communications Manager Cecilia Badano and Gert-Jan, Press and Communications, will attend. Following this, they will also be at the Travel Pressentation in The Hague, Netherlands, on 9 November to present the work of the Foundation and its members to Dutch travel journalists and bloggers. 

As we move into 2023, our LREXPO (2 March) at the LRE Forum, taking place in Tuscany, Italy, from 28 February – 3 March, will also be an essential opportunity for our members to develop links with travel trade. The programme will include FAM trips with European and North American tour operators, which will be a fantastic way to wrap up another edition of our annual event.

More information about the Forum will be shared in the next weeks.
For now, visit the dedicated webpage: www.lre-foundation.org/forum

LRE Forum 2023: Florence will be the scenario of the next Foundation’s annual event!

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

We are excited to inform you that the LRE Forum 2023 will be held in Florence, Tuscany! From 28 February to 3 March 2023, the Foundation’s annual event will bring together international members, partners, and tourism stakeholders to network, share best practices and develop new ideas within the Second World War history and remembrance fields.

The 4-days program, jointly organised by the LRE Foundation and LRE Italy, is designed to offer a variety of activities, including engaging panel discussions on current topics in the WWII history and remembrance sectors, as well as several networking opportunities with WWII-related organisations, tourism and cultural heritage institutions, and international travel trade operators.

On 1 March, the LRE Member Seminar (morning) will provide an occasion to meet with other members, exchange ideas, and hear the Foundation’s latest updates. Following this, the LRE Conference (afternoon) features a variety of panel discussions about WWII history, memory transmission and the ever-changing, and at times challenging, landscapes in which we strive to remember and transmit our shared memories of the Second World War today. In the evening, the LRE Gala dining event offers valuable networking opportunities for Foundation members, key partners, and sponsors.

The LREXPO, to be held on 2 March, is an annual remembrance tourism expo that provides LRE Foundation’s members and partners an excellent opportunity to network with travel trade stakeholders from Europe and North America. To wrap up the LRE Forum 2023, organised site visits will be offered to explore some of the many important historical WWII sites and landmarks in the region, especially relating to the Italian Resistance and the Gothic Line.

 

Read more about the event at www.lre-foundation.org/forum

Further information about the programme and registrations will be sent out in November.
Should you have any questions in the meantime, please reach out to event@liberationroute.com

A new member for LRE Italy: The Municipality of Milan joins the network

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

Another great news for LRE Italy and LRE Foundation’s network: The Municipality of Milan has signed to become a member and will work with the national branch to expand the Liberation Route Europe trails in the Italian peninsula.

The President of LRE Italy, Raffaella Mariani, wishes to express her satisfaction on learning that the Municipality of Milan has formally joined the network:

“I express my heartfelt thanks to the Mayor of Milan, Giuseppe Sala, and the entire administration for formally joining LRE Italy. It is a great pleasure to have the Municipality of Milan, a gold-medal city of the Resistance, among our members. As underlined in its membership resolution, the Municipality of Milan considers memory as one of the transversal themes that must inspire and lead its cultural initiatives. Our common ambitions and objectives of promoting and enhancing remembrance sites and WWII memory transmission, especially to the younger generations, are excellent foundations for fruitful and lasting collaboration.”

The City of Dunkerque joins the LRE Foundation as new member

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

The LRE Foundation is glad to announce a new addition to its network: the Urban Community of Dunkerque. As part of this new membership agreement, other institutions gravitating around Dunkerque will join the LRE Foundation’s mission: The Association Mémorial du Souvenir, manager of the “Musée Dunkerque 1940”, the City of Leffrinckoucke, owner and manager of the “Musérial du Fort des Dunes”, and the Dunkerque District Tourist Office.  

This city needs no presentation for those interested in Second World War history. Located on the Northern coast of France, Dunkerque was the scene of one of the most critical and famous battles during World War II. As the Allied forces were losing the Battle of France, the Battle of Dunkerque (26 May – 4 June 1940) turned into a prominent defense and evacuation operation. Around 338.000 men belonging to the British and other Allied forces evacuated to Britain thanks to the aid of hundreds of naval and civilian vessels.  

The signature of the membership agreement opens the doors to future collaboration with the city of Dunkerque and its surroundings. “This partnership is a consequence of an obvious common interest and mission.”, says Rémi Praud, Managing Director of the LRE Foundation, “The city of Dunkerque and the LRE Foundation share the same ambition to keep making WWII history relevant and accessible. I am confident that the city will benefit from being part of this international dynamic network. We are proud to be able to work together on projects that will add visibility to such an incredible piece of our common history.” 

“We are very pleased to have joined the LRE Foundation. The Second World War had a huge impact on the Dunkerque area, not just during the Battle of Dunkerque and Operation Dynamo, but also because the town was among the last to be liberated in France, on 9th May 1945.
We are convinced that working together with other partners in the framework of the LRE network will help to raise awareness and to keep the memory alive.”, Patrice Vergriete, President of the Dunkerque District Authority, added.

 

 

 

LRE Italy receives funding from the Federal Republic of Germany for the development of the Liberation Route trails in Italy

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

The LRE Foundation is happy to announce that its national branch, LRE Italy, has recently received funding from the Federal Republic of Germany to develop the Liberation Route Europe trails in Italy. A remarkable success that consolidates the already positive collaboration between the Federal Republic of Germany and the Foundation started in 2020.

The financed project, entitled “Liberation Route Europe’s trails in Italy”, will be focused on building a network of ten thematic itineraries and related historical content related to the Second World War in Italy to be added to the already existing Liberation Route Europe trail system connecting London to Berlin on the footsteps of the Allies in 1943-1945.

Thanks to the funding obtained, it will be possible to carry out a series of activities on the Italian territory. Besides the new themed routes that will be developed in collaboration with some of the leading national hiking associations, three awareness-raising events will be organised in Tuscany, Lazio, and Emilia-Romagna to present Liberation Route Italy and the project activities. Moreover, more “Vectors of Memory”, trail markers designed by the architect Daniel Libeskind, will be installed in significant places of the Italian peninsula. Finally, three new promotional videos will be shot in Milan, Cassino and along the Gothic line in Emilia-Romagna. They will be presented as part of a comprehensive online marketing campaign to launch the project upon completion.

LRE Italy’s President Raffaella Mariani said: “We would like to thank the German federal government for its support. This funding means a lot to a small association, as LRE Italy is, and allows us to start working on this ambitious project of creating thematic hiking routes to tell World War II’s history.”

Europe Remembers – Working towards the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

On September 13, LRE Foundation Managing Director Rémi Praud and Communications Manager Cecilia Badano presented plans to renew the Europe Remembers campaign in a live stream. Intending to relaunch Europe Remembers on the occasion of the commemorations for the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War in 2023-2025, the Foundation organised this presentation to explore with its key partners and members its ideas and possible future developments of the campaign.

Initially launched as an international project targeted around the 75th anniversary in 2019-2020, Europe Remembers aims to create a centralised European platform for the multitude of commemorations and destinations linked to the end of WWII. Europe Remembers campaign is meant to honour those whose lives were touched by the conflict, raise awareness among the public around the events and commemorations organised, and reflect on the lessons that this war left behind.

The Europe Remembers website is designed to be a collaborative platform where partners are invited to submit their events. Here, the public will be able to find all the commemorations, events and exhibitions organised for the 80th anniversary, suggestions for visits and various historical content. 

A marketing campaign will also be organised to raise awareness around the 80th-anniversary milestone. The message LREF intends to disseminate is as simple as important: history is all around us, in every region and city in Europe, in our neighbourhoods, and among our friends and family.

During the online presentation, Rémi Praud stressed the collaborative nature of this international campaign and the several levels of involvement possible for the Foundation’s members and partners. The possibilities are plenty, from co-branding your initiatives with the campaign logo to organising your own ‘Europe Remembers’ project.

 

Would you like to know more about Europe Remembers and how to get involved?
Watch the live stream & reach out to us for any questions at info@liberationroute.com

The German Federal Government supports the LRE Foundation for the third year in a row

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

The LRE Foundation has recently received a new grant from the German Federal Government, following the decision to continue the financial support in 2022. The signature took place on Wednesday, 27 July, at the German Embassy in The Hague, the Netherlands, in the presence of Ambassador Dr. Cyrill Nunn and LRE Foundation Managing Director Rémi Praud.

With this signature, the German Federal Government ensures its support to the Liberation Route Europe project for the third year in a row. The past grants have been crucial for the creation, launch and expansion of the international hiking trails system in the footsteps of the Allies forces (including the launch event in July 2021 in Berlin and the installation of over a hundred Floor ‘Vectors of Memory’ in Europe), the development of the Liberation Route Europe website and mobile application, and the realisation of educational and marketing materials, such as videos and brochures, to bring the project to a larger public in Europe and North America.

The 2022 grant will make it possible to further develop the Liberation Route Europe trails by researching new historical content, new modes to experience the route and installing more ‘Vectors of memory’ trail markers. Moreover, the LRE Foundation aims to engage with new international partners to involve new regions and storylines in the current network and works to build even more awareness among the European and North American public.  

“We would like to thank again the German Federal Government for their renewed commitment to endorse the Liberation Route Europe’s mission and values.”, said Rémi Praud, LREF Managing Director, “In the past year, the route has grown into a European-wide remembrance project, and an example of meaningful sustainable tourism that we hope will be able to inspire more and more cultural institutions. This additional grant is crucial because it allows us to seek new partners and stories to bring to our growing audience”.

SAVE THE DATE | LRE Forum 2023 in Tuscany, 28 February – 3 March

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

We are beyond excited to announce that the next edition of the Foundation’s annual LRE Forum will take place in Tuscany! After a successful event in Normandy, the LRE Forum will return from February 28 until March 3, 2023, in the beautiful and historic Tuscan surroundings with an insightful programme rich in networking opportunities, insightful panel discussions and guided tours.

The Foundation’s annual Forum brings together members, partners, and tourism stakeholders to hear updates from experts, network, and attend specialised travel trade events, encouraging them to develop new ideas and practices within the WWII and remembrance sector. The 2023 event is jointly organised by the LRE Foundation and LRE Italy.

Rémi Praud, Managing Director of the LRE Foundation, says: “It is a great pleasure to be able to organise our annual event in Tuscany, not only for its beautiful landscapes and cities but also for its cultural heritage and great hospitality. We are excited to welcome our network in the region that has been hosting our Italian branch since 2019. It is a great occasion for us to promote even more the surroundings and this fascinating part of WWII history.”

Carlo Puddu, LRE Italy Director: “The LRE Forum is a unique opportunity to draw international attention to our country and stimulate a responsible form of tourism aimed to explore recent history and enhance our already rich tourist and cultural offer.”

With a 4-days programme, the LRE Forum 2023 will offer a variety of activities:

  • The LRE Member Seminar provides an occasion to meet with other members of the LRE Foundation, discuss their experiences, and hear the Foundation’s latest updates.
  • The LRE Conference features a variety of engaging speakers, in-depth keynotes and panel discussions, which consider the remembrance sector’s potential as a tool for citizenship and shaping today’s world.
  • The LRE Gala dining event offers valuable networking opportunities for Foundation members, key partners, and sponsors.
  • LREXPO provides representatives from remembrance sites, museums, and tourism destinations with an excellent opportunity to network with travel trade stakeholders.
  • Sites visits to explore with local guides some of the most influential locations, museums and memorials linked to the region’s WWII history.

More information about the event and registration will be released after the summer.
Check out the LRE Forum 2023 page to stay updated.

 

 

© Photo: Martijn Brink / LRE Foundation

The LRE Foundation kicks off its new project funded by the European Union: “Persecution through their EYES”

Posted on by Cecilia Badano

On 28-29 June, the LRE Foundation welcomed in Brussels its project partners to officially kick off the brand-new project “Persecution through their EYES”. After two successful editions of “History Through their Eyes” (in 2017-2019 and 2020-2022), the LRE Foundation is partnering up with the Camp Vught National Memorial (Netherlands), Stiftung Gedenkstätten Buchenwald und Mittelbau-Dora (Germany), LRE Italy, the National Peace Park and Historical Museum of the Resistance in Sant’Anna di Stazzema (Italy), and Brama Grodzka – Teatr NN Lublin (Poland) to organise a remembrance initiative highlighting the stories of those persecuted by the Nazi totalitarian dictatorship.

Realised nearly 80 years following the end of the Second World War, this project aims to deepen a multi-perspective, transnational understanding of the Nazi persecution history by spotlighting the vast array of experiences of the victims of this regime, including, among others, Jews, Roma/Sinti, political prisoners, homosexuals, prisoners of war, civilians, and resistance fighters. The project, funded by the European Union as part of the Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values programme, will also reflect on the importance of human rights and promote youth education through first-hand visits to historical places of remembrance and international dialogue.

To fully realise this aim, the project partners will organise a series of events addressed to students, teachers, WWII educators and stakeholders, including international workshops and four youth events (one per project partner) around a travelling exhibition that features stories from those persecuted individuals. The exhibition will also be made accessible online for a wider audience.

Rémi Praud, Managing Director of the LRE Foundation: “We are proud to be collaborating with such leading cultural institutions, and it was an absolute pleasure to welcome some of their representatives to our office in Brussels for what turned out to be a very insightful kick-off meeting. I am confident that their vast knowledge and the previous editions of ‚History Through their EYES‘ will serve as a solid base to build a relevant and engaging initiative for the younger generations to visit the places where the Nazi regime committed these crimes, learn about the victim‘s personal stories and reflect on the importance of human rights in our nowadays society”.

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