80 jaar na de Tweede Wereldoorlog: welk verleden voor de toekomst?

The study day "80 jaar na de Tweede Wereldoorlog: welk verleden voor de toekomst?", took place on May 17 in Ghent.
It was an initiative of Prof. Koen Aerts, in collaboration with Archiefpunt vzw, Oud-studenten Geschiedenis Universiteit Gent - OSGG, Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte UGent (Humanities Academy UGent), CegeSoma- State Archives, Instituut voor Publieksgeschiedenis, TAPAS/Thinking About the PASt and Postgraduate Erfgoed en Samenleving.
Nico Wouters spoke about the importance of the search for historical truth and how science is under pressure (again) today. In the ensuing panel led by Bruno De Wever, Eva Willems, Jan Dumolyn and Olga Van Oost discussed this issue. Some agreed with Wouters' statements and others did not: it became an animated debate, also with the audience.
In the afternoon, Maarten van Alstein initiated the debate in his keynote on how war can or should serve for moral action in our rapidly changing world. This tied the debate straight into the morning. Led by Berber Bevernage, Robbert-Jan Adriaansen, Kaat Wils-Verhaegen, Antoon Vrints and Gillian Mathys debated the need for action and what space is available to us all in a world where democracy is increasingly under pressure. Again, many issues were raised, each deserving a separate debate.

The numerous informative stances from partners and colleagues added to the experience. To be continued for sure!