The third edition of the Ventotene-Houjarray School on European Memories has been inaugurated. Promoted by the Jean Monnet House and the European Observatory on Memories, this three-day activity is co-organized in collaboration with the Altiero Spinelli Institute for Federalist Studies and JEF Europe. Through the organization of conferences, workshops, debates and practical activities, participants will become familiar with the latest research on memory studies and will be able to contribute to raising public awareness of Europe’s past as a key to making informed choices for the present and the future. This year, the seminar will focus on European unity and the search for peace.
The event opened on May 5, 2025 at the Maison de l’Europe in Paris and continued at the Casa Jean Monnet in Bazoches-sur-Guyonne.
The opening speakers, coordinated by Margherita Orsi (Casa Jean Monnet), were Jordi Guixé, EUROM (online), Stefano Moscarelli, Istituto Spinelli (online), Christelle Savall, JEF (online) with greetings from Fernanda Zanuzzi (EUROM), Oriol López Badell (EUROM) and Mario Leone (Istituto Spinelli).
The first speech dedicated to “The Island of Ventotene and the Manifesto in European Memory” was held by Mario Leone, Istituto Spinelli.
Also in the afternoon, the Jean Monnet House hosted the Workshop – first session “From reflection to recording: a memory podcast workshop” with Fernanda Zanuzzi (EUROM) and Xesc Mainzer (JEF).
On May 6, the first training day with the conference and debate on “Contested memories: an obstacle to peace? – Some reflections on the Ukraine-Russia conflict” with Dietmar J. Wetzel, professor of social sciences at the Hamburg Medical School. This was followed by a meeting-debate with Domènec Ruiz Devesa, President of the UEF and former MEP and the conference and subsequent debate on “European federalism and the search for peace” with Giulia Rossolillo, Professor of European Union Law at the University of Pavia. The meetings were moderated by Martì Grau (Jean Monnet House).
In the afternoon another conference and debate on “The dividends of peace: memory and defense of the European social model in times of geopolitical instability” with Professor Francesco Saraceno, Deputy Director of the Department, OFCE-Scienze Po, moderated by Mario Leone (Istituto Spinelli).
