European Weeks
The International Educational Centre, Dortmund (IBB Dortmund) in the cooperation with the partners from the International Chernobyl Network conducts European Memory Weeks “Shaping the Future after Chernobyl and Fukusima” every year since 2012. They start on the 11th of March every year, in the memory day of the accident on the nuclear power plant Fukusima-1 in Japan and finish on the 26th of April, in the memory day of the accident at Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. Hundreds of people all around Europe take part in the events dedicated to this theme.
The aim of European Memory Weeks is to inform people about the consequences of the accidents at nuclear power plants on the base of facts and destinies of the suffered people. The key element of these weeks is meetings of European young people with the participants of the events from Belarus, Ukraine and Japan. The witnesses tell about their work on the elimination of the consequences of Chernobyl catastrophe, about the resettlement from the zone of radiological control, about the consequences of Fukusima catastrophe. Young people have an opportunity to realize the danger of nuclear power engineering and understand the necessity of the stable energy policy development during these discussions. The meetings and talks with the witnesses of the catastrophes take place at schools, parishes, universities and different public places.
Another important aim of such European Weeks is to draw attention to the problems of Chernobyl and Fukushima alongside with various all-European movements, as well as to the destiny of people affected by the effects of accidents at nuclear power stations.
European Memory Weeks are finished with the “Action with candles” on 25th of April, the day beforenChernobyl NPP accident. During the action in public places in different cities of Europe the participants set fire candles in the memory of those, who have gone because of consequences of the nuclear power plants accidents.
Within European Memory Weeks, a range of important events dated to the 30th anniversary of Chernobyl catastrophe were conducted – Ukrainian delegation of
liquidators and people who suffered because of ChNPP accident consequences had a meeting with Pope Francis in Vatican on the 20th of April.
Ukrainian delegation spoke on special meetings in the parliament of European Union in Brussels, in Bundestag in Berlin and also took part in different actions in other European countries.
On the 20th of April, 2016, within the international ecumenical conference, dated to the 30th anniversary of Chernobyl catastrophe, a meeting of the Ukrainian delegation of liquidators and suffered people because of Chernobyl accident was held with Pope Francis. This visit to Vatican was organized under the financial support of "Renovabis", Bureau UGCCh on ecology issues and the International Education Centre, Dortmund in close collaboration with Catholic episcopate and Chernobyl History Workshop. Pope Francis addressed to chernobyls with a separate greeting in which he expressed his gratitude and acknowledgment for their actions directed to reducing the consequences of Chernobyl catastrophe.
Actual information about European Memory Weeks you can find here http://ibb-d.de/nachhaltigkeit/europaeische-aktionswochen/.
Download: Documentation on European Memory Weeks 2013
