The title “Infrastructures of Cultural Memory” refers to two interlinked projects, of which both are externally funded and being carried out by larger teams. The first is concerned with seemingly disregarded aspects of exhibitions that focus on the Second World War and the Holocaust – including structural elements, environmental factors and financing structures. These external factors have an impact on the design and perception of the exhibitions and thus on their potential for cultural memory. While museum and memory studies have so far focused on political and semantic dimensions, the infrastructural aspects have remained overwhelmingly within the purview of curators and practitioners . The project therefore aims to find out how infrastructures, i.e. connected  objects and associated practices, affect the memory of War and Holocaust in the the 20th century.

Similar questions provide a point of departure for the second project, which deals with memorials for Holocaust mass graves. An interdisciplinary group of researchers from the fields of history, archaeology, sociology, dendrology, cartography, and other disciplines are investigating the burial sites of Jewish victims who were not deported to extermination camps but were instead shot near their homes in current southeast Poland. Here too, the infrastructures of memory are essential for understanding the killing sites. Why were some mass graves marked as memorials and others not? Ostensibly, these decisions were not only influenced by political agendas , but also by the availability of building materials or the natural environment of the respective sites. Where did the stone for the memorial plaques come from and who transported it there? The answers to these as well as similar questions shed new light on the complex remembrance practices in a geographically peripheral region that has not previously been at the center of Holocaust research.

The research project is being conducted within the framework of the international project hosted by the German Historical Institute Warsaw and the University of Łódź “Infrastructures of Memory. Actants of Globalisation and their Impact on German and Polish Memory Culture”.The project examines how factors other than content, design, and educational goals influence the creation and maintenance of exhibitions about the Second World War and the Holocaust in Poland and Germany. Such “non-human” factors and circumstances include, for instance, sustainability standards, the use of new technologies, or legal regulations. This study thus addresses the often overlooked topic of the materiality of commemorative practices, and  (it?)   and contextualizes its role in current debates on memory culture in Poland and Germany.The novelty of the project lays in the way it examines the interconnection between curatorial concepts and historical politics on one hand, and external factors  on the other, with special attention being devoted to the interplay between materiality and non-physical aspects, as well as discrepancies between curatorial visions and the actual practical work involved in communicating information and concepts to the public. . Examples of this include the adaptation of traveling exhibitions to local contexts, the preparation of tours for international audiences, and implementation of national “memory laws” (Nikolay Koposov). The project is based on a complex, interdisciplinary methodology that draws on,  anthropology, organizational sociology, museology, and social history, among other approaches. It makes an innovative contribution to social science research as well as to the ongoing and pressing debate on memory culture.

Adopting an interdisciplinary approach that draws on history, architectural history, and monument preservation, the project investigates built artefacts of Jewish culture and history in Poland as multifaceted objects of appropriation as “cultural heritage” by a variety of groups and actors. It is part of the DFG Priority Programme (SPP) 2357, Jewish Cultural Heritage, and is conducted in cooperation with the Bet Tfila Research Centre for Jewish Architecture in Europe at Braunschweig University of Technology.

The focus lies on the evolving treatment of synagogues in northern and western Poland since 1945. This inquiry makes a significant contribution to understanding how former German territories were culturally appropriated by their new inhabitants. These regions are unique in that they only became part of Poland after the Second World War. Consequently, the Jewish heritage present there was not originally considered “Polish” — the Jewish population in these areas had been German citizens, generally well acculturated into German language and culture. Based on the few surviving synagogues — most of which were destroyed during the so-called Reichskristallnacht in 1938 — the project explores how Jewish buildings were perceived after 1945: whether they were seen as Jewish, German, or both; how they were used; and how these processes of appropriation differed across former German territories in central Poland.

Combining historical research on the post-1945 period with an analysis of present-day conditions, the project engages closely with institutions and individuals committed to preserving synagogues, as well as current users of these buildings. Most of the sites are located in smaller towns such as Kętrzyn (Rastenburg), Barczewo (Wartenburg), Ziębice (Münsterberg), and Dzierżoniów (Reichenbach). A defining feature of the project is the integration of empirical historical inquiry with collaboration among contemporary stakeholders — those responsible for or actively involved in synagogue preservation today. This approach not only yields scholarly insights but also fosters knowledge exchange between research and practice.

By establishing a foundation for the comparative study of Jewish heritage sites across Europe and beyond, the project contributes to the development of sustainable heritage strategies within the framework of the SPP. Furthermore, it explores the significance of Jewish heritage sites — and conversely, the role of former synagogues and cemeteries — in shaping the historical and cultural consciousness of Jewish communities, both within Poland and internationally.

Key cooperation partners include the Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw and the Foundation for the Preservation of Jewish Heritage in Poland).

This project examines how Polish–German foreign policy utilized History  between 1918 and 1939. This phenomenon is referred to as foreign history politics, understood as “the state's effort to promote abroad the desired image of its own history or a particular aspect of its history” (Jan Rydel). The term propaganda, which was viewed positively in some countries at the time, was used for this in Poland.  

In addition to the activities of state actors such as the Foreign Ministry, the Polish embassy in Berlin and the consulates, this project examines the work of selected contemporary scientific institutes. Press articles, state-sponsored historical exhibitions, film screenings and historians' congresses are analyzed. Moreover, selected publications as well as speeches by Polish politicians and diplomats in Germany are used.

The following research questions will be addressed as part of the project: What were the guidelines for foreign history politics towards Germany? Were they the same or at least similar for all institutions that dealt with German issues? Was there a coherent idea of Polish history and what image of Poland was desired? One of the key questions is whether specific Polish guidelines were issued for individual regions in Germany. The investigation into the internal discussions in the Polish Foreign Ministry shows that cultural and historical arguments were used more frequently regarding Germany than any other of Poland’s neighboring states. 

Previous research has focused primarily on examining German propaganda. An analysis of the use of history within Polish diplomatic relations with Germany constitutes a largely unaddressed research gap. The project will not only address this important issue, but will make it possible to compare the current mechanisms of historical diplomacy with their historical predecessors.