I would never have become a politician if I had not seen the opportunity to fight for values ​​and superior goods.

What does the Geremek Foundation do?

The Prof. Bronisław Geremek Centre Foundation was established in 2008 by the family and friends of Prof. Bronisław Geremek.

We promote the values ​​of public life that he represents. We popularize European values ​​– we shape attitudes, influence public opinion, stimulate debate. We create a space for action for committed people who profess these values.

Our Programs

Mothers of Europe:

We complete the missing half of European history. We discover and tell the biographies of outstanding women who contributed to democratic transformation, European integration, and shaped European values.

Europa und die Europäer. Im Gedenken an Bronisław Geremek

Europa und die Europäer. Im Gedenken an Bronisław Geremek

The book "Europe and Europeans. Perspectives of Polish Science in the 21st Century. In Memory of Bronisław Geremek" also outlines the prospects of Polish science in the 21st century by analyzing the political thought of Bronisław Geremek and the current debate on the future of the European Union.

Publications

Historical workshops "Atelier Clio – through a photo to history"

"Atelier Clio – through a photo to history" is a series of workshops for young Varsovians, aged 13 to 18, carried out during the 2024/2025 school year. The project focuses on history, and the starting point for learning about it: a photo.

The historical workshops project already has its history: the Geremek Foundation has been running such workshops, entitled “Through modernity to history”, since 2010. In this year’s edition of the project, we are drawing on previous experiences and at the same time introducing modifications. Among other things, we are introducing a new formula for working with young people – working with photography – which also resounds in the name of the project: “Through a photograph to history”.

The project is aimed at young people interested in historical, social and political issues, as well as contemporary challenges in Poland, Europe and the world.

Project Goals and Benefits

The aim of the project is to develop young people's interest in the latest history of Poland, Europe, and the world. It is also about expanding the school offer - based on political history and the model of event history - and valuing social, economic, customs, and culture history. And above all, about using history to understand contemporary challenges and to stimulate open and critical discussion about the connections and analogies between the past and today's world. When building the workshop program, we take into account topics that are important to young people and are currently the subject of discussion (and often manipulation) in the public space.

The project is based on a workshop formula, and the medium used in the classes will be photos. We follow Susan Sontag's assumption that "to collect photographs is to collect the world" - to be interested in it, understand it, look at it from different perspectives, critically analyze it. Photography is a historical source undervalued in school education (in which written sources dominate), and at the same time a tool close and attractive to young people. For the young generation, photos - in social media, on Instagram - have become an important means of communication and a source of information. By working with photos, we want to increase awareness among young people that a photo is a creation - it is a frame that the author shows us, his perspective, it must be approached critically. The aim of the project - in addition to developing interest in history - is therefore also to trigger critical thinking among young people and build social resistance to manipulation or disinformation.