As part of its mission to support the Holocaust research community by building a digital infrastructure and facilitating international human networks, the European Holocaust Research Infrastructure offers different fellowships to researchers and archivists across Europe in different partner institutions. The fellowships are intended to facilitate and encourage exchange of information, knowledge and research regarding the Holocaust as well as to provide our fellows with an interesting and pleasant experience in different institutions. Moreover, the fellowships are specifically aimed at researchers, archivists, curators, and younger scholars, especially PhD candidates with limited resources. The partners that offer a place to EHRI fellows are big institutions like the US Holocaust Memorial Museum, Bundesarchiv and Yad Vashem, but also some small and medium-sized institutions offer fellowships.

CegeSoma

The advantages of visiting a small or medium-sized institution lie primarily in the fact that they harbor specific collections that cannot be found in larger institutions. As those collections are stored in smaller institutions, it is also more likely that they have never been analysed or used in scientific research. In addition to storing archival materials, small and medium-sized institutions present visitors with expositions, colloquia and other scientific activities within their premises. For over thirty years, CegeSoma in Belgium has been an example of such a medium-sized but lively institution that combines public history and maintaining archival collections in pristine condition. In addition to this plethora of activities, the multilingual environment adds a unique charm to the institution. The singularity of those unexploited sources and the more personalised approach the institution is proposing to its fellows, makes visiting a smaller institution all the more worthwhile.

Advantages smaller institutions

This is also the case for other smaller institutions such as NIOD Institute for War, Holocaust and Genocide Studies in the Netherlands, the Vienna Wiesenthal Institute for Holocaust Studies (VWI) in Austria, the Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania, and the Foundation Jewish Contemporary Documentation Center CDEC in Milan, Italy. Insufficient knowledge of the language may seem a barrier for institutions that are in smaller countries, but such places have other things to offer. “The stay at NIOD was useful for me not primarily in terms of access to resources (although the section of the library dealing with Romania and Central and Eastern Europe proved useful), but in terms of discussing and obtaining feedback on my research plans and design,” said Raul Cârstocea, EHRI fellow at the NIOD. An EHRI fellowship can simply also provide a period of time and a good place to devote yourself completely to your research.

Human networks

Furthermore, all institutions are located in big cities like Amsterdam, Berlin, Brussels, London, Paris, Vienna, etc. which reinforces one of EHRI’s main goals: transnational exchange of information and expanding its human networks. The location of CegeSoma in Brussels gives fellows access to visiting European institutions, partner institutions (Kazerne Dossin) but also access to different universities that are only thirty minutes away from the European capital.

Website

To make the preparations as smooth as possible for fellows, CegeSoma has made a dedicated website where all necessary information, ranging from accommodation to budget, is accessible. The site also provides any information regarding the application process. Fellows have to stay at their institution three days a week, but are free to wander and discover their host’s surroundings and culture during their stay.

The EHRI Project (European Holocaust Research Infrastructure) offers short term fellowships to allow researchers, archivists and curators to access fifteen European, Israeli and American archives, libraries and research institutions (in Amsterdam, Brussels, Prague, Munich, London, Jerusalem, Washington D.C., Berlin, Arolsen, Warsaw, Paris, Vienna, Bucharest, Milan and elsewhere). The fellowships are particularly designed to allow for increased transnational exchanges on research and archival questions and the methods of the Digital Humanities in the context of Holocaust research.

EHRI Fellowship Cegesoma

For all other institutions and applications, EHRI Fellowship Call 2016-2018

by Charlotte Hauwaert, CegeSoma

Image: CegeSoma building ©CegeSoma