This week the EHRI Board of Governmental Representatives (BGR) held its second full meeting and took important steps towards establishing EHRI as a permanent European organisation in the form of a European Research Infrastructure Consortium (ERIC).

The BGR is an important body in EHRI’s current transformation from a series of ad-hoc projects into a permanent organisation. It is composed of ministerial representatives from nine countries that have already indicated strong support for the EHRI-ERIC. It scrutinises the long-term policies and plans that are currently being drawn up in the EHRI Preparatory Phase project.

The BGR welcomed the recent announcement by the Dutch government that it offers to co-fund the establishment of the headquarters of EHRI-ERIC in Amsterdam (https://www.ehri-project.eu/pledges-ehri-malm%C3%B6-international-forum-holocaust-remembrance-and-combating-antisemitism). BGR members were also pleased about the Austrian commitment to support EHRI-ERIC as was announcement in the Austrian National Strategy against Anti-Semitism (https://www.austria.org/the-latest/2021/1/22/national-strategy-against-anti-semitism), and about the explicit recognition of the importance of EHRI in the European Commission’s Strategy on combating antisemitism and fostering Jewish Life (https://www.ehri-project.eu/ehri-acknowledged-european-commission%E2%80%99s-strategy-antisemitism).

Apart from taking stock of these encouraging developments, the BGR also discussed proposals for EHRI’s future governance structure, financial strategy and access policy. The constructive and positive discussion about these proposals demonstrates that the form and strategy of EHRI-ERIC is taking increasingly shape. The BGR agreed to meet at least four times next year, and expressed its confidence that EHRI is well on its way to become a fully operational permanent European Research Infrastructure by January 2025, the 80^th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.