How to talk about the past and present?

The “Transition Dialogue” network focuses on the formation of knowledge and perceptions of the transition from communism in Central and Eastern Europe after 1989. As practitioners of history and civic education, we are taking a closer look at the public discourse on the topic and how transition is being taught at schools in seven European countries.

We are spearheading a new multifaceted democratic discourse on post-socialist transition, highlighting the discrepancy between official discourses and experiences of real citizens in Central and Eastern European countries post ‘89/’91. We work locally and internationally in order to exchange insights and compare results. We aim to come to a more nuanced understanding of the impact of transition on societies and use our findings to provide new methods and tools for civic education in the future.

30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall and the beginning of transition in Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union witnesses and drivers of those events are still actively shaping the social, political and cultural life. Meanwhile a generation has come of age that has no direct memory neither of communism nor of transition. Continue reading

The Transition Dialogue project is supported by the Federal Agency for Civic Education of Germany (bpb).