Young Voices On The Global Impact of World War II
World War II remembrance has never been a single story. Across continents, it holds different meanings – of resistance and survival, loss and rebuilding, guilt and responsibility. Yet all perspectives share the recognition that the past continues to shape the present, in struggles against antisemitism and racism and in ongoing debates about justice and peace.
histoCON brings these perspectives together. Under the motto “Look back, think ahead”, the festival – organised by the Federal Agency for Civic Education/bpb and supported by the Federal Foreign Office – invites young people from around the world to explore the global impact of World War II through dialogue and exchange.
In May 2025, participants from over sixty countries met in Berlin to mark eighty years since the end of the war in Europe. The essays in this dossier capture the diversity of those encounters, with contributions from Romania, India, China, Israel, Ghana, and Venezuela. They show how young people today rethink the memory of World War II.