16. July 2026
The University of Jena, the Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, Ukrainian Catholic University, and the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, hold an interdisciplinary Summer School in Wrocław, Poland from 19 – 25 July 2026.
In 2026, the Imre Kertész Kolleg takes responsibility for developing the summer school’s academic programme and for implementing it.
Theme: Political and Cultural Resilience - Concepts and Practice
Across many academic disciplines resilience has become a key concept for understanding how individuals, communities, institutions and societies respond to crises, upheavals and change. In the broadest sense, resilience refers to the ability to persevere, adapt, recover and transform in the face of external shocks or long-term stress. Whilst the term was originally associated with the natural sciences and psychology, it has gained increasing prominence in the humanities, social sciences and economics. The Summer School brings together students and scholars from Ukraine and Germany to explore the concept of resilience from historical, cultural, political, and socio-economic perspectives.
Participants will take part in interdisciplinary discussions on resilience, memory, and social change predominantly in Central and Eastern Europe in the 20th and 21st century. As part of the programme, we will examine experiences of displacement and exile, cultural memory and commemoration, as well as alternative forms of opposition and dissent under socialism. We will explore how digital cultural heritage initiatives help to preserve cultural memory and expand access to cultural heritage in times of crisis and change in today’s Europe.
During the summer school we will also examine societal responses to environmental disasters under different political regimes, Ukraine’s financial resilience in times of war – including the role of banking institutions and international support – and the evolving relationship between Ukraine and the European Union.
The summer school takes place at the Ukrainian Catholic University Foundation in Poland, Łaciarska 34/2, 50-146 Wrocław and is part of the German-Ukrainian University Network (DUHN), an initiative funded by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and aimed at strengthening cooperation between German and Ukrainian higher education institutions within the European Higher Education Area. The network promotes exchange among students, academic staff, and university administrators, while supporting the joint development of teaching, research, and institutional structures in an international context.