On April 9, the Estonian Institute of Historical Memory hosted an international seminar that summarised the first phase of data collection on Estonian war refugees and introduced related research from Latvia and Lithuania.
The seminar was opened by PhD Meelis Maripuu, followed by a presentation from data analyst Ülle Kraft. The speakers discussed the data collection process, current findings, and plans for the next research phase. Latvia was represented by Evita Feldentale and PhD Edvins Evarts, while Lithuania was represented by PhD Juozas Banionis, who presented his book “Tracing Displaced Persons Lives.”
The day concluded with a screening of the documentary “Escape: Departure into the Unknown” and a discussion with Marko Poolamets, Dr. Olev Liivik, Dr. Maripuu, and Hiljar Tammela.
The seminar took place within the framework of the EU co-funded project BE1944 – European Traumatic Memory and focused on preserving the stories of World War II refugees in the Baltic States.
