Commemoration organisations gather in Slovenia to discuss the future of commemoration

Last week, CWGC’s Director of Global Strategy and International Relations Charles Garrett and Head of Government Relations and Public Affairs Gareth Crossman travelled to Slovenia’s capital, Ljubljana, for the annual meeting of the European War Heritage Group.

Representatives of commemoration and heritage organisations from thirteen European nations and from the USA took part, which focused on three strategic themes.

CWGC led one working group, which considered the relationship between commemoration, diplomacy, and peace. Meanwhile, the two other working groups looked at the relevance of commemoration to national identity, and at how commemoration organisations might engage with future generations.

These were fascinating conversations, not only identifying common experiences but also teasing out the very different experiences between the nations of Western Europe and those from Central and Eastern Europe who have gained national independence more recently.

A summary of discussions will soon be published, and many of the themes considered will be picked up in future events, including a conference that CWGC will be hosting in partnership with the German Commemoration organisation VDK in Berlin in May 2027.

These discussions help shape our strategic thinking about how we engage with Governments, other commemoration bodies and key partners to ensure that commemoration remains relevant to future generations.

After our discussions, we were hosted at an ambassadorial reception and given a tour of historic Ljubljana before heading home. We are hugely grateful to our hosts at The War Veterans and Military Heritage Directorate at the Slovenian Ministry of Defence for their time and generosity in making the annual meeting such a success.