2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, the liberation from National Socialism and the re-establishment of a democratic Austria. The OeAD, with its ERINNERN:AT programme, takes this as an opportunity to focus on this topic throughout the year. The highlight of this year's activities will be the central seminar at the Mauthausen-Gusen Memorial from 13 to 15 November 2025.

‘2025 is an important year of remembrance for us. We are celebrating 80 years since the end of the Nazi rule, 80 years since the liberation of the concentration camps, and the re-establishment of a democratic Austria. At the same time we remember the victims of the Holocaust and of Nazi persecution. Remembering the darkest chapters of our history is essential to preserve the values of an open and democratic society and to actively combat antisemitism and extremism. The liberation from the Nazi rule led to a democratic and neutral Austria and to its accession to the peace project that is the European Union. In the commemorative year our history will be critically reflected upon at schools, and in doing so we will strengthen our democratic culture. Pupils will deal with the significance of history for the present and the future and with how they want to shape Austria's future. I would like to invite all schools to actively participate in the commemorative offers and events in the year 2025; our ERINNERN:AT programme supports schools in this,’ said the Federal Minister Martin Polaschek.

The OeAD organises discussion and training events throughout the year and develops educational offers on this topic. Information about this and the historical background of 1945 and its consequences is provided at www.erinnern.at at regular intervals. There you will find an annotated collection of teaching and learning offers for the memorial year 2025, which will continuously be expanded over the course of the year.

The OeAD’s managing director Jakob Calice comments: ‘Coming to terms with the Nazi era and the Holocaust is an important task in education. With the ERINNERN:AT programme our goal, on behalf of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research, is to ensure that this aspect of our own history can be adequately addressed with children and young people at educational institutions.’

The annual focus will start with the presentation of the Digital Remembrance Landscape (DERLA) Salzburg at the University of Salzburg on 27 January 2025. This will make the sixth Austrian federal province part of the digital remembrance landscape, which is implemented in cooperation with the University of Graz. One day later, on 28 January 2025, a panel discussion on ‘The Presence of the Holocaust’ will take place at the Austrian Academy of Sciences. It will be dedicated to the experiences of the descendants of Holocaust survivors, 80 years after the liberation. Both events take place in the context of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which commemorates the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp on 27 January 1945. A UNESCO handbook for teachers on dealing with Holocaust denial and historical distortion will also be published to mark the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The handbook was developed in collaboration with ERINNERN:AT and with the support of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research.

Further highlights in the year of remembrance:

• On 9 and 10 March 2025 the witnesses seminar will address the question of the future of testimony and look back at 80 years of (survivor) testimony over time. It will take place in Vienna at the Kardinal-König-Haus.
  Register now: Witnesses Seminar 2025 – 80 years of (survivor) testimony — REMEMBERING: NATIONAL SOCIALISM AND HOLOCAUST
• Together with the Mauthausen Memorial the dialogue forum ‘The Liberation and its Aftermath’ will be held on 19 and 20 September and the central seminar will be held from 13 to 15 November 2025. The central seminar is Austria's largest teacher training programme on the subject of National Socialism and the Holocaust. This year's seminar is entitled ‘Mauthausen and Gusen: Places of Liberation – Places of Remembrance – Places of Learning’. A report on the Central Seminar 2024 can be found here:
  Report on the Central Seminar 2024: The Genocide of Roma and Sinti – REMEMBERING: NATIONAL SOCIALISM AND THE HOLOCAUST
• The ERINNERN:AT website presents educational materials that teachers can use to address the 80th anniversary of the liberation. This includes video interviews with survivors and witnesses of national socialism and the holocaust. With the support of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research ERINNERN:AT provides access to these interviews on the platform  www.weitererzaehlen.at. Many of those interviewed talk about their memories of the end of the war, of liberation, of their lives after persecution or of the occupation.

2025 marks the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, the liberation from National Socialism and the re-establishment of a democratic Austria. The OeAD, with its ERINNERN:AT programme, takes this as an opportunity to focus on this topic throughout the year. The highlight of this year's activities will be the central seminar at the Mauthausen-Gusen Memorial from 13 to 15 November 2025.

‘2025 is an important year of remembrance for us. We are celebrating 80 years since the end of the Nazi rule, 80 years since the liberation of the concentration camps, and the re-establishment of a democratic Austria. At the same time we remember the victims of the Holocaust and of Nazi persecution. Remembering the darkest chapters of our history is essential to preserve the values of an open and democratic society and to actively combat antisemitism and extremism. The liberation from the Nazi rule led to a democratic and neutral Austria and to its accession to the peace project that is the European Union. In the commemorative year our history will be critically reflected upon at schools, and in doing so we will strengthen our democratic culture. Pupils will deal with the significance of history for the present and the future and with how they want to shape Austria's future. I would like to invite all schools to actively participate in the commemorative offers and events in the year 2025; our ERINNERN:AT programme supports schools in this,’ said the Federal Minister Martin Polaschek.

The OeAD organises discussion and training events throughout the year and develops educational offers on this topic. Information about this and the historical background of 1945 and its consequences is provided at www.erinnern.at at regular intervals. There you will find an annotated collection of teaching and learning offers for the memorial year 2025, which will continuously be expanded over the course of the year.

The OeAD’s managing director Jakob Calice comments: ‘Coming to terms with the Nazi era and the Holocaust is an important task in education. With the ERINNERN:AT programme our goal, on behalf of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research, is to ensure that this aspect of our own history can be adequately addressed with children and young people at educational institutions.’

The annual focus will start with the presentation of the Digital Remembrance Landscape (DERLA) Salzburg at the University of Salzburg on 27 January 2025. This will make the sixth Austrian federal province part of the digital remembrance landscape, which is implemented in cooperation with the University of Graz. One day later, on 28 January 2025, a panel discussion on ‘The Presence of the Holocaust’ will take place at the Austrian Academy of Sciences. It will be dedicated to the experiences of the descendants of Holocaust survivors, 80 years after the liberation. Both events take place in the context of the International Holocaust Remembrance Day, which commemorates the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and extermination camp on 27 January 1945. A UNESCO handbook for teachers on dealing with Holocaust denial and historical distortion will also be published to mark the International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The handbook was developed in collaboration with ERINNERN:AT and with the support of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research.

Further highlights in the year of remembrance:

• On 9 and 10 March 2025 the witnesses seminar will address the question of the future of testimony and look back at 80 years of (survivor) testimony over time. It will take place in Vienna at the Kardinal-König-Haus.
  Register now: Witnesses Seminar 2025 – 80 years of (survivor) testimony — REMEMBERING: NATIONAL SOCIALISM AND HOLOCAUST
• Together with the Mauthausen Memorial the dialogue forum ‘The Liberation and its Aftermath’ will be held on 19 and 20 September and the central seminar will be held from 13 to 15 November 2025. The central seminar is Austria's largest teacher training programme on the subject of National Socialism and the Holocaust. This year's seminar is entitled ‘Mauthausen and Gusen: Places of Liberation – Places of Remembrance – Places of Learning’. A report on the Central Seminar 2024 can be found here:
  Report on the Central Seminar 2024: The Genocide of Roma and Sinti – REMEMBERING: NATIONAL SOCIALISM AND THE HOLOCAUST
• The ERINNERN:AT website presents educational materials that teachers can use to address the 80th anniversary of the liberation. This includes video interviews with survivors and witnesses of national socialism and the holocaust. With the support of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research ERINNERN:AT provides access to these interviews on the platform  www.weitererzaehlen.at. Many of those interviewed talk about their memories of the end of the war, of liberation, of their lives after persecution or of the occupation.