How Bulgaria and Norway turned memory into a national strategy against antisemitism
Launched in 2021, the Bulgarian–Norwegian Strategic Cooperation on Combating Antisemitism asked a difficult but concrete question: what does it take to turn memory, culture and international commitments into public policy that actually works?
Grounded in Bulgaria’s EU obligations and the standards of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, the project brought together people who do not often work side by side, diplomats, researchers, educators, artists, youth organisations. Their shared aim was not symbolic: to build lasting institutional capacity against antisemitism and hate speech, while reopening a chapter of Bulgarian history that had slowly faded from public view.
That chapter matters. During the Holocaust, public mobilisation in Bulgaria stopped the deportation of nearly 50,000 Bulgarian Jews. This was not turned into a commemorative gesture. It became a point of departure.
From evidence to action
The work began quietly, with listening. A nationwide sociological survey of more than 1,000 respondents mapped how antisemitism is perceived today, combining public opinion with expert analysis. For the first time, Bulgaria had a detailed picture, clear enough to guide decisions, not just debates.
These findings shaped the country’s first National Action Plan on Combating Antisemitism, developed through sustained dialogue between ministries, civil society, Jewish community organisations and international experts from Norway and across Europe.
To keep the process open, international conferences and national expert forums were organised throughout the project. They created rare spaces where researchers, practitioners and policymakers could speak plainly, align priorities and test ideas together.
Culture as a form of prevention
One of the project’s strongest choices was not to isolate policy from culture.
Rather than framing antisemitism only as a legal or security issue, the initiative invested in cultural and educational tools meant to reach people where they already are. The exhibition “Jewish Street – Reconstruction” brought together 380 archival documents and 40 artefacts to reassemble everyday Jewish life in Bulgaria. The bilingual platform jewishheritage.bg made this heritage accessible beyond museum walls.
Posters, short documentary films, guidebooks and translated publications were used as strategic dissemination tools rather than standalone cultural products. Together, they translated research findings and policy objectives into accessible formats for schools, cultural institutions and the general public.
The poster series and documentary shorts addressed contemporary forms of antisemitism and historical blind spots through visual storytelling, making complex issues legible beyond expert audiences. Guidebooks and translated publications provided durable educational resources for teachers, students and cultural mediators, enabling continued use after the project’s end.
By anchoring policy goals in everyday cultural spaces—classrooms, exhibitions and public debate—these outputs helped bridge the gap between institutional strategies and societal awareness, reinforcing the project’s long-term preventive impact.
Young people played an active role throughout. Through the “Ambassadors of the Initiative” programme, training sessions and creative workshops invited them not just to learn, but to carry and reinterpret knowledge themselves.
The results
Over two years, the initiative reached more than 3,200 members of the general public, 800 young people, 223 expert partners and 160 creative professionals. Yet its most important results are less visible.
A national action plan built on evidence. Institutions better equipped to work together. Cultural tools designed to be reused and adapted. A digital platform meant to last. And a form of bilateral cooperation that does not depend on exceptional circumstances.
Transferability and relevance beyond the national context
While developed in a Bulgarian–Norwegian context, the practice addresses a challenge common across Europe: how to translate historical memory and international commitments into effective, sustainable public policy against antisemitism. Its core components—evidence-based assessment, structured multi-stakeholder dialogue, integration of cultural and educational tools, and co-creation of a national action plan—are modular and adaptable to other national settings. The bilateral cooperation model demonstrates how international expertise can support domestic policy development without undermining national ownership, making the approach relevant beyond the countries of implementation and transferable to other forms of hate and discrimination within EU prevention frameworks.
Funding
Supported by the EEA and Norwegian Financial Mechanisms (2014–2021) through the Fund for Bilateral Relations, the initiative aligns with EU priorities on combating antisemitism, strengthening democratic resilience and promoting intercultural dialogue. It also offers something concrete: a way to move from remembrance to action, without losing either.
Implementing organisation
State Institute for Culture, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Bulgaria
Governmental institution responsible for international cultural cooperation and implementation of commitments related to human rights, IHRA standards and combating antisemitism.
Get in touch!
Iavor Koynakov - Chief Expert
%20ykoinakov
mfa [dot] bg (ykoinakov[at]mfa[dot]bg)
