International Remembrance Seminar, Belgium 2011

From 11-14 October 2011, 70 young people from the UK, Belgium and France met in Zonnebeke to discuss the future of Remembrance. The Royal British Legion brought the groups together with the support of the Memorial Museum Passchendaele 1917.

The seminar provided an opportunity for over 60 young people from the three nations that were allied on the Western Front during World War One, to meet and discuss Remembrance as it has developed from that time.

The young people, aged 14 years to late twenties, gave presentations about Remembrance in their own countries and discused the future of Remembrance in mixed national groups. They also visited sites of Remembrance, memorials and battlefields in the area and participated in the Last Post ceremony held each evening at the Menin Gate in Ypres.

The British youth were represented by Sittingbourne Community College, Kent, City of London Academy Southwark and Dearne ALC, South Yorkshire. British schools with a connection to the Legion were contacted during the summer term 2011 and invited to apply for their students to attend. The participants were selected from those that met the criteria.

The French were represented by the organisation 'Laissez les servir' which works with disadvantaged youth in the Saint Denis area of Paris. The Belgian delegation were selected by the Passchendaele Memorial Meuseum and came from Ghent and the Belgian Military Academy.

The young people from the three countries learnt about their attitudes to Remembrance and each other's approaches to it. On the final day of the seminar they pooled their discussions to write a joint declaration and a series of actions for the future (see below).

The seminar formed part of the Legion's 90th aniversary events.

Declaration and actions

DECLARATION

We the participants in the International Seminar of Remembrance,
10 to 14 October 2011, do declare that the following words and phrases
form our intent for Remembrance in the future.

Duty: The soldiers did their duty now we have a duty to remember them, with that understanding we should live our lives in the full appreciation of what they fought and died for.

Sacrifice: Those men and women who serve, in both the Armed Forces and in civilian roles, at times of conflict and war are prepared to sacrifice what we all hold most dear; life, body, family, home and mental health. For that they deserve our respect.

Learning: To have access to the facts of history that affects our own national stories and the stories of others. With that information we can reflect on the past and its implications in order to affect our behaviour in the future.

Cooperation: Working together to make it easier to reach our common goals. In peace and conflict.

Courage: We will let those who show courage in times of peace and conflict, and those who show strength when pressures are against them inspire us and future generations.

Discussion: To enable those with different histories to take part in discussion whilst being free to move forward in reconciliation.

Commitment: We declare a commitment to continuing Remembrance, for our own and future generations. We do this not because we have to but because we want to.

ACTIONS 

Commemorative events: 
- To ensure there is a presence of young people at commemorative events on both the national and international level.
- To initiate new forms of commemorative events which reflect the needs of young people of current generations.

Formal education: 
- To support schools to make themes from the past (local regiments, pals battalions etc) relevant and accessible to young people and their communities.
- To let young people create information for other young people to teach and inspire.
- To find ways to bring history closer to our daily lives.

Experience: 
- To encourage other young people to visit memorial sites and sites of conflict.
- To find ways for young people to experience aspects of historical events.
- To engage with veterans and their families so that their experience can be passed on to us and future generations.

Creativity and technology:
- To support creative outlets for commemoration eg new works of art, creative expression, poetry etc.
- To embrace social media to enable discussion throughout the year not just at November time.
- To initiate physical actions such as walks and dramatic interpretations for other young people to access Remembrance. 

To ensure that the cooperation that has come out of this seminar continues and grows stronger.

Seminar outcomes

The declaration and actions produced by the young people will be sent to politicians in the three countries that the participants came from.

The Royal British Legion we will support the young people to carry out their actions providing a space here on this website for them to publish their activities and actions. We'll also ensure they receive information and personal support where we can.

Finally we are going to use their declaration to help guide us with future projects and initiatives for Remembrance and we thank them all for their participation and contributions.