Neshama: a European network of young ambassadors to bring the memory of the Holocaust alive news

On the occasion of the International Day dedicated to the memory of the victims of the Holocaust, the Shoah Memorial has once again gathered, transmitted and brought alive the memory through a series of events at all its sites.

This year was marked by the launch of Neshama, an initiative led by the Shoah Memorial with the support of the European Commission, whose objective is to ensure the sustainability of the memory of the Shoah by relying on the active engagement of young generations, so that they in turn become memory brokers on a European scale.

For its first edition in 2026, Neshama brings together young ambassadors from France, Germany, Croatia, Greece and Poland, in close collaboration with memory sites, institutional partners, schools and students from all over Europe, thus creating a transnational network of transmission, reflection and citizen engagement.

These ambassadors also participated in the rekindling of the flame at the Arc de Triomphe on 27 January. The official ceremony on 27 January, held in the crypt of the Shoah Memorial and broadcast live on YouTube, was conducted by the memory ambassadors in the presence of Alice Rufo and Anne Hidalgo.

Several testimonies punctuated this commemoration, notably that of Charlotte Barillet in front of schoolchildren, broadcast on the YouTube channel of the Shoah Memorial, as well as those of Jacques Brones at the University Paris Dauphine- PSL and Esther Senot at the ceremony organized at the Sorbonne by the academic delegation for memory, history and citizenship, in partnership with the Shoah Memorial.

A solemn ceremony was also organized by UNESCO at the Organization’s headquarters in Paris. The heart of the ceremony was devoted to the screening of a short film Les Immortels, directed by Olivier Nakache and Éric Toledano, followed by the presence of Mr. Léon Placek, survivor of the Holocaust, as well as Camille Marty.

Other highlights included the presentation of the Immortels in front of school audiences at France Télévisions, with Éric Toledano, in the presence of Joseph Romano for his documentary After them, as well as commemorative ceremonies organized at different sites of the Memorial, notably at CERCIL and Chambon-sur-Lignon.