(Un)Common Borderland. Stories from Finland, Estonia, and the journey in between

European Network Remembrance and Solidarity

The group of students retraced the routes of history across the Baltic Sea, travelling to Helsinki, Finland, and later the 80 km sea passage to Tallinn, Estonia. The journey, which during the Cold War was accessible only to a select few, subject to severe restrictions and scrutiny of border guards, is now a reflection of the transformation of the region and the renewed cooperation between the two countries, which, after all, have so much in common. Through the interviews, students learned the personal stories of those who lived through this period of separation and explored the many physical and symbolic meanings of the border.

Produced by: Anželika Litvinoviča, Gabriel Kołodziejczyk, Maja Wróblewska, Matylda Elson, Mirjami Sipilä, Nikodem Szynol, Oleksandr Tsilyi and Roosa Saikanmäki with the support of Aleksandra Kalinowska (ENRS), Helena Link (ENRS) and Jarek Kociszewski (FreeRange Productions)

With the contribution of: Elena Shevakova, Kaja Kunnas, Kalle Klandorf, Olev Kiirend, Sigrid Kaasik-Krogerus, Simon Brunel, Tõnu Pedaru, Heta Hedman (Historians without Borders in Finland) and Marko Poolamets (Estonian Institute of Historical Memory).

Project "In Between?" 2024 is co-funded by European Union.

The series of study visits 'In Between?', initiated in April 2016 by the European Network Remembrance and Solidarity, draws on from the methodology of oral history. So far, more than 150 young people (under 26 years of age) have participated in eight editions of the project and visited a total of 25 multicultural regions of Europe.

Read more: https://enrs.eu/inbetween