What does the history of post-war Central and Eastern Europe look like when told through the eyes of children?
This is the question at the heart of the first international conference organised as part of the European Network Remembrance and Solidarity's (ENRS) new long-term project, A Child in the Labyrinth of 20th-Century History. Taking place in Warsaw on 19–20 November 2026, Actors, Witnesses or Subjects? Children in Post-war Central and Eastern Europe, 1945–1989 invites scholars from across disciplines to rethink one of the most transformative periods in European history through perspectives that have too often remained unheard.
The Second World War left millions of children across Europe orphaned, displaced and traumatised. For many living in Central and Eastern Europe, however, peace did not bring an end to uncertainty. The decades that followed were shaped by the division of the continent, communist rule, ideological indoctrination, political repression and recurring social and economic crises. Children grew up in a world where everyday life was profoundly influenced by forces beyond their control, yet their own experiences have rarely occupied a central place in historical research.
Instead of viewing children solely as victims or passive witnesses, the conference proposes a different perspective. It invites researchers to explore children as historical actors: individuals who interpreted, negotiated and responded to the political and social realities around them, even within highly restrictive systems. By placing children's voices and experiences at the centre of historical enquiry, the conference aims to open new directions in the study of post-war Europe and the history of childhood.
We welcome contributions from researchers working in the history of childhood and youth, the social and cultural history of state socialism, memory studies, transgenerational trauma research and related disciplines. Proposals drawing on diaries, letters, memoirs, oral history, visual sources and other materials that foreground children's own perspectives are particularly encouraged. The conference also seeks interdisciplinary approaches that connect history with sociology, anthropology, literary and cultural studies, education and memory research.
Researchers interested in participating are invited to submit proposals for 20-minute papers by 18 September 2026. The conference language is English, and selected papers will be considered for publication in the ENRS book series. The organisers will contribute towards the travel and accommodation costs of accepted participants. Notifications of acceptance will be sent by 25 September 2026.
Read the full Call for Papers and submission guidelines enrs.eu/a-child-in-the-labyrinth-of-history-2026
Photo: Polish refugees arriving at Wellington and at the Polish Children's Camp at Pahiatua, 1944, Archives New Zealand, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons