The Building Bridges project concludes with a final meeting from May 9–11, uniting artists, activists, intellectuals, and political leaders from across Europe. Through open discussions, artistic expressions, and collective reflection, participants will explore the role of physical and ideological barriers in shaping our societies. By connecting the past with the present, the gathering aims to inspire new perspectives on the future of democracy and inclusion in Europe.
The meeting will also offer a space to reflect on the policy recommendations developed during previous Building Bridges assemblies, and to envision the next steps forward, drawing from the collective learnings of the journey so far.
This final meeting will take place in two locations rich with symbolic meaning: Warsaw—a city whose history is marked by the “walls” of occupation, emargination, violence and the “bridges” of resistance, resilience, transformation—and the Białowieża Forest in eastern Poland, one of Europe’s last primeval forests. In Białowieża, ecosystems of trees, fungi, animals, and humans have coexisted for thousands of years, surviving despite centuries of geopolitical upheavals. Today, this ancient forest stands at the crossroads of Europe’s contemporary crises: migration, war, the rise of far-right movements, and ecological tipping points.
Why Białowieża Forest?
Białowieża Forest is a living archive and a magnifying glass through which we can examine the tensions and transformations of European democracy today. Stretching across the Polish-Belarusian border, it embodies centuries of East-West struggle: between imperial powers, capitalism and communism, liberalism and authoritarianism. Once the hunting grounds of Polish kings and Russian tsars, the forest was divided after World War II by Stalin, with part remaining in Poland and the other falling under Soviet (now Belarusian) governance. Today, both countries protect their sections as National Parks and Nature Reserves, but their approaches to governance—and to the ideas of freedom and control—differ sharply, reflecting broader divergences in democratic practices and societal values.
The forest thus raises profound questions:
*How do we define freedom—and for whom?
*Which lives and which forms of existence are protected?
*How do we balance governance with the autonomy of life itself?
Starting from the 2017 logging crisis—when the far-right Polish government attempted to open the forest to commercial exploitation, sparking massive civic resistance—and the humanitarian crisis at the Polish-Belarusian border in 2021, when refugees were trapped in the forest in dire conditions, this assembly invites a deep listening:
not only to human voices, but also to the often-overlooked, silent witnesses—the forest, its creatures, its invisible ecologies.
At a moment when the very foundations of democracy, freedom, and coexistence are under threat, we invite you to gather, reflect, and reimagine together.
To envision not just what kind of Europe we want to build, but how we might honor the living world that sustains us all—beyond borders, beyond species, beyond ideologies.
Join us in Warsaw and the Białowieża Forest, and be part of this vital conversation.
Check out the preliminary programme and logistics details here.
REGISTER HERE TO PARTICIPATE.
