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Technology in the Service of Memory. Recognition for Orange Polska for Supporting Education at the Auschwitz Memorial.
Orange Polska, the strategic technology partner of the Museum and the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation, has been recognized among the donors supporting the educational mission of the Memorial. A special plaque at the headquarters of the International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust was unveiled during a ceremony that took place on 14 June.
Thanks to the technological support of Orange Polska, the Museum has gained a modern infrastructure that provides fast and efficient Internet access throughout the entire historical site.
Ensuring such stable connectivity enabled the launch at the beginning of this year of a unique online live guided tour program "Auschwitz in Front of Your Eyes."
This allows remote education about the history of the German Nazi concentration and extermination camp conducted from the authentic site of the Memorial to reach a global audience on an even larger scale.
"Presenting authenticity and narrating the history of Auschwitz online requires good technology, and technology improves almost year by year. Thanks to the fantastic support from Orange, we can focus on ensuring that the voice, which the world so desperately needs, is authentic, credible, and impactful in changing people’s attitudes," said Dr. Piotr M. A. Cywiński, the director of the Auschwitz Museum.
"It is an honor for Orange to be part of such an important project. The memory of this place and its over a million victims must be kept alive as a memento. If new technologies can help in this, it is our duty to enable their use," emphasized Witold Drożdż, Board Member for Strategy and Corporate Affairs at Orange Polska.
"The partnership with Orange Polska has enabled the launch of an incredibly innovative educational format, 'Auschwitz. In Front of Your Eyes.' The support came at a particularly difficult time when we were looking for ways to build a new path to reach people worldwide, independent of pandemic challenges," said Wojciech Soczewica, General Director of the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation.
"We are pleased that more companies are joining the coalition around the mission of the Memorial built by the Foundation. The involvement of global companies such as AppsFlyer, Orange, and Google allows for very broad spread of the history of Auschwitz, but also reflections stemming from the memory of Auschwitz. It seems that today this is more necessary than ever," added Soczewica.
The educational mission of the Museum is carried out by the International Center for Education about Auschwitz and the Holocaust. The main area of the Center's activities is educational programs that, based on the history and experience of Auschwitz, aim to raise awareness and shape a responsible attitude in today’s world.
Most visitors to the Memorial learn the history of Auschwitz through Museum guides speaking in about 20 languages. Such a large number of guiding languages is unique on a global scale. A visit with an educator provides the fullest opportunity to learn about the authentic post-camp space and the fates of the camp’s victims.
The online tour lasts about 2 hours and is divided into two parts: Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau. The guide's narration is conducted live. Additionally, the educator uses multimedia materials, archival photographs, artworks, documents, and testimonies of Survivors. The platform also allows for interaction with the guide and asking questions.
The project of this special platform, dedicated to the Memorial Site, was developed in cooperation between the Museum, the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation, and the companies AppsFlyer and DISKIN.
Since 2009, the preservation of the authenticity of the Memorial has been supported by the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation. Its task is to create and manage an Endowment Fund, the profits of which are designated for the conservation of all remnants of Auschwitz for future generations.