By Zoltan Fried
The National Holocaust Monument in Ottawa, entitled Landscape of Loss, Memory and Survival,
was inaugurated in 2017 with the stated mission “to ensure that the lessons of the Holocaust, as well as the contribution Holocaust survivors have made to Canada, remain within the national consciousness for generations to come.”
CHES and Liberation75 have joined with the USC Shoah Foundation to create an ambitious, interactive IWalk App to encourage student groups and tourists to visit the Monument and to educate them about the reality of the Holocaust and its aftereffects.
This type of interactive experience has been created with remarkable success at Holocaust destinations around the world. The experience will consist of “walking” students and tourists through the Monument using an innovative, professionally-curated educational program on their mobile devices. Included will be the historical information featured at the Monument and first-hand Holocaust survivor testimony.
The goal of this educational project is to combine the physicality of the Monument with virtual interactive encounters that will expand the understanding of the history of the Holocaust and the story of Holocaust survivors living in Canada. As well, the IWalk App will emphasize the role of historic antisemitism, leading to today’s contemporary antisemitism.
The IWalk App at the Monument will be an educational public resource that increases access to learning for all Canadians. Making the history of the Holocaust and the symbolism of the Monument more accessible will support community learning about the impacts of antisemitism, racism, and all forms of hate. The Monument has the untapped potential to reach and teach tens of thousands of students and tourists each year about the Holocaust with an emphasis on the role antisemitism played in the Holocaust and the dangers posed by hate and antisemitism today.
CHES is thrilled to announce receiving two grants in support of the IWalk project: one grant of $50,000 from the Canadian Race Relations Foundation ( Front Page – Canadian Race Relations Foundation (crrf-fcrr.ca)) and the other one of $40,000 from Maspik (Maspik | Means Enough).
CHES is grateful to friends, partners, and supporters and thanks them for their continued support and involvement in our work to educate about the Holocaust and to develop programs to fight racism, discrimination, and antisemitism. Such support inspires CHES to create and share our diverse activities, programs, and educational resources.
