Through its Mediterranean Basin Programs (MBP), the Auschwitz Institute for the Prevention of Genocide and Mass Atrocities (AIPG) is providing education, specialized training, and technical assistance to policymakers, civil society leaders, and academic experts throughout Southeastern Europe. Coordinated from Bucharest, Romania, AIPG’s activities in this region are carefully designed to equip participants with the necessary knowledge, tools, and networking capacities to develop and implement effective strategies and policies for preventing identity-based violence. With more than a decade of expertise, AIPG can develop strategies for identifying and responding to critical risk factors for mass atrocities, as well as relevant policy response options. Thus, the Auschwitz Institute is able to work with government officials and other public sector actors in the region to address warning signs before an outbreak of violence occurs. Moreover, AIPG utilizes flexible frameworks for dialogue to create opportunities for cooperation between relevant stakeholders at the national, regional, and international levels. We are committed to strengthening an emerging regional network of prevention experts – The Mediterranean Basin Network for Atrocity Crimes Prevention (MBN) – to promote a comprehensive regional atrocity prevention agenda.

Working Priorities

The overarching objective of the MBP is to provide in-depth education, training, and technical assistance on preventing mass atrocities to key stakeholders in Southeastern Europe. The Auschwitz Institute accomplishes this objective by organizing in-person seminars and virtual courses and by producing tools and vital resources to familiarize policymakers and community leaders with the concepts of genocide and mass atrocities, the processes by which they occur, and the methods for their prevention.

The MBP forms its thematic priorities based on the needs identified by regional actors. These priorities include: promoting democratic citizenship and good governance, strengthening the rule of law, protecting vulnerable groups, combating discrimination, and championing human rights.

The MBP is currently undertaking initiatives to provide technical assistance and capacity building to national governments for implementing anti-discrimination strategies that provide greater human rights protections to Roma communities and refugees in Southeastern Europe. The Auschwitz Institute’s Bucharest Office also coordinates the Global Raphael Lemkin Seminar for Genocide Prevention. The Lemkin Seminar is one of the main pillars of AIPG’s work and welcomes participants who have professional responsibilities in atrocity prevention, human rights, international criminal justice, and other relevant areas. Through this intensive program, first implemented in 2008, AIPG is building a global community of public officials who are educated about the importance of understanding past atrocities in order to strengthen democracy and pluralism in society today.

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Regional Network

A key priority for AIPG’s Mediterranean Basin Programs is strengthening cooperative approaches to atrocity prevention between national, regional, and international networks by engaging a wider spectrum of practitioners and government representatives. This entails facilitating cooperation within and among existing national and international bodies, as well as conducting consultations with key actors around the world to facilitate the exchange of best practices and foster a comprehensive approach to prevention. The Bucharest Office engages with the Romanian National Expert Network on Genocide Prevention and Multidisciplinary Research on Mass Graves and the emergent Mediterranean Basin Network for Atrocity Crimes Prevention (MBN), while also facilitating cooperation between them and similar bodies such as The Latin American Network for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention and The Africa Network for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention.

The MBN is currently comprised of representatives from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, and Kosovo*. The MBN’s overarching goal is to support policymakers in developing preventive policies, drawing on best practices from neighboring countries and other regions, and taking into account specific local expertise. Grounded in the understanding that local ownership is the most important factor in the development of effective long-term atrocity prevention, the MBN is specifically designed to provide a framework for dialogue through which this goal can be achieved.

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International and Regional Impact

The impact of the Mediterranean Basin Programs reflects the Auschwitz Institute’s core philosophy of providing long-term training and support to public officials, civil society and community leaders. After completing a foundational learning program, MBP program participants become members of AIPG’s international alumni community of more than 8,800 + members from over 90 countries. The network actively exchanges best practices and ideas among practitioners across thematic and geographical areas, and functions as a platform for AIPG to provide continued training and professional development opportunities.

The effectiveness of AIPG’s Mediterranean Basin Programs relies on the backing of partners whose generosity provides us with the necessary resources to engage key stakeholders and sustain vital regional and international networks dedicated to the prevention of future genocides and other mass atrocities.

* This designation is without prejudice to positions on status and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

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