International Student Exchange in Germany and Poland
In March 2025, the 5th and penultimate student meeting of the ERASMUS+ project took place at JBS Golm in Kamminke on Usedom. Students and teachers from Belgium, the Netherlands, Poland, and Germany gathered once again to exchange ideas on the topic of human rights and to make new contacts.
The participants found the visit to the former Wehrmacht prison in Anklam on the first day of the project particularly impressive. During the tour through the prison cells and the death row, they learned many new things, such as "What was legal back then" (the title of an exhibition). Today, the museum is dedicated to peace work, which is becoming increasingly important in the current global situation.
On the second day, the group set off very early by bus to Poland. The first stop was at the site of the former hydrogenation plant located in the Polish city of Police. There, the participants were guided through a bunker complex of the hydrogenation plant and gained an interesting insight. In the afternoon, they traveled to Szczecin. After an exciting visit to a former World War II bunker underneath the city, the participants were able to end the day with a sightseeing tour of the city.
On March 12, 1945—80 years ago—American planes bombed the city of Swinemünde and its port. According to estimates (source: JBS Golm), 4,000 to 6,000 people died there. Many of the victims were later buried at the current war cemetery of Golm. The students of the ERASMUS+ project actively participated in the memorial event. Anton from Germany and Wiktoria from Poland recited the memorial words. As a closing act, each person laid a rose on the large mass grave in memory of the victims of the senseless war.
The next day, two time witnesses shared their experiences of the bombing. This personal account was especially important for everyone, as these individual stories, which were very touching, made the scale of the tragedy more tangible.
On the penultimate day, the group visited the Peenemünde Historical-Technical Museum. During a guided tour, the participants learned that many forced laborers and concentration camp prisoners were exploited at the former Peenemünde testing sites, where scientists worked on the so-called "Vengeance Weapons." Afterwards, the students worked in groups to prepare presentations about the concentration camps in Peenemünde and introduced individual prisoner biographies.
The project meeting concluded with a relaxing trip to the Tree Top Walk in Heringsdorf and an evening walk through Świnoujście. It brought us many new impressions, experiences, encounters—and even new friendships.
(Photos: Tabea Sethmann)