The Saarpfalz district can look back on a successful Europe Week in May 2025. The aim was to strengthen communal exchange across borders and a shared European awareness. Located in the centre of the SaarLorLux region, the Saarpfalz district is very attractive, also for its partner districts. However, it benefits significantly from international links, to the benefit of its population and therefore the district itself.
As part of Europe Week, a new memorandum of understanding was signed, which offers a cultural civil society exchange. In future, the Habkirchen Customs Museum will work together with the Museum of Border Regions in Lubaczów on the Polish-Ukrainian border. The aim of the co-operation is to make life and work in border regions visible and understandable.
Germany and Poland share a common past that remains both a responsibility and a warning to this day. In this context, the delegations from Poland and Ukraine visited the memorial site at Gräfinthal Monastery, which was erected in 2024. Since the end of May, a new information board has also commemorated the fate of the Ulma family, to whom the memorial is dedicated. The information presented there also symbolises a living European culture of remembrance.
The good co-operation between Germans and Poles has long been demonstrated in the Blieskastel monastery run by Polish Franciscan Friars Minor, which was even visited by a member of the Polish parliament and other delegates from the Polish partner districts in May. The partnership contacts with Poland also simplify the new model project for everyday home care, which makes joint social responsibility visible. The Saarpfalz district has developed a concept with the St. Ingbert District Association of the German Red Cross (DRK) to relieve the burden on family carers and at the same time enable fair employment for everyday carers from abroad - in particular from the Polish partner district of Łańcut. To this end, a transparent employer model was developed that creates social security and intensifies cross-border cooperation in the care sector.
An important event of the project week was the handover of office from the previous District Administrator Dr Theophil Gallo to the new District Administrator Frank John. The ceremony was accompanied by speeches from the partners from France, Poland, Ukraine and the USA, who emphasised the importance of the growing cooperation. The speeches emphasised how valuable the European partnerships are for the Saarpfalz district. They contribute to understanding, break down prejudices and ensure solidarity. The partner districts are there for each other and support each other, for example in crisis management. This means that the Saarpfalz district can count on the experienced supporters from the East in the future. The symbolic handover of the keys not only marked a personnel transition, but also emphasised the continuation of international relations with regard to the well-being of the people. The cross-border links with neighbouring France have long been tangible for the inhabitants of the Saarpfalz district. In future, the Saarpfalz district would like to involve its population more closely in its partnerships, in the spirit of the Weimar Triangle, for example by supporting trips for citizens, exchanges between associations and at civil society level. The district focusses on personal exchange with responsibility, openness and a clear view to the future in a citizen-oriented, communal way and at eye level. After all, a peaceful Europe cannot be created without direct co-operation among the population. Intercultural understanding and mutual trust are needed at the civic level.
The Saarpfalz district positions itself as European and cosmopolitan, but also close to its citizens with strong partners who stand by each other, for example in innovative social projects. In this way, it contributes to strengthening Europe precisely where it grows most effectively, namely at local level.
The Europe Week was realised with the financial support of the Saarland State Chancellery and the Ministry of Education and Culture.
Information on the district partnerships and the European work of the Saarpfalz district can be obtained from Dr Violetta Frys, European Affairs Officer and Head of the Europe Unit, by calling (06841) 104-8273 or sending an e-mail to [email protected] or [email protected].