Jewish minority has been a part of Polish society for over 1000 years, during which the country has experienced alternating periods of development and destruction. Polish-Jewish relations were particularly affected by the tragic period of the Holocaust. After the 1948 establishment of the state of Israel and the tightening of Soviet-dominated Poland, the problematic knowledge of shared history with widely different interpretations translated into the complexity of Polish-Israeli relations. It contributed to a build-up of mutual distrust.

During the last decade, we observed several initiatives that aimed to overcome mutual stereotypes and prejudices and establish dialogue and cooperation between the citizens of both countries. How the meetings are prepared and conducted is particularly important for their success—the aim of the study conducted by Dr. Dominika Zakrzewska was to examine whether and under what conditions contact between young adults from Poland and Israel affects mutual prejudice and attitudes towards each other as well as selected national and ethnic groups. During the presentation, there will also be discussed the good practices in creating a curriculum for such meetings to ensure the implementation of their objectives and the emerging difficulties.