On Friday, 15 May 2026, the Institute for Historical Studies at ZRS Koper hosted a lecture by the distinguished researcher Dr Dorte Jagetic Andersen, Head of the Centre for Border Region Studies at the University of Southern Denmark, within the framework of the OPEN BORDERS project.

The lecture, held in a hybrid format, first offered participants an insight into the structure and research profile of the Centre in Sønderborg. The Centre is an internationally recognised research institution that approaches borders not only as political and administrative entities, but also as social and cultural spaces that significantly shape everyday life.

Dr Andersen presented the Centre’s key research areas, highlighting in particular the concepts of borderlands resilience and border temporalities. The former emphasises that communities living in border regions develop their own strategies for coping with social, political, and economic change. In this perspective, resilience is not merely a response to external “shocks,” but also the result of everyday practices and interpretations shaped by people who inhabit these regions.

The event also represented a successful example of synergy between bilateral cooperation and European funding. It brought together activities supported by a bilateral project financed by ARIS (project code: BI-DK/25-27-001) and the ERC-funded project OPEN BORDERS – Cold War Europe Beyond Borders, demonstrating the added value of combining national and European research frameworks.

The lecture stimulated a lively discussion among participants and raised important questions about the role of borders in contemporary Europe, particularly in relation to the everyday experiences of people living in border areas.