It is now less than 100 days away from when we will welcome you to the Crossings and Connections Conference taking place at St. Olaf College.
While we wait on a few final details before registration opens, we wanted to take a moment to tell you a bit more about why we feel drawn to commemorate 200 years of Norwegian migration.
It is not likely surprising that, similar to our Norwegian counterparts, our first conference objective is to connect researchers, teachers and the public interested in Norwegian migration. But beyond that, it is an opportunity for us to connect what we know from the migration of the past to that of contemporary migration today—to both North America and Norway.
When we saw the compilation of images by Inger-Maren Slagsvold from Anno Norsk utvandrermuseum, it really spoke to us.
Migration has always played a crucial role in shaping the demographics, cultures, and economies of the world. The sketch of the Restauration sloop sailing in 1852 has much in connection to Ukrainian photojournalist Mstylav Chernov’s image of refugees on a boat crossing the Mediterranean sea, heading from Turkish coast to the northeastern Greek island of Lesbos. By blending the past and present, we can foster a new understanding of migration from 200 years ago, and the migration of today.
Learn more about Mstylav’s work here: https://www.mstyslav.com/documentary