The namesake of the lecture, Loe de Jong (1914–2005), was director of the Netherlands Institute for War Documentation (RIOD), now NIOD, from 1945 to 1979. He gained national fame with his monumental fourteen-volume work The Kingdom of the Netherlands in the Second World War (1969–1994) and the television series The Occupation (1960–1965). De Jong, from a Jewish family, fled the Netherlands at the outbreak of the war; a large part of his family was murdered.
Eddo Verdoner, National Coordinator for Combating Antisemitism: “Loe de Jong helped the Netherlands understand the Second World War and the persecution of Jews and to draw lessons from it. He not only outlined the facts but also held up a mirror to us. With the Loe de Jong lecture, we create an annual moment of reflection of national importance, a moment of contemplation on the lasting significance of Holocaust education.”
Adriaan van Dis: “It is an honor for me to give the first Loe de Jong lecture. The history of the persecution of Jews is a past full of present. It is important to continue sharing the danger of discrimination with new generations and to especially now pause on current antisemitism.”
Holocaust Education Work Conference
The Loe de Jong lecture is part of the Holocaust Education Work Conference, organized by the National Coordinator for Combating Antisemitism. Policymakers, teachers, experts, students, and scientists come together annually at this conference, which aims to strengthen Holocaust education in the Netherlands.
The conference aligns with the National Plan for Strengthening Holocaust Education (2025), which sets out the ambition to deepen and safeguard knowledge and understanding of the Holocaust among the Dutch for future generations.
Learn about the Holocaust
In January, the annual Learn about the Holocaust campaign also starts. The campaign is an initiative of the NCAB and highlights the importance of Holocaust education in Dutch society. The campaign serves as a prelude to International Holocaust Memorial Day on January 27, 2026, and is taking place for the third time this year.