COURAGE

connecting collections

In 1997 in Blagoevgrad, lecturers at the Neofit Rilski South-West University founded the Balkan Society for Autobiography and Social Communication (BSASC) - one of the first centers for oral history and autobiographical research in Bulgaria. The team, bringing together lecturers and students, has developed a number of projects in the field of oral history. The main aim is to highlight the “blank spots” of recent history and the personal experience of those who lived through political repression and the so-called “revival” process, as well as to increase interest in the history of those groups whose voice was overlooked by official history during the totalitarian regime period: women, minorities, residents of remote villages, prisoners and others. The projects include the following: Language Behavior and Living Worlds of Muslims in the Western Rhodopes, Tradition, Fashion, Modernity in the Western Rhodopes, My Dossier, pardon, Biography, From Suburban Village to an End-city Quarter, Tolerance in Diversity and many others.
BSASC has an archive that is used for research and work by students. Based on experience and research, a Master's degree course in oral history was developed at the Neofit Rilski South-West University, where students learn methods of conducting interviews as well as transcribing and analyzing texts. The team has experience not only in scientific publication, but also in working with the civic sector, as well as in popularizing project results by organizing exhibitions, working with students, with older people, etc.