The main venue of Europe Lab 2017 was
the European Centre of Solidarity.
The European Centre of Solidarity is not only a museum that commemorates the revolution of Solidarity and the fall of communism in Europe, but also an educational, research and academic centre, an archive, library and multimedia library. Moreover, it remains public meeting space for citizens who feel responsible for the development of democracy: a place where solidarity and citizenship are put into practice.
The idea of Solidarity Museum was born in March 1998, based on the ideas of Chairman of the Gdańsk City Council Paweł Adamowicz and historian Dr Jerzy Kukliński. On 8 November, 2007 in the City of Gdańsk, the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, established the European Solidarity Centre as a cultural institution.
On May 14, 2011 the architectural project of the European Solidarity Centre started being implemented. In his speech, the Polish President Bronisław Komorowski mentioned: ‘We want Polish Solidarity to be the symbol of changes for the better and of the end of the totalitarian system’.