Joanna Podolska-Płocka

Director of the Marek Edelman Centre for Dialogue in Łódź

Graduated in philology and cultural studies. She is a researcher at the University of Lodz (Institute of Contemporary Culture).

From 1991 to 2011, she worked as a journalist for 'Gazeta Wyborcza' in Łódź. Since 2011, director of the Marek Edelman Centre for Dialogue in Łódź. Scholarship holder of the Tadeusz Kościuszko Foundation, Foundation Journalists in Europe in Paris, and the German Marshall Fund of the United States, Washington DC. She was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta for outstanding achievements in promoting Polish-Jewish dialogue, and the 'Bene Merito' Badge of Honour awarded by the Minister for Foreign Affairs for activities which strengthen Poland's position on the international arena. She is also a recipient of the Polin Prize.

An author or co-author of various publications, including: "Litzmannstadt-Getto - Ślady. Przewodnik po przeszłości" (Litzmann-Getto - Traces. A Guide to the Past), a series of "Spacerownik" including "Jewish Łódź", "Rosyjskimi śladami po województwie łódzkim" (Russian Traces in the Łódzkie Voivodeship) and several exhibitions, including those on Jan Karski, Andrzej Bobkowski and Artur Szyk. She promotes history and culture of Łódź focusing on its multicultural roots and diverse contemporary times.