The Romanian Institute for Recent History (Institutul Român de Istorie Recenta – IRIR) was established in the year 2000 on the initiative of Coen Stork, former ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Romania (December 1987 – May 1993). The institute’s actual name is Foundation for the Study of Romania’s Recent History. The Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs provided the initial funding through a MATRA grant.

IRIR has been fully committed to achieve scholarly results by proposing new research topics and innovative perspectives on Romania’s recent past. The institute’s research results have been disseminated by means of international conferences, as well as through books and articles, including the publication of several collections of documents and oral history interviews. For instance, IRIR has published with POLIROM collections of documents.

IRIR was issued license no. 21/PJ/2000 by the Romanian Registry for Associations and Foundations.

As an independent, private, non-profit organization, IRIR depends on donations and contributions from individuals, businesses, and institutions interested in supporting its pioneering work of exploring and reconstructing Romania’s recent history.

Those interested in supporting IRIR’s work are kindly asked to contact us directly: contact@irir.ro