In the first part of the article, Krzysztof A. Makowski describes how the idea of granting Poland the opportunity to host the 23rd International Congress of Historical Sciences in 2020 in Poznań came about and how Poznań’s application to host the Congress was prepared. Moreover, the author presents the ongoing preparations for the Congress. In the second part of the article, Ewa Domańska discusses the origins and evolution of the idea of “alter-native modernities” and “epi- stemic justice” as leitmotifs of Poznań’s application. She stresses the need and importance of developing an intellectual alliance of East-Central European countries and lists activities that could help raise the region’s status as an important centre of knowledge building.