Summer School
Nansen Center For Peace and Dialogue
Using dialogue to create points of contact between groups in conflict.
Named in honour of Fridtjof Nansen, winner of the 1922 Nobel Peace Prize, the Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue continues the mission of promoting human rights and facilitating dialogue as a way of resolving conflict
In 1994, the Norwegian town of Lillehammer hosted the XVII Winter Olympics.
At the same time, another former Winter Olympic host city was under siege: Sarajevo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
With support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Norwegian Red Cross and Norwegian Church Aid, a group of Norwegian citizen decided to create a series of dialogue sessions bringing Bosnian locals to Lillehammer for seminars on dialogue and peaceful conflict resolution. With additional help from the Peace Research Institute Oslo, they welcomed the first group from the former Yugoslavia in September 1995.
Since then, the Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue (NCPD)was formed to faciliate dialogue sessions in Lillehammer, the Balkans and in other post-conflict societies around the world. In addition to their ongoing work on the ground, they host weeklong dialogue sessions for facilitators and practitioners working in the field. This includes an annual summer school for young people looking to enhance their practitioning skills and learn from professionals.
In June 2018 I participated in their workshops. Here's what we learned.
At the same time, another former Winter Olympic host city was under siege: Sarajevo, in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
With support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Norwegian Red Cross and Norwegian Church Aid, a group of Norwegian citizen decided to create a series of dialogue sessions bringing Bosnian locals to Lillehammer for seminars on dialogue and peaceful conflict resolution. With additional help from the Peace Research Institute Oslo, they welcomed the first group from the former Yugoslavia in September 1995.
Since then, the Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue (NCPD)was formed to faciliate dialogue sessions in Lillehammer, the Balkans and in other post-conflict societies around the world. In addition to their ongoing work on the ground, they host weeklong dialogue sessions for facilitators and practitioners working in the field. This includes an annual summer school for young people looking to enhance their practitioning skills and learn from professionals.
In June 2018 I participated in their workshops. Here's what we learned.
Young people from Serbia, Colombia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, El Salvador, Croatia, Russia, Kosovo, Canada, Macedonia, Norway, Albania, the United States, Ukraine and Montenegro participated in the NCPD's 2018 summer school.
What the NCPD does:
1
Dialogue Seminars
The NCPD facilitates dialogue seminars and sessions for groups in conflict. Their team serves as facilitators in cases ranging from municipal disputes to restoring points of contact between groups recovering from war.
2
Facilitator Training
In addition to facilitating dialogue sessions themselves (either in Lillehammer or in nations affected by conflict), the NCDP offers training programs to empower local practitioners.
Many of these practitioners were themselves participants in prior dialogue processes.
Many of these practitioners were themselves participants in prior dialogue processes.
3
Peacebuilding and Integration
More than just facilitating dialogue sessions, the NCPD offers ongoing support in particular regions (through branches of the Nansen Dialogue Network) to work towards ethnic integration and communication from schools to government offices.
Tools & Approaches to Dialogue:
Reunion
Ten Years After The War
Ten Years After The War
The documentary Reunion: Ten Years After The War explores the complex nature of dialogue between divided cultural groups, in this case Kosovar Serbs and Albanians.
The NCPD uses film screenings to promote dialogue and discussion. It was a central part of the summer school experience.
The NCPD uses film screenings to promote dialogue and discussion. It was a central part of the summer school experience.
Lillehammer
The Need For Neutral Space
The Need For Neutral Space
The creation of a safe and neutral space for dialogue to take place, often known as "good offices", is a central aspect of dialogue facilitation.
The NCPD uses what Lillehammer has to offer, from organizing meetings with local leaders to taking advantage of its distance from conflict zones, all in hopes of giving dialogue participants the freedom to explore complicated, sensitive topics.
The NCPD uses what Lillehammer has to offer, from organizing meetings with local leaders to taking advantage of its distance from conflict zones, all in hopes of giving dialogue participants the freedom to explore complicated, sensitive topics.
Read
Space Between Sessions
What happens between the dialogue sessions is just as important as what happens in them. Facilitators at the NCPD share with us how acts as simple as having or smoke with someone, or hosting an informal get-together, can change the atmosphere of tense discussions.
Read
A native of East Ukraine tells his story.
How can dialogue help when families are divided by conflict?
How can dialogue help when families are divided by conflict?
Dialogue and Peacebuilding
Dialogue doesn't end when a session does. Sustainable results often requite long-term committment to the process, sometimes taking years or even decades.
Steinar Bryn shares with us about the experience of the Nansen Dialogue Network in the Balkans.
Steinar Bryn shares with us about the experience of the Nansen Dialogue Network in the Balkans.
| Read |
Related Reading
Steinar Bryn, Inge Eidsvåg and Ingunn Trosholmen
A collection of texts explaining the Nansen Dialogue Method. It offers examples from dialogue work, explains how dialogue differs from debate, and gives practical advice on how to conduct a dialogue session.
A collection of texts explaining the Nansen Dialogue Method. It offers examples from dialogue work, explains how dialogue differs from debate, and gives practical advice on how to conduct a dialogue session.
Josh Nadeau
Some personal reflections on participating in the summer school at the Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue.
Published at www.peace.no.
Some personal reflections on participating in the summer school at the Nansen Center for Peace and Dialogue.
Published at www.peace.no.
Steinar Bryn
An in-depth look at the ongoing dialogue process between Serbs and Albanians in Serbia and Kosovo. The Nansen Dialogue Process is described in great detail.
An in-depth look at the ongoing dialogue process between Serbs and Albanians in Serbia and Kosovo. The Nansen Dialogue Process is described in great detail.
NCPD: Various Authors
A collection of articles on the Nansen Dialogue Network's pioneering work on dialogue in the Western Balkans between 1995 and 2015.
A collection of articles on the Nansen Dialogue Network's pioneering work on dialogue in the Western Balkans between 1995 and 2015.
NCPD: Various Authors
A publication marking the ten-year anniversary of the Nansen Dialogue project, 1995-2005. It collects Norwegian- and English-language articles on the Nansen Dialogue Network's early work in the Western Balkans.
A publication marking the ten-year anniversary of the Nansen Dialogue project, 1995-2005. It collects Norwegian- and English-language articles on the Nansen Dialogue Network's early work in the Western Balkans.
Norbert Ropers
Publication released by the Berghof Foundation on how to prepare and facilitate group dialogues. Attention is paid to how dialogue differs from other communicative strategies, and how to foster it among groups with varying interests.
Publication released by the Berghof Foundation on how to prepare and facilitate group dialogues. Attention is paid to how dialogue differs from other communicative strategies, and how to foster it among groups with varying interests.
Josh Nadeau is a freelance writer and dialogue practictioner. He attended the NCPD summer school in June 2018.
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