This is a fieldwork practicum course that explores peacebuilding through a social transformation lens. Students will explore some of the ways peacebuilding is conceived, carried out, and lived in Colombia, a country that has witnessed the longest internal violent conflict of the western hemisphere. Peacebuilding in Colombia has been approached in two fundamental ways: one of these ways is top-down, as many attempts to negotiate peace agreements have emanated from institutional attempts to negotiate peace with illegal groups, including the successful peace agreements of 2016 between the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The other way is through everyday peace, which refers to the ongoing community building practices that happen at the community level to address the direct effects of violent conflicts. This is a type of peacebuilding that develops within conflict areas, organically, and creatively as violence escalates. In this case, communities come together to respond peacefully to the effects of war that disrupts their personal and social lives. This course explores these two approaches both theoretically and empirically, in addition to a multitrack approach to diplomacy.

 In sum, students will explore the immense repertoire of negotiation, conflict resolution, and peacebuilding strategies designed and applied by grassroots community leaders, and analyze them through the concepts and tools from the field of conflict resolution and negotiation. Students will learn how to engage in fieldwork with people on the ground, whose work sets in motion profound processes of social transformation using the arts, environmental activism, inclusion and diversity rights, entrepreneurship and social innovation, and scholarly work. Students will explore and assess the applicability of theories and methods such as the Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM), systems thinking approaches, and Participatory Action Research (PAR), to resolving pressing local and world violent conflicts.

The course includes a visit to Medellín to conduct fieldwork with communities and explore local initiatives aimed at rebuilding the social fabric.

Important: If you are a regular undergraduate or graduate student at Universidad de los Andes, you will not be able to register for courses with academic credits through Continuing Education. This registration must be done directly with the Faculty offering the course of interest.