24 June 2015
Anne de Graaf, AUC lecturer in the field of International Relations and Human Rights, travelled with the group of AUC students to Kosovo from 7 to 17 June 2015. The field trip was also joined by AUC alumna, Tereza Sukopova, two local Kosovars—Bardha Ajeti and Enver Bajrami —and Erik de Graaf, all of whom helped with the organising and logistics.
Students were deeply moved by the field experience, which from all angles deepened their understanding of Kosovo, and overall post-conflict reconstruction and its complexities.
The programme comprised of rather intensive day activities that included over 20 meetings with various actors such as the UN, EU, government entities, universities, local community building initiatives, social movement representatives and media organisations. Most of the trip’s programme took place in Kosovo’s capital, Pristina, but for two days students also visited and held meetings in Mitrovica, a Serb enclave. The AUC delegation had the chance to discuss in detail with organisation representatives the different peace-building and state-building successes and challenges.
“In a classroom environment one can learn a lot about human rights and peace building, but these concepts do not come alive until one experiences them in the field. Academic papers can give good insights into schematic overviews of the peace building process, but this trip enabled us to question practitioners in the field about how useful these frameworks actually were, and what limitations people run into when practising peace building.“ (Michael Vermeer, Class of 2015)
Last but not least, heavy emphasis was put on truly getting to know the local people, culture and history. Students gained invaluable insights by visiting the cultural sites of Gracanica and Prizren and attending unplanned events, ranging from a fashion show to an art exhibition raising awareness of war rape victims, to a mass breakfast at a Kosovar host family. Students stayed with Kosovar-Albanian families, which also contributed to the sense that everyone felt at home. Kosovo will be remembered by everyone as a place of beautiful people, always present hospitality, vibrant night life, some of the best coffees and lots of lush nature, all coexisting alongside struggles with and hopes for visa liberalization, multiethnic state-building, development and sustainable peace.
During their time in Kosovo, students carried out their own projects and qualitative research in the field, which they will present at the end of the month. Anyone interested in viewing the presentation of these projects is very welcome! Please send an email to a.m.degraaf@auc.nl for additional information. Various internship opportunities also emerged from the meetings with organisations.
Curious about what the students themselves thought? Click on the link below to read students‘ impressions and experiences in Kosovo!