Peacebuilding in Colombia Academic Summer Program

The Peacebuilding in Colombia Program was easily one of the most enriching and fulfilling experiences of my life, and was an opportunity that I will never forget. The course is perfectly designed to give students an understanding of the history of the Colombian conflict, peace negotiations and the challenges of building a lasting peace, and the program certainly succeeded in delivering this mission.

The course was intellectually stimulating, from lectures by world-class professors ,conversations with government negotiators and site visits to mechanisms such as the UN and JEP. Moreover, the program was also emotionally stimulating , with passionate speeches from former combatants and leaders being both empowering and unbelievably thought-provoking. This was aided by the knowledge and enthusiasm from other course participants, with their curiosity and experiences being incredibly enriching.

The program also has a fantastic social element, which really enables you to engage with the beautiful country of Colombia and its rich culture. From waterfall treks to football, the social calendar enhanced my experience and helped create lasting memories.

The entire program was well supported by a friendly team of coordinators and staff, with their positive nature and enthusiasm transcending to participants.

If you want to be intellectually and emotionally engaged with like-minded peers whilst experiencing the culture of an incredible country, then I really couldn't recommend the Peacebuilding in Colombia course enough.

No matter where in the world you come from, going to Colombia is a necessary experience. Not only because of the beautiful people, delicious Colombian dishes or the amazing dance floors you’ll find, but because Colombia is setting the example for a transitional Peace Process on a world level. Being able to learn about the people, culture and political situation of Colombia through a program like Red Tree Study’s Peacebuilding in Colombia was enriching on so many levels.

The academic aspect of the program was incredible. Our unique curriculum that included lectures, conversations and classes from some of the most renowned professors in Latin America and abroad varied from day to day. One morning we could be listening to a professor from the Universidad de los Andes itself speak on the political economy of the Colombian armed conflict, and in the afternoon have a talk with a professor from Harvard Law School mentioning the importance of Women in the Armed Conflict and Transitional Justice.

Coming to Colombia with little to almost no understanding of the Peace Process Colombia has been in for decades, I was astounded by the incredible work the people of Colombia have been putting in for Peace. Having the opportunity to visit the United Nation Verification Mission in Colombia (UNVM-C), the Colombian Agency for Reincorporation (ARN) and the Special Jurisdiction for Peace (JEP) allowed me to see the effort the country is placing on a societal transition to peace. As one of our guest speakers put it, Colombia is working for Peace by Piece.

My experience within the 3 weeks of the program was so eye-opening and engaging. Being able to learn about Colombia’s history through museum visits, graffiti tours and bicycle tours I got to see what the country is fighting for in many different art forms. As most of the program participants were international students, the way we saw, discussed and took in most of the information was different. By bringing our own unique perspectives we were able to add and extend the conversation around Peace and Peacebuilding worldwide.

This peacebuilding course is one of the most interesting, as well as intense, courses I have participated in. It included a perfect mixture of both lectures and field visits. We covered many different areas of the conflict, everything from the history and different causes to how we have to work to solve all the different consequences in the future. We have discussed the economic, social and political factors as well as many different perspectives and experiences. We have been visiting agencies, NGOs, victims and former fighters and child soldiers, members from the FARC political party and many others.
The best thing with this course is that we have been able to talk and discuss with people from many different areas and with many different perspectives and opinions about the conflict. The stories and experiences we have been told is nothing we could have received from home or from studying the literature about this conflict. We have talked to people that usually don't take students or other people as visitors, and we have received first-hand information that we can use in our future studies and careers.
The Red Tree Study staff has been extremely helpful and supportive during the course, and they made sure that we had many fun social activities to join after the studying, as well as helped us with anything we needed to feel satisfied and comfortable in Bogotá. I can definitely recommend this course to anyone who is interested in this conflict, who wants to experience a bit of Colombia and who wants to make new friends from all over the world!

I would recommend this trip to anyone, it was a unique and insightful experience. The academic content was provided by professioners at the University of Los Andes who have been very closely involved with the peace processes in Colombia. This gave the course a really personal perspective. The range of academic content covered was enormous, which made the site visits in the afternoon perfect to balance the workload and provide content to the issues we were investigating during the lectures.
The cultural trips organised were brilliant, I found the guided graffiti tour of Bogota really helped bring some of the issues we were learning about come to live. There was also a langauage exchange evening that was a great opportunity to improve my Spanish. These events really helped to get to know other people on the trip and immerse myself in Colombian culture.
The coordinators were great! Daniel and Mathias were extremely friendly and always willingly to help. Their personal experiences of Colombia also added a extra really interesting dynamic to the trip.
I really can’t say enough good things, an amazing opportunity that should not be missed!

Looking back on my time during the Peacebuilding in Colombia course evokes a great sense of accomplishment and appreciation for what I have learnt about the complexities of building peace. As the program is structured with morning lectures which provide a historical and theoretical background and afternoon field visits to governance agencies and NGOs, it was able to provide a fantastic introduction to the dynamics and challenges that Colombia will face to create a sustaining peace. The quality of teaching was top-notch and carried out by very knowledgeable academics and practitioners so it felt identical to being in a university setting but far more fun!

Personally, I was particularly impressed with how the course engages with all the major parties to the conflict including former guerrillas members from the FARC, ELN and EPN and ex-combatants from the paramilitary group AUC. I found this very interesting as I was able to learn about the different experiences of armed actors which gave me an insight into the social-psychological impact of the conflict and how it affects the day-to-day lives of people.

More generally, studying abroad has given me the opportunity to develop a new language and learn about a different culture and the many fruits it brings. One key takeaway that will stick with me is how happy, friendly and resilient Colombian people are despite the hardship many have been through. This was a truly immersive experience which I throughly recommend to anyone interesting in peacebuilding, politics and history. However, it was taught In such a way that anyone, regardless of their background, would be absolutely fine even without prior knowledge of the subject area.

My experience in Bogotá has been outstanding. The course has enabled me to understand in a much better way the Colombian conflict and the current sociopolitical situation in the country. What I like the most of this course is its balance between lectures and field visits, which gave us the opportunity to engage deeper with the topic of study of the day. We had the chance to visit places such as the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, the UN Office of Migration and the office of the UN in Colombia, moreover, we could speak to excombatants and even to members of the FARC party, so we were able to study the conflict from every point of view.

Moreover, not just the academic part of the course was great, also the social activities were so fun and enjoyable. I have been able to meet a lot of fantastic people during my stay in Colombia, and the team of Red Tree Study was always there for us if we needed anything. This is an experience that I would recommend to anyone interested in studying abroad and getting to know other countries, especially if you are interested in politics, I can assure that you won’t regret it.

This course is absolutely amazing! It covers a wide range of topics from the role of women in the conflict to the economic aspect, all taught by experts in their fields. While the lectures are intensive they are all fascinating and vital for understanding the different elements of the conflict.

The lectures were combined with site visits in the afternoons. We went to places such as the Victims Unit and JEP offices. These visits helped to shape a more rounded knowledge of the conflict as we could talk to the people directly involved in the day to day running of the peace process.

Of course, there was also the cultural aspect of the trip which included activities such as learning to play Tejo or walking around the city during the graffiti tour. They helped to balance the rigorous academic aspect and added a more social element.

Everyone at Red Tree Study was incredibly friendly and helped to make the experience ten times better. In the course, there was a wide mix of different people from all around the world, all with different academic backgrounds. This helped to make class discussions lively and engaging as everyone brought something distinctive to the table.

Overall I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in Colombia and the Peacebuilding course. I would definitely recommend the course to anyone interested. It really is a life-changing experience!

This program combines unique lectures by world-renowned professors and field excursions with special cultural and social activities. The academics allow you to learn about the history of the conflict in Colombia and the process of obtaining peace in the country. The program is extremely interdisciplinary, allowing you to learn about economics, education, women's studies, all in relation to the Colombian armed conflict. This program has undoubtedly reassured my passion for Foreign Policy and Security and Latin American studies. I recommend this program to anyone who is interested in pursuing Conflict Studies, International Relations, or Political Science.