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Annika Björkdahl

Annika Björkdahl

Professor

Annika Björkdahl

Building Peace in Divided Cities: A challenge to the Normative Power Europe

Author

  • Annika Björkdahl

Summary, in English

This article explores the EU’s efforts to reunify and reconstruct Mostar through the seminal experiment of EUAM (1994-1996), which combined peacebuilding with urban reconstruction in an innovative way. The aims is to identify lessons to be learned from the experiences of EUAM that can assist the EU to adjust its peacebuilding approach to better address divides in cities such as Nicosia and Belfast where the EU currently is engaged. Cities divided by violent conflict tend to freeze the conflict, as they remained divided regardless of a conflict settlement, and they become serious obstacles to peace and a challenge to peacebuilding. Far too little is known about the role of urban space in building peace in ethno-nationally contested cities. By marrying critical urban studies with critical peacebuilding literature this article brings novelty to EU-studies and advances our understanding of the EU’s role in peacebuilding as well as in the Western Balkans.

Department/s

  • Department of Political Science

Publishing year

2011

Language

English

Document type

Conference paper

Topic

  • Social Sciences Interdisciplinary

Keywords

  • urban.
  • reconstruction
  • peacebuilding
  • Mostar
  • divided city
  • European Union

Conference name

European Union Conference Network

Conference date

2011-12-07 - 2011-12-08

Conference place

Hamilton, New Zealand

Status

Unpublished

Research group

  • Freds- och konfliktforskning