International Peacebuilding and the Role of Education

Catalog description

This course explores the politics of conflict, peacebuilding, humanitarianism and the role of education in promoting violence or peace. We ask, what causes conflict and how is peace built? How do education, civil society, peacekeeping, and humanitarian aid factor in? What role do young people have in this process? Preliminary case studies include Syria, Afghanistan, Ukraine, the US. We will meet with local and international organizations supporting peacebuilding (e.g., Human Rights Watch, LEGO, UNHCR, USAID) as well as activists in exile. We will consider conflict-affected populations' access to quality education during conflict or displacement, refugee migration, reconstruction, and peacebuilding. The class includes a regional seminar in Greece, in collaboration with the class Reporting on Migration, to meet with displaced populations and work in partnership with a local organization that trains refugee youth in media arts and migration reporting. Students will work closely with local collaborators to learn firsthand about refugee life and to write a short research article based on data collected while in Greece. This course will be offered in January-Term 2026. This course will be taught in Greece and will count as an Away J-Term course.