Promoting Reconciliation through Community Relations Work in Belfast (Northern Ireland) and Vukovar (Croatia)

In Northern Ireland and in Croatia, a series of reforms aimed at promoting intercommunity dialogue, have been introduced in post-conflict years at policy, legislation, and infrastructure levels. Changes at the macrolevel over the last two have resulted in the proliferation of a broad range of community relations initiatives, programs, and organizations especially in the cities of Belfast (the Northern Ireland) and Vukovar (Crotia). This study aims to explore the role of civic organizations and projects that have been designed in post-conflict years to assist the cross-community work with young people in Belfast and in Vukovar, with an objective of promoting peace education, breaking down enemy images, and reducing fear and distrust toward “the other side.” The methodology involved in this study comprised in-depth interviews with representatives of 13 civic organisations in Vukovar and 25 in Belfast. A description was made of the types of civic organizations and of approaches used by them in promoting intercommunity contact and to deal with salient social (ethnic and religious) identity. Lastly, this study tries to assess the sustainability, strength, weakness, opportunities, and barriers for peace education through community relations work in these two contexts.