The Regional Network for Historical Dialogue and Dealing with the Past (RNHDP) accepted applications to its second annual summer training program in Istanbul. Organized by Truth Justice Memory Center (Hakikat Adalet Hafiza Merkezi) in cooperation with the Alliance for Historical Dialogue and Accountability Program (AHDA) at Columbia University and Columbia Global Centers | İstanbul, the training program is open to civil society professionals working in the MENA and Caucasus region, working on issues related to dealing with the past, including (but not limited to) transitional justice, truth and reconciliation, historical dialogue, accountability, memory studies, oral history and sites of memory.
Participants will have the opportunity to engage in training, networking, and capacity building. The one-week program provides participants with the opportunity to hone practical and conceptual skills to develop a deeper understanding of dealing with the past, and to foster mutually beneficial relationships with their peers and with international and non-profit organizations. There are a total of 20 spaces available for this year’s program.
The training program will be composed of seminars and workshops conducted by international experts, including members of Columbia University faculty such as Professor Elazar Barkan of the Institute for the Study of Human Rights and the School of International and Public Affairs. Prospective seminar titles include:
- Historical Dialogue: Truth, Narrative, Evidence
- Theory and Practice of Transitional Justice
- Oral History, Truth Seeking and Gender
- Archiving, Documentation and the Right to Truth
- Prosecution of International Crimes
- Justice in Negotiated Transitions
- Shared Narratives
- Designing Museums, Memorials, and Exhibits
- Comparative Issues for Civil Societies in MENA and Caucasus Region
Please send the application form to info@dealingwiththepast.org and info@hafiza-merkezi.org by April 29, 2016 with your CV attached.
Click here to download the application form
Click here to download the call for application
Qualifications:
- Applicants should be civil society professionals working in the MENA and Caucasus region on issues including (but not limited to) transitional justice, truth and reconciliation, historical dialogue, accountability, memory studies, oral history and sites of memory.
- Applicants should have an advanced knowledge of English in order to complete readings, follow lectures and actively engage in discussions.
- Applicants must be able to allocate time before the program begins to read materials in advance that are required by the seminar and workshop leaders.
The program will cover the following costs for participants accepted into the program:
- Airfare to and from Istanbul
- Airport transfers in Istanbul
- Accommodation
- Training Program Fee
Timeline:
Application deadline: April 29, 2016
Notification of acceptance: May 13, 2016
Program: June 13-June 19, 2016
Institutions
Regional Network for Historical Dialogue and Dealing with the Past (RNHDP):
Hafiza Merkezi (Truth Justice Memory Center), in cooperation with Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights, has been developing a regional network on historical dialogue and accountability since 2012. Hafıza Merkezi, in cooperation with AHDA and Columbia University Global Centers|Turkey, held the first workshop for the establishment of the Regional Network for Historical Dialogue and Dealing with the Past (RNHDP) on October 2013 in Istanbul. 14 institutions from Cyprus, Armenia, Lebanon, Croatia, Palestine, Israel, as well as Turkey whose work relates to the fields of historical dialogue, reconciliation, accountability, peace, conflict resolution, human rights and transitional justice participated in the workshop. Conducting a one-week concentrated training program modeled after Alliance for Historical Dialogue and Accountability (AHDA) fellowship at Columbia University in cooperation with AHDA and Columbia Global Centers|Turkey has been set as one of the annual activities of the network.
Truth Justice Memory Center (Hakikat Adalet Hafıza Merkezi)
One of the foremost obstacles in the path of Turkey’s process of democratization is the fact that systematic and widespread human rights violations are not held to account and victims of unjust treatments are not acknowledged and compensated. Truth Justice Memory Center (Hakikat Adalet Hafıza Merkezi) was established in 2011 to contribute to the construction of a democratic, just and peaceful society by supporting the exposure of systematic and widespread human rights violations that took place in the past with documentary evidence, the reinforcement of social memory, and the improvement of access to justice for those who were subjected to these violations.
Alliance for Historical Dialogue and Accountability (AHDA)
Based at Columbia University’s Institute for the Study of Human Rights (ISHR), the Alliance for Historical Dialogue and Accountability (AHDA) is a convening body which aims to facilitate exchange among scholars, advocates, and organizations dedicated to historical dialogue and accountability.
Columbia Global Centers | Turkey
http://globalcenters.columbia.edu/istanbul
Columbia Global Centers promote and facilitate the collaborative and impactful engagement of the University’s faculty, students, and alumni with the world to enhance understanding, address global challenges, and advance knowledge and its exchange. The eight global centers—located in Amman, Beijing, Istanbul, Mumbai, Nairobi, Paris, Rio de Janeiro, and Santiago—form the core element of Columbia’s global strategy, which is to expand the University’s ability to contribute positively to the world by advancing research, learning, discussion, and discovery around the most important global issues through a truly global perspective. Columbia Global Centers | Turkey was launched in November 2011 and is directed by by Ipek Cem Taha, a Turkish journalist and businesswoman, and a graduate of Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs and its Graduate School of Business. A hub for students and scholars from Columbia and universities in the region, the Center hosts several educational programs: the Summer Program in Byzantine and Ottoman Studies; the Global Seminar on Byzantine and Modern Greek Encounters; the Summer Program on Democracy and Constitutional Engineering; and the Bridge Summer School of Journalism. Initiatives facilitated by the Center in cooperation with Columbia faculty and regional partners include: Studio-X Istanbul, the Istanbul Documentation Project, Women Creating Change, the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network and the Regional Network for Historical Dialogue and Reconciliation. Freedom of expression, film, entrepreneurship and public health are other ongoing areas of programming, while the Global Center in Amman is a close partner on issues of regional concern.
RNHDP Summer Training Program has been supported by Open Society Foundation Turkey, Sigrud Rausing Trust and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Turkey Office.
