These four organizations share the common goals of dealing with the psychological consequences of the war and of building a culture of remembrance.
Oštra Nula
Oštra Nula is an organisation based in Banja Luka in the Republika Srpska, one of the two entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Banja Luka is a city still marked by the Bosnian war of the late 20th century. To adequately address the city’s history, Oštra Nula aims to promote social justice while creating a culture of remembrance where all sides feel represented. They focus on education and awareness-raising related to the city’s past by using social media to promote critical thinking on existing narratives - especially among young people, the academic community and the general public. The aim is to shed light on the history of the war and to recognise and accept the invisible or insufficiently visible memories of citizens.
KVART
KVART is dedicated to building a culture of remembrance that integrates all parts of the community in the city of Prijedor, located in the Republika Srpska (one of the two entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina). The local community faces, similar to neighbouring cities in the region, violations of human rights, a high unemployment rate and nationalist tendencies. KVART approaches reconciliation between citizens by working on the narratives of the past, building an educational and documentation centre and standing for new values in the community. KVART furthermore continues to archive documents and video files from war times and makes them accessible to the public.
Izvor
Izvor Foundation is a non-profit NGO located in Prijedor in the Republika Srpska (one of the two entities in Bosnia and Herzegovina). It offers educational and cultural opportunities for citizens and their families. Especially topics such as overcoming trauma and other mental health issues are important to the organization since healing traumata and reconciliation contributes to building peace and trust. Izvor pursues its mission through various classes and events for adults and children. In workshops, presentations and formal as well as informal meetings or gatherings, Izvor brings people together and raises awareness for trauma-related perspectives and behavior.
YIHR
The Youth Initiative for Human Rights (YIHR) is a regional network of non-governmental organisations with programmes in Serbia, Croatia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo. Its focus is on societies and citizens, especially youth, who are least familiar with the events and war crimes of the 1990s - a time when nationalist ideologies leading to war flourished and all sides celebrated their war criminals as "heroes". YIHR Croatia from Zagreb organizes a Transitional Justice School for 30 young people from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, study visits and commemorative actions. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about transitional justice concepts, get in touch with victims' organizations and activists, and participate in memory activism.