The seminar "Youth and the Culture of Remembrance: Monuments and Narratives" was held from October 25th to 27th, 2019 in Banja Luka. This event brought together 18 students from several universities in Bosnia and Herzegovina. The seminar was organized in cooperation with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.
The topic, which is certainly not sufficiently represented in public discourse, was presented in an interesting and interactive way, using methods that create space for young people to meet, talk to each other, exchange experiences, but also to learn first from each other and then from the lecturers. Before the official start of the seminar, participants were addressed by Mr. Sven Petke, director of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Sarajevo, who wished the participants a successful seminar and pleasant weather in Banja Luka, emphasizing the importance of such meetings for young people in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Besides YfP facilitators Emina Frljak and Diana Umićević, Bojana Dujković Blagojević, a representative of the Association of Professors and Teachers of History of BiH (EUROCLIO HIP BIH), also worked with the students. On the first day of the seminar, she implemented workshops with the students using the pedagogical tool "Memory in Motion". This tool was developed by the above-mentioned organization, and the workshops from this manual have proven to be very effective in addressing topics of peacebuilding, conflict prevention, and resolution.
The second day of the seminar began with the conversation about the culture of remembrance, and then the students analyzed the contribution of actors working in the field of culture of remembrance (government, media, education system, and civil society). In the afternoon, the students were divided into smaller groups and visited Banja Luka. There they analyzed the monuments present in the city and then they presented their findings and analysis to each other through a rich discussion. Besides monuments, an important aspect in the study of the culture of remembrance are the narratives, about which the students learned through the analysis of video material and discussion. On the third and last day of the seminar, the participants took part in the role play dedicated to building a joint monument. In this way, they had the opportunity to apply theoretical knowledge and information in a real-life situation.