In this section, we explore the collective historical memory of conflict and its effects on societies, and how memory and national identity are symbiotic. Here, we focus on two case studies, Rwanda and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as post-genocide countries. The genocide in Rwanda in 1994 was referred to as the fastest killing spree the world has ever seen, and less than a year later the genocide in Bosnia was referred to as the worst crime on European soil since World War II. Twenty years later, Rwanda is cited as a success story, while Bosnia is still a work-in-progress. We would like to explore these outcomes by understanding the history of the conflict and the political choices made during and immediately after the genocide.

In this section, we explore how post-conflict and deeply divided societies move past conflicts to reconstruct their national identity, and how they work through traumatic, conflict-ridden pasts to mend their social fabric. Here we focus on Iraq and Colombia, two countries that have suffered a great deal throughout their history. We would like to explore how the two countries plan on moving forward and rebuilding their countries on the one hand, and their national identity on the other. The conflict in Colombia left the country divided and unstable, and Iraq’s modern history left the country wounded and vulnerable, so here we would like to discuss the aspects that need to be emphasized when reconstructing identity and how to ensure that intergenerational cultural transmission of the memory of conflict is not mobilized in renewed conflict in the future. 

In this section, we explore how post-conflict countries should focus on changing their image abroad. We would like to discuss the importance of placing public diplomacy at the heart of the rebranding and restructuring process to reassert these post-conflict countries’ presences in the international arena. In this section we take a closer look at Vietnam and Armenia as two countries who have successfully rebranded themselves both internally and internationally.