Lessons from Peace Conference

It has now been 23 years since the Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement, perhaps the most lauded peace deal in modern political history. Meanwhile, five years ago, the seminal agreement to end the civil conflict in Colombia – the longest-running civil war in the Western hemisphere – was reached. Both conflicts seemed, to seasoned observers, utterly intractable. Both peace processes are marked by remarkable successes as well as enduring challenges. What can we learn from examining how peace has been won and implemented in these two cases? This conference aimed to explore this question.