Earlier this year, students from Amsterdam University College held a (virtual) fieldtrip to Rwanda with a purpose of gaining first-hand insight on peacebuilding and peacekeeping in post-genocide Rwanda. 

Through meeting with various organisations and individuals active in the field, students aimed to gain different perspectives on peacebuilding within the societal, cultural, and historical context in Rwanda. 

They had a chance to listen to the experiences and expertise of different types of organisations, and how they view their role in the peacebuilding process.

According to the trip coordinator, Nini Pieters, during the meetings, discussions often centred on the motivations, successes, challenges, and personal experiences of speakers, as well as their perspectives on the peacebuilding process in Rwanda. 

The role of young people in peacebuilding was also a recurring topic, students frequently asked questions for the individual (research) projects that they were working on. 

These projects included the writing of a children’s book to teach empathy and (moral) lessons; developing a manual for successful peace building initiatives; creating a game that offers tools to guide difficult discussions and engage in a constructive dialogue; examining the role of music in peacebuilding and peacekeeping; and creating a ‘Humans of Rwanda’ format inspired by the famous Humans of New York.

Dieudonne Gakire, a Rwandan based in The Netherlands, and a student at the university explains how the school has on different occasions given him the opportunity to share his story and that of Rwanda;

Through his experience and an inspiration by the visit of the former Rwandan Ambassador to the Netherlands, Jean Pierre Karabaranga, who gave a lecture about the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsis in Rwanda during Kwibuka 25, the idea of Peace Lab Rwanda (the virtual trip) was spurred.

Gakire says this trip was a good platform to share with the world what peace education has become or can be in Rwanda and how it can be maintained overtime. 

Peace Lab is also a platform for international students to learn about the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi; learn about transitional justice, reconciliation and peace building process. 

"It is important that people don’t look at Rwanda with the eyes of its darkest past but to look at it with the eyes of the present and hope,” he said.

Lessons learnt

Anniek Sienot, a student said she came to realise that building peace is hard work and that changing societies takes time - but it is possible.

Indeed, we are not all that different from each other, and many European countries, not in the least the Netherlands, could learn from Rwanda. The advanced gender equality in Rwanda and youth empowerment has stuck with me the most, she said. 

"For me, hearing the voices of Rwandans has been such a valuable experience. I’m a student of politics and international relations in the Netherlands. We often hear about African countries and people, but it is rare that we actually get to engage with them on such a personal level. It provides a much deeper understanding and leads to more empathy. I have tremendously enjoyed learning about this country and its people, and I would love to explore it in person!”

Isis Ketelaar, another student observed how many of the Rwandan peace-building initiatives started very small, implementing small scale projects and helping individuals. 

"Then, once various projects were successful, they started reaching higher and growing, yet never disregarding any individual progress. This form of respect, to me, seems like an excellent approach to sustainable peacebuilding. I also believe that the positive attitude towards the future, and the persistent strive for a better future makes the Rwandan peace-building initiatives very powerful,” she said. 

"Something else I noticed was the collaboration effort that was present in almost all organisations. There was a constant emphasis on working collectively to promote a better society, and I think that this sets Rwandan efforts apart from other peacebuilding efforts,” Ketelaar observed.

Anne de Graaf, a professor shared how in Europe they live in societies that are becoming increasingly deeply divided. 

"Rwanda has so much to teach us in terms of reversing polarisation, not thinking in terms of them against us, but growing an inclusive identity, a "we” identity, and then moving forward together,” she said. 

Youth’s role 

The role of youth is absolutely essential, according to the professor. "How can peace be sustainable if the people who will maintain or keep the peace in the future are not included in the peacebuilding process? More and more in the peacebuilding field, we see that young people have creative and elegant solutions that work.

Bente Wennekes, another student believes youth are extremely important to create sustainable peace within any country. 

Young people have amendable brains wired perfectly for coming up with creative solutions to problems, perhaps caused by the minimal amount of precedence in their memory. They are not hung up on solutions that have been used before for a long period of time but can come up with new ideas and different approaches to a problem, she said. 

"This abundance of energy of young people, however, can be spent at peace-building processes but also during conflict. It is important that young people are given agency and being taken seriously along the way. People need hope for a better tomorrow but how will that tomorrow ever be reached without young people stepping up right now?”

Sienot highlighted how young people provide a fresh perspective and are crucial for the future of the country. 

While older generations can be stuck in their way of thinking and hold grudges, it is often easier for young people to overcome differences, she said. 

"I was inspired by the determination of some of the young Rwandans we’ve met: they truly want to make a difference for their country and their future. In the Rwandan context, this means never forgetting the past but also actively working towards a better future.”