Civil society development and the Balkans
In May I will travel once again in the Balkans to implement a research project related to civil society development from an organization development perspective. I will focus on peace building and human rights organizations.
My main question: what is lost and what is gained, when a peace building initiative makes the transition from a small scale initiative to a larger sustainable organization?
Peace building projects are often related to civil society development. The idea is simple: if you have an idea for change, you organize yourself to get it done. To implement it and to create some impact you need more people. For building bridges in society, it is most effective to work with people that are organized and represent some clear interests: networking is a key component of peace building initiatives.
And so peace building efforts very often relate to sustainable development in the form of civil society development. Now I find civil society development essentially a good a good thing: small initiatives do need some development before they can implement the work needed for the interests they pursue. And I believe a society needs some network of non-governemental organizations to stay healthy. So far so good.
But what perished in the process of becoming sustainable? My hunch: in seeking sustainable results, the original fire needed for starting an initiative or an organization often dies a slow and agonizing death. In other words: the focus on sustainability may lose sight of the original inspiration.
From an organization development perspective this is nothing new. The transition from a energy driven prioneering individual or small group towards a larger functioning organization is a difficult process in which sometimes some people lose some of their most beautiful feathers.
On my trip, I want to focus on how the larger peace building and human rights organizations in the regions made the transition from a small scale initiative to a larger and somewhat structured organization, what crucial moments were in their development and what kind of support was or would have been helpful. I will conduct a series of interviews, maybe a workshop here and there, and to publish about my findings on my blog – if allowed by the interviewees of course.
My trip will be more or less the following: Belgrade, Prishtina, Prizren, Tirana. Of course I will also use the opportunity to visit several of my old colleagues and friends in peace building organisations.
In any case, if you have a tip for an organization I should talk to, or that is interested in talking with me, please let me know. Before I leave I will post some of my preliminary thoughts on here. Stay tuned for more.
