LAS 366 Armed Conflict and Peace Building in Colombia

This course explores conflict dynamics and peace-building processes in Colombia. The course is divided into two parts. Part I will focus on political violence in Colombia during the 20th and 21st century. Students will learn the main concepts and theories from the academic literature on conflict onset, duration, and the dynamics of political violence, and apply that learning to the Colombian case to disentangle the complex conflict processes impacting the country since 1964. Part II will focus on Colombia’s multiple peace processes since 1980, with a particular focus on the most recent peace agreement between the Colombian government and insurgents in 2016. Students will learn main concepts and theories from the peacebuilding and transitional justice literatures and apply theoretical frameworks to the Colombian case to better understand the politics of peace in Colombia and beyond.