Red Tree Study

Getting the chance to study peacebuilding in such an amazing city as Bogotá, was truly an experience of a lifetime!
The course was put together thoughtfully, and consisted of an interesting and well-balanced mix of excursions, talks and lectures. The thematic build up of the course gave a nuanced and detailed picture of the prolonged Colombian conflict, and the work that has been undertaken and continues to be undertaken in the quest to reach a sustainable peace. As students, we were introduced to a wide variety of different aspects of the peace building process under the guidance from extremely experienced and interesting lecturers. Every topic was equally intriguing and, even though the course was a bit intense at sometimes, I always looked forward to every activity in the curriculum.
The city of Bogotá also exceeded all of my expectations. It is a truly beautiful city, full of culture and history, with an amazingly friendly population. Furthermore, the staff of the course were very helpful, welcoming, inclusive and attentive- and they truly contributed to the amazing experience I've had.

This three week course has been one of the most rewarding and dynamic courses i have participated in, and i urge anyone considering it to APPLY!!! What sets this course apart from the numerous other summer courses on offer is the jam-packed and wide ranging activities it has to offer.

To start, mornings were spent being taught by world renowned scholars from the University of Los Andes, covering the history of the conflict, the economics, the role of narcotics as well as the sociological impacts the conflict has had on the wider population. Therefore, as you can see, various disciplines are covered on this course and no previous knowledge is required. Although having studied Politics and International Relations for the past three years, i came into this with a very limited knowledge of the political landscape in Colombia, but rest assured you are in safe hands learning from experts in the field. You will also get a first hand experience of the conflict from ex FARC combatants and from visits to Government agencies which are helping forward the peace process. This part of the course was vital, and helps reinforce what we were learning about in the morning lectures and importantly helps bring home the very real suffering that has taken place.

Asides from the jam-packed academic schedule, the weekends are filled with fun and cultural activities should you wish to participate. From hiking up Colombia's highest waterfall to playing the popular sport of Tejo (which is definitely something you should experience at least once) there is always something going on. My favourite activity, by far, was the bike tour of Bogotá!

The support given by Red Tree, and in particular, by Alex, was second to none. They were extremely helpful, with everything from booking flights, to recommending the best places to eat and drink in Bogotá and this really makes the course unique.

Just apply and see for yourself.

My trip to Bogota was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life. Firstly, the quality of the academic content of this course was simply second to none. It covered such a wide range of topics such as the history of the conflict in Colombia, narco-trafficking, politics and progressive ways of addressing the victims of conflict. We received lectures from world class academics from the Universidad de los Andes, many of whom played important roles in the peace process and subsequent transitional justice mechanisms. We also engaged in discussions and conversations with ex-combatants who had reintegrated back into society, and heard about their experiences from within the conflict. This meant that we were exposed to a range of perspectives on the conflict which really gave an in-depth, personal learning experience that is usually difficult to achieve in an academic program.
The Red Tree Study team did a phenomenal job of organising social activities during the evenings and weekends, such as a bike and food tour, graffiti tour, a waterfall hike and nights out. The coordinators were in no way overbearing and they also encouraged us to explore independently. The fact that many coordinators were from Bogota or elsewhere in Colombia meant that they could advise us on places to go or eat or even help us plan trips away at the weekend, which was so helpful. Even before I flew to Bogota the Red Tree Study Team, particularly Alex, were so organised and helpful with everything from booking flights, to obtaining additional funding from my university and other sources.
I honestly cannot recommend this program enough!

The lectures are incredibly humbling experience that give a fantastic insight into the history of Colombia and the conflict is has experienced. With topics such as the economic factors that have caused and elongated the war, the narcotics issue and illegal mining that have helped fund the war and the stages of the peace process that have got us where we are today. All were taught by incredibly insightful and intelligent lecturers who had honed their knowledge of their subject over years of study
There were also incredible guest lectures from such people as former combatants that told humbling and powerful speeches about their experience that moved everyone in the room as they spoke.
As well as this we made many onsite visits including the UN where we discussed their role in the peace process, the JEP where we learnt about the institutional processes in regards to transition to peace and how a nation needs to get those who have been affected from the war on both sides.
Aside from these, we had many curricular activities that gave a fantastically rounded experience of Bogota leaving me with a love of the city and desire to go back as soon as possible!

The course was so engaging and fascinating - There were lectures covering so many different angles of the conflict and peace-building such as its impact on children, the role of women in the armed conflict and transitional justice, the FARC reincorporation process, drug policy throughout the conflict and historic memory building. It was incredibly enriching to be taught by experts in their field. We spoke to Presidential candidates, ex-guerrilla members and social and human rights leaders who were at the forefront of Peace building efforts. It was intense and at times very moving but I've never learnt so much nor changed the way I think in such a short space of time.

The field visits reinforced what we had learnt in class and allowed us to see and learn about the conflict in a different way for example visits to the Centre for Memory Peace and Reconciliation as well as photo exhibitions brought the conflict down to a human level as I considered the millions of different experiences people had and the scale of the suffering that has happened and is still happening.

The Red Tree study team living with us were supportive made us feel very welcome the moment we arrived and the social activities were so fun! There were cycling tours and salsa lessons, nights out and hikes as well as hot chocolate and cheese movie nights. I have made so many friends and happy memories.

I'm so grateful for everything I have learnt as it has reinforced my decision to study Politics and motivated me to further study Peace-building and live in Colombia for my year abroad. I understand how Peace and forgiveness is an individual as well as collective process and how powerful it can be to work from the bottom upwards.