Who are we?
The Nansen Dialogue Network consists of Nansen Dialogue Centres in the Western Balkans and the Nansen Academy in Norway. Ten Nansen Dialogue Centres (NDCs) are organised as local NGOs with a total of 70 people working full time. The main objective of the network is to contribute to reconciliation and peacebuilding through interethnic dialogue between strategic individuals and groups that have strong influence or decision making power in deeply divided communities. The Nansen Dialogue Network has offices in:
-Sarajevo
-Mostar
-Banjaluka
-Belgrade
-Bujanovac
-Podgorica
-Pristina
-Mitrovica (North / South)
-Skopje
-Osijek
There is also an administrative office in Oslo, Norway. The Oslo office coordinates the network’s strategic development and administrative routines.

Mission
-Nansen Dialogue wishes to empower people who live in conflict situations to contribute to peaceful conflict transformation based on the values of democracy and human rights.
-We wish to provide a neutral space where people from different sides in serious conflicts can meet face to face in honest dialogue.
-The aim is to gain new understanding of each other’s experiences, perspectives, and needs, and thereby break down enemy images and build new relationships.
-On this foundation, we aim to explore alternative solutions to joint challenges.

History of the Nansen Dialogue Network
The Nansen Dialogue Network started as a project in 1995. When the Nansen Academy hosted its first interethnic dialogue seminar in Lillehammer, Norway, war was still raging in Bosnia – Herzegovina. The objective of the project was to establish a place for dialogue between representatives of the various ethnic groups involved in the conflict. This is how former Director, Inge Eidsvag, describes how the project came into being:
“In July 1994 I visited Sarajevo to see the rehabilitation of the paraplegic centre at the Kosevo Hospital, financed by Lillehammer Olympic Aid. This was before the Dayton agreement, and Sarajevo was under siege. After five days I left the city with strong impressions. On my return to Norway I immediately contacted Norwegian Red Cross and Norwegian Church Aid to explore whether they were interested in co-operating on a dialogue project for people from former Yugoslavia. The response was very positive. A few weeks later we had worked out a tentative programme and applied for financial support from the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Later on the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO) was invited into the steering committee. In September 1995 we welcomed the first group of 14 students from former Yugoslavia. In one year we had transformed idea into reality.”
Inge Eidsvag – Former Director of Nansenskolen

The Norwegian Church Aid, Norwegian Red Cross and International Peace Research Intstitute, Oslo (PRIO) were very important partners in the establishment and development of the network. They contributed with international experience and relevant academic knowledge that strengthened the network’s professional platform. Several other organisations contributed to the educational programme, particularly in the first five years.
The early participants of the Nansen Academy seminars expressed a need for follow-up after return to their home countries. Most of the participants experienced the seminar in Norway as a very positive experience. However, it was difficult to be the only one in their community who had been in dialogue with people from the “other side” of the conflict divide. Besides, the project was still a small scale activity, which only reached a limited number of people. Two women from Pristina, Kosovo, established the first Nansen Dialogue Centre in the region in 1998. The centre organised dialogue seminars for Albanians and Serbs from Kosovo throughout 1998 and 1999, until NATO’s bombing of Yugoslavia ended these activities temporarily. The Nansen Dialogue Network was established in 2000, and today consists of dialogue centres in ten cities in the Western Balkans. The Nansen Academy’s seminars continue to be a central contribution to the network’s activities. The Nansen Academy Foundation has the overall responsibility for administering the network.

Awards
In 1987 the Nansen Academy was awarded the Freedom of Expression Foundation Prize by the Free of Expression Foundation. In 1998, the Academy received Honourable Mention of the UNESCO Prize for Peace Education, in recognition of its contribution to the promotion of peace and tolerance. Senior Advisor of the Nansen Dialogue Network, Steinar Bryn, has received Amalie Laksow’s Human Rights Prize and the Bridge-builder Prize for his contribution to human rights and confidence-building.

Funding
The Nansen Dialogue Network receives its main funding from The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Norwegian Church Aid provides additional financial support for the Lillehammer seminars. The Nansen Dialogue Centres have received additional funding for specific projects from other donors.

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