Colombia
A 2016 peace agreement between Colombia’s government and the country’s biggest rebel group is being fulfilled in stages. As the guerrillas transition to civilian life, Colombia faces a massive task of reconciliation to recover from a half-century conflict that killed more than 220,000 people and uprooted more than 6 million. The U.S. Institute of Peace helped prepare the ground for a political solution with more than a decade of work in Colombia, and now is supporting research, policy discussions and mediation between, for example, ex-combatants and victims, to prevent a resurgence of violence.
Learn more in USIP’s fact sheets on our work in Colombia, available in English and Spanish.
Featured Publications
Brazil and Colombia Need to Step Up on Venezuela’s Crisis
Developments in Venezuela over the past few weeks have provided reason for both deep pessimism and guarded hope that the country’s presidential election next year could help resolve its political crisis and advance a democratic transition.
Una lideresa social colombiana propone una estrategia para la paz con base en las comunidades
Tras nueve meses después del inicio de los nuevos esfuerzos del gobierno colombiano para alcanzar la "Paz Total" con los grupos armados que aún continúan activos luego de décadas de conflicto armado, este proceso debería buscar un espacio para que las miles de organizaciones comunitarias y de base del país fortalezcan la paz a nivel local cuando cesen los combates, dice una destacada líderesa social de una de las regiones más violentas del país. La estabilización de Colombia, desde donde la migración hacia Estados Unidos y otros países se disparó el año pasado, requerirá un apoyo constante de Estados Unidos y de sus socios internacionales, dijo María Eugenia Mosquera Riascos, quien ayuda a dirigir una red colombiana de 140 organizaciones cívicas y comunitarias que trabajan para poner fin a la violencia.
Colombian Civic Leader Offers a Grassroots Strategy for Peace
Nine months into new efforts by Colombia’s administration to achieve “total peace” with remaining armed groups following decades of civil war, that process should make room for the nation’s thousands of grassroots and community organizations to strengthen peace locally when the fighting stops, says a prominent civic leader from one of the country’s most violent regions. Stabilizing Colombia, where migration toward the United States and other countries soared last year, will require steady support from U.S. and international partners, said Maria Eugenia Mosquera Riascos, who helps lead a Colombian network of 140 civic and community organizations working to end violence.
Current Projects
Generation Change Fellows Program
Generation Change works with young leaders across the globe to foster collaboration, build resilience and strengthen capacity as they transform local communities.
Youth Advisory Council
Built upon the belief that youth bring significant and unique insight to peacebuilding, the U.S. Institute of Peace’s Youth Advisory Council (YAC) provides a mechanism through which USIP experts can benefit from youth perspectives and expertise. The YAC enables USIP staff to engage youth as partners, experts, and practioners while elevating youth voices and experience to the international level. The YAC contributes to USIP’s vision for an inclusive approach to peacebuilding. The Youth Advisory Council meets regularly to bring together youth thought leaders and peacebuilding experts committed to the Institute’s mission and activities.
Religious and Psychosocial Support for Displaced Trauma Survivors
Since spring 2021, USIP has been identifying best practices in psychosocial support to better facilitate collaboration and cooperation between religious actors and mental health professionals who provide services to conflict-affected communities, including trauma-affected displaced persons. This thematic area of work focused initially on Latin America as a pilot region and has since expanded to the Asia and European contexts — offering practical and evidence-based recommendations to relevant stakeholders.