Healing resources and rebuilding lives: A missed opportunity in Bosnia and Herzegovina?

Stories of people who experienced violent conflict rarely make the big news but they are rich resources and guides for peacebuilding and development interventions. This qualitative study, through loosely structured interviews, explores sources of healing of Bosnian people who lived in Sarajevo at the time of the conflict and who now live in the US. An opportunity was missed to get the local population engaged in the process of transformation of the society. Providing targeted and tailored psychosocial support not only to the most affected groups but to the entire population, as well as close coordination and linkages between peacebuilding and development practitioners and organizations is likely to greatly improve outcomes of post-conflict reconstruction. Further research the impact of such coordination and efforts to heal, empower and engage the local population is necessary to reveal best practices and success stories and to convince donors of their importance.