Project title: Moving from Integration towards a New Social Contract for a truly multiethnic Kosovo

Duration: 12 months

Implementation period: May 1, 2024 – April 30, 2025

Supported by: Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Kosovo

Project objectives:

The project’s first focus is to establish an informal platform for Kosovo Serb civil society, that will concentrate on bottom-up strategic advocacy coordination and capacity development for civil society organizations (CSOs) and activists. It aims to foster internal dialogue to strengthen liberal and marginalized voices and pluralism within the Kosovo Serb community in the north and south of the Ibar River. 

The platform consists of organizations and individuals representing the genuine interests of the Serb community, independent of political influences, and primarily engaged in Kosovo. It ensures gender balance and includes organizations from the north and south of the Ibar River, focusing on strengthening previously neglected and marginalized groups in the south. The platform maintains a mix of established and emerging organizations in the community.

The second focus is on the preparation and initiation of a Serb-Albanian civil society dialogue in Kosovo aimed at creating a New Social Contract that addresses the citizen’s fundamental needs and interests.

Aiming for a strong collective protection mechanism for ethnic communities, grounded in the robust rule of law and strong local self-governance as a form of vigorous local democracy, our approaches are as follows:

• Grassroots Approach: Transforming the narrative to reflect citizens’ basic needs and interests.
• Strategic Proactive Approach: Shifting from a reactive stance based on daily politics to a strategic, proactive approach focused on community needs.
• Transforming Conflict Discourse: Moving the Serb-Albanian conflict discourse from an “us vs. them” mentality to one about “all of us,” addressing common problems, needs, and interests.

The project is first and foremost focused on ordinary people, addressing their needs and interests, and ensuring a dignified life in a truly multi-ethnic society.

Expected results:

• • An informal coalition of Kosovo Serb CSO, civic initiatives, and grassroots activists is established and serves for strategic advocacy coordination inside Kosovo and vis-à-vis the international community.
  • Participating organizations have increased their policy analysis, writing, and advocacy capacities and strengthened their grassroots orientation.
  • Kosovo Serb CSOs and civic initiatives strengthened, leveling the capacities and experience between well-established organizations and those that still lack the full attention of the decision-making actors.
  • Kosovo Serb citizens’ perspective is documented and strongly communicated, within Kosovo, and to the international community.
  • Within the Kosovo Serb community, liberal voices are empowered, socio-political pluralism is strengthened; and

• A Serb-Albanian CSO dialogue on a new social contract for a truly multiethnic Kosovo is initiated.

The project is implemented in partnership between the Center for Affirmative Social Actions – CASA and Spaces for Societal Change – Spaces.

Related content:

• Events

• Media 
• Publications

The aim of this initiative is to address current challenges in interethnic relations by fostering open and constructive dialogue and communication between Kosovo’s Serb and Albanian communities, while also being inclusive of other communities residing in Kosovo. This project seeks to build trust, reduce tensions, promote constructive societal discourse, and social cohesion within Kosovo. Objectives include facilitating interactions and dialogue, creating platforms for constructive discussions, and engaging media to produce unbiased content that portrays both/all communities accurately. In this initiative we will be applying one of our core values, a new model of horizontal dialogue characterized by kindness, humility, hope, faith, and trust. 

This initiative, at this stage, proposes organizing two panel discussions featuring intellectual communities from Kosovo, Serbia, occasionally enriched by international panelists. These discussions

aim to address critical issues affecting relations and provide valuable insights on ongoing EU-facilitated Dialogue for Normalization of relations between Kosovo and Serbia, and its’ effects on the relations between Kosovo Albanian and Serbian communities. Having in mind that the relations between these two communities are burdened for a long time, and in other spheres of life, additionally, the project aims to establish a sustainable space for fostering open and constructive dialogue as a continuous initiative aiming to building trust and a long-lasting peace in the Western Balkans. 

By this project’s conclusion in this phase, successful panel discussions and unbiased media reports are expected to provide valuable perspective from both communities. These outcomes will serve as a foundation for ongoing initiatives, fostering honest and respectful dialogue among various interest groups within Kosovo’s Serb and Albanian communities. The project anticipates seeking continued funding to expand this initiative into a long-lasting social dialogue space.

This part of the initiative is supported by Barabar Center.

Urban Soundscape: Multicultural Rhythm of Kosovo" strives to promote multiculturalism and interethnic dialogue through art and music. In Kosovo, the societal landscape lacks significant interethnic interaction, prompting the project to offer Pristina’s audience a chance to experience modern interpretations of traditional themes from diverse communities. By fostering collaboration among artists and engaging a broader audience, the project aims to bridge cultural gaps and promote understanding in Kosovo.

An analysis of Kosovo’s cultural scene reveals significant challenges, including cultural segregation that isolates ethnic communities. This segregation hampers interethnic collaboration among artists and audiences. Moreover, the underutilization of cultural collaboration as a trust-building tool poses a substantial obstacle to sustainable interethnic relationships in Kosovo. To address these challenges, the project focuses on promoting interethnic collaboration in culture and art. It creates opportunities for artists from diverse ethnic backgrounds to collaborate and showcase their talents. The project’s objectives include promoting multiculturalism and interethnic harmony through music and art events, supporting non-majority community artists, and enriching Kosovo’s cultural scene with high-quality events that contribute to cultural diversity.

The project is supported by Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports of Republic of Kosovo.