We at ICTJ believe that in the aftermath of armed conflict, education can play an instrumental role in peacebuilding. The reconstruction of a country’s education system can help prevent a return to violence and boost the legitimacy of democratic institutions. This contribution depends not only on rebuilding schools, bringing children and youth back into the system, and promoting values of tolerance and peace through curricula. It also depends, critically, on the sensitivity of these efforts to the legacies of past human rights abuses.

This idea has driven the research project we collaborated on with UNICEF from 2013 to 2016, the results of which were published in the edited volume Transitional Justice and Education: Learning Peace. The project explored how transitional justice can shape the reform of education systems by ensuring that curricula are sensitive to the legacies of the past, and how it can facilitate the reintegration of children and youth into society. The case studies examined access to education, teaching methods, curriculum reform, as well as the role of key participants such as government, civil society, and school communities in the process. The research was based on explorations of contexts as diverse as Bosnia and Herzegovina, South Africa, Lebanon, Côte d’Ivoire, and Northern Ireland.

In every country we work, there is a strong element of engagement with youth to educate about the meaning of transitional justice in their communities and the role they can assume in the process. In Kenya we went a step further and collaborated with Facing History and Ourselves and Shikaya to develop an educational tool for educators and mentors designed to help teach young people in Kenya about difficult periods in Kenyan history and foster discussion on issues of justice, democracy, leadership, and their role as Kenyan citizens. It uses thought-provoking discussion questions, accessible language, and colorful, expressive illustrations to engage readers (primarily aged 14-18) to think about the different challenges facing their country as they learn about the past. Unlike with most history textbooks, it encourages young people to explore their own roles in shaping society and consider how they can be agents of social change. History lessons are drawn directly from the work of Kenya’s Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission.