Students to Learn About Conflict, Peace, and Reconciliation in Northern Ireland
In May of 2019 Center for Dispute Resolution (CDR) Director Dr. Charlene Berquist and Associate Director Heather Blades will take a group of students across the ocean to learn about conflict, peace, and reconciliation in Ireland and Northern Ireland. This course, offered in prior years, promises to continue to impact students in powerful ways and to provide a transformational learning experience.

About the Course
Starting in 2015, Dr. Berquist and Ms. Blades began co-directing the short-term study abroad course COM 597/698: Northern Ireland – Conflict, Peace, and Reconciliation. The course, which is open to all majors and offered at both the undergraduate and graduate levels, offers students an opportunity to experience another culture and learn about the process of creating peace from conflict.
Through pre-departure course meetings followed by travel to Ireland and Northern Ireland, students in this course learn about the history of Ireland and Northern Ireland, explore the decades’ old conflict in this beautiful region of the world, and feel the impact of the Troubles and the transformational conflict processes that have taken place.
The travel portion of the course lets students visit the lasting expressions of people’s experiences of the conflict (such as the walls in Belfast separating Catholic and Protestant communities, and the murals in Derry/Londonderry depicting the evolution from Bloody Sunday to current peace efforts). Students also hear the narratives of activists, community members, and individuals from conflict management and peacemaking organizations. These experiences let students connect with those most impacted by the historical conflict in the region and, in this way, they feel first-hand how conflict, and peace, have been experienced by the people of Ireland and Northern Ireland.

Course Offerings
A total of 58 students have taken part in prior offerings of this course in 2015, 2016, and 2018. A new group of students will journey with Dr. Berquist and Ms. Blades when this course is offered again in the spring of 2019, with travel taking place May 30 – June 9. Enrollment information is available online at https://www.missouristate.edu/cdr/Ireland_2019.htm, and the application deadline is December 1, 2018.
Program Impact
Numerous students taking part in this short-term study-abroad program in prior years have described the experience as transformational and have extolled the powerful learning experience the course offers. The following quotes capture just a few of the many testimonials shared by students about the value and impact of the course:
- “We all really live in a bubble until it’s popped. Studying abroad has taught me to appreciate others and understand other cultures. There is conflict everywhere and Ireland reassured me that we can make peace in this world.”
- “I never would have been able to guess that this trip would have impacted me as much as it did. I half expected to come here and learn a little more about the conflict, but honestly I am leaving feeling very informed. I am excited to go back home and share this experience with my friends and family and talk with them about conflict. This trip helped me understand how much the conflict in Ireland impacted people throughout the last couple of centuries as well as how it impacts them today. Seeing the ways in which people are forgiving and moving past their bad experiences gives me hope and ideas about how I can help others.”
- “I have an entirely new outlook on people and their decision making. I try to look at the other’s perspective and how the impact of my actions would affect them.”
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Students visit Mussendun Temple on the coast of Northern Ireland. “I have learned that resolving this conflict, or any conflict really, isn’t just about making peace with the current situation, but also being able to live a life that accepts, moves on, and forgives that situation. Teaching ourselves and our children forgiveness is the key that keeps history from repeating itself. It is our mindsets that determine if our experiences break us or make us stronger.”
- The impact this trip has had on me is immeasurable. I came out of my shell, I made new friends, and I experienced a part of the world I never dreamed I would make it to. I laughed, I cried, and I toasted to new friends and a country that had welcomed me with open arms. I learned more about myself on this trip than I could have ever thought possible. I will forever be grateful for the experience and all of the people I have met.
For More Information
To learn more about this course or to enroll in the Spring 2019 program offering, please visit https://www.missouristate.edu/cdr/Ireland_2019.htm, call 417-836-8831, or email CDR@MissouriState.edu