This story was first published in The Guardian on August 8, 2017. by Finnian James SIT Spring 2017 Lake Forest College When the Faqirzada family set out for a future in Europe, they did not imagine it like this. As far as they were concerned, Europe meant Germany: their oldest son was already at university in Munich, and …
The Guardian | Blocked in the Balkans: the refugees that Europe won’t allow in Read More »
This story was first published in The Guardian on March 16, 2018. by Gillian Dohrn SIT Fall 2017 Colorado College A rock school unites youngsters from both sides of a city in Bosnia-Herzegovina, using the universal language of song. Back in the days of Yugoslavia, they used to call music “the seventh republic” – a great unifier …
The Guardian | Come together: how music is rebuilding bridges in divided Balkans Read More »
Bosnia’s elites have ignored a stream of European court rulings ordering the country to make its constitution less discriminatory – but those struggling for a citizen- based state have not given up.
This article was published in Balkan Insight on July 22, 2019. by Kinsley CuenSIT Spring 2019Elon University Behind the grim statistics about the high emigration rate from Bosnia lie countless individual factors and choices. The only way I can help my country is to become someone. But I cannot become someone here,” reflects 21-year-old Sarajevan Erma …
Balkan Insight | To Stay or to Go? – the Personal Dilemma Haunting Young Bosnians Read More »
This article was published in Balkan Insight on May 14, 2019. by Monica Starr SIT Fall 2018 Denison University Socially conservative Serbia might not seem a natural stage for gender-bending performance artists – but a new generation of drag kings and queens is determined to make its presence felt. When Zoe Gudovic isn’t fighting for women’s …
Balkan Insight | Burgeoning Drag Scene Pushes Boundaries in Macho Serbia Read More »
This article was published in Balkan Insight on May 3, 2019. by Derek Dzinich SIT Spring 2019 Elon University The Vrbanec family have been running the Pianoland company for four generations – helping to keep the region’s classical music tradition alive in what have often been very tough times. A thunderous, rippling sound echoes through the Kolarac …
Balkan Insight | Serbian Family Keeps Pianos in Perfect Tune Read More »
This article was published in Balkan Insight on May 1, 2019. by Paul Rochford SIT Spring 2019 Georgetown University “Some ambitious young medics in Serbia, pushed into the private sector out of necessity, are working at weekends as volunteers in public hospitals to express their true vocation.” There is something very good about helping children,” …
Balkan Insight | Serbian Doctor Finds Hospital Voluntary Work More Rewarding Read More »
This article was published in Balkan Insight on January 28, 2019. by Sonja Borgmann SIT Fall 2018 Carleton College Joining a pan-Balkan arthouse film jury proved a transformative experience for youngsters brought up to think of their peers in other former Yugoslav countries as strangers and enemies. Before making their first trip to Kosovo for …
Balkan Insight | Judging Movies Reconnects Balkan’s Divided Postwar Young Read More »
This article was published in BIRN’s bi-weekly newspaper Belgrade Insight on December 23, 2018, and in Balkan Insight. by Sonja Borgmann SIT Fall 2018 Carleton College A new tour of Belgrade is designed to give tourists a taste of what it was like to live in Yugoslavia. An oddly rectangular and pumpkin-colored car lurches down …
Belgrade Insight | Taking a Ride to a Forgotten State in Belgrade Read More »
This story was first published in Belgrade Insight print edition on November 8, 2018, and Balkan Insight. by Carina Julig SIT Fall 2018 University of Colorado at Boulder On a Sunday morning in Belgrade’s Vracar district, several dozen worshipers file into a small, pew-filled second-story room to sing and pray in English. Western-style statues of Jesus and Mary …
Belgrade Insight | An Anglican Home in the Heart of Orthodox Belgrade Read More »
