By The BH Journalists Association, in cooperation with the Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (NUNS) and the Trade Union of Media of Montenegro (TUMM), invites students of journalism, communications, and related humanities disciplines from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Montenegro to apply for the “Transitional Justice Academy 2026.”
The Transitional Justice Academy 2026 is a practical educational programme designed for students of journalism, communications, and related humanities fields. It was established to encourage cross-border, multicultural, and intergenerational cooperation, dialogue, and the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and values related to transitional justice, reconciliation, respect for victims, and judicially established facts concerning war crimes and the legacy of the conflicts of the 1990s.
The Academy offers a unique opportunity for a new generation of students to strengthen their knowledge, skills, and competencies in the areas of professional and ethical reporting on the past, fostering a culture of remembrance, and approaching topics related to recent conflicts, war crimes, and victims in a responsible manner, free from politicisation or secondary victimisation.
The programme will be delivered as a multi-day summer camp comprising two educational modules grounded in the principles of fairness, objectivity, multiculturalism, and ethics—values that can help reduce the legacy of inflammatory wartime journalism. The training programme also seeks to challenge ethnonationalist rhetoric and day-to-day political propaganda in media content that continues to pollute the media landscape of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Montenegro.
The Transitional Justice Academy 2026 will take place at Boračko Lake, near Konjic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 25 June to 3 July 2026, bringing together at least 40 students from across the region.
The Academy will be organised under the theme:
“Students in Action for Reconciliation, a Culture of Remembrance, and the Deconstruction of Hate Narratives in the Media”
(#StudentsAgainstHate, #Journalism4Reconciliation)
The programme will explore topics including the role of the media in strengthening social cohesion in post-conflict societies, interethnic dialogue, peacebuilding values and cross-border cooperation, transitional justice and its mechanisms for dealing with the past, journalistic ethics, and more.
To help participants better understand post-conflict environments and cultural trauma, the Academy will introduce a range of alternative research methods, diversity reporting models, the use of war crimes trial databases, and other relevant tools. Lecturers will include distinguished professors of journalism, media ethics and deontology, experienced journalists, transitional justice experts, and civil society activists.
Applications are open to all students from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, and Montenegro, regardless of whether they study full-time or part-time, and regardless of their year of study.
To apply, candidates must submit:
a copy of their passport,
a motivation letter,
and complete the online application form available at:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1u724eu_1RtElo3oQCxCYYwM3IP24ODjkvO3yaSxyOyY/edit
The application period is open from 15 to 25 June 2026.
The organisers will cover all travel, accommodation, and meal expenses related to participation in the summer camp at Boračko Lake.
For further information, please contact:
Phone: +387 33 255 601
Email: [email protected]
Additional Opportunity
Following the completion of the Academy, participants will have the opportunity to independently research a topic related to transitional justice and write a 1,500-word essay.
Throughout the research process, students will receive support from the BH Journalists Association, NUNS, and TUMM, as well as guidance from selected mentors and lecturers involved in the Academy.
The ten best research papers will be published on the websites and social media channels of the organising organisations, while the authors of the top five papers will receive a symbolic award—a tablet device.
The educational camp at Boračko Lake is part of the Transitional Justice Academy Project, supported through the regional programme “EU Support to Confidence Building in the Western Balkans”, implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and funded by the European Union (EU).
The content and topics of the educational camp are the sole responsibility of the BH Journalists Association and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or UNDP.
