The Forum for Cities in Transition brings together protagonists from divided societies. Its guiding principle is that one divided society is in the best position to help another. The Forum which began as project has developed in a sustainable organisation. The Forum brings protagonists from divided societies to share experiences as well devise projects that will devise strategies that will impact their community. These commitments aim to further conflict transition and reconciliation.
Initial members of FCT originated in a conference convened by South Africa President Nelson Mandela and the University of Massachusetts Boston in mid-1997.
Professor O’Malley brought together Northern Ireland’s most senior party negotiators with all parties in the dispute to work with the negotiators in all sides of the South African disputes. This contributed to the historic 1994 settlement in South Africa that brought the end to apartheid. Northern Ireland party leaders were equally effusive in their praise of the contributions of the South Africans, revealing that one divided society can well assist the peace-making work of another divided society.
A pilot conference was held in Boston in April 2009, and delegates agreed to a set of basic principles, expressing a collective desire to continue and expand this work. FCT was established and there have been four annual gatherings since, hosted by FCT member cities Mitrovica (2010), Derry-Londonderry (2011), Kirkuk (2012) and Kaduna (2013). To read about the conference please visit here.
Today FCT has 15 member cities of the Forum for Cities in Transition: Baghdad; Belfast; Derry-Londonderry; Haifa; Jerusalem; Kaduna; Kirkuk; Mitrovica; Mitte (Berlin); Mostar; Nicosia; Ramallah; Sarajevo; Srbrenica; Tripoli (Lebanon)
