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History

The Imagine Center for Conflict Transformation (the Imagine Center) is an independent, non-political organization that is dedicated to positively transforming relations and laying foundations for lasting and sustainable peace in conflict-torn societies. Started in 2007 as an Azerbaijani-Armenian dialogue project, Imagine has developed into an organization that sustains networks of hundreds of individuals around the world committed to working across conflict divides towards creating linkages and improving understanding between and within their societies.

With representatives, team members in Washington DC, Tbilisi, Yerevan, Baku, Istanbul, Berlin, and elsewhere, the Imagine Center has carried out a large array of activities – from research, conferences, and methodology development to dialogues, trainings, workshops, and peace action campaigns in Armenian-Azerbaijani, Turkish-Armenian, Syrian, Georgian-South Ossetian, Georgian-Abkhazian, Russian-Ukrainian, and other local and regional contexts. Today, the Imagine Center is a platform of open dialogue and a channel of collaboration for youth, analysts, historians, politicians, educators, and journalists both between and within conflict-torn societies.

Stemming from the vision and mission are the goals of the Imagine Center. Together with our alumni and project participants, we strive to:

  • transform negative attitudes of conflict-torn societies towards the conflict and each other and promote a cooperative and mutually beneficial view of the conflict;
  • generate joint learning, analysis, and ideas that take the needs, concerns, and hopes of all sides into consideration, and that can be used in peace processes;
  • create and sustain networks of professionals across conflict lines committed to peace-building processes. In pursuit of these goals, throughout the past 15 years, the Imagine Center has been catalyzing dialogue, developing networks, and building confidence by working with various key constituencies in conflict contexts.

The Imagine Center will make its governing documents, conflict of interest policy, and financial statements available upon written request.