Paper short abstract:

Focusing on Bosnia Herzegovina the paper reflects on how civil society has been narrated and "imagined" by different international actors. Ethnographic insight on a development educational project shows a space of separatism, fragmentation and conflict behind a romantic view of civil society.

Paper long abstract:

In the last decade the concept of civil society has increasingly assumed a crucial role within the development programs in fostering democratization and transition of the countries. In Bosnia Herzegovina, for example, the international effort addressed to "build" civil society has been connected to the attempt to solve Dayton's underlying ambiguities, transcend the separation of the country into distinct ethnic territories or replace the State in its political responsibilities. Focusing on the case of Bosnia, this paper would like, on the one hand, reflect on how civil society has been narrated and "imagined" by different actors of international community. On the other hand, the ethnographic insight of a development educational project will be useful to deconstruct a romantic view of civil society as well as to show it as the space of separatism, fragmentation and conflict.