Caucasus edition: Decentralized transnational network as a pivotal structure for peacebuilding in non-democratic environments

Abstract

In 2021, only a few locally led peacebuilding institutions worked to build bridges across the Armenian–Azerbaijani conflict that had divided the two societies for over three decades. This stood in sharp contrast with the recent past, when the environment was saturated by civil society institutions promoting peace and cross-border co-operation. The reasons for the dissipation of the once-vibrant scene of institutionalized peacebuilding included the decreased European and US support for democratization and civil society, the crackdown on and stigmatization of peacebuilding, military escalation, and the Second Karabakh War. The collapse of the professionalized scene, however, was not the end of peacebuilding. As institutions retreated, decentralized online networks connecting Armenians and Azerbaijanis sprang into existence. The article explores the journey of Caucasus Edition, a peacebuilding journal, whose ongoing reflection and action cycle process led it to transform from a professional institution into a decentralized transnational network. It highlights the relative effectiveness of decentralized structures, particularly their resiliency and adaptability, compared to professionalized civil society institutions susceptible to cooptation or crackdown in non-democratic political environments.