The Yugoslav Wars were a series of ethnic conflicts, wars of independence and insurgencies fought in the former Yugoslavia from 1991 to 2001, which led to the breakup of the Yugoslav state. Often described as Europe’s deadliest conflicts since World War II, the wars were marked by many war crimes, including genocide, crimes against humanity and rape. The Bosnian genocide was the first European crime to be formally judged as genocidal in character since World War II. It is estimated that the wars in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo produced about 2.4 million refugees and an additional 2 million internally displaced persons.

How can countries that have gone through war and genocide see that deep inside their shared trauma exists the potential for the next generation’s heart to enjoy, raise up, and create a bright future? How can people awaken to the fact that ‘the interests of self and others’ are not in conflict? The process of overcoming separation is not easy. However, its realization promises a happier and freer life. Through its programs, the Earth Caravan helps people develop the heart of compassion to melt the separation between self and others enabling them to overcome deep trauma and to be free from fear and pain.