 PAST PROJECTS
Experiment in Estonia
In 1999, CSMHI completed its longest running project, a five-year initiative in Estonia. When the Soviet Union collapsed and regained its independence in 1991, the country found itself facing many problems. It had border disputes with Russia and Russian (Soviet) military personnel remained on Estonian soil. Hundreds of Soviet military bases, including a nuclear powered submarine base, dotted the landscape, and the environment was badly polluted. Most important, one-third of Estonia's 1.5 million population were Russian or Russian-speakers, all of whom were now perceived by Estonians as former oppressors. As this new democratic nation developed, Estonians had to find new ways to relate to their neighbors in Russia as well as to Russian-speakers living in Estonia.
Beginning in 1993, CSMHI applied its methodology - nicknamed the Tree Model - to Estonia (go to History and Methodology of CSMHI for more information). The first step of the process, a psychopolitical diagnosis of existing conditions, becomes the roots of the tree. One aspect of this diagnosis involves conducting psychoanalytic interviews with a wide variety of individuals to discover the common themes regarding shared perceptions and anxieties. This has proven an effective method for identifying unconscious societal processes. The tree's trunk consists of a series of unofficial multi-day meetings conducted by CSMHI faculty convening representatives from opposing large groups. In Estonia, this took the form of dialogues conducted in collaboration with The Carter Center. Participants included ambassadors, Estonian and Russian legislators and officials, leaders from the Russian- speaking community in Estonia, scholars, and others. During these meetings, psychoanalytic understanding of both small- and large-group dynamics was crucial. Facilitators created a background of safety and helped to remove participants' resistances to change. When this was accomplished, more realistic discussions could follow. Such discussions led to designing concrete projects at the community level (branches of the tree) which could serve as models for peaceful coexistence between Estonians and Russian-speakers in Estonia. In Estonia, CSMHI helped to build three such models, which have now been recognized by the Estonian government and are continuing on their own. Award-winning Canadian filmmaker Allan King has captured the process of interethnic community building in a moving documentary about one of the models. Its title, The Dragon's Egg, refers to the Estonians' perception, at the time of independence, that the Russians in their midst were like a dragon's egg laid in their nest - they feared what would hatch from it.
To celebrate and mark the ending of our Center's involvement in this project, and to present the Tree Model methodology and discuss tangible outcomes, CSMHI recently held a Capstone Conference at the University of Virginia's Miller Center in Charlottesville, Virginia. The conference was held April 30 - May 1, 1999 and there were 70 invited guests, ranging in profession from historian to psychoanalyst to linguist to conflict resolution specialist. On Friday, April 30th, presentations of the methodology and discussions of the psychopolitical dialogues conducted in Estonia were held. On Saturday, May 1st, discussions, slides, and a video presentation of the three community-building projects were held. Five of our Estonian partners came to Charlottesville for the event and offered their experiences and insights through the various community-building presentations. On the evening of May 1st, The Dragon's Egg had its United States premier (world premier was in Klooga, Estonia on March 8, 1999) at Jordan Hall, on University grounds. Allan King was a guest at the conference and introduced the film and answered questions afterward.
The film shows the process of peacemaking by depicting several committed citizens in the town of Klooga, Estonia whose efforts to renovate an old building and turn it into a community center revitalize the entire town. The film is a model, not just for peacemaking in Estonia, but for areas in conflict around the world. As the film shows, the lives of the people of Klooga have been changed forever. Now there is a place to play, to study, to gather, to dance and sing, and to break bread together in this post-Soviet town once burdened by the colors of hatred. The tension between Russians/Russian-speakers and Estonians has been considerably diminished by the common goals of building together a place for all. The Dragon's Egg documents our Center's involvement in the project in Klooga and is representative of what was begun in the other two areas of Estonia, the towns of Mustamae and Mustvee, by CSMHI.
Pictures of the world premier showing of The Dragon's Egg at the newly renovated Community Center in Klooga, Estonia:
Vamik Volkan (center) with Endel Talvik (left) and filmmaker Allan King (right):
Allan King presents the film:
Showing the film:
VHS Copies of The Dragon's Egg are available for personal use for $66.00 and for an institution/educational 5 year license, for $280.00. Both prices include shipping and handling. Send request and payment to:
Allan King Associates Limited
965 Bay Street, suite 2409
Toronto, Ontario M5S 2A3 CANADA
OR go to Allan King Films to fill out a request online.
OR email Allan King at awking@interlog.com
For more information on CSMHI's work in Estonia, consult:
Apprey, M. (1997). Ethnonational Conflict Resolution Between Estonia and its Russians: A System of Mutual Implications. Ann Arbor, MI: University Manuscripts Inc. Research Collections. No. 03689.
Neu, J. and Volkan, V. (1999). Developing a Methodology for Conflict Prevention: The Case of Estonia. Special Report Series: Winter 1999. Atlanta, GA: The Carter Center.
Volkan, V. (1998). The Tree Model: Psychopolitical Dialogues and the Promotion of Coexistence. In, The Handbook of Interethnic Coexistence. Ed. Eugene Weiner. New York, NY: The Continuum Publishing Company, pp. 343-358.
Volkan, V. (1997). Bloodlines: From Ethnic Pride to Ethnic Terrorism. New York, NY: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.
Bloodlines is available in paperback from Westview Press at (800) 386-5656 or in hardcover from Farrar, Straus, and Giroux at (888) 330-8477.
For a copy of The Special Report Series on Estonia (by Neu and Volkan) please write or call:
The Carter Center
One Copenhill
453 Freedom Parkway
Atlanta, Georgia 30307
(404) 420-5185
(404) 420-3862 fax
Other Past Projects
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