We are pleased to present a new publication bringing together selected papers from the international conference “Borders in Southeast Europe: Geography or Imagination?”, organized by the Joint History Project (JHP) in Podgorica.
The volume explores one of the most enduring and complex questions in the history of Southeast Europe: what borders are, how they are created, and how they continue to shape identities, politics, education and collective memory. Rather than treating borders simply as geographical lines, the authors examine them as historical practices—constantly negotiated, challenged and reinterpreted.
In her foreword, Zvezdana Kovač, Director of the Joint History Project, reminds us that borders are never merely physical realities. “Borders are not static. They are constantly negotiated, contested and redefined—through politics, education, media and everyday practices.”
She also underlines that understanding borders requires moving beyond traditional national narratives and embracing multiperspective, interdisciplinary and transnational approaches. In a region where borders have too often been associated with conflict and exclusion, she argues, rethinking their meaning is not only an academic task but also a societal necessity.
The publication reflects the core mission of the Joint History Project: to encourage critical thinking, challenge simplified historical narratives and create space for dialogue across societies that have too often viewed the past through competing national perspectives.
The articles cover a wide range of topics—from ethnic cartography and border-making processes to memory politics, nationalism, history education and contemporary curricula—offering fresh perspectives on how borders have shaped, and continue to shape, Southeast Europe.
The first half of the volume offers a rigorous analysis of these borders, spaces, and ethnic maps across Southeast Europe. Through the work of Kornelija Ajlec and Božo Repe, alongside research on high-intensity border-making in occupied Slovenia and an investigation into the (in)visibility of borders between Albania and Greece by Kriton Kuci, the authors provide a multifaceted look at how borders have shaped, and continue to shape, regional realities.
Building on this, the second half of the volume shifts its focus to the role of education in navigating these histories. It features critical examinations of history teaching in the contemporary Balkans, including Angelos Palikidis’s study on how “neighboring history” and borders fit into conservative curricula, and Vassiliki Sakka’s insights on bottom-up initiatives that challenge traditional canons. The volume concludes by exploring the broader implications of how educational models, such as the “Century of Türkiye” model analyzed by Kenan Çayır, reimagine civilization and nationhood, providing a vital foundation for our mission to foster critical thinking and regional reconciliation.
The volume has been published as a special issue of Retrospektive – Scientific Journal for Historiography and Related Fields (Vol. IX, No. 1, 2026), edited by Kornelija Ajlec and Božo Repe.
We are especially grateful to our Slovenian colleagues and friends for dedicating this entire special issue to the Joint History Project conference and for their outstanding editorial work. Their generous contribution has transformed the conference discussions into a lasting scholarly publication that will continue to inspire historians, educators and everyone interested in multiperspective history education.
We invite you to explore the complete collection of papers here: LINK
You can access the full issue in the journal’s digital archive here: LINK
