FORGIVEBASQ seeks to analyze the concept of forgiveness in order to provide analytical tools and critical elements that help understand the way in which forgiveness is often present in conflict and post-conflict debates.While the work carried out in the first phase met the purpose of developing a solid theoretical framework on the notion of forgiveness, the main purpose of the second part was to use those theoretical tools to make a critical approach to the specific context of the Basque context and to draw conclusions about the uses of forgiveness in the Basque public space in recent decades.
The work carried out during the first phase (University of California Riverside) has fulfilled its purpose of developing a solid theoretical framework on the notion of forgiveness. I have managed to propose a successful and innovative approach to the notion of forgiveness, especially focused on the contributions of the philosopher Jacques Derrida.
The work carried out during the second phase (University of Deusto) has been focused, first of all, on carrying out a diachronic study on the uses of forgiveness during the Basque conflict. To do this, I have created a documentary collection and analyzed it in order to study the role of forgiveness during the Basque conflict. Secondly, I have followed a strategy to disseminate the project's findings in academic contexts and share the social lessons learned with different audiences.
Among the dissemination activities, I would remark the International Conference on Forgiveness at the University of California Riverside organised by my supervisor Jacques Lezra and myself, on December 9 and 10, 2021: ‘The Times of Pardon/forgiveness: theoretical approaches, practical considerations’. This event has brought together great specialists from a total of seven different institutions and it has reached researchers and students from different disciplines of Humanities and Social Sciences due to its multidisciplinary approach. I should also point out three articles and a book chapter on forgiveness already published and one more pending publication, participation in six international conferences and the delivery of two seminars on forgiveness (as an ethical-political concept and as a topic that can be addressed from literature). In addition, an informative-pedagogic book on forgiveness in the Basque conflict is pending publication (Catarata, 2025).
