About the Book

When Lieutenant-General Roméo Dallaire spoke publicly about his psychological wounds after the Rwandan genocide, he broke a powerful silence - destigmatizing not only post-traumatic stress, but also moral injury: the deep rupture in one’s ethical framework when core values are violated. A story of moral courage that unites leadership and humanity.

‘I am humbled to have my name and legacy associated with this extraordinary work which will undoubtedly lead to further rigorous inquiry into this critical area of research and practice’.
Lt Gen (ret’d) Roméo Dallaire

This book brings together leading voices from across trauma, ethics, leadership, and care to confront a central question: How do we live with the burden of having witnessed or inflicted harm - and still act with integrity when moral choices seem impossible? The question gained new urgency when Lieutenant-General (ret’d) Roméo Dallaire - renowned for his refusal to abandon civilians during the Rwandan genocide - was appointed Cleveringa Professor at Leiden University in 2020. His reflections on leadership, trauma, and moral responsibility echoed the legacy of Professor Rudolph Cleveringa, who in 1940 bravely protested the dismissal of his Jewish colleagues by the Nazi occupiers.

From Dallaire’s appointment emerged eight Critical Conversations in 2021, curated by Professors Eric Vermetten and Suzette Brémault-Phillips. More than forty international experts - and hundreds of participants from over forty countries - engaged in these dialogues, addressing themes such as leadership in crisis, stigma, PTSD, children’s rights, war crimes, peacekeeping, moral injury, and post-conflict repair. Students from Leiden University and the University of Alberta played an active role, ensuring the discussions were both grounded in lived experience and oriented toward the future. Recorded and transcribed, these conversations form the heart of Moral Courage.

The book explores the ethical and psychological aftermath of atrocity and the human capacity to respond with clarity, compassion, and resolve under extreme pressure. Created in partnership with the Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace and Security, this volume is both testament and call to action.

Each chapter includes QR codes linking to the original sessions - inviting readers to join the conversation and reflect on what it means to act with moral courage when it matters most.

About the Book

The ‘Building Bridges’ project is an exploration of dialogue and understanding, born from the ‘Back with the Mission’ and the ‘Return Trip’ initiatives, that seek to bridge the gap between Dutchbat III veterans and the Bosnian survivors who lived through the tragic events of July 1995 in Srebrenica. This project was not easy for anyone involved. It shares the narratives of both survivors and veterans through personal interviews and stories. It places a strong emphasis on re-establishing trust and removing negative emotion, to enable direct communication between individuals without interference from officials or governments, shedding light on the shared humanity of all involved. The reader of this book will learn about the intertwined narratives of survivors and veterans, meeting each other in dialogue sometimes for the first time after 27 years.