About the Atlas
Visualising Conflict/Peace is a collaborative and interdisciplinary atlas which articulates and confronts different perspectives on conflict and cooperation in Eastern Europe through (geo)visualisations. Conflicts shape our lives profoundly: from local disputes between neighbouring communities, to global crises that arise from a combination of political, military, economic and climate-related demands and changes, or that have been ongoing for some time. But conflicts are always intertwined and interdependent with cooperation and peace processes. Maps and visualisations have been recognised as powerful tools which can influence these processes, but also cause new problems and produce long-term ambiguities. In taking up a critical and multiperspective approach, this incomplete atlas traces these various roles of visualisations while exploring how they can be helpful in understanding interdependencies and different perspectives in conflict/peace processes. In doing so, its agenda is not to produce visualisations as propositions of resolutions or truths about a conflict, but to prototype visualisation approaches which can articulate conflicts as matters of visual and map language.
We define Visualising Conflict/Peace as an atlas to expand more prevalent understandings of an atlas as a format of geographic storytelling, by mobilising its potential for juxtaposing visual knowledges and bringing together diverging perspectives of conflicts. The title of the atlas points to how we see and visualise “conflict/peace” not as opposites but by intentionally tracing their interdependencies and intertwinements. The atlas presents cases, reflections, and strategies for representing the complex “in-betweens” of peace and conflict—such as everyday peacemaking or frozen conflicts. It articulates the complex geography of Eastern Europe across diverse scales of local neighbourhoods, nation-states, river valleys or cross-border landscapes, including cases from the Western Balkans, South Caucasus and Central Asia. It critically addresses the visualisation of different issues in peace and conflict research, from drawing borders to representing sensitive or uncertain data related to war and trauma.
Visualisation Approach
Grounded in critical cartography and critical data visualisation, the atlas questions how maps and visual representations shape our understanding of the world and reproduce power hierarchies. At the same time, it experiments with critical mapping and visualisation practices by testing different formats, strategies and techniques. With its Cases and Library, the atlas supports peace and conflict researchers, as well as those working with cartography and visual methods, in doing situated fieldwork, producing maps and visualisations, and planning science communication strategies. It is designed as an evolving infrastructure, allowing for the continuous and iterative co-creation and revision of visualisations.
Reflexivity and Multiperspectivity
A key feature of the atlas is its reflexive approach: each case includes a reflection with insights into the process of making the visualisations, revealing the decisions and assumptions behind them, and the multiple perspectives involved in the process. These reflections are embedded within each case (accessible via hover highlights or as full dialogues through a Reflection button), making the visualisation process transparent and open to critique.
Visualising Conflict/Peace was conceptualised within KonKoop (Conflict and Cooperation in Eastern Europe) project in 2025.
Production: VisLab, Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography (IfL)
Editorial team: Iaroslav Boretskii, Georg Gartner, Sofia Gavrilova, Sebastian Lentz, Eric Losang, Jana Moser, Mela Žuljević.
Atlas concept: Mela Žuljević
Visualisations design: Iaroslav Boretskii and Mela Žuljević
Visualisations concepts: Mela Žuljević and Iaroslav Boretskii
Cartography and interactive visualisations: Iaroslav Boretskii
Cartography and interactive visualisations (Bureacracy of Erasure case): Anja Kurth & Silke Dutzmann
Visualisation editor: Jana Moser
Web Design and Development: Progressive Digital
Project Partners
Disclaimer: This atlas is a result of collaborative work. The cases included have been contributed by a diverse group of researchers, artists and experts. Views and interpretations expressed in each case are those of the respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of the editors, partner organisations, or the Leibniz Institute for Regional Geography and the KonKoop network. All data and materials have been compiled and represented to the best of our knowledge and ability.