Building Peace in Tierra Grata: social capital, global governance of DDR, and community reincorporation of FARC-EP Ex-Combatants in Colombia

This article analyzes the community reincorporation of ex‑combatants from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia – People’s Army (FARC‑EP) in the Territorial Training and Reincorporation Area (ETCR) of Tierra Grata, Cesar, Colombia, following the 2016 Peace Agreement. A holistic single‑case study design is employed to examine how transnational disarmament, demobilization, and reintegration (DDR) norms, resources, and cooperation networks intersect with local social capital to shape reincorporation processes in this setting. Fieldwork and interviews conducted between 2022 and 2023 underscore the centrality of social cohesion and collective action in promoting sustainable community organization. The study identifies persistent challenges, including limited access to land, economic instability, and ongoing stigmatization, alongside the community’s resilience and self‑management capacity to address these constraints. These dynamics are interpreted through social capital theory, advancing the understanding of comprehensive reintegration in post‑conflict contexts. The article contributes to globalization studies by specifying the conditions under which global DDR standards reinforce or, unintentionally, strain local social capital and by proposing a situated “third‑generation” DDR approach that connects global frameworks with community‑level governance.