This chapter engages with the key themes explored in this volume. It gives an overview of the civil society and the pursuit of transitional justice in the Balkans and connects these broader themes to the specific insights offered by the scholars in this volume. The history of war and violence in Balkan nations, such as Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Albania and Romania, makes this an important area of analysis. While the analysis is situated in the particular context of the Balkan region, it has a potential to broaden our understanding of civil society engagements with transitional justice processes globally. The analysis provided in this chapter is multidirectional and offers explanations for the history of civil society in general, and its development in the Balkan region in particular. The chapter also provides an overview of the region and transitional justice field. The analysis is relevant to academic disciplines as diverse as legal studies, criminology, social psychology, media, politics, and sociology, while remaining embedded within a transitional justice framework.