THAC’s work combines field experience with research. Selected publications, studies and work in progress:
Studies
“Addressing trauma as a missing element in security sector governance and reform: Perspectives on trauma-informed policing“
Peter Aeberhard (lead author), Abigail Robinson, Dan Hales. DCAF – Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance, 2024. Supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands.
Read the study (PDF) · Spanish version (PDF)
Follow-up work by DCAF
The study laid the groundwork for DCAF’s Guide on assessing and addressing trauma in the security sector (2026), which treats trauma as an organisational and governance challenge rather than a purely clinical issue.
DCAF Guide 2026 · Quick reference guide for police reform
Publishing / Editing
Junior Nzita Nsuami: If my life as a child soldier could be told / Wenn ich mein Leben als Kindersoldat erzählen könnte
The life story of a former child soldier from the DR Congo and UN advocate against the recruitment of children, published in German and English in cooperation with THAC. Proceeds support his organisation Paix pour l’Enfance.
Selected talks and teaching
- Institute for Peace and Dialogue (IPD), Basel – long-standing trainer and speaker since 2015, including the Basel Global Peace Conference, the IPD Summer School and the Baku Summer Academy.
Book and Papers in Preparation
Mensch sein unter Druck (working title, German)
How people perceive, decide and act when the pressure rises – in personal life, in organisations and in politics. Drawing on three decades of work in crisis and conflict regions, the book explores how we can remain human under pressure, and what that requires of leaders and decision-makers.
The Relational Systems Framework – a theory of how relationships, trust and pressure shape human systems
From Survival to Adaptation: How Protective Responses to Threat Shape Relationships, Organisations and Social Systems
Trauma, Oversight and Legitimacy: A Relational Governance Model for Security Institutions.