I am committed to engaged scholarship that not only contributes to knowledge of the causes of cooperation/peace and conflict/war, but also to advancing human rights and peace initiatives in the United States and worldwide. To that end, I have also maintained a steady involvement in advocacy related to my research.
War Propaganda, Hate Speech, Disinformation, and Incitement
I am currently a consultant for several ongoing projects that aim to advance the following: understanding the concept of war propaganda and hate speech in international criminal law; technological innovations for minimizing the harmful effects of mis- and disinformation online; and the prevention of incitement to violence while also protecting the freedom of expression.
Post-Conflict Reconciliation
From 2016 to 2020, I observed the development and progress of post-conflict reconciliation between veterans of the Yugoslav Wars, many of whom were affiliated with the largest veteran organizations in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Serbia. Their efforts included reconciling as former enemies and working together as fellow veterans to advocate for regional peace. While efforts and talks were challenged by the Covid-19 pandemic, veterans of the Yugoslav Wars remain in contact with one another and are involve U.S. veterans of the Vietnam War, who are striving to work with veterans worldwide to heal former combatants and communities from the moral wounds of war.
Human Rights Monitoring
As the former U.S. Ambassador for the Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI), I am involved with a network of researchers dedicated to filling the gap between monitoring and ensuring human rights. Our shared goal is to produce metrics that summarize a country's human rights performance. For HRMI, this entails working with human rights advocates, including lawyers and journalists, to provide metrics covering the full range of human rights in their home country. If you are a human rights advocate – such as an NGO researcher, human rights lawyer, journalist who reports on human rights, or staff at the National Human Rights Institute – please contribute your time by taking the HRMI survey about these metrics. If you are interested in taking the survey, please contact me or the HRMI team, and we will forward you the registration. Together, we can do the valuable work of monitoring human rights.
Domestic Violence Intervention
Domestic violence is one of the most damaging forms of violence, linked to numerous societal problems. To address this issue, I have engaged in studies and initiatives with colleagues from the University of Connecticut to diminish the prevalence of domestic violence and improve interventions.