Resume
Professor Brandon Hamber is John Hume &
Thomas P. O'Neill Chair in Peace based at the International
Conflict Research Institute (INCORE) at Ulster
University. He is also a member of the Transitional Justice Institute at Ulster
University.
He was born in South Africa and currently lives in
Belfast. In South Africa he trained as
a Clinical Psychologist at the University of the
Witwatersrand (Wits) and holds a Ph.D. from the Ulster University.
Prior to moving to Northern Ireland, he co-ordinated
the Transition and Reconciliation Unit at the Centre for
the Study of Violence and Reconciliation in
Johannesburg. He co-ordinated the Centre's work
focusing on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
He was a visiting Tip O'Neill Fellow in Peace Studies at
INCORE in 1997/1998. He was also the recipient of the
Rockefeller Resident Fellowship (1996) and was a visiting
fellow at the Centre for the Study of Violence in Sao Paulo,
Brazil. In 2010-2013 he was a Mellon Distinguished
Visiting Scholar at University of the Witwatersrand in
Johannesburg. He was also a Visiting Professor at the African Center for Migtation and Society at Wits.
He has been awarded The Paul Harris medal for
contributions to peace by Rotary and was listed as
one of the Top 100: The most influential people in armed
violence reduction by the Action on Armed Violence Network.
He has consulted to a range of community groups, policy
initiatives and government bodies in Northern Ireland and
South Africa. He has undertaken consulting and
research work, and participated in various peace and
reconciliation initiatives in Liberia, Mozambique, Bosnia,
the Basque Country and Sierra Leone, among others.
He has lectured and taught widely, including at the Geneva Academy (Sitzerland), The International Trauma Studies Programme at Colombia
University (New York) and the Post-War and Reconstruction
Unit, University of York amog many others. Professor Hamber is the Course Director of the MSc Peace and Conflict Studies programme at Ulster University.
He has written extensively on the South African Truth and
Reconciliation Commission, the psychological implications of
political violence, masculinites in transition and the process of transition and
reconciliation in South Africa, Northern Ireland and
abroad.
He has published some 30 book chapters and 40 scientific journal articles, and 7 books.
His book Transforming
Societies after Political Violence: Truth, Reconciliation,
and Mental Health was published by Springer in 2009,
and published in 2011 in Spanish by Ediciones Bellaterra and
entitled Transformar
las sociedades después de la violencia política. Verdad,
reconciliación y salud mental.
Most recently, Masculinities and Queer Perspectives in Transitional Justice with co-editors Philipp Schulz and Heleen Touquet published by Routledge in 2024.
He is also represented on a range of Boards and editorial committees:
- Board Member, Healing Through Remembering, Northern Ireland
- Board Member, Impunity Watch, Netherlands
- Steering Group, Derry Model Project, Blood Sunday Trust,
Northern Ireland
- Advisory Group,Advisory Group, Open Psychology Research Centre (OPRC), Open University
- Advisory Group, The Standardisation of Transitional Justice Project, Denmark
- Ulster University Representative, Scholars at Risk, Universities Ireland
- Trustee, Conflict Textiles, Northern Ireland
- Editorial Board, Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology
- Editorial Advisory Group, Intervention: International Journal of Mental Health
- Editorial Advisory Board, Temida Journal, Victimology Society of
Serbia
- Advisory Group,Advisory Group, Open Psychology Research Centre (OPRC), Open University
Some former positions include:
He also enjoys writing poetry and short stories. His
creative work has been published in New Contrast, Context and Botsotso and one
of his short stories was selected for the WriteAgain
online workshop sponsored by Penguin Books. Currently, he
is seeking publication of a collection of short stories
called Cachaça
Days. He was regular columnist for Polity and
Engineering News writing the column Look South.
Qualifications: BA (Hons) MA (Clin. Psych) PhD