Peace in Crisis

Dr Nancy Annan is an Assistant Professor at the Centre for Peace and Security, Coventry University. She holds a PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies and has expansive experience in peace, security, global development, and gender especially in Africa. Her work spans research, training, and development in several countries. She has worked extensively with civil society groups, academics, regional and international organisations on diverse initiatives including EU Horizon 2020 project on PeaceTraining. She previously worked at the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre (KAIPTC), and has authored several publications on peacebuilding, unarmed civilian protection, peace support operations, and women peace and security.

Nathan Coyle is the Senior Project Manager for Peace Tech, he is responsible for all our Peace Tech related activities and digital development. Nathan has partnered with governments across the globe to enhance their digital outreach efforts. He is a Fellow at The Royal Society of Arts in his native Britain and a writer, contributing to publications such as The Guardian. On his publication 'Open Data for Everybody: Using Open Data for Social Good' Nathan did a TEDx talk.

Norbert Darabos was Austrian Minister of Defence from 2007 to 2013 and Burgenland‘s State Councillor for Social Affairs and Health from 2015 - 2019. He was a member of the Austrian Parliament for many years and in his function as Secretary of the Austrian social-democratic party (SPÖ) he led several election campaigns. As a historian, he is currently responsible for establishment of the „Museum for the Contemporary History of Burgenland“ at Schlaining Castle. Since 2019 Norbert Darabos has been President of the ACP. (c) Ricardo Herrgott

Governor Hans Peter Doskozil studied law at the University of Vienna. His professional career was shaped by police activities, where he worked at the Ministry of the Interior, among others, and was appointed Provincial Police Director of Burgenland in 2012. Doskozil held this position until 2016. After holding high-ranking positions in the office of former governor Hans Niessl, Doskozil was appointed Federal Minister of Defence and Sports in 2016, and from 2017 he took on the role of Provincial Councillor for Finance, Culture and Road Construction in Burgenland. Doskozil has been Governor of Burgenland since February 2019. (c) Manfred Weis

Stephanie Fenkart has been serving as Director of the International Institute for Peace (IIP) since 2016. She is a member of the Advisory Committee for Strategy and Security Policy of the Scientific Commission at the Austrian Armed Forces (BMLV). She is also the Chair of the Board of the Balkan Forum based in Prishtina.

Ursula Gamauf-Eberhardt is the Senior Project Manager for the peace education portfolio. She is also responsible for the OSCE training programmes. Her thematic focuses include peace education, dealing with the past and the OSCE.

Bernadette Holzer brings extensive expertise in managing international projects and programs across human rights, education, and sustainable peace. At ACP, she oversees international conference management, including the Austrian Forum for Peace 2025. Additionally, she serves as Deputy Director of WUS Austria, focusing on strategic leadership and advancing the right to education. Her professional experience encompasses academic teaching, project management, and research, with a strong emphasis on human rights, conflict transformation, capacity development, and building global partnerships.

Astrid Holzinger is Senior Project Manager of the International Civilian Peacebuilding Training Programme and has multiple years of experience with the UN, OSCE and EU as well as the Austrian civil service. Capacity-building, crisis management and programme coordination within the UN Mission in South Sudan, protection of civilians in armed conflict, the promotion of the women, peace and security agenda and international security are among her areas of expertise. She holds a master’s degree in international relations.

Maximilian Lakitsch is a Senior Scientist and Lecturer at the Department of Global Governance (The Foundations of Law) at the University of Graz. He researches and teaches in the fields of peace studies and international relations. Maximilian Lakitsch is particularly interested in critical perspectives on international peace interventions and the integration of environmental and climate aspects into peace practice. His regional focus is on the Middle East and North Africa, especially Syria, Lebanon and Israel-Palestine. (c) Uni Graz

Tobias Lang is Director of the ACP. He studied political science in Vienna and is an expert on religious minorities in Syria, Lebanon and Israel. His research also focuses on Austria's foreign policy in the Middle East. As a member of staff in several government offices and Executive Director of the majority faction in the Burgenland state parliament, he gained organisational and management experience at the interface between politics and administration.

Damita Pressl is an award-winning journalist and presenter based in Zurich. She moderates panels and conferences in politics and business, as well as offering media and public speaking training and communications consulting.

Monika Psenner serves as the Head of Capacity Development at ACP, where she provides strategic and operational oversight of the organization's comprehensive training portfolio. This includes spearheading initiatives such as the EU Civilian Training Initiative (EUCTI) and programs aligned with the European Security and Defence College (ESDC) framework. Committed to fostering sustainable peace, Monika actively integrates Environmental Peacebuilding principles into ACP's multifaceted endeavours and advocates for the adoption of the Climate, Environment, Peace, and Security Nexus in both European and global initiatives. Monika's academic background encompasses international affairs as well as crisis and contingency management. Bolstered by her professional foundation in development cooperation and humanitarian aid, she brings a wealth of experience in intercultural network collaboration, leadership, organizational development, project management, and training to her work.

Sophia Stanger is Junior Project Manager and in charge of the project "Capacity Development for Humanitarian Assistance in West Africa" as well as for training programmes within the framework of the European Union (EUCTI). She is also responsible for the Environmental Peacebuilding sector. Sophia Stanger has many years of experience in NGO work, project management and team leadership, for example in the fields of education, humanitarian advocacy and volunteer missions. Her expertise also lies in the intersection of environment/climate and conflict resolution approaches. Sophia Stanger is also a qualified trainer and has completed a mediation training.

Wolfgang Weilharter is the Project Manager for the project "Communal Peace and Conflict Work in Burgenland". His focus is on the implementation of mediation and dialogue processes on the communal level, in the areas of communal politics, housing and neighbourhoods and local coexistence of people of different origins. (c) Foto Andi Bruckner