Preventing violent extremism – Strengthening local community resilience

As the EU Horizon 2020-funded projects PAVE and PREVEX are coming to a close, researchers from both projects will present key findings, and discuss the joint policy recommendations on the prevention of violent extremism (PVE).

PAVE and PREVEX have worked on issues concerning radicalisation, journeys to extremism, and community resilience in the Western Balkans, the Middle East, North Africa, and the Sahel for over three years. Joining forces in a final conference allow them to show the depth of the research of the two projects, present concrete policy outputs resulting from the research, and build on the important synergies that have emerged as we increasingly have discussed our findings, taken part in various joint dissemination activities, and made plans for follow-up activities.

PREVEX has been led by NUPI with Morten Bøås as the PI.

To prevent religious, sectarian, or ethno-political manifestations of violent extremism, we need to understand the role of local community resilience, the relationship between drivers and the environment in which extremism manifests itself, and the role of genuine material grievances combined with heavy-handed state responses.

Even in the most enabling environments of the Middle East and the Sahel most people are not radicalised. Despite ample reasons for being angry, the majority have little interest in radical worldviews and instead seek to resist the forces of violent extremism, be it openly at great risk or more subtly. This and other key findings will be presented at the conference.

The final PREVEX-PAVE conference will take place in Scotland House, Rdpt Robert Schuman 6, 1040 Bruxelles, Belgium at 13:00-16:45 CEST. Click here to sign up for physical attendance.

For those of you not located in Brussels, it will be possible to follow us online. Register here if you like to receive a reminder with a link to the live stream as we approach the seminar date.

PROGRAMME:

• 13:00: Registration and lunch mingling
• 14:00: Introduction by Véronique Dudouet (PAVE) and Morten Bøås (PREVEX)
• 14:15: First panel discussion: The journey to violent extremism – drivers and enabling environments
  • Chair: Kari Osland (Norwegian Institute of International Affairs)
  • Speakers:
  • PREVEX: Francesco Strazzari (University of Pisa)
  • PAVE: Goran Tepsic (University of Belgrade)
  • EU representative: Radek Khol (EEAS, SECDEFPOL.3 Counter-terrorism Division)
• 15:15: Coffee break
• 15:30: Second panel discussion: Shortcomings of hard security measures and added value of community-based resilience approaches
  • Chair: Isak Svensson (Uppsala University)
  • Speakers:
  • PAVE: Marie Kortam (Fondation Maison des Sciences de l’Homme, Paris)
  • PREVEX: Edina Becirevic (Atlantic Initiative, Bosnia and Herzegovina)
  • EU representative: Maria del Carmen Fernandez (EU DG INTPA, Unit G5 – Resilience, Peace, Security)
• 16:30: PAVE and PREVEX joint policy recommendations & closing w/Morten Bøås and Véronique Dudouet
• 16:45 Drinks and finger food reception