Resilient Cities: Countering Violent Extremism at Local Level
Cities have become the main target of Jihadist Salafist terrorism. Recent attacks in Paris (2015), Copenhagen (2015), Brussels (2016), Nice (2016), Stockholm (2017) and London (2017) have demonstrated the harm that terrorism can cause to the cohesion of European societies and have triggered a debate on how cities must respond to the increasing threat of violent extremism. CIDOB and the University of St Andrews organise the conference Resilient Cities: Countering Violent Extremism at Local Level in which international experts will answer the following question: “What does an effective programme of counter-radicalization at local level look like?”
Performed activity
CIDOB, sala Jordi Maragall, Elisabets 12, 08001 Barcelona
CIDOB and the University of St. Andrews with the support of the Europe for Citizens programme
The conference will begin with a first panel in which Diego Muro (University of St. Andrews, CIDOB), Rik Coolsaet (University of Ghent) and Bibi Van Ginkel (Clingendael) will analyse the terrorist threat in Europe, as well as the public policies designed to respond to the rise of violent extremism. A second panel will present city experiences in preventing and countering violent extremism. Presenters such as Toby Harris (House of Lords), Thorleif Link (Aarhus police), or Lorenzo Vidino (George Washington University) will discuss best practices and evidence-based policies and will analyse whether cities are best suited to “think globally and act locally”. Finally, the seminar will end with an analysis of how local initiatives should be implemented. Daniel Heinke (Bremen State Police) will analyse the cities’ tendency to develop coordinating institutions, while Daniel Koehler (Center for the Coordination of the Prevention Network against (Islamic) Extremism in Baden-Württemberg (KPEBW) will present tools to evaluate prevention programmes at the local level. Marije Meines (Radicalisation Awareness Network - RAN) will discuss the building blocks of a European plan to counter radicalization and violent extremism. Finally, Tim Wilson (Handa Centre for the Study of Terrorism and Political Violence at the University of St. Andrews) will provide the concluding remarks on the role of cities in preventing violent extremism in urban environments.