News

Factors of Radicalization in Southern Senegal and Upper Guinea: A Highlight of the Socio-Economic Causes. In a context marked by the generally porous nature of borders and an intense circulation of people and goods, working on the sensitive and current issue of radicalization in border areas is of great scientific but also political utility. Thus, in partnership with the Dakar office of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the Timbuktu Institute carried out a study, soon to be made public, on the factors of radicalization and perception of terrorism among young people in the border areas of Senegal and Guinea. More information

UNESCO release a Policy brief on effective activities and impact released on preventing violent extremism through education. Based on the analysis of thirty-two educational practices across the world, whose effectiveness is supported by a sufficient level of evidence, the Policy Brief highlights that PVE-E activities can be shown to generate at least forty-five positive impacts at individual (cognitive, socio-emotional, behavioural), structural & organisational, as well as the community & social levels. These impacts address the drivers of violent extremism, as put forth in the United Nations Secretary-General’s Plan of Action to Prevent of Violent Extremism. More information here.

The UNESCO-PREV Chair is developing guidelines for the prevention of radicalization and violent extremism. The UNESCO Chair, in collaboration with the CPN-PREV, is developing the International Consensus Guidelines Committee (ICGC) that brings together approximately 60 experts from diverse sectors and disciplines from approximately 20 countries. This committee has been created in order to: – Identify best practices based on evidence; – Develop guidelines that can then be adapted to the reality of each country. More information here.

UNESCO MGIEP’s international conference, organized with the State Government of Andhra Pradesh, showcased the role of games and digital learning in enabling a shift from “transmissive pedagogies” to “transformative pedagogies” to create peaceful and sustainable societies. TECH was held at Novotel, Vizag City, State of Andhra Pradesh, India. More information here

CPN-PREV, a network for preventing extremism attached to UQAM, receives $1.5 million in federal funding. 1.5 million over four years was provided to the Canadian Practitioners Network for the Prevention of Radicalization and Violent Extremism (CPN-PREV), announced on November 14 by Pierrefonds-Dollard Liberal MP Frank Baylis on behalf of Canadian Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Minister Ralph Goodale. This funding, from the Community Resiliency Fund, which is part of the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence, is intended to enhance intervention programs across Canada. More information here.

Global Affairs Canada awards $1M in funding to Concordia-created anti-terrorism initiatives in the Middle East. The Canadian government recently awarded research funding to Concordia’s UNESCO co-chair in the Prevention of Radicalization and Violent Extremism, Vivek Venkatesh, who will receive $1,051,680 over two years for the development, implementation and evaluation of capacity building to counterterrorism in Lebanon, based on the SOMEONE (SOcial Media EducatiON Every day) initiative. More information here.