Building trust between youth and local government can be a daunting task. The more local governments can create opportunities to support, partner and work with youth on the local issues that matter most to them, the better. Our Young Cities program aims to do just this, and in June we embarked on a partnership with…
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In part as a response to major terrorist attacks, including at the Westgate Mall and Garissa University, Kenya has committed considerable resources to P/CVE. In the 2016 National Strategy to Combat Violent Extremism, the Kenyan Government mandated counties to develop County Action Plans (CAPs) to support national CVE efforts at the local level. From 26…
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Right-wing extremist groups and ideologies are rising across the global north. Climbing hate crime statistics highlight the increased violence and harassment which minority communities are under, whilst recent terror attacks in New Zealand, the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom throw this threat into the fore. However, the question remains, how should local authorities…
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SCN Coordinator Marta Lopes speaking at the PRoTECT Seminar in Brasov, Romania Author: Marta Lopes Coordinator, SCN The SCN has launched a new project to develop a “Post-Incident Toolkit” which will provide key guidance and insight to both city leaders and practitioners on best practice responses following a terrorist attack or suspected terrorist attack. To…
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Captured ISIS fighter in Salahadin Governorate, Iraq, 2015 Author: Simeon Dukic Manager, SCN Author: Marta Lopes Coordinator, SCN The question of what to do with returning foreign fighters continues to be controversial. Writing for the European Eye on Radicalization (EER), Marta Lopes and Simeon Dukic put forward the case for repatriation to the West. Read the…
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Cheikh ‘Keyti’ Sene, one half of the rap duo Journal Rappé As part of our recent work in Senegal, Young Cities conducted an interview with Keyti, a civil activist in Senegal and one of the co-founders of Journal Rappé, an online programme where artists relay important and often complex political information to youth through music and…
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Above: Head of SCN, Rebecca Skellett, spoke at length on the importance of local leadership. As part of our partnership with the UN Counter Terrorism Executive Directorate (UN-CTED), the Head of the Strong Cities Network, Rebecca Skellett had the opportunity to present at the open briefing on the protection of ‘soft’ targets through local engagement…
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In December 2017, the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, and SCN member, introduced a City Hall-wide Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) Programme to run throughout 2018. The programme appointed six specialist advisers to provide independent expertise and feedback, among which was the Institute for Strategic Dialogue’s own CEO Sasha Havlicek. Having undergone a stringent, ground-up review…
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Patricia Crosby, SCN Regional Manager, and Tim Hulse, M&E Coordinator, reflect on a recent workshop held by Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health exploring how to apply public health methodology to the evaluation of CVE programmes and makes the case for improving our focus on this important, but often under-looked, aspect of successful local…
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A U.S. delegation from Anaheim and San Diego visited the site of a 2004 terrorist attack in Cologne, which targeted the city’s Turkish community. (State Department photo) SCN Members from Southern California pair with counterparts from North Rhine-Westphalia to explore ways to counter terrorist radicalization and recruitment through the U.S. Department of State’s City Pair…
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Facilitate systematic sharing of knowledge, expertise and lessons learned on building social cohesion and community resilience to prevent violent extremism across cities on an international basis, through both regional workshops and international conferences.
Raise awareness of existing policy, programming, and practice through a dynamic and searchable ‘Online Information Hub’, providing an extensive library of existing local approaches and responses to prevent violent extremism.
Directly support cities to develop strategic frameworks and capabilities to build resilience that safeguard the rights of their local communities, including through capacity building seminars and interactive training modules on themes of mutual interest.
Directly seed the development of new and innovative projects through ‘Local Innovation Grants’, providing support for cities on innovative project development and support for the transfer of promising projects that could be adapted across different locations.
Directly support cities to develop strategic frameworks and capabilities to build resilience that safeguard the rights of their local communities, including through capacity building seminars and interactive training modules on themes of mutual interest.
Provide a global platform to enable cities to jointly voice their needs and those of their communities, to inform national and international decision-making on preventing the spread and growth of violent extremism.
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