Many of our members have felt in the last couple of years a growth in community division and polarisation. Communication campaigns are a great tool to promote social cohesion in a cost-effective and wide reaching manner. Such campaigns can be led by city hall together with civil society groups to foster a sense of place…
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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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Above: the Lebanese focal points with Prevent officers in Leicester On 24 and 25 June, the Strong Cities Network (SCN) organised a study trip for its municipal focal points from Lebanon with the support of the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Our focal points from the cities of Saida, Tripoli and Majdal Anjar travelled to…
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Above: Mayors at the launch of Strong Cities Network with Sasha Havlicek at the United Nations in New York 2015 While nation states have dominated the international stage for centuries, cities are now becoming increasingly important entities. For the first time in history, more people are living in cities today than in rural areas with…
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In ‘The Human Library’, people are books. Designed as a way to challenge stereotypes and prejudices, each ‘book’ is an opportunity for people to share their personal stories with the readers to foster discussions on sensitive topics. These books are given categories which often provoke strong reactions, such as ‘Molested’, ‘HIV’, ‘Homeless’, or ‘Refugee,’ which…
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Earlier this month, Strong Cities Network partnered with Birmingham City Council to organise a two-day conference facilitating national and international knowledge-sharing on building strong cities with a specific focus on community cohesion, preventing and countering violent crime, and radicalisation. The challenges faced by local policymakers in preventing and countering violent extremism, whilst also seeking to…
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COMPACT featured at the SCN Showcase at the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF) in September, Too often, the drive of countering violent extremism (CVE) has been perceived as hard-power counter-terrorism (CT). In doing so, it often risks alienating and isolating the very communities it seeks to protect, thereby threatening to undermine its goal. When viewed through…
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Over thirty young people from Majdal Anjar took part in a three-day Prevention of Violent Extremism (PVE) camp and a one-day Strong Cities training on conflict transformation organised by the Community Prevention Network of Majdal Anjar, in collaboration with the local civil society organization “Youth Initiatives”. Among the priorities set by the municipal-led Community Prevention…
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Authors: Jonathan Birdwell, Joe Downy, Strong Cities Network With the global rise of xenophobia and extremism, it is vital that liveability indexes consider city-level community polarisation – our “ability to live together.” Last month, The Economist published its latest Global Liveability Index (GLI). After a reign at the top of the list for seven years, Melbourne was displaced by Vienna…
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On 2-3 October 2017, the International Dresden Dialogue conference brought together mayors, international organisations and NGOs, academics and media figures from across Europe to discuss today’s key urban challenges, spanning social and economic inequality, community polarisation, and preventing and countering violent extremism. Hosted by Mayor Dirk Hilbert, and drawing contributions from several cities including…
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