On 26 February, the Presence organised a conference wrapping up its efforts in “Creating platforms of counter-messaging and disengagement to Prevent and Counter Violent Extremism and Radicalization that Lead to Terrorism (VERLT)”. The conference aimed to create platforms for awareness-raising and tackling propaganda linked to violent extremism and radicalization. It also served as a discussion platform on the VERLT phenomenon: root factors, factors of resilience, gender and age perspectives, and risk-reduction.
The Presence supported capacity-building of Albanian researchers and practitioners related to the understanding and countering of violent extremist narratives, as well as encouraged researchers to identify positive factors of resilience, with a view to strengthening prevention.
In the closing conference, four research papers developed by young researchers were presented in the four areas of VERLT: i) women’s roles in preventing violent extremism; (ii) youth radicalization in Albania; (iii) online radicalization; and (iv) judicial responses to violent extremism – security and human rights paradigms.
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