In October 2023, members of the RAN Practitioners network from all over Europe met up in Brussels for the RAN Practitioners Plenary event. The annual event was attended by delegates from the European Commission, RAN Working Group leads, practitioners from each of the Working Groups and representatives from RAN YOUNG. The main purpose of the event was to set the agenda for the year ahead. In this Special Edition of the RAN Practitioners Update therefore, we take a brief look at some of what was discussed at the event.
RAN Practitioners Plenary
Setting the agenda
The RAN Practitioners Plenary brought together practitioners actively engaged in the network in order to take stock of past achievements as well as discuss priorities for the year ahead. The Plenary offered an opportunity to: address new topical angles in P/CVE; meet beyond the normal composition of the Working Groups; and address cross-cutting issues. The outcomes of the event have been captured in a conclusion paper which will be published on the RAN Practitioners website in the coming weeks.
Emerging topics
The Plenary explored the current trends and topics of concern to RAN practitioners. These discussions were informed by a survey of network members conducted prior to the event, which found that the following topics were of most concern: current drivers for radicalisation; mainstreaming of violent right wing extremism; new digital technologies and online radicalisation; the mental health of practitioners and mental health aspects of P/CVE; and the impact of global events, such as Israel-Gaza, and geopolitical factors in P/CVE.
Practitioner perspectives
A short film, which provides an overview of the Plenary, explores why the event matters, what the key points of discussion were and what the future holds. To do this, we spoke to a number of participants at the event, including the European Commission, Working group leads and a member of the RAN YOUNG Platform.
Upcoming events
Stay tuned to the Calendar page on the RAN Practitioners website for more updates on meetings which will take place in 2023.
Publications
Evaluation of secondary and tertiary level P/CVE programmes
A paper published in October 2023 discusses the key challenges that come with evaluating secondary and tertiary prevention programmes. The paper provides examples of successful approaches in this field that appropriately respond to the complexity of the issue and evaluation challenges. The paper also identifies lessons learned from successful approaches on how best to overcome the key challenges.
Preventive campaigning using biographical experiences from victims, survivors and former extremists
A paper published in October 2023, provides insights for practitioners on the do’s, and don’ts of involving former extremists who have disengaged from radical ideologies, and victims and survivors of terrorism who have directly experienced the consequences of extremist violence in preventive campaigns. The paper provides thoughts about ethical considerations, dealing with media/publicity, and advice for policymakers.
Taking Stock of Approaches to Counter Hate Speech in the Western Balkans
A paper published in October 2023, provides practitioners with an overview of different approaches to tackling hate speech in Western Balkan countries.`The paper describes the dynamics of hate speech, the main institutional actors combating hate speech and the role of CSOs. The paper presents examples of CSO activities and provides advice on how to improve practices.
Contact us
RAN Practitioners is implemented by RadarEurope, which is a subsidiary of the RadarGroup:
- Phone: +31 (0)20 468 06 08 (office)
- E-Mail: ran
radareurope [dot] nl (ran[at]radareurope[dot]nl)
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