14 Jun PRESS RELEASE: Tackling radicalization and extremism through online tools Launching ALERT, ARENA and the Training Yard

CHAMPIONs is launching new online tools to support practitioners who work in the field of preventing and countering violent extremism. The online tools are embedded in the FirstLinePractitioners.com website which functions as a knowledge hub and networking platform for teachers, social workers, NGOs, researchers and local governments.

The consortium of the CHAMPIONs project (PATRIR, Institute of Social Safety, Budapest Center, Political Capital, TU Darmstadt, SYNYO and Cultures Interactive and Hochschule Niederrhein) is proud to present three online tools that were designed to support the work of first-line practitioners who tackle polarization and extremism within their local communities: ALERT, ARENA and the Training Yard. The tools were developed in a co-creation approach with local practitioners and are available in English, German, Romanian, Polish and Hungarian. ALERT and ARENA are interconnected modules that allow practitioners to create an alert in cases of radicalization and extremism. ARENA provides a space for a community of experts to discuss cases of polarization and radicalization in order to issue recommendations for action. The Training yard provides a wide selection of online information and training materials for first-line practitioners. All the tools are free to use and only require registration in order to become part of the ARENA pool of experts.

ALERT – A tool to register cases of polarization and extremism

The ALERT tool allows practitioners to receive recommendations for action based on the case description of an incident of radicalization or polarization. The recommendations are based on similar cases in the database. In case there is no existing best practice or recommendation in the database, the ALERT can be forwarded to the ARENA, where it will be discussed among practitioners and experts.

ARENA – A forum where experts can discuss cases of radicalization

The ARENA provides a forum for experts who can discuss cases of radicalization and polarization jointly and thereby support fellow first-line practitioners with practical advice on how to handle difficult situations. ARENA provides different options for experts, who can either take on cases within the whole of Europe, or in their own country or city. The practitioners who are registered in the ARENA receive requests for their input based on their specialized expertise and field of work. The platform therefore brings together people that work on similar issues and thus have the opportunity share best practices in a timely manner.

The Training Yard – Information and Training Resources for First-Line Practitioners

In the Training Yard practitioners can access relevant resources, country specific information (for Germany, Hungary, Romania and Poland) and diverse training materials to prevent and address extremism and polarization. Depending on the target group and the topic of interest, users can explore teaching and training material, such as:  guides on how to implement workshops, background information on anything related to social media, video tutorials in which practitioners share their experience and provide practical tips, simulation exercises that address specific topics of radicalization and polarization, exercises that test knowledge as well as short notes that provide information on key terms and concepts.

All three tools are embedded in the firstlinepractitioners.com platform which has been developed in the H2020-projects TAKEDOWN and MINDb4ACT and is currently extended in the ISFP-projects CHAMPIONs and ARMOUR, thereby tackling one of the main issues associated with EU-funded projects – the continued availability of project materials and tools after the end of the project cycle.

We encourage all practitioners to explore the online resources and tools on the website and to use them in their daily work.

Contact

For further information please contact

Ms Dana Dolghin

CHAMPIONs Coordinator, PATRIR

+31650701271, dana.dolghin@patrir.eu