CONNEKT investigates radicalisation and violent extremism (VE) in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Balkan countries at macro (institutional), meso (community), and micro (individual) levels. The first phase of meso-level research explores diverse communities that are potentially vulnerable to radicalisation and provides important insights into relevant drivers of radicalisation. The second phase of meso-level research goes into the prevention factors and attempts to provide recommendations for resilience-building among the selected communities.
Using case studies, this paper explores diverse contexts like schools and online communities. It progresses to the exploration and discovery of relevant meso-level drivers out of those that the project explores, emphasising key patterns in the findings, then moves to community-level interventions in prevention, featuring the lessons learned from the case studies. The final section provides targeted policy recommendations at various levels, underscoring the importance of meso-level analysis in understanding radicalisation.
