Understanding and Reducing Violent Extremism
AVERT brings together Australia's leading social scientists and humanities researchers to produce evidence-based research that matters — for policy, practice, and public good.
News & Events
Latest News
All news →15 June 2026
Welcome to the AVERT Executive Committee: Andrew Zammit
We are pleased to welcome Andrew Zammit as the newest member of our Executive Committee. Andrew Zammit is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Victoria University and his research car…
30 April 2025
Successful Applicants Announced – Phase 2 of the National CVE Research Project
We are pleased to announce the successful applicants for Phase 2 of the National Research Project, Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) research that supports policy and practice in …
14 March 2025
Call for Papers: Society for Terrorism Research International Conference 2025
The Society for Terrorism Research (STR) has opened its call for papers for the 17th STR International Conference, to be held in July 2025 at Royal Holloway, University of London. …
19 December 2024
New Funding Opportunity for Research on Countering Violent Extremism in 2025
The AVERT Research Network is pleased to share a new funding opportunity from the Department of Home Affairs. In support of the Department’s national security and counter-terrorism…
Upcoming Events
All events →Thursday 30 July 2026, 16:00–17:00 AEST
7:00–8:00 AM BST
Built to Burn: AI Data Centre Infrastructure and the Emerging Landscape of Political Violence
In this presentation, Dr Kingdon will examine whether artificial intelligence (AI) data centres are emerging as targets for terrorism and political violence. Drawing on 30 expert interviews and a series of multi-stakeholder workshops involving intelligence practitioners, terrorism researchers, AI security specialists, and civil society organisations, the research finds broad agreement that data centres represent a growing security concern, but significant disagreement over who the primary threat actors are. The research argues that current debates focus too narrowly on environmental activists while overlooking how environmental harm, resource competition, perceived exclusion, and the criminalisation of protest can contribute to grievance accumulation and, in some contexts, political violence. It explores how AI infrastructure is situated within a diverse threat landscape that includes jihadist, far-right, anarchist, and other politically motivated actors, and considers the implications for assessing and mitigating emerging threats to critical digital infrastructure.
Dr Ashton Kingdon
Lecturer in Criminology and Director of the Centre for Criminology in the Digital Age, University of Southampton
Commentary
Royal commission report doesn't help us start making sense of Bondi terror attack
Justice Virginia Bell has handed the governor-general her interim findings from the Royal Commission into Antisemitism and Social Cohesion. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese responde…
We can't coerce our way to social cohesion. Here's what else governments should be doing
Last week, Queensland followed the New South Wales and federal parliaments by passing stronger hate crime laws in response to the Bondi terror attack.
Is Australia's terrorism definition still fit for purpose?
With the alleged attempted bombing at Perth's Invasion Day protest now declared a terrorist act, the release of coronial findings into the Bondi Westfield stabbing, and ever-growin…
What is extremism, and how do we decide?
As controversy over Australia's new hate laws continues, last weekend's so-called March for Australia rallies were the latest in a string of events that have raised the temperature…
With its new laws, the government is tackling hate speech quickly, but not properly
On Tuesday, in response to the Bondi terrorist attack and mounting pressure to take strong action, the Albanese government released draft legislation to counter hate crime and stre…
How Australia's anti‑immigration rallies were amplified online by the global far right
Over the weekend, rallies were staged across various Australian cities under the branding "March for Australia". The rallies, which were attended by avowed neo-Nazis and elected po…
