AVERT National Research Symposium 2026

Day 1 Keynote

Dr Ghayda Hassan

Professor of Clinical Psychology, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQÀM); Director & Founder, CPN-PREV

Dr Ghayda Hassan is a clinical psychologist and professor of clinical psychology at UQÀM. She has several research, clinical, and community-based national and international affiliations. She is the director of the Canada Practitioners Network for the Prevention of Extremist Violence (CPN-PREV, funded by Public Safety Canada). She is also a UNESCO co-chair on Prevention of Violence Radicalisation, as well as a researcher and clinical consultant at the SHERPA-RAPS team and the CIUSSS-COIM. She is a researcher, clinician, and policy consultant in matters of intervention in the context of violence (radicalisation, family violence, and war). Her systematic reviews, research, and clinical activities are centred around four main areas of clinical cultural psychology: social suffering, inter-community relations, radicalisation, and extremist violence; intervention in family violence and cultural diversity; identity, belonging, and mental health of children and adolescents from ethnic/religious minorities; and working with vulnerable immigrants and refugees.

Day 2 Keynote

Brendan Dowling

Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, Department of Home Affairs

Brendan was appointed Counter-Terrorism Coordinator in May 2026, with responsibility for national leadership and coordination on counter-terrorism matters, including preventing and responding to terrorism incidents. As Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, Brendan works across federal, state and territory law enforcement, intelligence, policy agencies, and the community to ensure a coordinated national effort to counter-terrorism and violent extremism. Prior to this appointment, Brendan served as Deputy Secretary of Critical Infrastructure and Protective Security, where he led critical infrastructure policy, risk, regulation and partnerships, as well as national resilience strategy and protective security policy for Commonwealth systems and office holders. Previously, Brendan was Australia’s Ambassador for Cyber Affairs and Critical Technology in the foreign affairs portfolio. As Ambassador, he led Australia’s diplomatic engagement on cyber affairs and critical technology issues, while delivering cyber capacity building, crisis response and building resilience across our region. Brendan’s prior roles include leading the Cyber and Critical Technology Coordination Centre and First Assistant Secretary for Digital and Technology Security Policy at the Department of Home Affairs, providing national leadership on countering online radicalisation and violent extremism, safety and security online, and the security of critical and emerging technologies. Brendan held a senior role at Australia’s Embassy in the United States, leading engagement with the United States and across the Americas region on national security, counter-terrorism, violent extremism and radicalisation, criminal justice, cyber security and border protection. He has also held roles with responsibility for Home Affairs’ international engagement on national security issues with regional and European partners and the United Nations and multilateral organisations, based in Australia and in the Middle East during a regional posting to Amman, Jordan. Brendan holds a Master of Public Policy (Economic Policy) from the Australian National University and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in political science and literature from the University of Melbourne.