Convenor’s Message
I’m proud to say that both as a Network, and through the research and activities of our individual members, AVERT has made many important and valuable contributions during the first half of 2024.
Whether it’s reflected in the public commentary of our expert members, our submission to the recent Australian Senate parliamentary inquiry on extremism or through our many events and webinars showcasing the latest research in the field, our Network and its members have demonstrated our commitment to providing evidence based research to inform public discourse and encourage evidence-based policy and practice.
The work of the AVERT Research Network is more important and urgent than ever before. Two recent stabbing incidents in Sydney Australia in April - one at the Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd Church in and another attack at Bondi Junction only two days prior - revealed the ongoing challenges we face with violent extremism, the urgent need to address and reduce vulnerabilities among our youth and challenged how we should think about and define violent extremism and terrorism.
The AVERT Research Network has also grown in depth and breadth this year – welcoming many new research members from Australia and around the world. In fact, we have had remarkable growth – a fifty percent increase in membership in the past six months!
Our webinar calendar is also bursting at the seams, with a full schedule of webinars from established and emerging scholars alike. Full details on upcoming webinars and links to recordings of past events can be found below.
Also reflective of AVERT’s growth is our increased international engagement. AVERT was invited as the peak Australian research network of the study of violent extremism and terrorism to participate in an exciting new international research initiative, the International Academic Partnership for Science and Security (IAPSS) in London this past March. The objective of IAPSS is to facilitate knowledge sharing and collaboration between research networks among the Five Eyes plus and we are excited to contribute to IAPSS’ development.
We are also fortunate to be able to host an impressive slate of international speakers in 2024 year. The first one being Professor Bruce Hoffman, a deeply experienced scholar of terrorism and counterterrorism. Stay tuned for more news on other international visitors AVERT will be hosting later this year.
Lastly, I’m excited to announce the flagship event of the AVERT calendar, the annual AVERT international research symposium. This year’s theme is “People, Places and Spaces: New Dynamics and Shifting Responses to Violent Extremism.” This year’s symposium will take place 29-31 October in Melbourne and we are thrilled to have Professor Noemie Bouhana, as our keynote speaker this year. Professor Bouhana has done some exciting and innovative work on the social ecology of terrorism and I am very much looking forward to her insights. I encourage you to review the call for proposals and make a submission. We are especially encouraging of proposals that highlight academic-practitioner collaboration, reflect on or offer policy and practice-based guidance, or otherwise demonstrate policy and/or practice relevance.
Thank you to those AVERT members who have sent us their latest news, research publications, media and other contributions which you can read about more below. Keep scrolling for more detail about all of our activities the first half of 2024 as well as the upcoming events and initiatives we have planned!
Lydia Khalil, AVERT Convenor
Lydia KhalilAVERT Convenor
Announcing the 2024 AVERT Symposium - People, Places, and Spaces: New Dynamics and Shifting Responses to Violent Extremism
The 2024 AVERT Symposium will be held on 29-31 October in Melbourne. The theme for this year is: People, Places, and Spaces: New Dynamics and Shifting Responses to Violent Extremism. The Symposium will examine shifting demographics in violent extremism and the challenges that this presents for preventing and countering violent extremism analysis, policy and practice. The Call for Proposals can be found here.
Register now for a conversation with Professor John Horgan
Join us for a conversation with Professor John Horgan about his new book, Terrorist Minds: The Psychology of Violent Extremism from Al-Qaeda to the Far Right.
In this new book, Professor Horgan - one of the world’s leading experts on the psychology of terrorism - provides an up-to-date, evidence-based understanding of the patterns, motives, and mentalities of violent extremists from the Islamic State and al-Shabaab to white supremacists and incels. Professor Horgan argues that there is not a straightforward psychological profile of a terrorist, in part because of the great variety of today’s extremists, who are able to attract a more diverse pool of recruits than ever before. But even though there is no one-size-fits-all profile, psychological study can provide crucial insight into why and how people become terrorists.
An Evening with Professor Bruce Hoffman
The AVERT Research Network is pleased to announce that we will be holding an event with Professor Bruce Hoffman on Tuesday the 25th of June, 4.00-6.00pm at Deakin Downtown, in Melbourne.
Professor Hoffman will be discussing his latest book, God, Guns, and Sedition, co-authored with Jacob Ware, followed by networking drinks.
This free event is exclusive to AVERT Research and Affiliate Members.
Upcoming webinars
We have an exciting slate of webinars for 2024. Join us on 22nd of May when Dr Imogen Richards of Deakin University and Callum Jones of Monash University will present their latest book in a seminar entitled, “The far right and the environment in Australia: a summary analysis and discussion of Global Heating and the Australian Far right”.
On the 12th of June, Dr. Julia Ebner of Oxford University will present “Is There a Language of Terrorists?” Dr Ebner will give insights into psycholinguistic patterns of radicalisation across different ideologies. Throughout the seminar, she will ask: Can would-be perpetrators of extreme violence be reliably identified by the linguistic traces they unintentionally leave behind in their online communications?
AVERT Webinar Series
The 2024 AVERT Webinar Series opened with a presentation from Professor Stuart MacDonald of Swansea University and VOX-Pol entitled “Outlinks”: Violent Jihadist Online Propaganda Dissemination Strategies. This webinar presented Professor Macdonald’s empirical research into the ways that violent jihadist groups share material online and implications for policy and practice. Watch it here.
This was followed by practitioner perspectives from Dr Lauren Moulds and John Young, who run the Inclusion Support Program for the Department of Human Services, South Australia. Their presentation examined a unique approach to intervention that focuses on building connection and social skills for at risk individuals. Watch it here.
Jade Hutchinson from Groningen University and Macquarie University presented his work on far-right online ecosystems in a practitioner-oriented presentation that focused on providing new avenues for intervention. Watch it here.
AVERT was pleased to present a special panel discussion with some of the editors and authors of the new Routledge Handbook on Radicalisation and Countering Radicalisation. Professor Joel Busher chaired a discussion with co-editor Dr Sarah Marsden, and contributors Professor Michele Grossman AM, Professor Paul Thomas, Dr Keiran Hardy and Associate Professor Emily Corner. Watch it here.
AVERT Engagement with the International Academic Partnerships for Science and Security
In March 2024, the AVERT Research Network took part in the inaugural conference of the International Academic Partnerships for Science and Security (IAPSS) in London. IAPSS is an international initiative, funded by the US Department of Homeland Security and co-led by the US-based National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE) and the UK-based Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats (CREST).
The objective of IAPSS is to facilitate knowledge sharing and collaboration between research networks among the Five Eyes plus, with a focus on preventing and countering violent extremism and terrorism. IAPSS has set an ambitious goal to create an international hub for CT/CVE knowledge exchange and provide a structure which will enable researchers to form new and more meaningful relationships with counterparts in different jurisdictions and facilitate collaboration across nations, disciplines, and between academics and practitioners. Learn more about this exciting new initiative here.
Read the latest AVERT Commentary
AVERT publishes commentary on current issues in preventing and countering violent extremism and radicalisation to terrorism. Recent Commentary publications can be found here.
AVERT’s submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee inquiry into right wing extremist movements in Australia
The AVERT Research Network made a submission to the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee inquiry into right wing extremist movements in Australia. Research Members from a variety of different disciplines pooled their expertise to assist the inquiry. Read the submission here.
This is the third submission that AVERT has made to a government inquiry. Read the AVERT Submission to the Victorian Parliamentary Inquiry into Extremism in Victoria and the AVERT Submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security Inquiry into Extremist Movements and Radicalism in Australia here.
New Opportunities
AVERT regularly publishes new opportunities for funding, employment, publication and other forms of research dissemination.
Current opportunities are available from the US Department of Homeland Security, the International Academic Partnerships for Science and Security and the Society for Terrorism Research (University of Central Oklahoma and Coventry University).
View the Opportunities page for more details.
Dr Julia EbnerUniversity of Oxford
Dr Caitlin ClemmowUniversity College London
Dr Sarah LoganAustralian National University
Dr Anna KruglovaUniversity of Salford
Professor Kumar RamakrishnaNanyang Technological University
Dr Suraj LakhaniUniversity of Sussex
Dr Emma BeltonGriffith University
Dr Saira AliUniversity of Adelaide
Professor Stuart MacdonaldSwansea University
Dr Daniel KoehlerCompetence Centre Against Extremism in Baden-Wuerttemberg
Dr Eszter SzenesUniversity of Adelaide
Dr Felix PalUniversity of Western Australia
Dr Sam AndrewsUniversity of West London
Associate Professor Julie Chernov HwangGoucher College
Professor Lasse LindekildeAarhus University
Dr Max HarwoodNSW Premiere’s Department/Macquarie University
Media and Public Commentary
A main mission of the AVERT Research Network is engaging with the broader public about issues related to terrorism and violent extremism. In a space with a lot of commentary and opinions, we are committed to sharing evidence based knowledge to inform public discourse and encourage evidence-based policy and practice. AVERT Members’ media appearances and public commentary can be found here.
AVERT Research Members are active researchers in the field of preventing and countering terrorism and violent extremism. Read some of their latest publications here.
Mary Beth Altier
Clubb, G., Altier, M. B., Kobayashi, Y., Davies, G., & Brownsord, E. (2024). Combating the Terrorist Stigma: Communicating Rehabilitation and Reducing Barriers to Reintegration. Terrorism and Political Violence, 1–18.
Lewis, J., Marsden, S., Cherney, A., Zeuthen, M., Rahlf, L., Squires, C., & Peterscheck, A. (2024). Case management interventions seeking to counter radicalisation to violence and related forms of violence: A systematic review. Campbell systematic reviews, 20(2), e1386.
Syafiq, M., Alfithon, A. M., Cherney, A., & Louis, W. R. (2024). Self-compassion as a factor in the deradicalisation of extremist offenders. Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology, 18.
Dmello, J. R., & Neudecker, C. H. (2024). Monsoon Marauders and Summer Violence: Exploring the Spatial Relationship between Climate Change and Terrorist Activity in India. Journal of Applied Security Research, 1–26.
Hbeilini, G. X., & Dmello, J. R. (2024). The Rise of #Cartels: Exploring the Organizational Operations and Messaging of Public Perception on Twitter. Journal of Applied Security Research, 1–28.
Meredith, K., and Horgan, J. (2024). “After They Leave: Exploring Post-Exit Distress in Former Violent Extremists.” Journal for Deradicalization, 38, 165-209.
Winnifred R. Louis
Stuart Macdonald
Jarvis, L., Whiting, A., & Macdonald, S. (2024). Radicalisation, counter-radicalisation and Prevent: A vernacular approach. In Radicalisation, counter-radicalisation and Prevent. Manchester University Press.
Awards and recognition
AVERT Members are some of the top researchers in their field. AVERT is proud to share the awards and recognition they receive.
Selected as the inaugural recipient of the Early Career Award from the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, Security & Crime Prevention Section.
Grants and Projects
AVERT Members conduct innovative research through grants and projects. These endeavours enable members to conduct research for the public good.
"Text-Enabled Gatekeeper Intervention Help Line Referral”Sponsor: Department of Homeland SecurityGrant amount: $599,498
Please feel free to get in touch with us if you have any questions about AVERT’s activities. You can reach us at adi-avert@deakin.edu.au