Research Unit

RadiLab – UGent Impact Lab for Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (P/CVE)

Acronym
RadiLab
Duration
11 March 2021 → Ongoing
Group leader
Research disciplines
  • Social sciences
    • Causes and prevention of crime
    • Safety, prevention and police
    • Security, peace and conflict
Keywords
Polarisation Radicalisation Extremism Terrorism
Description
At Ghent University, (1) the Institute for International Research on Criminal Policy (IRCP), (2) the interdisciplinary consortium IDC Crime, Criminology and Criminal Policy (IDC Crime), and (3) the business development centre Smart Solutions for Secure Societies (i4S) established cooperation which brings together expertise of more than a decade of research and societal impact initiatives in the area of polarisation, radicalisation, violent extremism, and terrorism. The work covers scientific research, policy, and practice advice and evaluation. The goal of RadiLab is (1) to combine Ghent University’s research expertise from the three entities in this domain, (2) to bring together resources and research infrastructures, and (3) to advise and support policy makers and practitioners towards societal impact on the local, regional, national, EU, and international levels, including the Global South. The interdisciplinary group of affiliated researchers contains criminologists, lawyers, psychologists, and other disciplines from the social sciences, but also STEM disciplines such as computer sciences to adapt to today’s digital and technological challenges in that area. In the past years, researchers have been regularly involved in policy and practice high-impact initiatives funded by inter alia the Flemish Government, Belgian Federal Government, the European Commission, the US State Department, and others. RadiLab members regularly work together with partners coming from major institutions in the thematic area with the aim to generate knowledge and value to societal challenges in the area of polarisation, radicalisation, violent extremism, and terrorism.