PAVE · Project

Training Tools and Evidence-Based Methods to Prevent Violent Extremism in Communities

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Imagine you're a mayor or community leader in a town where some young people are being pulled toward extremist groups — but you have no playbook for what actually works to prevent it. PAVE studied real communities across 4 Balkan and 3 MENA countries to figure out what makes some communities vulnerable and others resilient. They then built practical training modules that religious leaders, educators, and local officials can use to spot warning signs and strengthen community bonds before radicalization takes hold.

By the numbers

consortium partners involved in development and testing

countries covered across Balkans, MENA, and EU

Balkan countries with in-depth case study research

MENA countries with in-depth case study research

total project deliverables produced

thematic areas of investigation

The business problem

What needed solving

Communities across the Balkans and MENA face violent extremism driven by religious, political, and ethnic tensions — but local leaders, educators, and government officials lack evidence-based tools to prevent radicalization before it escalates. Existing approaches are often reactive and not grounded in comparative research across regions.

The solution

What was built

PAVE produced 29 deliverables including module-based training programs for preventing violent extremism, designed for multiple target audiences (religious leaders, mayors, educators, civil society organizations, women and youth). They also produced comparative case study research across 4 Balkan and 3 MENA countries covering 4 thematic areas.

Audience

Who needs this

Security risk consulting firms advising on political stability in Balkans/MENAGovernment agencies responsible for counter-extremism and community safetyInternational development organizations designing prevention programsCorporate training providers specializing in conflict zones and cultural resilienceMultinational companies assessing operational risks in Balkan and MENA markets

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Security consulting and risk advisory

mid-size

Target: Security risk consultancies advising governments, multinationals, or NGOs on political stability

If you are a security consultancy advising clients operating in the Balkans or MENA — this project produced evidence-based assessments across 4 Balkan and 3 MENA countries identifying specific community vulnerability factors. Their comparative analysis across 12 countries can strengthen your risk assessments with peer-reviewed research rather than anecdotal intelligence.

Corporate and government training providers

any

Target: Organizations delivering conflict prevention, cultural awareness, or resilience training

If you are a training provider developing programs for government agencies or international organizations — PAVE created module-based training curricula for multiple target audiences including religious leaders, educators, and civil society organizations. These ready-made training modules, tested across 13 partner organizations, could be licensed or adapted for your commercial training portfolio.

International development and humanitarian operations

enterprise

Target: NGOs and development agencies working in conflict-prone regions

If you are an international development organization designing prevention programs in the Balkans or MENA — PAVE developed practical guidelines for community resilience agents and assessed which preventive initiatives actually work. Their research across 4 thematic areas provides an evidence base to justify program design and funding proposals.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to access PAVE's training tools and research outputs?

PAVE was a publicly funded Research and Innovation Action, so core research findings and publications are likely available through open access. Licensing of specific training modules would need to be negotiated directly with the coordinator, Berghof Foundation. No pricing information is available in the project data.

Can these training modules scale across different countries and contexts?

The modules were designed and tested across 12 countries spanning the Balkans and MENA, involving 13 partner organizations. This cross-regional design suggests built-in adaptability. However, each deployment would likely require localization to specific community contexts.

Who owns the intellectual property for the training materials?

As a publicly funded EU project (RIA), IP is typically retained by the consortium partners, with the coordinator Berghof Foundation as the primary contact. Licensing terms for commercial use of the training modules would need direct negotiation with the consortium.

Is there evidence the training tools actually reduce extremism?

PAVE assessed the relevance and effectiveness of preventive initiatives and produced 29 deliverables including module-based trainings tested with multiple target audiences. However, measuring long-term impact on radicalization prevention requires years of follow-up data beyond the project's end date of April 2023.

How does this integrate with existing government prevention programs?

PAVE was specifically designed to support policy-makers and community leaders through multi-party exchange between the EU and its neighborhood. The training guidelines target existing community roles — religious leaders, mayors, educators — rather than creating parallel structures. This makes integration with existing programs more straightforward.

What regulatory or compliance requirements does this address?

The project addresses EU security governance priorities under the SU-GOVERNANCE-10-2019 topic. For organizations required to demonstrate counter-extremism compliance or due diligence in conflict-prone regions, PAVE's evidence base and training tools could support compliance documentation.

Consortium

Who built it

The 13-partner consortium across 12 countries is heavily research-oriented, with 5 universities and 5 research organizations making up 77% of partners. Only 1 industrial partner (8% industry ratio) and 2 SMEs signal limited commercial orientation. The coordinator, Berghof Foundation in Germany, is classified as an SME and specializes in conflict transformation — a recognized name in peacebuilding circles. The geographic spread across the Balkans (BA, XK), MENA (IQ, LB, TN), and EU (DE, EL, ES, FI, FR, IE, SE) gives the outputs strong regional credibility but the near-absence of commercial partners means business adoption would require external market development.

BERGHOF FOUNDATION OPERATIONS gGMBHCoordinator · DE
THE PROVOST, FELLOWS, FOUNDATION SCHOLARS & THE OTHER MEMBERS OF BOARD, OF THE COLLEGE OF THE HOLY & UNDIVIDED TRINITY OF QUEEN ELIZABETH NEAR DUBLINparticipant · IE
American University of Beirutparticipant · LB
FUNDACION EUROARABE DE ALTOS ESTUDIOSparticipant · ES
EURICE EUROPEAN RESEARCH AND PROJECT OFFICE GMBHparticipant · DE
KIRKON ULKOMAANAPU SRparticipant · FI
KOSOVAR CENTRE FOR SECURITY STUDIESparticipant · XK
UPPSALA UNIVERSITETparticipant · SE
Elliniko Idryma Evropaikis kai Exoterikis Politikis (HELLENIC FOUNDATION FOR EUROPEAN AND FOREIGN POLICY)participant · EL
UNIVERZITET U SARAJEVUparticipant · BA
SFAX UNIVERSITYparticipant · TN
FONDATION MAISON DES SCIENCES DE L'HOMMEparticipant · FR

How to reach the team

Berghof Foundation Operations gGMBH, Germany — reachable through their organizational website

Order a report on this consortium See BERGHOF FOUNDATION OPERATIONS gGMBH profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore licensing PAVE's training modules for your organization? SciTransfer can facilitate an introduction to the research team and help structure a commercial partnership.

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