March 22 marked the second anniversary of the tragic Brussels attacks. Since then, radicalisation and violent extremism continue to pose significant challenges to European countries and to the international community. The Conference was the concluding event of the EPC-EFD joint project on the challenges of jihadist radicalisation, launched in March 2016. Over the past two years, the project has addressed various dimensions of this phenomenon, including radicalisation in schools, mosques and prisons, radicalisation and social media, geopolitical aspects and national experiences across Europe. The Conference addressed how policy and operational responses have evolved since 2016 with a special focus on the role of grassroots organisations and local actors, as well as the foreign policy dimension.

Speakers included: Fabian Zuleeg, Chief Executive, European Policy Centre, Roberta Bonazzi, President of the European Foundation for Democracy, Julian King, European Commissioner for the Security Union, Alastair MacDonald, Bureau Chief, Reuters, Brussels, Saad Amrani, Chief Commissioner, Policy Advisor, Belgian Federal Police, Pieter Van Ostaeyen, Visiting Fellow, European Foundation for Democracy, Louise Harvey, Non-Exec Chair, Strategic Communications Brussels, FTI Consulting, Jessika Soors, Co-chair, RAN Local Authorities Working Group, Head of service CVE and deradicalisation, Manwar Ali, Imam & Chief Executive, JIMAS, UK, Olivier Vanderhaeghen, Prevention Manager, Municipality of Molenbeek, Amanda Paul, Senior Policy Analyst, European Policy Centre, Cherif El Farri, Executive Director, Centre of Expertise and Advice for Prevention and Intervention of Radicalism and Extremism, Karin Heremans, Coordination policy on radicalization and polarization, GO! Flemish education system; Co-Chair of the Radicalisation Awareness Network Education Working Group, Demir Murat Seyrek, Senior Policy Advisor, European Foundation for Democracy, Richard Burchill, Director of Research and Engagement, TRENDS, Maqsoud Kruse, Executive Director, Hedayah International Center of Excellence for Countering Violent Extremism, Elizabeth Abela Hampel, Deputy Head, OSCE Action against Terrorism Unit, Ben Pugsley, Adviser to the EU Counter-Terrorism Coordinator, Council of the European Union, Herman Van Rompuy, President, European Policy Centre; President Emeritus of the European Council, Didier Reynders, Deputy Prime Minister; Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belgium.