By Garth Davies and Mackenzie B. Hart
On September 25 and 26th, the Canadian Network for Research on Security, Extremism and Society (CANSES) hosted its 2nd Annual Workshop at Saint Mary’s University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. First and foremost, CANSES is a network that connects individuals working on extremism across a variety of sectors. Reflecting this, Workshop attendees included early career researchers (PhD, MA, and undergraduate students), established academics, independent researchers, government staff, law enforcement personnel, and P/CVE practitioners. 42 CANSES members attended the Workshop in person, and another 50 members registered to attend remotely via Zoom. In addition to presentations on research funded by CANSES, the Workshop included four working group sessions, three round tables, and two “Views from the Inside” sessions, in which experts shared firsthand knowledge on policy brief writing and practitioners shared their experiences and perspectives working in P/CVE spaces (see the Workshop report for more).
A Network Hub
The main take away from the Workshop was the important role that CANSES plays as a network hub, connecting our members to help overcome the siloed nature of the extremism field. Working groups are one of the main ways CANSES brings its members together, providing opportunities for researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and community partners with shared interests to identify priorities, discuss challenges, and develop strategies collectively. The Early Career Researchers (ECR), Corrections, Data, and Education working groups each held sessions during the Workshop.
The Early Career Researchers Working Group (ECRWG) identified four key areas where CANSES can support ECRs:
- providing mentorship opportunities,
- facilitating national/ international relationships,
- providing/ identifying ECR-specific funding, and
- offering skill development/training.
Members of the Corrections Working Group also highlighted the need to overcome and/or prevent the further siloing, specifically in the corrections space, by building relationships between P/CVE practitioners and corrections staff working in prisons.
The Data Working Group discussed how CANSES could act as a centralized data repository for its members, both hosting original/ CANSES owned datasets and linking out to pre-existing collections. There was also support for CANSES to provide future workshops on data analysis and advanced research methods through a CANSES summer school/ institute, or through an existing program like VOX-Pol’s Summer School.
The Education Working Group met for the first time at Workshop, outlining a research agenda focused on determining what teachers need from extremism researchers and practitioners, and building out extremism curriculum that is research-and-practitioner-informed.
In addition to working groups, the Annual Workshop featured 3 roundtable sessions. The roundtable on Nihilistic Violent Extremism (NVE) was facilitated by Dr. Marc-André Argentino (the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence), who gave attendees a brief introduction to NVE, focusing on its hybridized nature. Dr. Amy Mack (the Canadian Institute for Far-Right Studies and the University of Lethbridge) hosted a round table on collaborative research and large grants aimed at identifying and overcoming challenges associated with these applications. To help address these challenges, attendees suggested that CANSES help facilitate relationships between members who are looking for co-applicants and encourage research funding applications involving collaborators of all academic ranks. Dr. Michael King (the Organization for the Prevention of Violence) also facilitated a roundtable on mental illness, neurodiversity, and violence extremism
Views from the inside: translating academic research into actionable policy advice
The CANSES Workshop also featured two “views from the inside” aimed at giving members an in-depth look at the policy work and practitioners. Dr. Shannon Nash (the Canada Centre for Community Engagement and Prevention of Violence) hosted an interactive policy brief writing session to give CANSES members practical insights into how to translate complex research into actionable, audience-specific policy advice. These insights included:
- Identify your audience.
- Define complex terms.
- Be clear about the impact/severity/importance of the issue.
- Be explicit about policy suggestions.
- Use formatting to help highlight/ provide structure.
Peter Smyth (the Organization for the Prevention of Violence) and Abokar Mohamed (Yorktown Child and Family Center), also shared their experiences as practitioners working in the P/CVE space. Their discussion highlighted the importance of trust both between practitioners and their clients, as well as with law enforcement, who must trust practitioners to do their jobs effectively and communicate relevant information when necessary. Trust also factored heavily in the discussion of challenges with mandatory participation where it is essential for both practitioner and client safety, as well as long-term client engagement. Participants also discussed complex client needs, barriers to service, access and public perception of P/CVE work.
Save the Date
CANSES will be holding its 3rd Annual Workshop in Quebec City in late September, 2026. We hope to see you there.
Garth Davies is an Associate Professor in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University and the Director of the Canadian Network for Research on Security, Extremism, and Society. Dr. Davies has been studying and writing about terrorism for over 25 years. Dr. Davies has presented at dozens of national and international conferences, as well as at briefings for the Integrated National Security Enforcement Team (“E” Division), the Canadian Security Intelligence Services, and Public Safety Canada. He has testified on national security issues in front of both the Canadian Parliament and the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defense.
Mackenzie B. Hart is a PhD student in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University. Currently, Mackenzie is the Coordinator for the Canadian Network for Research on Security, Extremism, and Society (CANSES). Her research focuses on right-wing extremism, conspiracy theories, nihilistic violent extremism, and the intersection between environmental criminology and terrorism/radicalization.