Inaugural Meeting of the “Ideology & Conspiracy Narratives” Panel in Brussels
By Fabian Wichmann
On 27–28 March 2025, the inaugural meeting of the “Ideology & Conspiracy Narratives” panel, which we co-lead, took place in Brussels as part of the EU Knowledge Hub on Prevention of Radicalisation. The Knowledge Hub brings together practitioners, policymakers, and researchers from across Europe and selected third countries to jointly develop and advance effective approaches to radicalisation prevention.
Panel Topic: “How and Why Minors and Youth are Attracted to Extremist Ideas?”
At the heart of our first meeting was a highly relevant issue: the radicalisation of minors and young people. Discussions focused on the targeted appeal of extremist groups towards youth, the role of digital platforms, the influence of ideological narratives and conspiracy theories, and the urgent need for preventive strategies.
Key Insight: Youth as Active Agents
One of the central insights: Today’s youth are no longer just passive recipients of extremist content, but increasingly active producers, multipliers, and shapers of radicalising narratives – particularly in digital spaces. The lines between rebellion, identity seeking, and ideological engagement are often blurred. Extremist groups are deliberately exploiting digital platforms to create resonance – using pop-cultural codes, gamification, or seemingly harmless self-improvement content.
A concerning signal in this context comes from the recently published 2024 German Police Crime Statistics: Last year, 13,755 children under the age of 14 were registered as suspects in serious criminal offences – an increase of 11.3 percent from the previous year. Among 14 to 18-year-olds, the number also rose significantly to 31,383 suspects, marking an increase of 3.8 percent. These figures reflect how social tensions and digital dynamics are increasingly shaping youth behaviour – beyond explicitly extremist contexts. In light of growing online radicalisation trends, they highlight the urgent need for early, comprehensive, and accessible prevention.
Key Takeaways from Our Panel
- Strengthening Digital Resilience: Media literacy, mindfulness, and healthy scepticism must be fostered from primary school age as the foundation for critical, confident, and responsible engagement in digital environments.
- Designing Safer Platforms: Digital spaces must be built with child-friendly architecture (“safety by design”) that balances protection with empowerment. While not the sole cause of radicalisation, platforms are a significant risk factor within broader social dynamics.
- Reinforcing a Cross-Sectional and Multi-Agency Approach: Effective prevention requires sustained collaboration across disciplines – linking extremism research, developmental psychology, education, social work, public health, and law enforcement. Prevention only works when it is interconnected.
- Involving Parents and Educators: Awareness, monitoring, and open, respectful dialogue with young people must be integral parts of daily life – in both family and school settings. Prevention begins with trust.
- Understanding Root Causes Holistically: Radicalisation is not simply an individual problem of “problematic” youth, but a reflection of social, emotional, and systemic crises. Young people who create problems often experience problems themselves. They are not risk factors – addressing their needs is a collective societal responsibility.
- Clear Legal and Technical Regulations: There is a need for robust frameworks around age verification and content moderation – without overreacting or treating platforms as the sole threat. The goal is to create safe spaces, not bans.
- Avoiding Over-Reliance on Law Enforcement: While cooperation with security agencies is necessary, this issue cannot and should not be addressed solely through criminal justice or policing. Prevention is a collective societal task.
- Strengthening Schools and Families: Schools and families need structure, resources, and confidence to take preventive action. This means: training teachers, integrating prevention into curricula, engaging parents – and actively involving young people in the process.