How Violence Prevention Network Built Sustainable Structures in the German P/CVE Landscape

By Benedikt Büchsenschütz (Violence Prevention Network)

Violence Prevention Network has been active in the field of extremism prevention and disengagement for more than two decades. What began as a small association working with ideologically motivated offenders in German prisons has since developed into one of the most important infrastructures for prevention and disengagement in Germany and Europe. Our experience shows that sustainable disengagement work doesn’t work if it remains a patchwork of isolated projects. It needs stable structures, clear quality standards, political advocacy and the capacity to adapt to new ideological phenomena.

Our work started in the German prison context as early as 2001. At the time, it became clear that classic anti-violence programmes were not sufficient when dealing with ideologically motivated extremist offenders in the realm of political violence. We developed approaches that engaged with worldviews and helped people reflect critically on the actions that led to their convictions. However, working in Germany’s federal prison system meant that every programme depended on the funding of individual ministries or officials. When institutional priorities shifted or funding cycles came to an end, projects often had to be restructured and work with the clients, even when it could be continued after a pause, had to restart almost from the beginning. This proved difficult to sustain and underscored that the key challenge was not only to deliver interventions, but to establish structures resilient enough to outlast such transitions.

Practitioners and partner institutions increasingly recognised that these structural fluctuations limited the long-term impact of their work. Across the field, there was a growing sense that sustainable frameworks and reliable coordination mechanisms were needed to consolidate experiences and ensure lasting progress. The turning point came in 2015, when Violence Prevention Network and other actors successfully advocated for prison-based disengagement to be anchored in the federal programme Demokratie Leben! of the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs. For the first time, the field gained a dedicated funding pillar, creating a baseline of stability across the country. Building on this new foundation, Violence Prevention Network helped initiate the AG Strafvollzugund Bewährungshilfe, i.e. Working Group on Prison and Probation Services, a working group that brought together representatives from state ministries, practitioners and researchers from different federal states. The establishment of this forum marked an important step towards greater coherence and professionalisation within the field. Through regular exchange, the group facilitated dialogue between practice, policy and academia, fostering a shared understanding of challenges, needs and effective approaches in prison-based disengagement.

Over time, the AG Strafvollzug und Bewährungshilfe developed common quality criteria and professional standards that have since guided the implementation of interventions across Germany. Its work also helped strengthen the position of smaller NGOs and local initiatives, which could now align their efforts with recognised frameworks and benefit from a structured exchange of experience and knowledge. This collaboration enabled more consistency in practice while leaving room for regional adaptation and innovation. What had once begun as a small pilot project in a few prisons has thus evolved into a nationwide professional initiative, one that continues to shape the field, inform policy development, and promote sustainable cooperation between governmental and civil society actors.

A key milestone in our development of infrastructure is the involvement and ongoing cooperation in the context of KN:IX – Kompetenznetzwerk Islamistischer Extremismus or Competency Network on Islamist Extremism. KN:IX was initiated as a platform that connects diverse organisations of P/CVE and political education, fosters targeted training, and produces practical guidelines. It continuously monitors trends and needs in Islamist extremism, translating insights from research and practice into actionable prevention strategies. The network facilitated the exchange of knowledge, professional standards, and methods among actors across different fields, supporting the reflection and development of approaches used in prevention work. KN:IX’s overarching goal was to promote sustainable, discrimination-sensitive practices in education, youth work, social services, and prison settings, helping embed good practices into regular structures. Through advisory support, training, and practical tools, the network strengthened professionalisation and collaboration in a field that was previously fragmented. This ongoing work demonstrates that lasting impact requires cooperation, shared standards, and political recognition from the very beginning.

As a further step in strengthening this structural foundation Violence Prevention Network is part of the of the national dist[ex] – Development of a Network for Disengagement and Exit Work, which focuses explicitly on building a cross-phenomenon network for disengagement and exit support. Rather than creating a single new institution, dist[ex] works to connect and align the organisations already active across Germany, establishing shared reference points, professional standards, and channels for coordinated action. Over eight years, the project aims to consolidate the field of tertiary prevention across thematical focus points by bringing practitioners into sustained dialogue, enabling them to exchange methods, reflect on challenges, and learn from one another in a structured way. At the same time, dist[ex] engages policy stakeholders to make visible what the field needs in order to operate effectively and sustainably. A continuous process of mapping, needs assessment, and resource analysis ensures that the network grows in response to real practice rather than abstract planning. In this sense, dist[ex] is less the creation of a new centre than the weaving together of what already exists, a deliberate effort to make the field more coherent, resilient, and capable of acting collectively by bridging research, practice and monitoring efforts.

Building on this foundation, Violence Prevention Network launched the nationwide Beratungskompass Verschwörungdenken (Counselling Compass Conspiracy Thinking) in 2024, a referral service responding to the rise of conspiracy-driven radicalisation during the COVID-19 pandemic and related acts of violence. Commissioned by several federal ministries, the service connects both individuals and professionals to more than twenty specialised counselling services, ranging from sect advisory services to disengagement practitioners. The initiative is supported by uniform quality standards, safeguarding protocols, and a digital platform that allows practitioners to coordinate, exchange knowledge, and stay up to date. Despite attacks from trolls and hostile actors, the service quickly established itself as a trusted point of contact, generating dozens of referrals each month and strengthening the overall counselling landscape in Germany.

These developments illustrate that prevention work invariably entails an infrastructural dimension. Projects remain vulnerable without stable funding structures, particularly to political cycles and personnel changes. Professionalisation through quality standards and safeguarding concepts is essential to gain credibility and ensure long-term impact. At the same time, flexibility is crucial. Emerging threats require rapid response, and Violence Prevention Network demonstrates how civil society actors must adapt to emerging societal developments. Political engagement is equally indispensable. Only through sustained advocacy with ministries and policymakers Violence Prevention Network was able to transform isolated initiatives into lasting national platforms and secure stable funding.

Violence Prevention Network’s experience offers valuable lessons for international contexts. While many debates remain focused on security-driven approaches to jihadism, other forms of extremism, including conspiracy ideologies and hybrid threats, are on the rise. The trajectory of Violence Prevention Network demonstrates that civil society actors can play a decisive role in building sustainable, flexible, and professionally organised infrastructures that strengthen democratic resilience, independent of thematical focus if the political will exists to foster this expertise. The organisation’s success is therefore not measured merely by individual projects, but by its ability to create systems and frameworks that allow prevention and exit work to endure, adapt, and make a tangible difference.

Benedikt Büchsenschütz is a Research Fellow at Violence Prevention Network, with a focus on gender in extremism, (online) radicalisation, and hybrid ideologies. He holds a Master’s degree in Crisis and Security Management: Governance of Radicalism, Extremism and Terrorism (MSc) from Leiden University.