Project partner: Department of Justice and Community Safety (DJCS)
This project investigated local community understanding of and capacity for Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) in three rural-regional Victorian communities.
The research explored the protections, vulnerabilities, needs and resources that exist in these communities, in relation to their capacity for CVE.
By identifying gaps in addressing locally based radicalisation to violence, the project aimed to assist communities and all levels of government to leverage resources and build CVE capacity.
Project strengths
The project built on the foundations of the team’s previous research, using the same study design from 2024 work in rural and regional settings in NSW, Queensland and South Australia. The project emphasised that rural and regional areas are not immune to radicalisation and violent extremist actions, referencing the 2022 Wieambilla siege in Queensland as a stark reminder of this.
Project recommendations
The project provided 14 recommendations and future considerations, including:
- providing rural-regional communities with education and awareness resources around radicalisation and violent extremism (VE)
- involving local community in the co-design and delivery of these resources
- enhancing local community organisations’ capacity to deliver education on VE by embedding it alongside existing social harms awareness programming in other domains
- investing in stronger training and resources for Victorian schools so they can leverage existing centralised state-level support around concerns relating to radicalisation to VE.
Project impact
The research and its findings have been shared with key stakeholders across all states and territories, extending the impact of the project beyond Victoria. This has enabled stakeholders around the country to consider approaches to CVE awareness in their respective rural and regional communities.
In April 2026, a roundtable discussion will be held between the project team and key stakeholders. This will further advance the project’s impact as it will allow CVE practitioners and law-enforcement agencies to further unpack the key findings and future considerations, and mature these into practical applications in their rural-regional settings.
In addition to providing a highly impactful project, DJCS had an extremely positive experience engaging with the research team. In particular, Professor Grossman’s substantial expertise in VE and P/CVE coupled with a strong understanding of working and partnering with government ensured strong governance throughout the project
Project team
Associate Professor Mario Peucker (Victoria University)
Thomas Fisher (Deakin University)
Katrina Scaramella (Australian Multicultural Foundation)
Project details
Project start date: July 2024
Project end date: June 2025
Funding body: Countering Violent Extremism Subcommittee (CVESC), Australia-New Zealand Counter-Terrorism Committee (ANZCTC)