Preventing Radicalization at the Local Level: Municipal Perspectives on State-Civil Society Collaboration in Germany

Authors

  • Chiara von Hollen-Pierobon European University Viadrina

Keywords:

Radicalization Prevention, Prevention of Violent Extremism (PVE), Municipal Governance, State-Civil Society Collaboration, Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), Germany

Abstract

Collaboration between civil society and state authorities in preventing radicalization has often been met with scepticism in academic debates, particularly due to concerns about power asymmetries, structural inequalities, and the risk of co-optation. While existing literature offers critical insights into national institutional frameworks and their implications for civil society, it frequently overlooks the local dynamics that shape prevention practices on the ground. The paper addresses this gap by examining cooperation between municipal officials and civil society organizations (CSOs) in local preventive efforts, focusing on the relatively understudied case of Germany. Specifically, this pilot study centres on the perspectives of municipal actors rather than directly capturing CSO voices. Drawing on 14 semi-structured interviews with municipal officers in Germany, it explores how collaboration is influenced not only by their formal mandates, but also by individual professional trajectories and locally embedded networks. The findings show that local cooperation in the prevention field is more contingent and negotiated than commonly acknowledged. Enabling factors and persistent challenges - such as lack of trust, divergent expectations, and the limited capacities of smaller CSOs - affect the quality and sustainability of these partnerships. By foregrounding lived experience and first-person perspectives of municipal officials, the paper advances a more grounded and relational understanding of state-civil society collaboration, one that accounts for the hybrid arrangements and interpersonal dynamics through which preventive efforts unfold at the local level.

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF). The opinions, findings, and conclusions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of BAMF or the Federal Ministry of the Interior (BMI). I am grateful to the Vereinigung Pestalozzi / LEGATO Verbund for the opportunity to work as a research consultant in their project Kommunale Fachberatung: Prävention und gesellschaftlicher Zusammenhalt. The data collected during this work provided the basis for the present study. My deepest thanks go to the municipal officials who generously shared their time, insights, and experiences. 

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2025-09-26

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