‘Understanding violent extremism’ – one of the most challenging questions in geopolitics today – is the theme of a seminar and discussion to be held on Tuesday at the University of Malta.
The guest speaker is Prof. Ian Linden from St Mary’s University, London, former director of the UK developmental NGO and think-tank Catholic Institute of International Relations (CIIR), a post he held for 15 years.
For the past decade he has been involved in the psychology of the extremist mind and countering violent extremism, currently with a focus on the Balkans. He is an authority on conflict studies and active in Christian-Muslim relations and the mobilisation of faith organisations in international development.
During his presentation, Prof. Linden will reflect on the sociology and psychology of religious extremism and what it might teach us about healthy religious development.
Based on his recent work with men prone to violent extremism in Bosnia he will seek to answer questions such as ‘What are the vulnerabilities to the lure of extremism?’, ‘Is there an ‘extremist mind’?’ and ‘How can an extremist change their mind?’
Prof. Linden is a visiting professor at St Mary’s University, London, and a former professorial research associate at SOAS, University of London.
Trained as an historian, he has been Professor of African History at the University of Hamburg and is the author of Church and Revolution in Rwanda (1977), A New Map of the World (2003), and Global Catholicism: Towards a Networked Church (2012).
He has also written for academic journals and leading newspapers like The Guardian for over 40 years.
The seminar will be held on Tuesday from 6 to 7pm in the University’s Faculty of Arts Library, on the third floor of Old Humanities Building, next to Room 301. It will be followed by discussion.
Students and the public are invited to attend.
The seminar is being convened by Paul Clough, Peter Mayo and Michael Briguglio as part of the 21st edition of the Work in Progress in the Social Studies (WIPSS) seminar series.