Extreme Dialogue

Extreme Dialogue supports educators and young people to confront the realities of hate and extremism and how such issues might impact their lives.

Extreme Dialogue is ISD’s longest-running educational programme, reaching thousands of students, teachers, and youth workers globally since 2015. Compelling films tell the first-hand stories of former extremists and survivors of violence, accompanied by a series of interactive resources for use in formal and non-formal settings.

The resources offer a direct challenge to the increasing volume of extremist material and propaganda online, providing a human face for why people can become radicalised and the consequences of their actions. By creating a safe space to discuss the drivers for and pathways out of extremism, the programme helps confront issues which are often ignored or considered too sensitive to broach.

We want to remove the stigma and create an inclusive framework where young people and teachers can feel confident exploring their views. Extreme Dialogue centres on the testimony of real people, told in their own words, raw and unscripted. We believe this is the most powerful way to challenge stereotypes, debunk reductive labels around ‘heroes and villains’, and emphasise the profound impacts of extremism on people’s lives.

Witnesses include:

‘Extreme Dialogue’ is an excellent programme which enables schools to develop the critical thinking skills essential for young people today. The high quality resources help teachers to engage in useful and constructive dialogue with students even in a sphere where emotions, opinions and knowledge can be varied.Alan Fraser, Assistant Head Teacher, Cranford Community College

All content is freely available on the project website in English, French, German and Hungarian.

Since its inception, Extreme Dialogue has been funded by Public Safety Canada (including via the Kanishka Project), and co-funded by the Prevention of and Fight against Crime Programme of the European Union.   

ISD continues to partner with film-makers duckrabbit, the Centre for the Prevention of Radicalization Leading to Violence (CPRLV), and the Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Peace Foundation to develop materials and bring the programme to new contexts worldwide. In Europe the programme is supported by project partners West London Initiative (UK), Cultures Interactive (Germany), and Political Capital (Hungary).

Extreme Dialogue

Extreme Dialogue workshop, London, UK, 2018

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ISD’s Education team

Jennie King
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Jennie King

Director of Climate Research and Policy

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Jennie King
Jennie King

Director of Climate Research and Policy

Jennie King is the Director of Climate Research and Policy, leading efforts to translate ISD's digital research into frontline programming and response. Through ISD, she helped found Climate Action Against Disinformation (CAAD), a coalition of over 50 organisations working to identify, analyse and counter climate disinformation worldwide. She has spearheaded investigations on climate denialism and ‘discourses of delay’ in the contexts of Australia, Canada, Central Europe, Germany, South Africa, the US and UK, as well as co-authored a number of ISD’s flagship reports on this issue. Jennie also helped design, and currently manages, the COP Intelligence Units on behalf of CAAD, leading over 15 partners to produce real-time monitoring of mis- and disinformation around climate summits.
Nathalie Rücker
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Nathalie Rücker

Senior Manager, Capacity Building & Civic Action, ISD Germany

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Nathalie Rücker
Nathalie Rücker

Senior Manager, Capacity Building & Civic Action, ISD Germany

Nathalie Rücker is Senior Manager, Capacity Building and Civic Action for ISD Germany. She manages the Business Council for Democracy (BC4D) project and also co-leads the project "Pan European Coalition against Online Antisemitism" (CCOA). Previously, Nathalie worked at the intersection of peacebuilding research, conflict prevention and human rights education, in Germany and abroad, focusing on global citizenship education and the capacity building of civil society actors. She holds a BA in Political Science and an MA in Public International Law and International Relations and is a trained conflict mediator.
Hanna Börgmann
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Hanna Börgmann

Educator at the Business Council for Democracy, ISD Germany

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Hanna Börgmann
Hanna Börgmann

Educator at the Business Council for Democracy, ISD Germany

Hanna Börgmann is leading the research project "Countering Radicalization in Right-Wing Extremist Online Subcultures” at ISD Germany. She also works as an Educator for the Business Council for Democracy (BC4D), where she empowers employees to deal with hate speech, disinformation and conspiracy ideology online. Prior to joining ISD Germany, Hanna worked as a public sector consultant on digital transformation projects for PwC Germany and as a project coordinator for German-Israeli exchange in the field of innovation, including artificial intelligence, at ELNET Germany. Previously, Hanna earned her Master's degree in International Affairs at the Hertie School in Berlin, where she conducted research on antisemitic radicalization and mobilization in the image board subcultures of the so-called Chans, using the terrorist attack on the synagogue in Halle, Germany, as a case study.
Iris Boyer
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Iris Boyer

Senior Advisor, ISD France

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Iris Boyer
Iris Boyer

Senior Advisor, ISD France

Iris Boyer is a Senior Advisor at ISD and spearheads ISD’s development in France. She also works as a Senior Policy Consultant for Reset and is an honorary member of different expert groups on information manipulations and online threats set up by the French regulatory body. She has recently set up the first coalition of academics observing cyberthreats to electoral integrity in France. Previously she spent five years overseeing ISD’s flagship communications, education and technology programming, as well as mobilising and training international networks of civil society organizations against online hate and radicalisation, and designing digital citizenship modules against disinformation.  Iris has also worked as a Senior Policy Manager for the Web Foundation where she led the global roll out strategy of the Contract for the Web, focusing on Platforms and Government accountability. Before that, Iris spent time working at Facebook and Google on European and Global programming supporting the mobilisation of civil society against online harms. She started her career working for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and held several positions covering Russian speaking countries. Her background is in political science and public policy.