Certificate Program on “Radicalization, Populism, and Islamophobism” (24-26 May 2021)

28 May 2021

In collaboration with the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) and the European Institute at Istanbul Bilgi University, the PRIME Youth research team held a 3-day certificate program entitled “Radicalization, Populism, and Islamophobism.”  

The program focused on the current academic and public debates on radicalization, populism, Islamophobia, and Islamism in the EU. In this framework, each member of our research team had a 2-hour session to scrutinize the socio-economic, political, psychological, and geographic dimensions of radicalization.  

All sessions were held in Turkish and met by the Turkish academic circles with great interest. The program was broadcast simultaneously on ZOOM and YouTube, with more than 800 registered users and 140 active participants.

The program was as follows:

1st Day: Europe with(out) Borders

Yaşar Aydın (Protestant University for Social Work and Deaconry, Hamburg): Social Polarization in Europe

Metin Koca (Istanbul Bilgi University, PRIME Youth Project): Islamic Radicalization in Europe

Deniz Güneş Yardımcı (DAAD and Istanbul Bilgi University): Film Screening and Discussion, session I  

2nd Day: Islamophobism and Islamism

Senem Aydın-Düzgit (Sabancı University): European Integration and Turkey

Ayhan Kaya (Istanbul Bilgi University, PRIME Youth Project): Europe, from the Past to The Present: Identities, Narratives, and Integration

Deniz Güneş Yardımcı (DAAD and Istanbul Bilgi University): Film Screening and Discussion, session II  

3rd Day: The Rise of Populism

Evren Balta (Özyeğin University): The Rise of Right-wing Populism in Europe

Ayşenur Benevento (Istanbul Bilgi University, PRIME Youth Project): The Socio-Psychological Dynamics of Social Exclusion in Europe

Deniz Güneş Yardımcı (DAAD and Istanbul Bilgi University): Film Screening and Discussion, session III