struggle for agency wields violence, is inclusive dialogue the right way to respond? If it is part of the toolbox, what are its strengths and limitations in engaging with radical or violent extremist groups? What emerging lessons can help to ensure that inclusive dialogue ‘does no harm’ in the efforts to prevent and respond to violent extremism?

Some forms of dialogue involve grassroots actors and aim to mitigate or transform conflict, or to establish an area of cooperation, such as humanitarian action, rather than explicitly and formally to settle a conflict. It is in this vein that practitioners speak of inclusive dialogue, which—though not always only at the local level— moves a diverse range of actors towards a common objective such as a shared understanding or trust.

This Issue Brief explores such forms of dialogue at the local level, particularly within communities susceptible to the influences and effects of violent extremism.