Since 2014, the Austrian “Network Culture of Democracy and Prevention” has been successfully pursuing a municipal strategy against extremism and devaluation ideologies using existing institutions and structures responsible for the care, counselling and education of children, adolescents and young adults. The network intensively deals with any form of group-based devaluation ideologies and anti-democratic attitudes, placing special emphasis on the protection of children and young people and the promotion of social cohesion.
Current priorities of the network are:
- Radicalisation and extremism: The network is the coordination office of the Vienna Network Democracy Culture and Prevention. The network deals with all forms of extreme, degrading, and anti-democratic attitudes. Its fields of activity include the further education of persons working with children and young people and magistrates and institutions of the City of Vienna relevant to children and young people, the improvement of exchange and cooperation between different authorities, organisations and institutions of the city as well as the development of expertise on extremism and prevention.
- Mobbing among children and youths: The network sees the daily experience of harassment and psycho-terror as a serious problem in our society. Austria is the sad leader in Europe when it comes to so-called “bullying” in schools. Together with a working group of experts dealing with the subject of bullying, the network has developed a brochure on the prevention of bullying.
- Sexual violence against children and young people: Sexual violence against children and young people unfortunately always remains a current topic.
More information is available in German language here.