Momentum’s recent admission as a member of CEC (Comité Européen de Coordination – Acting for Social Inclusion) opens a significant new channel for the ARENAS project to reach the communities its research is designed to serve.
ARENAS is investigating extremist narratives across 15 European countries, with a focus on three core themes: Science, Nation, and Gender. The project does not simply study these narratives in the abstract; it aims to produce practical tools and recommendations that help individuals and communities recognise, resist, and respond to them. To do that effectively, ARENAS needs robust pathways to the people and organisations who work directly with those most affected. The CEC network provides exactly that.
Founded over 20 years ago, CEC connects 19 national and regional member organisations across 15 EU countries, linking more than 1,600 local associations and structures. Together, these organisations support 100,000 young people and adults annually, focusing on social and professional integration for those who are most disadvantaged in the labour market. As a connector, advocate, and knowledge-sharing hub, CEC operates at the precise intersection of frontline delivery and European-level policy influence.
This alignment is particularly meaningful for two of ARENAS’s core research themes. Extremist narratives linked to the Nation, encompassing attitudes towards migrants, questions of identity, and anti-immigrant sentiment, disproportionately affect the very groups that CEC member organisations support daily. Similarly, Gender-based extremist narratives, which generate hate speech and discrimination while shaping legislative and political debates, have a direct and tangible impact on the lives of marginalised young people and adults across the EU. CEC’s member network reaches these populations in ways that academic and policy channels often cannot.
Through Momentum’s membership, ARENAS now has a route into this network. The consortium’s training materials, educational tools, and remediation strategies can be shared with organisations that are already embedded in communities where extremist narratives cause real harm. Equally, the lived experiences of CEC’s member organisations and the people they serve provide invaluable grounding for ARENAS research, ensuring that findings remain connected to the realities they seek to address.
Momentum’s participation in the CEC General Assembly in Brussels in June 2026, and the connections forged there with social inclusion organisations from across the EU, mark the beginning of what promises to be a productive relationship. As ARENAS moves into its final phase and focuses on exploitation and impact, the CEC network offers a meaningful bridge between research outputs and the communities that stand to benefit most.