Brussels – February 28^th, 2024 

We are pleased to invite you to the SHIELD Final Conference, which will take place on 28^th February 2024 in Brussels.

The SHIELD Project is a European initiative that aims to protect places of worship from the risks of terrorism and violent attacks, by developing effective strategies and tools to assess and enhance their security and resilience.

Places of worship, such as mosques, churches and synagogues, are vital for the civil coexistence and social and cultural cohesion of the EU and its citizens. However, they are also vulnerable to terrorist attacks, as witnessed by the tragic events that occurred in Europe in the last decade. To address this challenge, the SHIELD Project, funded by the European Commission through its Internal Security Fund, has brought together 18 partners from 10 EU countries, representing EU public and private actors, religious organisations, security practitioners, law enforcement agencies, municipalities, experts in risk detection and technological partners.

The SHIELD Project has conducted an in-depth analysis of violent attacks against places of worship over the last twenty years, and has identified and developed new measures and solutions to ensure their safeguarding.
The project has also provided tools and methods to assess the potential risk level of places of worship, and to implement the appropriate security and resilience measures.

The SHIELD Final Conference will present and showcase the main results and outputs of the project, and will provide an opportunity for dialogue and exchange with the project partners and other stakeholders. The event will also discuss the recommendations and the future perspectives and challenges for the protection of places of worship in the EU and beyond.

We hope that you will join us for this important and timely event.