Interdisciplinary Education and Training on Hybrid Warfare

<< Background >>Security challenges come in many disguises and have the potential to undermine the security of the European Union and the very values that underpin and inspire its societies. The EU must be committed to address these challenges with all available means to support improved awareness, strengthen resilience and build the required capacity. The concept of Hybrid Warfare (HW) subsequently evolved to cover a multitude of actors, strategies and actions. Overcoming a uniquely military-centred point of view is at the core of HW as it takes advantage of the disunity within organisations of political entities and from the absence of a hegemon in international relations. In the course of the 3 years of our project, the need for such awareness and learning has been underpinned by the war in Ukraine and recent events in Israel. The aim of the project was to provide a conceptual framework for a better understanding of the attributes of current and most likely, future conflicts to a variety of key stakeholders, and in particular to the youth. This required a comprehensive academic and professional curriculum aimed at enhancing situational and contextual awareness and in particular, the anticipated consequences of such conflicts. << Objectives >>At the core of the proposed project was the development of a Hybrid Warfare Reference Curriculum (HWRC) for military, police and civilian students of higher education institutions. The HWRC as a document reflects the combined knowledge of a multinational team of academics and policy experts. The intention behind the project was to draw experts from nations across the EU, as well as from other partner institutions to provide teaching and research activities in Hybrid Warfare. The project team wanted the HWRC -to serve as a platform of reference, an initial document for individuals and/or organisations looking to develop a curriculum dedicated to combating HW, or to amend their existing curricula accordingly. -to provide an overview of underlying ideologies, motivations and methods, and contemporary practices and projections of future potential conflicts. -to contribute to European and Transatlantic cooperation in security-related issues through education by offering students, professors, researchers, policy experts and the interested public a new international and interdisciplinary platform of study, and also a foundation for cutting-edge, practice-oriented knowledge in the Hybrid Warfare domain.<< Implementation >>To achieve the aims of the Hybrid Warfare Project we developed 3 project results (PRs), tested the first two via 2 learning/teaching/training activities (LTTs) and promoted the project and its results at 6 multiplier events and at a variety of other occasions. The most important activities undertaken were the following:1)We developed the Hybrid Warfare Reference Curriculum (PR1). In relation to PR1 it must be emphasised that the intent behind the three Volumes was to keep the teaching as flexible as possible to best comply with the needs of students enrolled to the Hybrid Warfare course. This versatility also supports the lecturers’ need as it makes possible to balance lectures delivered and seminar conducted, covering a huge bandwith of actual topics.2)We developed a Teaching Methodology for the education, training and simulation of Hybrid Warfare (PR2). In relation to PR2 it was of utmost importance to develop a teaching methodology and a simulation that promotes collaboration, engagement, and personalized learning. The handbook enhances creativity, problem-solving, and well-being, offers immersive and interactive learning opportunities beyond the classroom. Simulation exercises have the function to provide flexibility and caters to diverse learning styles.3)We created a Hybrid Warfare MOOC (Massive Open Online Course) (PR3). In relation to PR3 the reason behind the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) was to turn as much lectures as possible freely accessible to a vast and diverse audience across the globe. The MOOC also has the benefit that the performance of those who enrolled to official classes of Hybrid Warfare can be monitored easily by using the data captured during the start of courses. Based on MOOC modules both professors and learners get world-wide exposure, increase their pedagogical techniques and share their knowledge. The 24 MOOC modules represent a high coverage of the chapters and can be used as a tool in blended learning programmes, where students have the opportunity to access more information than what is provided in the class.4) We generated 2 spin-offs of the project, that is, we developed a) Recommendations on Gender Perspectives and Military Effectiveness and b) a “HWRC-Light” for secondary schools, which is an abbreviated version of the HWRC with relevant methodology for secondary school students to raise their awareness of hybrid threats relevant to them.5 & 6) We have conducted 2 Learning, Teaching and Training events, one in Israel and one in Slovakia. These two events served the testing of our curriculum and methodology in a blended way with students, who had the opportunity to give their feedback. These activities helped us to improve and tailor-make the curriculum and the MOOC.7) We have disseminated information on our project on various platforms, including social media, conferences, workshops, and targeted multiplier events. We generated debates and delivered the curriculum to universities and students outside our partnership.8) We have executed the project with rigorous financial and project management, used monitoring tools to ensure compliance with budget and other commitments.9) We organised regular project meetings on-line or whenever possible in-situ.10) Thanks to the project the inter-institutional professorial team embarked in new joint projects, such as joint publication and teaching activities.<< Results >>The main outcome of the project was the development of an innovative educational material on Hybrid Warfare, called Hybrid Warfare Reference Curriculum (HWRC), complemented by an innovative teaching methodology and a Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), to attain highest impact. The goal was to -produce the 3 project results (see below) -test the 3PRs via a Workshop and a Winter Seminar (2 LTTs) -launch the HWRC as an accredited elective in the partner universities (as of spring 2024), taught by an international teaching staff -launch the MOOC and -make PRs widely available*The Project Results (PR) were the following: PR1) Hybrid Warfare Reference Curriculum (HWRC): The HWRC has been structured into 3 academic volumes: 1) Compulsory lectures, 2) Elective seminars, 3) Elective lectures. The preparation of the relevant chapters was done by the multinational professorial team and went through rigorous quality control by the coordinator, following an iterative process, mostly facilitated by e‐mail and phone communication tools.PR2) Teaching methodology for the education, training and simulation of Hybrid Warfare: A guidebook complementing the HWRC with a variety of tools and methodologies. PR3) Hybrid Warfare MOOC: Consisting of a series of online and blended modules based on the HWRC and the methodology developed in PR1 and PR2.Spinoff 1) Recommendations on Military Gender Studies: drawing from the skills and experience of LFA and BIU, an exchange of ideas and best practices took place and were summarised in the form of policy recommendations. Spinoff 2) HWRC Light: An abbreviated version of the HWRC with relevant methodology was designed for secondary school students to raise their awareness of hybrid threats relevant to them The above PRs were tested via-LTT1) Pilot testing of the Hybrid Warfare Reference Curriculum (HWRC) and Teaching Methodology for a university course on Hybrid Warfare – blended workshop for students and teachers -LTT2) Beta testing of the complete course design including the MOOC, the blended elements and the reference curriculum – blended short study programme for students with simulation exercises *The course has appeared as accredited electives in the participating universities’ curricula *A HWRC Online Platform and website was set up, aiming to offer an interactive resource for promoting remote learning, making all PRs widely available as Open Educational Resources (OER) and help dissemination. *Project activities and results were disseminated to more than 2000 persons/organisations.