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A Playbook for European Cyber Community

29 January 2026 · Updated 16 June 2026 · Ben Visser · 3 min read

At a glance - TL;DR

A trip to Connect4Cyber in Tallinn sparked a recognition: the European NCC network and the student organisation IAESTE share the same underlying community structure, and that parallel points toward a deliberate playbook. The thesis is simple: when technically minded, internationally curious people gather repeatedly across borders, self-selection does the hard work of community building. Making that process conscious, rather than leaving it to chance, could significantly strengthen Europe's collective cybersecurity posture.

Key takeaways

  • The European NCC matchmaking events already have the ingredients of a strong community: cross-border gatherings, knowledge sharing, and natural filtering for curious, collaborative professionals.
  • The IAESTE model worked because it was enjoyable, not just functional; rotating hosting, shared workshops, and genuine social energy made people want to keep showing up.
  • NCCs should consciously adopt this playbook: rotate event hosting across member states, make gatherings worth attending for their own sake, and let self-selection build the community over time.
  • A stronger community directly improves proposal quality, which in turn strengthens Europe's cybersecurity posture as a whole.
  • The infrastructure and funding mechanisms are already in place; what is missing is the connective tissue that turns a professional network into a genuine community.

Hey there,

Last week took me back to Tallinn, but not for the usual monthly accelerator day. This time it was Connect4Cyber, a consortium matchmaking event that left me with more than just potential partnerships. It sparked a recognition that's been crystallising since the Toulouse trade mission: I think I've seen this pattern before.

The Spark

Two Digital Europe calls for proposal caught our attention, both with deadlines on 31 March and both hitting close to home for the work we do at Askara Solutions. As I wrote about recently in "Playing the European Game", I'm becoming increasingly aware of how money and momentum are unlocked in the European business climate.

And I'm starting to genuinely love it.

The reason became clear during the event itself. Something about the atmosphere, the structure, the kinds of people in the room felt deeply familiar. It reminded me of work I did for my very first entrepreneurial endeavour as a student.

Back then, I attempted to found a local committee of IAESTE in Delft. IAESTE is a global organisation that exchanges technical internships. Both Reinier, my partner at Askara Solutions, and I were members during our studies. In Europe, the organisation is mostly run by students who organise events and conferences for each other. The purpose is twofold: raise more students and internships, and train each other to keep operations alive across generations.

Those conferences were always the highlights of my student life. And walking through C4C, that same energy was unmistakably present.

The Pattern

So what made IAESTE work so well? Let me reverse-engineer it.

Local committees met at annual events they organised for each other, with responsibility rotating amongst participating countries. There were workshops on specific topics to share knowledge and develop skills. You always learned something about the local context of whatever country you were visiting.

But perhaps most importantly, the organisation naturally attracted engineering students who loved travelling. This created automatic filtering criteria for a similar sense of humour, curiosity, and appetite for the unknown. The community built itself through self-selection.

Now look at the European cybersecurity landscape. It operates through NCCs, National Coordination Centres. The Estonian branch organised this matchmaking event, open to any European company. NCCs from other member states joined to help coordinate through their existing connections. The presentations focused on sharing knowledge and best practices around European subsidy programmes.

The parallels are striking. Internationally minded technical professionals gathering across borders. Knowledge sharing through structured workshops and presentations. Learning about the cybersecurity landscape in different countries. Natural filtering for people who are curious, collaborative, and committed to building something together.

The Proposal

Here's my thinking: NCCs should consciously adopt the IAESTE playbook.

Continue organising these events for each other. Rotate hosting responsibilities. Make the gatherings genuinely enjoyable, not just functional. Create the conditions where community builds itself through self-selection of the right kinds of people.

Why does this matter?

A strong community is the most effective instrument for building things that need to last. The more attractive it becomes for organisations to participate in these events, the better the proposals will become. The stronger the proposals, the stronger the cybersecurity posture of Europe grows as a whole.

This approach also emphasises something unique about being European. Our strength lies in diversity working together. Different national contexts, different expertise, different perspectives, all coordinated through relationships built on genuine connection rather than mere transaction.

By making these community building mechanisms conscious, we can take intentional action to manifest them effectively. What emerged organically in student organisations can be designed deliberately into professional ecosystems.

The Invitation

I truly think there's something here worth exploring further.

If you're involved in coordinating European cybersecurity initiatives and this resonates, please reach out. I'd love to brainstorm what a more intentional community building approach could look like.

The infrastructure exists. The people are there. The funding mechanisms are in place. What's needed is the connective tissue that turns a network into a community.

With care, Ben