Think
tank
A think tank (or policy institute) is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy,
political strategy, economics, military or technology issues. Most think tanks
are non-profit organizations, which some countries
such as the United States and Canada provide with tax exempt status. Other think tanks are funded by governments, advocacy groups, or
businesses, or derive revenue from consulting or research work related to their
projects.[1] A few have endowments.
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While the term
"think tank" originated in the 1950s, organizations date to the 19th
century. The Institute for Defence and Security Studies (RUSI)
was founded in 1831 in London. The Fabian Society in Britain dates from 1884. The Brookings Institution began
in Washington in 1916.
After 1945, the number
of think tanks grew, as many smaller new think tanks were formed to express
various issue and policy agendas. Until the 1940s, most think tanks were known
only by the name of the institution. During the Second World War, think tanks
were referred to as "brain boxes" after the slang term for the skull.
The phrase "think tank" in wartime American slang referred to rooms
in which strategists discussed war planning. The term think tank itself,
however, was originally used in reference to organizations that offered
military advice, most notably the RAND Corporation,
founded originally in 1946 as an offshoot of Douglas Aircraft and which became an independent corporation in 1948.
For most of the 20th
century, independent public policy think tanks that performed research and
provided advice on public policy were an organizational phenomenon found
primarily in the United States, with a much smaller number in Canada and
Western Europe. Although think tanks existed in Japan for some time they
generally lacked independence, having close ties to government ministries or
corporations. There has been a veritable proliferation of “think tanks” around
the world that began in the 1980s as a result of the forces of globalization,
the end of the Cold War, and the emergence of transnational problems.
Two-thirds of all the think tanks that exist today were established after 1970
and over half were established since 1980.[2]
The impact of
globalization on the think tank movement is most evident in regions such as
Africa, Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and parts of Southeast Asia, where there
was a concerted effort by the international community to support the creation
of independent public policy research organizations. A recent survey conducted
by the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Think Tanks and Civil Societies
Program underscores the significance of this effort and documents the fact that
most of the think tanks in these regions have been established in the last 10
years. Today there are over 4,500 of these institutions around the world. Many
of the more established think tanks, having been created during the Cold War,
are focused on international affairs, security studies, and foreign policy.[2]
Think tanks vary by
ideological perspectives, sources of funding, issue focus and prospective
audience.[3] Some think tanks, such as theHeritage Foundation, which promotes conservative principles,
and the Center for American Progress on the progressive front, are more partisan in
purpose. Others, including the Tellus Institute,
which focuses on social and environmental topics, are more issue-oriented
groups. Still others, such as the Cato Institute,
promote libertarian social and economic theories based on Friedrich von Hayek's idea of free markets and
individual liberty.
Funding sources and the
targeted audiences also define the workings of think tanks. Some receive direct
government support, while others rely on private individual or corporate
donors. This will invariably affect the levels of academic freedom within each
think tank and to whom or what the institution feels beholden. Funding may also
reflect who or what the institution wants to influence; in the United States,
for example, "Some donors want to influence votes in Congress or shape
public opinion, others want to position themselves or the experts they fund for
future government jobs, while others want to push specific areas of research or
education."[3]
A new trend, resulting
from globalization, is collaboration between think tanks across
continents. For instance, the Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace operates offices in Washington,
D.C., Beijing, Beirut, Brussels and Moscow.[3]
The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program
(TTCSP) annually rates think tanks
worldwide in a number of categories and presents its findings in the GLOBAL “GO-TO THINK
TANKS” rating index.
Mendizabal[4] show that in Latin America think tanks can play a
number of functions depending on their origins, historical development and
relations to other policy actors. In this study, Orazio Bellettini from Grupo FARO suggests that they:[5]
1. Seek political support for policies – This is an
accepted definition of the main role of think tanks across the world.
2. Legitimise policies – This has been clearer in
Ecuador, Bolivia and Peru. New governments in Ecuador and Peru have approached
think tanks for support for already defined policies. In Bolivia, the
government led by Evo Morales has been working with NGOs and other research centres to do the same. However, in
the Chilean context, many think tanks during the 1990s appeared to support and
maintain the legitimacy of policies implemented during the previous decade by
the dictator Augusto Pinochet.
3. Spaces of debate – In this case think tanks serve
as sounding boards for new policies. In Chile, during the Pinochet dictatorship,
many left wing intellectuals and researchers found ‘asylum’ in think tanks. In
Ecuador, think tanks are seen as spaces where politicians can test the
soundness of their policies and government plans.
4. Financial channels for political parties or other
interest groups – In Ecuador and Bolivia, German foundations have been able to
provide funds to think tanks that work with certain political parties. This
approach has provided support to the system as a whole rather than individual
CSOs.
5. Expert cadres of policy-makers and politicians – In
Peru after the fall of the Fujimori regime, and in Chile after the fall of Pinochet, think
tank staff left to form part of the new governments. In the U.S., the role of
leading think tanks is precisely that: host scholars for a few months or years
and then see them off to work in policy.
How a think tank
addresses these largely depends on how they work, their ideology vs. evidence
credentials, and the context they operate in (including funding opportunities,
the degree and type of competition they face, their staff, etc.).
This functional
approach addresses the inherit challenge of defining a think tank. As Simon
James aptly noted in 1998, "Discussion of think tanks…has a tendency to
get bogged down in the vexed question of defining what we mean by ‘think tank’
– an exercise which often degenerates into futile semantics.[6] It is better (as in the Network Functions
Approach) to describe what the organisation should do. Then
the shape of the organisation should follow to allow this to happen. The
following framework (based on Stephen Yeo’s description of think tanks’ mode of
work) in the described in Enrique Mendizabal's blog: onthinktanks.
1. Independent research: this would be work done with
core or flexible funding that allows the researchers the liberty to choose
their research questions and method. It may be long term and could focus on
‘big ideas’ with no direct policy relevance. On the other hand, it could focus
on a key policy problem that requires a thorough research and action
investment.
2. Consultancy: this would be work done through
commissions with specific clients and addressing one or two key questions.
Consultancies often respond to an existing agenda.
3. Influencing/advocacy: this would be work done
through communications, capacity development, networking, campaigns, lobbying,
etc. It is likely to be based on research based evidence emerging from
independent research or consultancies.
Second, think tanks
may base their work or arguments on:
1. Ideology, values or interests
2. Applied, empirical or synthesis research
3. Theoretical or academic research
According to the National Institute for Research
Advancement, a Japanese think tank, think tanks are "one
of the main policy actors in democratic societies ..., assuring a pluralistic,
open and accountable process of policy analysis, research, decision-making and
evaluation".[8] A study in early 2009 found a total of 5,465 think
tanks worldwide. Of that number, 1,777 were based in the United States and
approximately 350 in Washington DC alone.[9]
In some cases,
corporate interests have found it useful to create "think tanks." For
example, The Advancement of Sound Science
Coalitionwas formed in the mid 1990s to dispute research
finding a link between second-hand smoke and cancer.[10] According to an internal memo from Philip Morris,
"the credibility of the EPA is
defeatable, but not on the basis of ETS (environmental tobacco smoke) alone. It
must be part of a larger mosaic that concentrates all the EPA's enemies against
it at one time."[11]
According to the
left-wing NGO Fair.org, right-wing think tanks are often quoted and
rarely labeled. The result is that sometimes think tank "experts" are
depicted as neutral sources without any ideological predispositions when, in
fact, they represent a particular perspective.[12] In the field of education, think tank publications are
subjected to expert review by the National Education Policy Center's "Think Twice" think tank review project.[13]
In Korea, The National
Research Council for Economics, Humanities and Social Sciences(NRCS) is a
public institution which supported 23 related research institutes in their
quest to achieve the effective management and improvement of their research
environment under the Prime Minister. It was established with the objective of
supporting and fostering research institutes in the area of economics and
social science and systematically supervising them in their contributions to
the production of high-quality national policy research and the development of
a concrete knowledge industry. The NRCS was reorganized in 2005 through the
merger of the Korea Council of Economic and Social Research Institutes and the
Korea Research Council for Humanities and Social Sciences established
separately in 1999.
The Center for Free Enterprise (Korea) is
a free market think tank located in Seoul, South Korea, with pages in both
English (http://eng.cfe.org)
and Korean (http://www.cfe.org).
In the People's Republic of Bangladesh a number of think tanks are working on foreign policy
and security issues. Most of these are based inDhaka.
The Centre for International Affairs[14] is one of them. It was established by Dr. Ataur Rahman
Khan, Professor of International Relations in Jahagirnagar University.[15] It is now incorporated with the Department of
International Relations, Jahangirnagar University.[15]
In the People's Republic of China a number of think tanks are sponsored by governmental
agencies, like Development Research
Center of the State Council,[16] but still retain sufficient non-official status to be
able to propose and debate ideas more freely. Indeed, most of the actualdiplomacy between China and the United States has taken the form of academic exchanges between
members of think tanks.[citation needed]
In Hong Kong, those
early think tanks established in the late 1980s and early 1990s focused on the
political development including first direct Legislative Council members
election in 1991 and the political framework of "One Country, Two Systems"
manifested in the Sino-British Joint Declaration.
After the transfer of sovereignty to China in 1997, more and more think tanks
were established by various groups of intellectuals and professionals. They
have various missions and objectives including promoting civic education;
undertaking research on economic social and political policies; promoting
"public understanding of and participation in the political, economic, and
social development of the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region".
India has the third
largest number of think tanks in the world.[17] Many are based in New Delhi, and a few are government
sponsored. A number of these work on foreign policy and security issues[citation needed]. There
are few think tanks like Centre for Civil Society who promote liberal social and economic ideas and
others like Rakshak Foundation who encourage students to do empirical research and
gain first hand experience in public policy issues.
Several organizations
were established in IR Iran since late 90’s which offer a unique blend of
interdisciplinary research. Their focuses have been to provide social managers
and make policies. Andishkadeh Yaghin(CBSDA), Atinegaar Think Tank, Nano Health Think Tank,
ASEF Think tank, Seywan Institute,
and Sharif Think tank & Polytechnic Think Tank are some famous Think tanks
in this region.In Persian language called "Andishkadeh" instead
Think-tank are used.
Malaysia has a few
number of think tanks, most which are government or political party related.
Their focuses have been on defence, politics and policies. Notable ones include
the Institute of Strategic and International Studies (ISIS), Malaysian
Strategic Research Centre (MSRC), International Institute of Advanced Islamic
Studies (IAIS) Malaysia, Institute for Democracy and Economic Affairs (IDEAS) and Maritime Institute of Malaysia (MIMA). IDEAS is
Malaysia's first classical liberal think tank which is policy oriented.
Pakistan has a number
of think tanks which mainly revolve around Internal Politics, Foreign Security Issues,
and Regional Geo-Politics. Most of these are centered around the capital, Islamabad,
and have been founded by former Military and Intelligence Personnel. Most
recently, institutes such as the National University of Sciences and Technology
have embarked on creating industrial linkages to create think tanks focusing on
industrial and economic growth issues.
Other think tanks
concern religion and how its influence could grow in an already religious
country. These are centred throughout the country and work under the umbrella
of the mammoth Jamaat-e-Islami with headquarters in Lahore and has immense global influence, reach and regard
among more traditional Muslims. However the Jamat is a political party, and
affiliations with reputable think tanks in Pakistan are not clear.
There are several
other think tanks as well, such as those concerning the state of education in
the country which hold many former or present educationists. There are also
think tanks concerning human rights, women rights, labour rights, justice, city
development, heritage protection and environmental protection, all headed by
the country's urban dwelling, educated elite living, most of whom have studied
and/or worked abroad. There remains a vacuum for former high ranking Government
officials and party members to contribute to the think tank and policy advocacy
process in these areas.
Some notable Pakistani
think tanks are the Institute of Policy Studies, the Pakistan Institute of
International Affairs and the Corporate Advisory Council (NUST).
Most are known to the
general public through seminars and newspaper articles, or conducting workshops
and lectures at colleges and universities.
Sri Lanka has a number
of think tanks that are in the form governmental, non-governmental and corporate
organizations. Recently, the Ministry of External Affairs of Sri Lanka
(formerly known as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) established a "Foreign
Policy Think Tank" to facilitate the professional advancement of the
country's foreign policy and the conduct of its external affairs. The structure
of government Think Tanks in Sri Lanka are structured with the help of many
academics and intellectuals affiliated with the government.
The Lakshman Kadirgamar
Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies is a regionally acclaimed policy-studies institute
which is often referred to as a think tank. The Institute of Policy Studies in
Colombo is another policy planning related think tank. The International Center
for Ethnic Studies (located both in Colombo and Kandy) is another
research-related think tank. There are several other focus-research institutes
throughout the country that may be referred to as Think Tanks, such as the
Marga Institute of Sri Lanka.
Other think tanks in
Sri Lanka include the Islamic Think Tank and the Sri Lanka Think Tank - UK.
Many private and government universities in Sri Lanka have research-related
think tanks.
There are 12 think
tanks in Azerbaijan according to The University of Pennsylvania. The Center for Economic and Social
Development (CESD) from Azerbaijan ranked as
one of the top think tanks in the world by The University of Pennsylvania, USA in Global "Go-To
Think Tanks" Report in 2010. According to the University of Pennsylvania rankings - a result of surveys from 1500 scholars and peer review evaluation -the Center for Economic and Social
Development (CESD) is one of the
top 25 think tanks in Central and Eastern Europe,
including CIS.
CESD is the only think tank from the Caucasus and Central Asia included in the top think tanks rankings.
Brussels hosts most of the European Institutions, hence a large
number of international think tanks are based there. Among them there is the Centre for European Policy Studies (CEPS), the Global Governance Institute (GGI), the European Policy Centre (EPC), ThinkYoung,
the Friends of Europe, the Lisbon Council, the European Centre of International
Political Economy (ECIPE), Centre for the New Europe (CNE) and BRUEGEL. The Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR), though based in London, is a network of
researchers based throughout Europe that contributes actively to European
policy debates.
Bulgaria has a number
of think tanks providing expertise and shaping policies. Most active are:
§ Institute of Modern Politics - focused on legislation and parliamentary conduct
from human rights and good governance perspective;
The Association for
International Affairs is a Czech think-tank in the field of international politics and
diplomacy. Its focus is on three areas:education (with the largest educational project in Central
Europe, the Prague Student Summit), research (at
its Research Center) andinternational outreach (currently in Belarus and other countries).[18]
Finland has many
interesting small think tanks that provide expertise in very specific fields. Vasemmistofoorumi researches the future of leftism, OK Do is
socially-minded design thinking organization, Demos Helsinki is a think tank that researches future society and Culture Crisis Management is political artists' think tank, just to mention few.
In addition to
specific independent think tanks, the largest political parties have their own
think tank organizations. This is mainly due to support granted by state for
such activity. The corporate world has focused their efforts to central representative
organization EK, which acts as think
tank in addition to negotiating salaries with workers unions.
In Germany all of the major parties are loosely associated with
research foundations that play some role in shaping policy, but generally from
the more disinterested role of providing research to support policymakers than
explicitly proposing policy. These include the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung (SPD-aligned),
the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung (CDU-aligned),
the Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung (CSU-aligned),
the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung(aligned with the Greens), Friedrich Naumann Foundation (liberal-aligned)
and the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation (aligned with far
left).
The German Institute for International and Security Affairs is a prominent example of a German foreign policy think tank. Atlantic Communitythink tank is an example of independent, non-partisan and non-profit organization which was set up as a joint project of Atlantische Initiative e.V. and Atlantic Initiative U.S.
The German Institute for International and Security Affairs is a prominent example of a German foreign policy think tank. Atlantic Communitythink tank is an example of independent, non-partisan and non-profit organization which was set up as a joint project of Atlantische Initiative e.V. and Atlantic Initiative U.S.
§ Harry S. Truman
Research Institute for the Advancement of Peace,
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
All major political
parties in the Netherlands have state-sponsored research
foundations that play a role in shaping policy. The Dutch government also has
its own think tank: the Scientific Council for Government
Policy. One of the oldest think tanks in the Netherlands is theTransnational Institute in
Amsterdam (1974)
There is a large pool
of think-tanks in Poland;
none of them stands out however. The oldest state-sponsored think tank is the
Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM) established in 1947. The
second most important state-sponsored think tank is the Centre for Eastern Studies(OSW),
which specialises in the post-Communist space. Among the private think tanks
the most important are: the Center for Social and Economic
Research (CASE) on economic policy,
demosEUROPA on EU affairs, the Institute of Public Affairs (ISP) on social policy and the Center for
International Affairs (CSM).
Contraditório think tank was founded in 2008. Contraditório is a non-profit,
independent and non-partisan think tank.
Russian think tanks
have experienced a precipitous decline over the past five years.[when?] Think tanks under the Soviet Union,
analogous to their American counterparts, grew to play a significant role in
strategic policy formation. During the era of glasnost,
begun by Soviet leaderMikhail Gorbachev and continuing under Russian President Boris Yeltsin,
public think tanks and policy organizations underwent a brief blooming.
However, as economic problems intensified under Yeltsin, and political pressure
on public organizations grew under PresidentVladimir Putin,
most of the Russian think tanks have withered away while those who stood closer
to Kremlin saw a recent revival[citation needed].
In Spain,
think tanks are progressively raising their public profile. There are now at
least 30 think tanks in the country. One of the most influential Spanish think
tanks is the Elcano Royal Institute,
created in 2001 following the example of the Royal Institute of International
Affairs (Chatham House) in the UK, although it is closely linked to (and
receives funding from) the Socialist government in power. More independent but
clearly to the left of the political spectrum are the Centro de Investigaciones
de Relaciones Internacionales y Desarrollo (CIDOB) founded in 1973; and the
Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior (FRIDE)
established in 1999 by Diego Hidalgo and main driving force behind projects
such as the Club de Madrid, a group of democratic former heads of state and government,
or the Foreign Policy Spanish Edition. Former Prime Minister José Maria Aznar
presides over the Fundación para el Analisis y los Estudios Sociales (FAES), a
policy institute that is associated with the conservative Popular Party (PP).
Also linked to the PP is the Grupo de Estudios Estratégicos (GEES), which is
known for its defense- and security-related research and analysis. For its
part, the Fundación Alternativas is
independent but close to left-wing ideas. The Socialist Partido Socialista
Obrero Español (PSOE) has created a new think tank called the Fundación Ideas.
More specialized think tanks has also emerged in Spain during the past 10
years, like the Future Trends Forum from Bankinter Foundation, a
unique think tank in Europe, focused on detecting social, economic, scientific
and technological trends and analyzing their possible application and impact on
current business models.
Turkish think tanks are relatively
new. Many of them are sister organizations of a political party or a company.
University think tanks are not typical think tanks. Most Turkish think tanks
provide research and ideas, yet they play less important roles in policy making
when compared with American think tanks. There are at least 20 think tanks in
the country. One of the most influential and oldest Turkish think tanks is the
International Strategic Research Organisation or USAK.
In Great Britain,
think tanks play a similar role to the United States,
attempting to shape policy, and indeed there is some cooperation between
British and American think tanks. For example, the London-based think tank Chatham House and the Council on Foreign Relationswere
both conceived at the Paris Peace Conference, 1919 and have remained sister organizations.
The first American
think tank was the Brookings Institution, founded in 1916 as
the Institute for Government Research (IGR), with the mission of becoming
"the first private organization devoted to analyzing public policy issues
at the national level."[21] The Air force set up the RAND Corporation in 1946 to think about air power.
In 1971 Lewis F. Powell Jr. urged conservatives to retake command of public
discourse by "financing think tanks,
reshaping mass media and seeking influence in universities and the
judiciary."[22] In the following decades conservative policies once
considered outside the liberal mainstream—such as abolishing welfare,
privatizing Social Security, deregulating banking, embracing preemptive war—were taken seriously
and sometimes passed into law thanks to the work of the Hoover Institution, Heritage Foundation, the American Enterprise Institute and smaller tanks.[23][24]
Think tanks help shape
both foreign and domestic policy. They receive funding from private donors, and
members of private organizations. Think tanks may feel more free to propose and
debate controversial ideas than people within government. The liberal media
watchgroupFairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) has identified the top 25 think tanks by media
citations, noting that from 2006 to 2007 the number of citations declined 17%.[25] The FAIR report reveals the ideological breakdown of
the citations: 37% conservative, 47% centrist, and 16% liberal. Their data show
that the most-cited think tank was the Brookings Institution, followed by the Council on Foreign Relations,
theAmerican Enterprise Institute,
the Heritage Foundation, and the Center for Strategic and
International Studies.
Government think tanks
are also important in the United States, particularly in the security and
defense field. These include the Institute for
National Strategic Studies, Institute for Homeland Security
Studies, and the Center for Technology and National Security Policy, at theNational Defense University;
the Center for Naval Warfare Studies at the Naval War College and the Strategic Studies Institute at the U.S. Army War College.
The government funds,
wholly or in part, activities at approximately 30 Federally Funded
Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs).
FFRDCs, are unique independent nonprofit entities sponsored and funded by the
U.S. government to meet specific long-term technical needs that cannot be met
by any other single organization. FFRDCs typically assist government agencies
with scientific research and analysis, systems development, and systems
acquisition. They bring together the expertise and outlook of government,
industry, and academia to solve complex technical problems. These FFRDCs
include the RAND Corporation,
the MITRE Corporation, the Institute for Defense Analyses,
the Aerospace Corporation, the MIT Lincoln Laboratory, and other organizations
supporting various departments within the U.S. Government.
Similar to the above
quasi-governmental organizations are Federal Advisory Committees.
These groups, sometimes referred to as commissions, are a form of think tank
dedicated to advising the US Presidents or the Executive branch of government.
They typically focus on a specific issue and as such, might be considered
similar to special interest groups. However, unlike special interest groups
these committees have come under some oversight regulation and are required to
make formal records available to the public. Approximately 1,000 these advisory
committees are described in the FACA searchable database.
There are 12 think
tanks in Azerbaijan according to University of Pennsylvania researches. Some of
them are followings;
The Center for Economic and Social
Development, or CESD; in Azeri, İqtisadi və Sosial İnkişaf
Mərkəzi (İSİM) is an Azeri think tank, non-profit organization, NGO based
in Baku, Azerbaijan.
The Center was established in 2005.
CESD focuses on policy
advocacy and reform, and is involved with policy research and capacity
building. CESD involves leading researchers prominent in their fields and
enjoys a broad regional and international networking. CESD has been set up to
promote research into domestic and regional economic and social issues,
advocacy towards reforms and capacity building for the purpose to positively
impact the policy making and improve the participation.
CESD ranked as one of
the top think tanks in the world by The University of Pennsylvania, USA in Global "Go-To
Think Tanks" Report in 2010. According to the University of Pennsylvania rankings - a result of surveys from 1500 scholars and peer review evaluation - the Center for Economic and Social Development (CESD) is one of the top 25 think tanks in Central and Eastern Europe,
including CIS.
CESD is the only think tank from the Caucasus and Central Asia included in the top think tanks rankings.CESD is also
ranked as one of the top 25 domestic economic policy thinks tanks in the world. Only CESD (ranked 19) and the Center for
Economic and Social Research (CASE), (Poland,
ranked 21)
were included in the list from Central and Eastern Europe and CIS countries.
The Economic Research Centre (ERC) is a policy-research oriented non-profit think
tank established in 1999 with a mission to facilitate sustainable economic
development and good governance in the new public management system of
Azerbaijan. It seeks to do this by building favorable interactions between the
public, private and civil society and working with different networks both in
local (EITI NGO Coalition, National Budget Group, Public Coalition Against
Poverty and etc.) and international levels (PWYP, IBP, ENTO, ALDA, PASOS, WTO
NGO Network and etc).[citation needed]
Most Australian think
tanks are based at universities[citation needed] - for example, the Melbourne Institute - or are government funded - for example, the Productivity Commission or
the CSIRO.
There are also about
20-30 "independent" Australian think tanks, which are funded by
private sources. The best-known of these think tanks play a much more limited
role in Australian public and business policy making than in the United States.
However, in the past decade the number of think tanks has increased
substantially.[citation needed] Prominent Australian conservative think tanks include The Centre for Independent Studies,
the Sydney Institute and the Institute of Public Affairs.
Prominent progressive Australian think tanks include Per Capita,
the Australia Institute, Lowy Institute and the Centre for Policy
Development.
Brazil hosts
pro-market independent think tanks working on public policies. Among them is Instituto Liberdade, a University-based Center at
Tecnopuc inside the Pontifícia
Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, located in the South
Region of the country, at the city of Porto Alegre.
Instituto Liberdade is among the Top 40 think tanks in Latin America and the
Caribbean, from the 2009 Global Go To Think Tanks Index [1], a
report from the University of Pennsylvania - Think Tanks and Civil Societies
Program (TTCSP). Fundação Getulio Vargas(Getulio Vargas Foundation,
often abbreviated as FGV or simply GV) is a Brazilian higher education
institution founded on December 20, 1944. It offers regular courses of Economics, Business Administration, Law, Social Sciences and Information technology management.
Its original goal was to train people for the country's
public- and private-sector management. Other courses began to be offered as the
institution grew. It is considered by Foreign Policy magazine to be a top-5 "policymaker think-tank"
worldwide.
Canada has many think
tanks: The Atlantic Institute for Market Studies, Solutions Think Tank, The Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada,
The Canadian European Economic Council (CEE Council), a Franco-Canadian
research center, Cardus, C.D Howe Institute, Centre for International Governance
Innovation, The Conference of
Defence Associations, Conference Board of Canada, Caledon Institute of Social Policy, Council of Canadians, Canada West Foundation, Fraser Institute,
Frontier Centre for Public Policy, Canadian Centre for Policy
Alternatives, Institute for Public Economics, Canadian Council
on Social Development, Institute for Research on Public
Policy, Canadian Employment Research Forum, International
Institute for Sustainable Development, Canadian Institute for Advanced
Research, Mowat Centre for Policy Innovation, North-South Institute, Canadian International Council,
Parkland Institute, Canadian Labour and Business Centre,Pembina Institute, Public Policy Forum, Canadian Tax Foundation, Western Centre for
Economic Research, Centre for Trade Policy and Law. Each have their specific
areas of interest with some overlaps. Many think tanks have closed their doors
in Canada, including most recentlyCanadian Policy Research Networks
(CPRN).
Ghana's first
president, Dr. Kwame Nkrumah, set up various state-supported think tanks in the
1960s. By the 1990s, a variety of policy research centers sprang up in Africa
set up by academics who sought to influence public policy in Ghana.
One such think tank
was The Institute of Economic Affairs,
Ghana which was founded in 1989 at a time
when the country was ruled by theProvisional National Defence Council.
The IEA undertakes and publishes research on a range of economic and governance
issues confrontingGhana and Sub-Saharan Africa. It has also been involved in
bringing political parties together to engage in dialogue. In particular it has
organised Presidential debates every election year since the Ghanaian presidential election, 1996.
The Planning Institute
of Jamaica is an agency of the Office of the
Prime Minister that is "committed to leading the process of policy
formulation on economic and social issues and external co-operation management
to achieve sustainable development."
§ The Amadeus Institute is an independent Moroccan think tank, founded in 2008
and based in Rabat. Its acts as a laboratory of ideas, a brainstorming platform
and a creator of debates. It came to life in order to contribute to the
Moroccan and Maghreban public debate. It also acts as the Voice of the South to
communicate its vision and concerns at the global level. The Amadeus Institute has a double role: analysis and creating debates. It
operates as a laboratory of ideas and a unique creator of debates. It is at the
same time a centre of reflection, dialogue proposition and consultancy, but
also a platform of exchanges, meetings and North-South and South-South
cooperation.[26]
§ Mazagan InstituteMazagan
Institute promotes the development of intercultural dialogue, bringing people
together through culture and the development of cultural activities based on
the diversity of disciplines, thematic approaches, stakeholders, forms,
audiences, and places of achievement in promoting youth participation in
projects related to urban culture and social development ... Awaken in them the
notion of citizenship and social integration ... a conception of culture for
which the Institute Mazagan engages and advocates.
IMCO[27] - The Mexican Institute
for Competitiveness (Instituto Mexicano para la
Competitividad A.C.) is a
think-tank that focuses on public-policy research and solutions. IMCO was
created in 2004 with the goal of promoting public policies to boost Mexico's
competitiveness -defined as a country's capacity to attract and keep
investments and talent. IMCO regularly undertakes projects with various
international organizations such as the World Bank and its Doing Business
report, the OECD and the Inter American Development Bank (IADB).
Fundación Ethos- is a non profit, non partisan
Think Tank, committed to the analysis of issues of relevance for Mexico and
Latin America’s development, as well as to the evaluation and design of technically
sound public policies.
CIDAC[28] - The Center of Research for Development (Centro de
Investigación para el Desarrollo, Asociación Civil, or CIDAC) is
a not-for-profit think tank that undertakes research and proposes viable policy
options for Mexico's economic and democratic development. The organization seeks
to promote open, pluralistic debate pursuing: the Rule of Law & Democracy,
market economics, social development, and strengthening Mexico-U.S. relations.
CIDE, acronym for
Economic Theaching and researching center (Centro de Investigación y Docencia
Económicas), is one of the most important think tank institutes. The
researching lines are the "public policies", "public
choice", "democracy", and "economy".
CED[29] - Center for Economic
Development (Центр Содействия Экономическому
Развитию) is a think-tank which major tasks are: analytic support in economic
reforming and development in Uzbekistan; improving knowledge and skills of the
subjects of economic development; assistance in productive dialogue between the
government, civil society and private sectors on the economic development
matters. Key projects: Preparation of the National human development report for
Uzbekistan, Sociological "portrait" of the Uzbek businessman,
Preparation of an analytical report on export procedures optimization in
Uzbekistan, various industry and marketing researches in Uzbekistan,
Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.
§ Idasa: Frederik Van Zyl Slabert, and Alex Borain.
§ F W De Klerk Foundation
Centro Internacional
Miranda
Centro de Divulgación
del Conocimiento Económico para la Libertad (CEDICE).
Heinz Dietrich
Marta Harnecher
Jorge Giordani
Norberto Ceresole
(deceased)
Jose Vicente Rangel
Dos Santos
Adan Chavez
William Izarra
Hayman El Troudi
1. ^ Diane Stone 'Think Tanks and Policy Analysis', in
Frank Fischer, Gerald J. Miller. & Mara S. Sidney (eds.) Handbook of Public
Policy Analysis: Theory, Methods, and Politics, New York, Marcel Dekker Inc.
2006: 149-157
2. ^ a b McGann,
James. "Think Tanks
and the Transnationalization of Foreign Policy". Foreign Policy
Research Institute.
3. ^ a b c Singer, Peter. "Washington's
Think Tanks: Factories to Call Our Own", The Brookings Institution, 13
August 2010.
4. ^ Mendizabal Enrique (2009) Think tanks and political
parties in Latin America, Background Paper:http://www.odi.org.uk/events/2009/03/10/443-think-tanks-political-parties.pdf
5. ^ Mendizabal, Enrique y Kristen Sample (eds) (2009) Dime
a quien escuchas... Think Tanks y Partidos Politicos en America Latina,
ODI/IDEA: Lima
22. ^ Lewis F. Powell,
"Attack on the American Free Enterprise System." 1971 memorandum to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce,
23. ^ Murray L. Weidenbaum, The Competition of Ideas: The World of the Washington
Think Tanks (2011)
24. ^ Donald E. Abelson, Do Think Tanks Matter?: Assessing the Impact of Public
Policy Institutes (2009) pp
168-79
§ Abelson, Donald E. Do
Think Tanks Matter? Assessing the Impact of Public Policy Institutes. Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press, 2002.
§ Boucher, Stephen, et al., Europe and its think tanks; a promise to be fulfilled.
An analysis of think tanks specialised in European policy issues in the
enlarged European Union, Studies and
Research No 35, October, Paris, Notre Europe, 2004 [2]
§ Cockett, Richard, Thinking
the unthinkable: think tanks and the economic counter revolution; 1931 - 1983, London: Fontana, 1995
§ Dickson, Paul. "Think Tanks". New York:
Ballantine Books, 1972. 397 pages.
§ Fan, Maureen. "Capital Brain Trust Puts Stamp
on the World", Washington Post (16 May 2005): B01.[4]
§ Patrick Dixon. Futurewise - Six Faces of Global Change - issues covered by Think Tanks and methodology for
reviewing trends, impact on policy 2003): Profile Books
§ Hellebust, Lynn and Kristen Hellebust, editors. Think Tank Directory: A Guide to
Independent Nonprofit Public Policy Research Organizations. Topeka, Kansas: Government Research Service, 2006 (2nd
edition).
§ Lakoff, George. Moral Politics:
What Conservatives Know That Liberals Don't. Chicago:
University of Chicago Press, 1996.
§ Ladi, Stella. Globalisation,
Policy Transfer And Policy Research Institutes, Edward Elgar, 2005.
§ Mendizabal, Enrique and Kristen Sample (2009)
"Dime a quien
escuchas... Think Tanks y Partidos Politicos en America Latina",
ODI/IDEA: Lima
§ McGann, James (2006) Comparative Think
Tanks, Politics And Public Policy, Northampton, MA:
Edward Elgar Publishing
§ Ranquet, Robert. Think
Tanks and the National Security Strategy Formulation Process: A Comparison of
Current American and French Patterns,
1997. [5]
§ Smith, James. A. The
Idea Brokers: Think Tanks and the Rise of the New Policy Elite, New York: The
Free Press, 1991.
§ Stone, Diane. 'RAPID Knowledge: ‘Bridging Research
and Policy’ in International Development at the Overseas Development Institute',
Public Administration and Development, 29, 2009: 303-15.
§ Stone, Diane. Capturing
the Political Imagination: Think Tanks and the Policy Process, London: Frank Cass, 1996
§ Stone, Diane. 'Garbage Cans, Recycling Bins or
Think Tanks? Three Myths about Policy Institutes', Public Administration, 85(2) 2007: 259-278
§ Stone, Diane, and Andrew Denham, eds. Think Tank Traditions: Policy Research and the
Politics of Ideas. Manchester:
Manchester University Press, 2004.
§ Struyk, Raymond J. Managing
Think Tanks: Practical Guidance for Maturing Organizations, Budapest, Local Government and Public Service Reform
Initiative Washington DC., Urban Institute 2002
§ UNDP – United Nations Development Program. Thinking the Unthinkable, Bratislava, UNDP Regional Bureau for Europe and the
Commonwealth of Independent States, 2003
§ Foreign Policy
Research Institute, Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program directory of over 5000 think tanks and research on the
role and impact of think tanks.
§ PBS: Think Tank with Ben Wattenberg: "Thinking
About Think Tanks" - interview
with Christopher DeMuth, President of AEI, October 13, 2005
§ Enrique Mendizabal (Research Associate at the Overseas Development Institute on the definition
of think tanks: towards a more useful discussion -a new way of studying think tanks that focuses on
their functions rather than form.