CASE bids farewell to James G. McGann, Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program director

James G. McGann has passed away on Monday 29th November 2021 at the age of 66.

Dr. McGann was a Senior Lecturer of International Studies at the Lauder Institute, Director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program and a Senior Fellow at the Fels Institute of Government at the University of Pennsylvania. Earlier, he was Assistant Director of the International Relations Program at the University of Pennsylvania.

James McGann served as a consultant and advisor to the World Bank; the United Nations; the Asian Development Bank; the United States Agency for International Development; the Soros, Rockefeller, MacArthur, Hewlett and Gates foundations; the Carnegie Corporation; and foreign governments on the role of non-governmental, public policy and public engagement organizations in civil society.

Dr. McGann earned his M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. He was a National Fellow at Stanford University while writing his doctoral thesis, which examined the nature and evolution of public policy research organizations in the United States such as Brookings Institution, Heritage Foundation, RAND, Urban Institute and others. He compared and contrasted the mission, structure and operating principles of these leading think tanks to determine how those factors influenced the institutions’ role in policymaking. His research and consulting enabled him to work with governments and civil society organizations in over 100 countries. He authored over 15 books on think tanks and was the creator and editor of the annual Global Go To Think Tank Index.

CASE’s experts had the privilege to work with Dr. McGann on many occasions. Our experts participated in think tanks summits and events organized by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program.