How think tanks shape policies in Central and Eastern Europe

A seminar on the role of think tanks in Central and Eastern Europe, organized on Wednesday, January 22nd, by the Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM), marked the launch of “The Global Go-To Think Tank Index 2013”. Guest speakers included Maciej Sobolewski, Vice-President of the CASE Management Board, Marcin Zaborowski of the Polish Institute of International Affairs (PISM), and Robert Vass, Secretary-General of the Slovak Atlantic Commission.

The current situation in Ukraine was the first point on the agenda. Panelists discussed the ways in which think tanks can and should respond to the events taking place in Kiev’s Maidan (Independence) Square. The conversation then turned to the strength of the real impact think tanks have on shaping public policies. Despite some minor differences in opinion, all the guests agreed that the research and analyses provided by think tanks are of great value for governments.     

Impact on public policy was one of the nearly 50 categories in which researchers from the University of Pennsylvania rated think tanks from around the world. After discussing the methodology and significance of the index, as well as the experiences of their respective institutions in the ranking process, panelists moved to the issue of funding. The general consensus was that the diversification of funding sources was the key to maintaining institutional autonomy.

During the ensuing debate, which was moderated by Michal Kobosko from the Atlantic Council of the United States, the question of think tank neutrality was raised, which led to a discussion on the importance of maintaining research objectivity and institutional independence. As noted by Robert Vaas, the American model of think tank partisanship is not plausible in Central and Eastern Europe, where the multi-party system prevails and political parties tend to change quite often.  

“The Global Go-To Think Tank Index” has been issued by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania since 2006. This year 6,826 organizations in 182 countries were invited to participate, and CASE has again been highly ranked in several categories. Most importantly, we were named the best think tank in Central and Eastern Europe for the second year running! Moreover, we were ranked 5th in the world in both the “Top Social Policy Think Tanks” and “Think Tanks with Most Innovative Policy Ideas/Proposals” categories, up from 9th and 11th place respectively.

To find out more about the report and CASE’s position in the ranking, click here.  

Photography by Jadwiga Winiarska, Polish Institute of International Affairs