There are various institutions on the Old continent which employ highly educated people to think about our societies and to study social, political, economic and environmental issues. Traditionally, universities and later academies of science and research institutes, attracted smart people whose role was to develop new thinking about human affairs and to explain to power-holders and the public what is really going on in our societies and what is likely to happen in the future.
Many of these institutions, universities in particular, became the model for the New continent, which eventually turned them into centers of excellence with global significance. In return, the dynamic and entrepreneurial United States invented a specific type of policy institution which, in recent decades has started to take root and grow in significance in Europe.
In the 1950s the Americans labeled these entities with a strange but catchy name which is difficult to translate into other languages. They called them “think tanks”. Today there are hundreds of them on both sides of the Atlantic and they play an important role in shaping policies in Europe, America and beyond. European policymakers can hardly overlook their activities. Sometimes, think tanks are viewed as helpful allies, sometimes as problematic critics who not only have the capacity to see deeply into the decision-making arena, but can also raise the profile of a particular issue, reach out to a broader public and have an influence on policy.
Think tanks, are mostly small or mid-sized, independent institutions whose purpose is to study and analyze policies, generate new ideas and data, stimulate expert and public debate, advocate for particular socio-political changes, and educate a specific audience about a policy idea or issue. They are a quintessential outgrowth of modern, democratic and open societies, though they do sometimes have a presence in more closed and restrictive political environments.
“Think-tankers” are often well-known experts from a variety of backgrounds - political scientists, sociologists, journalists, economists, lawyers, historians, foreign policy and military experts, environmentalists etc. Whatever their backgrounds they are united by having strong analytical capacities and the ambition to have an impact on public policy. Frequently they bring with them practical experience from the governmental and diplomatic services or from the world of management and media. This gives them an advantage in understanding the practical aspects of policy making and policy shaping. This also makes them different from the universities whose primary role is to teach and conduct research. From my own experience, I can attest that one of the last things a think tank wants to hear from a potential donor is that one’s proposal is “too academic”. What this means is that the donor is unconvinced that a prospective project could have an impact on policy.
One can hardly imagine a more challenging policy making process than that which engages the most complex and largest union of states in the world – the European Union. The EU, comprising half a billion inhabitants and currently made up of twenty seven member states with the prospect of more to follow, allows multiple public and private actors to participate in the debate about its internal and external policies. Among the most visible and effective private players contributing to the EU policy discussion are the think tanks. They do not merely have a presence in the old member states. They have quickly become an indispensible and important part of civil society in all of the newly democratic countries of Central and Eastern Europe, of which ten have already joined the EU. Some think tanks operate on a country specific basis (e.g. national institutes of public affairs, institutes of international relations, economic centers ), others have regional outreach (e.g. the European Stability Initiative, operating in several countries and focusing on the Balkans, or Polish/International CASE-Center for Economic and Social Research focusing on Central and Eastern Europe). Still others deal with European and international issues (e.g. the Center for European Policy Studies, the European Policy Center and the Bruegel, in Brussels; the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the Center for European Reform, the Chatham House and the Henry Jackson Society in London; the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP), the German political foundations, the Bertelsmann Foundation; the FRIDE in Madrid; the Institute for Security Studies in Paris; the Istituto Affari Internazionali in Rome; the ELIAMEP – Hellenic Foundation for European and Foreign Policy in Athens; the Center for Liberal Strategies in Sofia; the European Council on Foreign Relations, which has offices in Berlin, London, Madrid and Sofia; the International Crisis Group with multiple offices on several continents). Although think tanks mostly operate as individual entities, a few years ago a unique network - PASOS (Policy Association for an Open Society), now consisting of 40 independent think tanks and spanning more than 25 countries in Europe and Central Asia was created with the aim of achieving a bigger impact via collective activities. There are several non-European think tanks which have significant programs influencing the European policy community (e.g. the Washington based the Carnegie Endowment for Peace, the Brookings Institution and the German Marshall Fund of the United States, which has seven European offices).
How think tanks shape EU policies?
Evaluation, analysis and research
Experts in think tanks regularly evaluate and analyze programs, projects and policies of governmental bodies in the respective member states and/or European agencies. Parallel to that they generate their own ideas and thought- provoking research and analysis (published in policy papers, specialized newsletters, magazines, articles and books all of which is often publicized in the mass media) which aims to stimulate broad debate and eventually have an effect on policy.
Promotion, education and advocacy
Quality think tanks have a well-developed capacity to promote their work and reach out effectively to “those who matter”- politicians, experts and other influential individuals and organizations. When needed, they design individually or in cooperation with other groups various educational and advocacy campaigns targeting the broader public. Their media skills in online communication as well as the electronic, print and broadcast media, paralleled with distinct expertise and credibility, make think tank analysts among the most welcomed and influential of commentators.
Consulting and advising
Think tank staff usually have both profound knowledge of a particular policy area and also extensive contacts in the public sector. These links are built through the reputation of individual experts or board members, who often have past government experience. In their own interests, national-governmental and EU bodies regularly seek the advice of think tanks on how to develop new policy, how to deal with challenging situations or how to improve a particular institution or program. Think tank experts regularly assist public and private bodies in developing their own strategies and new approaches.
Convening and study tours
Most non-ideological think tanks tend to be neutral and honest brokers and usually produce high quality venues for policy debates. Typically, their conferences, seminars, workshops, brainstorming sessions and other forms of convening are attended by experts and decision makers with the aim of producing policy relevant outcomes. Sometimes they bring around the table like minded people, in other cases participants with opposing views. In order to allow for the free exchange of opinion on sensitive or controversial issues, meetings sometimes exclude the media and the public or are conducted under the so called Chatham House rule, according to which “participants are free to use the information received, but neither the identity nor the affiliation of the speaker(s), nor that of any other participant, may be revealed”.
Some think tanks with foreign policy programs organize, individually or in cooperation with partners, study tours to political centers of influence or to less well known or problematic parts of the world. These may involve experts, journalists and decision makers and they allow participants to meet influential people and learn first-hand about given a geographical area or issue.
Future trends and dilemmas for think tanks in Europe
The increased complexity of the political, social, economic and security situation in Europe (and beyond), paralleled with decreased civic participation in political life would indicate that demand for new, policy relevant ideas, strategies and approaches will grow. It can therefore be expected that the influence and the numbers of entities employing practical “thinkers” with the capacity to address the pressing issues of our time will also grow. Particularly in the last two decades, think tanks have become indispensable actors which have been helpful in smoothening the way for unprecedented changes in the structure of the EU, its member states and the applicant countries.
These mostly young and small policy organizations are helping the EU to critically re-think its own developments and relations with other parts of the world. The good news for EU policymakers is that the vast majority of European think tanks believe in, and actively promote the “European project”. This, however, should not be taken for granted.
Aside from the special case of the euro-skeptics there are also numerous instances where political, religious or business groups have created their own media or NGO-type organizations advancing anti-liberal, and sometimes radical-nationalist views. The explosion in electronic and audiovisual technology allows even small, well-organized groups to have a big impact in shaping public opinion and policy process.
A particular challenge for the image and financial viability of think tanks in a period of global financial and economic crisis is to maintain their independent, non-profit character, distinct from various pseudo-think tanks, consultancies and lobby groups, which sometimes imitate and/or create think tank-like entities which can become competitors for prestige and funds.
In the challenging period ahead, independent think tanks will need space for creativity and critical thinking while keeping a proper distance from political institutions. They must have the courage to upset political establishments from time to time, even risking reductions in
grant money.
Let us hope that the new EU leadership in Brussels and the leaderships in member and applicant states will continue working to build up relationships with these, sometimes strange, but badly needed soft power “tanks”.
Pavol Demeš, Director of the German Marshall Fund's Bratislava office