The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) was a non-profit program at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...
in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...
, that operated from 1989 to 2021. TTCSP was originally established at the
Foreign Policy Research Institute in 1989. The director was
James McGann
James G. McGann (1955–2021) was an American academic who was a Senior Lecturer in International Studies, Founder and Director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the Lauder Institute, University of Pennsylvania and a Senior Fell ...
. The program conducted research on policy institutes around the world, and maintained a database of over 8,200
think tank
A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-govern ...
s from across the world.
Program history
The TTCSP was established at the
Foreign Policy Research Institute in 1989. It began with its focus on
think tanks in the US. In the 1990s, the program became increasingly global as a result of the political and economic transformation that took place in Central and Eastern Europe.
R. Kent Weaver
Kent Weaver is a professor at Georgetown University and a senior fellow in Governance Studies at the Brookings Institution. His focus is on a variety of fields in U.S. political science, including comparative social policy, comparative politica ...
of the
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in e ...
and James McGann of the Foreign Policy Research Institute were asked to help conceptualize what became the
Global Development Network, a
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...
sponsored conference in
Barcelona, Spain
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
. This resulted in the publication ''Think Tanks and Civil Societies: Catalysts for Ideas and Action'' in 2000. In 2008, the TTCSP moved to the International Relations Program at the University of Pennsylvania.
Global Go To Think Tank Index
McGann and the Program published the annual ''Global Go To Think Tank Index''. As of 2010, the Index is based on a three-phase survey whose participants include politicians, scientists, think tank donors, and think tanks.
[Seiler, Christian, and Klaus Wohlrabe. "A critique of the 2009 global 'Go-to Think Tanks' ranking." ''CESifo DICE Report'' 8.2 (2010): 60.] However, this method of the study and assessment of policy institutes has been criticized by researchers such as Enrique Mendizabal and Goran Buldioski, Director of the Think Tank Fund, assisted by the
Open Society Institute
Open Society Foundations (OSF), formerly the Open Society Institute, is a grantmaking network founded and chaired by business magnate George Soros. Open Society Foundations financially supports civil society groups around the world, with a st ...
.
In 2018, this Index listed USA the country with the largest number of Think Tanks (1871), followed by India (509), China (507), UK (321), Argentina (227), Germany (218), Russia (215), France (203), Japan (128), Italy (114), Brazil (103), Canada (100), South Africa (93).
[(29 January 2019)]
2018 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a Private university, private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest- ...
. Retrieved 30 October 2019.
See also
*
List of think tanks
References
External links
Think Tanks and Civil Societies Website– provides information on the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), including scholar bios and works published.
– provides information on the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program, including history and background, program goals, research priorities, and publications.
– a biography of James McGann, Director of the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program.
– a biography of R. Kent Weaver, Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution
– provides information on the Global Development Network, including its mission, history, research priorities, and publications.
International Relations Program at the University of Pennsylvania*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Think Tanks And Civil Societies Program (Ttcsp)
Think tanks based in the United States
University of Pennsylvania