Exploring Think Tanks: Diverse Origins, Evolving Futures

Exploring Think Tanks: Diverse Origins, Evolving Futures offers a comprehensive examination of the complex and evolving role of think tanks across the Global South. As international donors increasingly channel substantial resources into these institutions — funding initiatives like the Think Tank Initiative, the Open Society Institute’s Think Tank Fund, and AusAid’s Knowledge Sector Initiative — think tanks in Latin America, Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, Eastern Europe, and Southeast Asia are experiencing both unprecedented opportunities and new pressures.Drawing on the author’s extensive experience with leading development think tanks — including the Overseas Development Institute’s RAPID programme — and fieldwork in countries such as Peru, Zambia, Indonesia, and Serbia, this book unpacks the conceptual, methodological, and operational challenges in studying think tanks in developing contexts. It critically engages with the proliferation of diverse organizations labeled as think tanks — ranging from academic research centers and advocacy networks to NGOs and government institutes — and questions whether adopting Anglo-American models is appropriate or even feasible in vastly different political, social, and economic environments.By exploring various schools of thought — from pluralist, statist, and elitist perspectives to functionalist and normative approaches — the book encourages a nuanced understanding of how think tanks operate within local policy spaces. It highlights how definitions shape expectations and influence funding relationships, and it challenges assumptions about the universal applicability of Western think tank models. Ultimately, Think Tanks and Developing Countries advocates for context-sensitive definitions and approaches, offering insights that are both practical and theoretically grounded for scholars, policymakers, funders, and practitioners interested in the intersection of knowledge, policy, and development.