NUPI maintaining its strong position as one of the world’s top think tanks
There are 6,846 think tanks across the globe. 1,770 are located in Europe, and in Norway you’ll find 15 of these. In this year’s ranking of the world’s 150 best think tanks outside the US, NUPI is ranked as number 47. That makes NUPI the highest ranked Norwegian think tank, with the nearest Norwegian organization being Peace Research Institute (PRIO) on 62nd place.
- It is pleasing to see that NUPI is ranked high up on the list this year as well. This means that we have a high visibility internationally, and that our work is seen and appreciated, says Ulf Sverdup, Director of NUPI.
Kept the 3rd place
In addition to this, NUPI kept the solid second runner up from the previous year in the ranking as “Best Government affiliated think tank”.
- This is just one of several data points. I think NUPI will score well in the evaluations that has been done in the Norwegian institute sector, which soon will be published. Our scientists are also winning in the competition for funding. All together this creates an image of NUPI as a institution with great coworkers, and that we are having a strong and good development, Sverdrup says.
- A recognition of our work
The ranking is developed by TTCSP - The Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania. This year marks their 10th anniversary deducting this ranking. TTCSP encourages the academic community to nominate what they see as the best think tanks, then TTCSP puts the best of these in the official ranking. The fight at the top is hard, and the different lists contains only the 40-170 best think tanks of its class. To even be on the lists is an accomplishment in itself.
- The most important thing for us at NUPI is that we are excellent at what we do, and that our research is of high quality, that it is exciting and relevant. That we, in addition to this, are scoring well on such rankings is a fine bonus and it is a recognition for the work we are doing, Sverdrup says.
A long process
The process of ranking the world’’s best think tanks started as early as March last year, and the results was made public 26 January this year. The experts participating in the ranking process took several criteria into their assessment. Some of them were:
- The quality and reputation of the think tank’s staff.
- The quality and reputation of the research and analysis produced.
- The quality, number, and reach of its publications;
- The impact of a think-tank’s research and programs on policymakers and other policy actors.
- Media reputation (number of media appearances, interviews and citations)
- Web Site and Digital presence
Read more about the ranking here.
On top of the list of think tanks outside the US is the well-known Chatham House, who also became Think Tank of the Year in 2015.
Fact
The TTCPS conducts research on the role policy institutes play in governments and in civil societies around the world. TTCSP’s initial effort to produce a global ranking of the world’s leading think tanks in 2006 was in response to a series of requests from donors, government officials, journalists, and scholars who wanted the TTCSP to identify the leading think tanks in the world.