The Building for the Future Initiative, launched in November 2023 with the support of the Open Society Foundations, aims to diversify the sources of information used by European student-led think tanks when proposing solutions to public policy issues. We are working with several European student-led think tanks to strengthen their leadership skills while promoting new perspectives on European policy issues and policy research.
We developed the concept for the Building for the Future Initiative taking into account the following components:
- Diversity and Inclusion: Lived experiences provide diverse viewpoints that enrich policymaking by grounding decisions in real-world impacts. Including diverse voices in research leads to policies that better reflect the communities they affect. +
- Cross-National Policy Learning: Some governments look at other countries for inspiration to improve their policy-making capacity and ideas and innovations they can readily implement. For example, Mexico’s Prospera program inspired similar conditional cash transfer schemes worldwide. +
- Youth Leadership: Research conducted by youth-led organisations elevates youth perspectives and ensures their greater influence on policy decisions. +
Focusing on these components—diversity and inclusion, cross-national policy learning, and youth leadership—we have chosen to collaborate with student-led think tanks, which are uniquely positioned to drive innovative, youth-driven, and inclusive approaches to public policy.
The unique model of student-led think tanks
What are student-led think tanks?
As the name suggests, student-led think tanks are student organisations that research policy issues, publish their findings, and engage in other activities, such as hosting events and running advocacy campaigns. During the Building for the Future Initiative, we encountered student-led think tanks affiliated with one or more universities and those operating independently without university affiliation. We have also seen student-led think tanks with student researchers based in different regions worldwide and think tank courses that are part of a university’s broader programmes.
The distinct value of student-led think tanks:
- A constant flow of fresh ideas: As new students enter the student-led think tanks, the organisations have an unending flow of new perspectives. In addition, universities often house students from different backgrounds and regions, creating a diverse space for exchanging ideas.
- Stable leadership transitions: With a constant flow of students in and out, student-led think tanks have to think about their leadership transitions and the way they build their human resources from day one. As change is constant, they have well-established transition programmes and development plans.
- Flexibility: Student-led think tanks can experiment more than think tanks because students are within the confines of campus and not the working world, which may be more rigid in its systems.
- Focus on youth: Student-led think tanks can interact with various public policy issues through a youth-focused lens, drawing from their personal experiences, while also utilising the knowledge gained from their study programs.
- Youth leadership: Members of student-led think tanks can develop their leadership skills while working with their peers on issues they are passionate about. In addition, student-led think tanks often offer learning journeys where older students can design learning experiences for their younger peers to immerse them in the policy sphere.
Below are the student-led think tanks that were selected for the first cycle of the Building for the Future Initiative:
- The Security Distillery: The Security Distillery was founded by the 2017-2019 cohort of the International Masters in Security, Intelligence and Strategic Studies programme, which was jointly awarded by the University of Glasgow, Dublin City University, University of Trento, and Charles University Prague.
- York Student Think Tank: The York Student Think Tank is affiliated with the University of York. Its mission is to promote an evidence-based approach to policy. The York Student Think Tank has its own journal, CIVITAS, in which students publish both short-form and long-form research outputs.
- The Wilberforce Society: The Wilberforce Society, founded in 2009, is based at the University of Cambridge. The student-led think tank’s outputs include ‘The Brexit Report’, a comprehensive analysis of Brexit’s impact on Cambridge, which was presented at the European Parliament.
Listen to student thinktankers themselves:
Lessons learned from multi-regional events
The Building for the Future initiative aims to help student-led think tanks learn about innovative policy solutions from other regions and apply them to their own contexts. Multi-regional events allowed the student-led think tanks to reframe public policy issues by inviting experts from other regions to share their insights. These events took various forms, such as panel discussions, and workshops, but all shared the goal of presenting a public policy issue and re-framing it with the new information provided.
Examples of multi-regional events include:
- York Student Think Tank (YSTT): YSTT’s event titled “Social care in crisis: How can the UK learn from the Japanese Model?” explored Japan’s Long-Term Care Insurance Act (2000) to identify potential solutions for the UK’s struggling social care system. The event highlighted the benefits of a needs-based system, professionalising care work, and promoting social care as a collective good. The reframing of the policy issue resulted in the YSTT reconsidering their assumptions about social care being solely for the elderly, understanding the complexities of funding, and implementing a similar model in the UK.
- The Wilberforce Society: The Wilberforce Society’s event on “Populism and Democratic Backsliding: Protecting the European Human Rights System” examined strategies for protecting human rights in the face of growing populism in Europe. They drew comparisons with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) and its responses to similar challenges in Latin America. The event highlighted the effectiveness of the IACtHR’s mechanisms for preventing democratic backsliding, such as requiring transparent public debate before a state can leave the court.
- The Security Distillery: The Security Distillery’s event, “Navigating Migration Challenges: The Canary Islands Case,” employed a simulation exercise to re-evaluate the issue of irregular migration. Participants represented various stakeholders, encouraging them to consider diverse viewpoints. The reframing of the problem resulted in a policy proposal that recognised the complexities of irregular migration and the importance of balanced, multi-stakeholder solutions.
The way forward
Through multi-regional events and cross-national collaboration, participating student-led think tanks have re-examined public policy issues by integrating insights from different regions, creating more inclusive and well-rounded policy recommendations. This initiative has highlighted the unique strengths of student-led think tanks, such as their flexibility, fresh ideas, and youth-driven leadership, positioning them as potential critical contributors to the future of policy-making. As we look forward, it is essential to continue nurturing these youth-led organisations to amplify diverse voices in policy discussions further.
Below are the recommended next steps for the Building for the Future Initiative to understand its long-term impacts, direct and indirect influences, and how to expand the initiative.
- Track impact: Check in regularly with past participants to assess how they apply lessons learned in their student-led think tanks and how they continue incorporating multi-regional perspectives in policy discussions.
- Foster global collaboration: Engage with student-led think tanks outside Europe to expand idea exchange and diversify public policy dialogues.
- Support the foundation of new student-led think tanks: Encourage universities to establish student-led think tanks and participate in future activities under the initiatives.
- Monitor the growth of student-Led think tanks: Research new student-led think tanks to assess the initiative’s direct and indirect influence on their development.
Are you interested in being part of the Building for the Future initiative?
We invite Student-led think tanks, think tank funders and universities in Europe and globally to reach out and find out how we can work together to scale the impact of this initiative.