Search the site:
Support us

On Think Tanks was founded in mid 2010. It has evolved from a blog into a global platform dedicated to study and support policy research and policy research centres, or think tanks. The members of the On Think Tanks Team and its Advisory Board are spread out across 6 continents!

Please subscribe to On Think Tanks. The suggested contribution is GBP5.00 per month and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contribute Monthly

Alternatively, please send us a donation of any amount you think is appropriate

Donate

For alternative ways to support us, or if you would like to read about our strategy and find out more about On Think Tanks, please visit the support section of the website.

series

South Asian Executive Directors

India is a vast country with different needs and requirements. Think tanks have diverse approaches to the political decision making processes, although there are certain commonalities in these approaches. This diversity stretches to the huge variety of topics and issues that research organisations address. In this series of interviews from think tanks' Executive Directors we draw comparisons and similarities on the challenges institutions face and how these are overcome, the role and relationships with Board members, building research agendas, and understanding the activities of some of these think tanks.
  1. 1

    Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Executive director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue

    Professor Mustafizur Rahman is the Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), a leading centre of excellence in Bangladesh. He discusses his career at CPD, the challenges he faced, CPD’s impact, and the role that funders and the think tank’s leadership and staff have played... Read full article
  2. 2

    Suresh Raghavan, Director of Public Affairs Centre (PAC) India

    Suresh Raghavan is the Director of Public Affairs Centre (PAC), based in Bengaluru, India. He was interviewed by Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, On Think Tanks' South Asian Editor. Annapoorna Ravichander: Can you tell us a few things about yourself? Suresh Raghavan: I have a background in... Read full article
  3. 3

    Khalida Ghaus, Managing director of Social Policy and Development Centre

    Prof. Dr. Khalida Ghaus is the Managing Director of Social Policy and Development Centre (SPDC) in Karachi, Pakistan. She is the former Director of the Centre of Excellence for Women Studies. Annapoorna Ravichander: Please tell us a bit about yourself; about your background.  Khalida... Read full article
  4. 4

    Ajaya Dixit, Executive director of ISET-Nepal

    Ajaya Dixit is the Executive Director of ISET-Nepal a non-governmental and not-for-profit organisation and a think tank. It primarily studies and analyses developmental issues of rapidly changing social and environmental context that demand new insights into the emerging challenges to manage... Read full article
  5. 5

    Sanjay Kumar, Director of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies

    Sanjay Kumar is currently the Director of CSDS. It is one of India’s leading institutes for research in the social sciences and humanities. Annapoorna Ravichander: Could you tell us about yourself? Sanjay Kumar: I am the Director at the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS)... Read full article
  6. 6

    Dr. Abid Qaiyum Suleri, Executive director of Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI)

    Dr. Abid Qaiyum Suleri is currently the Executive Director of Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI). SDPI was founded in August 1992 on the recommendation of the Pakistan National Conservation Strategy (NCS), also called Pakistan's Agenda 21. Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, editor at large... Read full article
  7. 7

    Yamini Aiyar, President and Chief executive of the Centre for Policy Research

    Yamini Aiyar is the president and chief executive of the Centre for Policy Research (CPR) in India. Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, editor at large for South Asia at On Think Tanks, interviewed Yamini Aiyar as part of the of the series on South Asian Executive Directors. Annapoorna Ravichander:... Read full article
  8. 8

    Dushni Weerakoon, Executive director of the Institute of Policy Studies

    Dushni Weerakoon is the executive director of the Institute of Policy Studies in Sri Lanka. Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, editor at large for South Asia at On Think Tanks, interviewed Yamini Aiyar as part of the of the series on South Asian Executive Directors. Annapoorna Ravichander: Could you... Read full article
  9. 9

    Dr. Shamika Ravi, Director of research at Brookings India

    Dr. Shamika Ravi is the director of research at Brookings India and a senior fellow of governance studies program, at Brookings India and Brookings Institution Washington D.C. Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, editor at large for South Asia at On Think Tanks, interviewed Dr.Shamika Ravi as part of the... Read full article
  10. 10

    Gurucharan G, Director at Public Affairs Centre

    Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, editor at large for South Asia at On Think Tanks interviewed Gurucharan G, director at Public Affairs Centre (PAC) in Bengaluru, as part of the series on South Asian Executive Directors. Annapoorna Ravichander: Can you please give us a brief background about... Read full article
  11. 11

    Seethalakshmi S and Rahul Nandan, Chief mission officers at Antardhwani

    Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, editor at large for South Asia at On Think Tanks, interviewed Antardhwani's chief mission officers Seethalakshmi S and Rahul Nandan in December 2017. Annapoorna Ravichander: Can you please provide a brief background about yourselves? Seethalakshmi S: I was the... Read full article
  12. 12

    Salai Ngun Lian Sang, Executive Director at the Centre for Development and Ethnic Studies

    Salai Ngun Lian Sang is the Executive Director of the Centre for Development and Ethnic Studies (CDES). CDES is an independent think tank and study centre founded in 2012 to generate ideas on democracy, human rights and federalism as an effective vehicle for ‘peace and reconciliation’ in the... Read full article
  13. 13

    Priyanthi Fernando, Executive Director of CEPA (Sri Lanka)

    The interviews published by On Think Tanks and vippal on think tanks’ leaders raised the interest of ebpdn to sum up efforts in gathering more of these experiences from different regions. Nayana Godamunne from CEPA agreed to interview the Executive Director from that... Read full article
  14. 14

    Fayyaz Yaseen, Director Accountability Lab in Pakistan

    Fayyaz Yaseen is an On Think Tanks Fellow and Director of Accountability Lab in Pakistan. In this interview he discusses the origin of the think tank, the challenges it and the broader think tank community face in Pakistan and the shrinking civic space in the country. Enrique Mendizabal:... Read full article
  15. 15

    Prof. Sachin Chaturvedi, Director General at the Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS)

    Prof. Sachin Chaturvedi is the Director General at the Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS), a New Delhi-based autonomous Think-Tank. RIS specialises in issues related to international economic development, trade, investment and technology. The focus of the work... Read full article

Related content