Communication Strategies for Think Tanks

The following was originally posted on Goran Buldioski's blog, which covers think tanks and the development of democracy in Central and Eastern Europe.

In the past, independent think tanks have tended to perceive communications as an optional, marginal activity. However, the creation of a comprehensive annual communications strategy is becoming integral to the activity of any think tank, including those in Central and Eastern Europe. Every organization requires a communications strategy to maximize its work’s impact, but technological advancement and the perception that there is abundant information and analyses at policy makers’ disposal complicates the task of choosing appropriate channels of communication.

In May 2010, the Policy Association for Open Society (PASOS) and the Think Tank Fund gathered 20 executive and communications directors of Central and Eastern European think tanks at a workshop in London. The two-day event, hosted by the European Council of Foreign Relations, benefited from the participation of London-based think tanks (Institute for Public Policy Research, DEMOS, Center for European Reform, Chatham House) and several other organizations such as Global Witness and the Open Society Foundations. PASOS has made available selected recordings and slide presentations from the event:

"Building a Communications Strategy," Peter Harrington, former communications director, DEMOS, UK

• view the powerpoint presentation (3.8Mb)
• listen to the audio (MP3, 31Mb, 45 minutes)

"Developing and Implementing a Communications Strategy: New Media Tools," Kathryn Corrick, digital media consultant

• listen to the audio (MP3, 45Mb, 49 minutes)

"The Center for Research and Policy Making Communication Strategy," Marija Risteska, director, CRPM

• view the powerpoint presentation (610kb)
• listen to the audio (MP3, 20.5Mb, 23 minutes)

"Divorcing Politics from Money and Other Challenging Policy Work" (Case Study), Krista Baumane, development director, Providus Centre for Public Policy

• view powerpoint presentation (173kb)
• listen to the audio (MP3, 15.6Mb, 23 minutes)

"Building Relations with Media and Policy Stakeholders/ Effective Advocacy Strategies," Nicholas Walton, head of communications, European Council on Foreign Relations, and Fiona Napier, international advocacy director, Open Society Foundations

• listen to audio of Walton’s presentation (MP3, 15.5Mb, 17 minutes)
• listen to audio of Napier’s presentation (MP3, 21.8Mb, 24 minutes)

I hope you find them useful. Please share your comments and ideas below.

Note: All presentation slides are property of the presenters and should not be copied.