{"id":10424,"date":"2019-10-29T10:30:25","date_gmt":"2019-10-29T15:30:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/onthinktanks.org\/?page_id=10424"},"modified":"2025-08-05T12:01:17","modified_gmt":"2025-08-05T17:01:17","slug":"faqs","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/onthinktanks.org\/faqs\/","title":{"rendered":"FAQs"},"content":{"rendered":"

How have we defined which organisations to include?<\/h3>\n

Thinks tanks are difficult to define as the term applies to various organisations with different characteristics, development pathways and even different business models and structures. Organisations labelled think tanks include for-profit consultancies, university-based research centres, NGOs, public policy bodies, foundations, advocacy organisations and membership-based associations, to name a few. But despite their differences \u2013 and for the purpose of the Open Think Tank Directory \u2013 we have defined think tanks as a diverse group of knowledge and engagement organisations\u00a0<\/i>that\u00a0undertake research,\u00a0generate knowledge and use evidence-informed arguments to inform and\/or influence policy and its outcomes.\u00a0They can also perform a range of other functions, including influencing the public agenda, monitoring the implementation of specific policies, and suggesting or advocating for policy changes.<\/p>\n

Given this broad definition, the inclusion criteria for the directory is broad:<\/p>\n