Research Guides: Master in Public Policy Program (MPP): Nongovernmental Organizations, & Think Tanks

Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs)

The Union of International Associations describes an NGO as "a legally constituted organization created by private persons or organizations without participation or representation of any government...[and] are not conventional for-profit business." NGOs can be organized at any level from local to international.

A useful overview (2006): What is a Non-Governmental Organization? by Prof. Peter Willetts, City University, London

Some resources for identifying NGOs include

Foundation Directory Online This link opens in a new window
Provides information on grantmakers and their grants, including foundations, corporate funders and giving programs, and grantmaking public charities in the US Can also search recently awarded grants and recently filed IRS Forms 990 and 990-PF.

Examples of NGOs include

Amnesty International
Food and Water Watch
Ford Foundation
Greenpeace International
International Committee of the Red Cross
International Planned Parenthood Federation.
International Rescue Committee
Islamic Relief Worldwide
Kaiser Family Foundation
A non-profit, private operating foundation focusing on the major health care issues facing the U.S., as well as the U.S. role in global health policy.
Médecins Sans Frontières
Oxfam
Slow Food Inrternational
World Resources Institute

Think Tanks

Other names for think tanks include policy institutes or research institutes.

A think tank may have an ideological perspective or may be nonpartisan. It's useful to review the About Us section of the think tank's website and look for other views about the think tank in order to place their work in context and better evaluate the authority and credibility of their work.

Note that many think tanks don't take institutional positions on topics but their researchers, scholars, or fellows may take individual, personal positions on policy and other issues, so being aware of the backgrounds of a policy report's author(s) is also helpful.

Resources for identifying or evaluating think tanks include

Think Tank Search (Harvard Kennedy School)
A Google Custom Search of more than 1200 think tanks and research centers.
2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report
Identifies top think tanks in the world, by region, by research area, and by special achievement. Produced by the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program (TTCSP) at the University of Pennsylvania
Defining and Evaluating Think Tanks
From the Association of Accredited Public Policy Advocates to the European Union

Examples of think tanks include

American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
The web site for this nonpartisan think tank includes commentary and analysis from AEI scholars, speeches and testimony before Congressional committees, excerpts from recent AEI conferences, and essay-length abstracts of AEI books. Articles are also arranged by research areas.
Annenberg Public Policy Center
Focus is on communication policy
Brookings Institution
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Cato Institute
"A public policy research organization — a think tank — dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues."
Center for Strategic & International Studies
Council on Foreign Relations
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an independent, international organization that works as part of a vibrant movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all.
National Bureau of Economic Research
Founded in 1920, the National Bureau of Economic Research is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization dedicated to promoting a greater understanding of how the economy works. Members of the bureau are top scholars in their field. The NBER data page is a great resource for those who wish to find useful economic datasets for download.

NBER Working Papers This link opens in a new window
Are the primary method for the distribution of research carried out by the NBER, a private, nonprofit, non-partisan research organization dedicated to promoting a greater understanding of how the economy works. It is committed to undertaking and disseminating unbiased economic research among public policymakers, business professionals, and the academic community.

RAND Corporation Published Research
Tens of thousands of RAND publications are available as free downloads, dating back to 1946.
The RAND Corporation is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization that develops solutions to public policy challenges.
The Urban Institute
"The Urban Institute gathers data, conducts research, evaluates programs, offers technical assistance overseas, and educates Americans on social and economic issues — to foster sound public policy and effective government."