Are Think Tanks Around the World Losing Relevance?

“What does it take for a think tank to remain relevant when the environment around it

is changing faster than its organisational model?”

The question is becoming increasingly important. Think tanks play an important role in informing public policy by producing evidence-based research and bringing policy issues into public debate. Their ability to continue doing so, however, is being tested by tighter funding, political pressures, changing expectations from stakeholders, and rapid technological shifts.

Yet the ability to stay resilient is not only about the challenges a think tank faces. It is also about how well the organisation is prepared to respond.

The State of the Sector Report 2026, published by On Think Tanks (OTT), offers a useful lens. Based on responses from 299 think tanks across 94 countries, the report finds that only 18.7% expect their national think tank sector to grow this year, while 34.4% expect it to shrink.

Interestingly, this pessimism is more concentrated in wealthier regions. This challenges the assumption that greater resources automatically translate into greater confidence about the sector’s future.

Resilience Starts from Within

The report points to several organisational factors that can shape how think tanks weather uncertainty.

• Funding structure matters. Only 18.4% of surveyed think tanks are predominantly core-funded, while two in five have less than three months of operational reserves. The challenge, therefore, is not simply how much funding an organisation receives, but whether its financial structure gives it enough flexibility to respond when conditions change.

• Keeping good people is about more than salaries. Staffing is the sector’s second major challenge after funding. The report finds that salary differences between the Global North and much of the Global South become much smaller when differences in purchasing power are taken into account. This suggests that career development and good management can play an important role in keeping talented people in an organisation.

• Adaptation is becoming unavoidable. AI adoption among surveyed think tanks has reached 83.9%. Its growing use brings opportunities to improve how organisations work, but also raises questions about ethics, reliability, and responsible application.

These findings suggest that resilience is not simply about having more resources or operating in a favourable environment. It is about building the capacity to make good decisions when circumstances are uncertain.

For CIPS, this is a particularly relevant reflection. CIPS participated in the 2026 State of the Sector Report as one of On Think Tanks' 25 partner organisations, helping broaden the survey’s reach and contribute perspectives from Indonesia and the region.

The experience also connects with CIPS’ own organisational journey. In 2025, CIPS publications recorded more than 54,000 downloads and 370 academic citations, alongside more than 45 high-level engagements with national stakeholders.

Behind these outputs are less visible organisational foundations: the people producing the research, systems supporting their work, financial planning, and the ability to adapt as the policy environment evolves.

As OTT’s report makes clear, resilience is ultimately an internal capacity. For think tanks committed to independent, evidence-based research, strengthening that capacity is not separate from their mission. It is part of what makes that mission sustainable.