A think tank or policy institute, research institute, is an organization that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most policy institutes are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax exempt status. Other think tanks are funded by governments, advocacy groups, universities, or businesses, or derive revenue from consulting or research work related to their projects.
A good Think Tank will be a non-partisan research institute that does policy-analysis and policy research. They can be a lab for critical, innovative ideas from authoritative sources that help shape policy. As a research tool for Policy and Political Science they are invaluable.
Some Think Tanks are bi-partisan communication tools to promote their agenda. The following are non-partisan (or close to non-partisan) research resources. Also listed are two Think Tanks that are prominent on both the Right & Left.
Search Tip: Look for published articles, or reports, not news from these resources.
A custom search engine from Harvard that searches more than 600 think tank websites.