While I was in London I had the chance to visit a number of think tanks. It was great to see how these organisations operate, and the many different ways they are publishing and expressing their ideas.
On Thursday I visited Forum for the Future at their office in Finsbury, London. Forum for the Future was established as a charity in 1996 by Jonathan Porritt and Paul Ekins, and now has more than 70 staff and interns, and offices in London, Cheltenham and Bristol. It was interesting to learn that they do a lot of consultancy work, working in partnership with businesses, local government and government groups.
On Friday my first visit was to South London, near London Bridge. Here I met with Peter Harrington, Head of Communications of Demos. Demos is an independent think tank whose work I have been following for some time. It was excellent to get the chance to meet some of the team, and to hear about the different projects they are working on. I recommend visiting their website and exploring their numerous publications and podcasts.
Next stop was the New Economics Foundation (nef). I didn’t have an appointment, but they were kind enough to show me around their offices. I was impressed by the sheer number of publications they have produced, and purchased a few to add to our growing library. Their report ‘A Green New Deal’ is an excellent read, and worth checking out if you haven’t already. We discuss this initiative in our Report 6: Four Possible Futures for New Zealand in 2058.
I also visited Chatham House, located in St James’ Square. Chatham House (or the Royal Institute for International Affairs) is known for being the home of the Chatham House Rule, which states:
“When a meeting or part thereof, is held under the Chatham House Rule, participants are free to use the information received, but neither the identity nor the affiliation of the speaker(s), nor that of any other participant, may be revealed.”
Chatham House produces a range of papers and reports, with a focus on energy, environment and resource governance; international economics; and regional and security studies. Hardin Tibbs, who I had met earlier (see earlier blogg) is a co-author of one of their reports: Food Futures.