We promote new thinking for a changing world.

Globalisation and new technology are changing the world. The wealthiest countries are wrestling with the fallout and an unequal impact on their own citizens. Some developing countries have seen rapid economic growth, while others have remained poor.

Modern governments face immense fiscal pressures, a rising demand for services, growing public expectations and the need to improve international competitiveness. Mass migration and globalisation are creating economic disruption and new societal pressures, with opportunities for some but brutal change for others. New technology is revolutionising consumer choice and the delivery of public services, but also disrupting traditional patterns of work and creating new platforms for crime. Social media is exploding public debate and traditional notions of citizenship, enhancing engagement but also fuelling anger and protest.

For some, the answer to these issues is a reversal of modern economic reforms and a retreat behind barriers. Populist and divisive polices on both the left and the right, together with the fuelling of nationalism, offer an alluring but false hope of a better life to those who have been left behind. Western governments embrace human rights to promote the welfare of their citizens but find it hard to legislate to enhance responsibility, while other countries seek to protect traditional values by denying minority rights.

In fact, the answers to the challenges thrown up by rapid global change will not be provided by populist reaction. They will be found through good policy and better government.

New thinking is needed to break out of a stagnation fostered by conventional policy assumptions and partian divides. How do we equip and structure governments to ensure that they are equal to modern demands? Can we reinvent the planning system to balance the demands of a growing population with environmental protection? How can we promote good citizenship in a world where human rights continue to be abused? How do we ensure that globalisation produces benefits for the many while avoiding the revival of failed collectivist policies? How can global free trade deals deliver a shared prosperity and real benefits to convince an increasingly sceptical public? How do we stay safe from crime, terrorism and resurgent radicalism in a world opened up by the internet and cross-border travel?

Our aim is to produce impartial, high-quality research to inform this debate, offering robust and original policy solutions to promote more efficient government and good citizenship for the benefit of all.