Visiting prof examines think tanks

Think tanks – research organizations which advise government and industry leaders – have become increasingly important in today's world and its global marketplace, according to visiting Sociology Professor Werner von der Ohe. Von der Ohe, "on loan" this year to the University's Lauder Institute from the University of Munich, organized an on-campus conference to compare think tanks in the U.S. and Germany. The conference began yesterday and runs through tomorrow. The conference focuses on the "remarkable changes in the think tank scene" which have occurred over the past 10 to 15 years, von der Ohe said. Change has been most apparent in the sources of think tank funding, he continued. In the U.S., most monies for think tank research are allocated by private industries and foundations instead of the government, which raises questions about partisanship in recommendations to policy-makers. On the other hand, in Germany and other European nations, the "hundreds of millions of dollars" necessary to finance think tank research comes from public taxes, von der Ohe said. This difference, he explained, influences how policy-makers get their knowledge, and affects the objectivity of the knowledge they obtain. The information provided by think tanks is crucial because it influences the agenda and priorities set by governments of all nationalities. Each day of the conference has a specific focus. Yesterday served mainly as an introduction to the think tank "landscape" in the U.S. and in Germany, and a description of their inherent differences, von der Ohe said. This was accomplished through presentations by members of American and German think tanks, experts in economic or scientific fields. Today's sessions will feature comparisons of the images of public and private think tanks in the U.S. and Germany, and the consumption of the knowledge they provide, as well as presentations on think tanks in the United Kingdom and France. Tomorrow morning's speeches will focus on the future of think tanks. Von der Ohe said he hopes this weekend's conference can serve as a return to the "legitimate free exchange of ideas and dialogue" common in universities, institutions which could be classified as think tanks due to the knowledge which they produce. The issue of whether think tanks – specifically the more partisan organizations which seem to be emerging currently – facilitate or block the "free flow of information and knowledge," especially in relation to the economic and technical advice provided to former East European nations by Western countries, is another of von der Ohe's concerns. All of the remaining lectures will take place in the auditorium of Lauder-Fischer Hall. They are free to University faculty and students.