EU Think Tanks in the Back Seat? Perspective for the 21st Century

Our central argument was that EU think tanks’ evolution has resulted in an
interconnected hybrid EU think tank sphere, built on a common need for
access to the political elite, to financial resources, and to media attention. We
substantiated our claim by taking a closer look at three dominant Brusselsbased EU think tanks. Hence we proved that their activities are driven by the
logics of the market or more precisely the ‘art’ of responsiveness to political
demand and the ability to sell ideas. In this struggle for economic survival a
tendency for enhanced competition but also cooperation can be recognised
in approaching the target audience. EU think tanks tend to please politicians
and EU stakeholders by giving intellectual feed to pre-existing concepts.
You hardly find any EU-sceptic think tanks around Brussels. Yet, without
producing innovative ideas, they only act as a driving force behind already
established political debate. We argued that meeting the challenges of 21st
century requires updating think tanks’ logic from an obsolete “EU operating”
system focused entirely on corporate and institutional elites to a future orientated “EU shaping” system that emphasises creative and innovative thinking
beyond existing institutional and financial frameworks.