Institute for Strategic Dialogue

Institute for Strategic Dialogue
Name	Institute for Strategic Dialogue
Type	Think tank
Founded	2002
Location	London
Key people	E. Kaplan
Focus	Counter-extremism, online harms, disinformation

Institute for Strategic Dialogue The Institute for Strategic Dialogue is a London-based think tank and non-profit organization focused on countering extremism, disinformation, and online harms. It collaborates with international partners including United Nations, European Commission, NATO, Council of Europe, and United States Department of State while engaging with civil society actors such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Reporters Without Borders, International Crisis Group, and Transparency International. The organization conducts interdisciplinary research drawing on methods used by Oxford University, Harvard University, Stanford University, King's College London, and London School of Economics.

History

Founded in 2002, the organization emerged amid post-9/11 policy debates alongside institutions like RAND Corporation, Brookings Institution, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Chatham House, and Hudson Institute. Early work intersected with initiatives by European Union agencies, United States Agency for International Development, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), and think tanks such as Demos (UK think tank), Policy Exchange, and RUSI. Over time it expanded networks to include partnerships with Facebook, Google, Twitter, Microsoft, and TikTok while contributing to panels convened by G7, G20, OSCE, African Union, and ASEAN.

Mission and Activities

The group's stated mission links research to practice in areas also addressed by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Counter Extremism Project, Institute for Economics and Peace, Global Network on Extremism and Technology, and Center for Strategic and International Studies. Activities cover programmatic engagement in regions including Middle East, North Africa, Sahel, South Asia, Southeast Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa and coordination with agencies like UNICEF, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, European Parliament, and African Development Bank.

Research and Publications

Publications appear alongside outputs from Journal of Democracy, Foreign Affairs, The Economist Intelligence Unit, New Statesman, Foreign Policy, and The Atlantic and reference case studies on actors such as Al-Qaeda, Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Boko Haram, Al-Shabaab, and Hezbollah. Research employs quantitative techniques used by teams at Oxford Internet Institute, MIT Media Lab, Carnegie Mellon University, University of Cambridge, and Princeton University and publishes reports, toolkits, and briefings similar to those from RAND Europe, European Council on Foreign Relations, Atlantic Council, and Center for a New American Security.

Policy Engagement and Advocacy

The organization engages in policy dialogues with institutions including UK Parliament, US Congress, European Commission directorates, Council of the European Union, UN Security Council delegations, and national bodies such as Home Office (UK), Department of Homeland Security (United States), Ministry of Interior (France), Bundesregierung, and Australian Department of Home Affairs. It has contributed evidence to inquiries like those by House of Commons Defence Committee, Senate Foreign Relations Committee, European Parliament Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, and Select Committee on International Relations.

Programs and Projects

Programs have targeted digital platforms in collaboration with corporations such as Meta Platforms, Alphabet Inc., X (formerly Twitter), ByteDance, and Snap Inc. and partnered with NGOs like Anti-Defamation League, Search for Common Ground, Mercy Corps, International Rescue Committee, and Care International. Project work includes initiatives modeled on efforts by Counter Extremism Project, Community Engagement and Resilience Fund, Clearinghouse for Hate Studies, Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism, and Digital Peace Now spanning areas from online moderation to offline community resilience.

Organizational Structure and Funding

Governance and advisory arrangements involve trustees, directors, and fellows drawn from institutions such as University of Oxford, Harvard Kennedy School, European University Institute, Sciences Po, and Johns Hopkins University as well as former officials from UK Foreign Office, US State Department, European External Action Service, NATO Allied Command Transformation, and Home Office (UK). Funding sources have included grants and contracts from bodies like European Commission, United States Agency for International Development, Victoria and Albert Museum (for cultural projects), Open Society Foundations, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google.org, and corporate partnerships similar to those of Mozilla Foundation and Knight Foundation.

Criticism and Controversies

Critiques have arisen comparable to debates around Cambridge Analytica, Palantir Technologies, Project Veritas, Edward Snowden, and WikiLeaks concerning data use, partnerships with technology companies, and transparency in funding, with commentators from outlets like The Guardian, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Financial Times, and BuzzFeed News raising questions. Academic critics from University College London, Goldsmiths, University of London, Birkbeck, University of London, and Queen Mary University of London have engaged in debates over methodology and policy influence similar to controversies involving Harvard Belfer Center and Stanford Internet Observatory.

Category:Think tanks based in the United Kingdom