Woodrow Wilson Center

Woodrow Wilson Center
Name	Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Founded	1968
Founder	Lyndon B. Johnson
Headquarters	Washington, D.C.
Type	think tank
President	Eric S. Edelman

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Woodrow Wilson Center is a nonpartisan think tank and policy research institute established as the official memorial to Woodrow Wilson in Washington, D.C.. Founded by an act of the United States Congress during the administration of Lyndon B. Johnson, it links scholarship from institutions such as Harvard University, Columbia University, Princeton University, Yale University, and Stanford University with policy communities including the United States Department of State, United States Senate, United States House of Representatives, and international bodies like the United Nations and North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The center hosts fellows, convenes dialogues with actors such as Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Margaret Thatcher, and interacts with organizations including the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Brookings Institution, Council on Foreign Relations, RAND Corporation, and Center for Strategic and International Studies.

History

The institution was created by statute in 1968 during the 90th United States Congress following initiatives associated with Lyndon B. Johnson and modeled after memorials like the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Lincoln Memorial. Early leadership drew scholars from Princeton University, Columbia University, Harvard University, Georgetown University, and public servants from the United States Department of State and the National Security Council. Over decades it hosted discussions on crises such as the Vietnam War, the Iran hostage crisis, the Soviet–Afghan War, the end of the Cold War, the Gulf War, and the post-9/11 conflicts including the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021). The center’s archives and oral histories document engagements with figures like Henry Kissinger, Zbigniew Brzezinski, Madeleine Albright, Condoleezza Rice, Sergio Vieira de Mello, and Kofi Annan, and partnerships with institutions such as the Smithsonian Institution, Library of Congress, National Archives and Records Administration, and the World Bank.

The center’s charter emphasizes scholarly independence and bridging the worlds of academia and public policy by supporting research relevant to executives and legislators in bodies like the United States Congress and agencies including the United States Department of Defense and the United States Agency for International Development. Governance includes a bi-partisan board appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the United States Senate; past board members and chairs have included figures affiliated with Republican National Committee, Democratic National Committee, and cabinet officials from administrations like Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, William J. Clinton, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump. Executive leadership and directors have been drawn from centers such as Johns Hopkins University, Brown University, Tufts University, University of Chicago, and agencies like the Central Intelligence Agency and Office of Management and Budget.

The institution hosts multiple research programs and centers addressing regional and thematic issues with ties to entities such as the Asia Society, African Studies Association, Council of the Americas, and European Union delegations. Notable programs have focused on Russia–United States relations, China–United States relations, Middle East peace process, Latin American affairs, Africa policy, Arctic strategy, energy security, climate change, and technology policy. Research centers include initiatives on Global Europe, Asia Studies, Latin America Program, and thematic projects collaborating with the National Institutes of Health, Food and Agriculture Organization, International Monetary Fund, and World Health Organization. The center convenes task forces featuring former ministers, ambassadors, military officers from the United States Army, United States Navy, and senior scholars from University of California, Berkeley, London School of Economics, National University of Singapore, and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The center publishes books, reports, policy briefs, and digital outlets in collaboration with presses such as Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Columbia University Press, and journals like Foreign Affairs, Journal of Democracy, International Security, and World Politics. It hosts lecture series and events with speakers including laureates of the Nobel Peace Prize such as Muhammad Yunus and Aung San Suu Kyi, heads of state from Germany, Japan, France, and panels featuring authors from The New York Times, The Washington Post, Financial Times, and broadcasters like BBC and NPR. Conferences address treaties and agreements exemplified by the Paris Agreement, Geneva Accords, and the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and include workshops with think tanks like the Heritage Foundation and Center for a New American Security.

Funding streams include congressional appropriations authorized by the United States Congress, endowments and gifts from foundations such as the Ford Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Rockefeller Foundation, and corporate partnerships with firms including multinational companies headquartered in New York City, London, and Tokyo. The center enters research partnerships with multilateral institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and philanthropic donors including the Gates Foundation and Open Society Foundations. Financial oversight involves audits and compliance with regulations administered by the United States Government Accountability Office and reporting to committees in the United States Senate and United States House of Representatives.

Scholars, policymakers, and public intellectuals affiliated with the center have included former secretaries and cabinet officials such as Madeleine Albright, Henry Kissinger, Colin Powell, Robert Gates, and Hillary Clinton; diplomats and envoys including Richard Holbrooke, Samantha Power, Nicholas Burns, and Susan Rice; economists and Nobel laureates from MIT, University of Chicago, and Stanford University; and historians and political scientists from Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, Oxford University, and Cambridge University. The roster also includes journalists and authors associated with The Economist, The Atlantic, Foreign Policy, and policy practitioners drawn from the United States Foreign Service, National Security Council, and senior military ranks of the United States Marine Corps and United States Air Force.

Category:Think tanks based in the United States Category:Organizations established in 1968