European Ideas Network (EIN)

European Ideas Network (EIN)
50° 50' 20.24" N, 4° 22' 26.72" E
founded in the year	2002
City	Brüssel
Country	Belgium
Website	http://www.europeanideasnetwork.com/
address	c/o EPP Group, rue Wiertz 60, 1047, Brüssel
founder	James Elles
Networks	Stockholm Network, European Ideas Network (EIN)
Virtual Networks A "Virtual Network" is a group of Think Tanks identified by certain semantic and normative (ideological) commonalities (e.g. climate change scepticism). Such a virtual network constitutes a research field that differs from the study of formal networks. Formal networks are real in the sense of officially acknowledged and immediately open to empirical validation. Virtual networks on the other hand display shared ideas. Social network analysis tools can be applied to find out if or to what extent virtual networks are real networks that display linkages (membership in networks, personnel, resources etc.). Unconnected think tanks in turn can be considered special cases in need of explanation independent from network structures (unless we have to assume invisible, hidden or covered ties).	Austerity politics
Last revision	20.11.2014
Presence of Think Tank affiliates in the various fieldsWe try to capture where people affiliated with a Think Tank - affiliates are employees, members of the advisory and supervisory board etc. - are present: if they write in the media, teach in universities or work for another Think Tank. The chart down below shows in which fields the affiliates are present. Every presence is counted once.
People n = 17
Presences n = 7
<pPie size=330x200 Legend> Think Tank,0 Business,0 Media,0 Politics,5 Academia,0 NGO,2 </pPie>
Kind of activities of Think Tank affiliatesWe try to capture where people affiliated with a Think Tank - affiliates are employees, members of the advisory and supervisory board etc. - are present: if they write in the media, teach in universities or work for another Think Tank. The chart down below shows which kind of activities the affiliates conduct. Every presence is counted once.
<pPie size=330x200 Legend> Author,0 Leader (CEO etc.),2 Consultant,0 Editor,0 Interviewee,0 Member,4 Participant,0 Lecturer,0 Employee,1 </pPie>

Organizational Structure and Funding

Address

c/o EPP Group, rue Wiertz 60, 1047, Brüssel

People

Executive board

People leading the Think Tank in the day to day business (CEOs, directorates etc.).

• Othmar Karas

• Gunnar Hökmark

• Jacek Saryusz-Wolski

• Wilfred Martens

• József Szájer

• James Elles

• Werner Langen

• Jacques Santer

• Hans-Gert Poettering

• Mario Mauro

• Jean-Pierre Audy

• Ria Oomen-Ruijten

• Jaime Mayor Oreja

Staff

People working for the Think Tank (Fellows etc.). This includes also part-time employees.

• Gabriella Tassinari

• Guillermo Martinez Casañ

• Franck Debié

• Michael Valbuena

Topics

We used the DGs of the EU to generate a basic list of topics. This list is going to be steadily extended. However we try to preserve a persistent list of topics.

• Foreign and Security Policy
• Institutional Reform/Public Services
• Energy
• European Integration
• International Trade/Globalization
• Environment/Climate Action
• Political Movements, Parties, Thought
• Economic and Monetary Affairs

Semantic Fields

What we call here a semantic field is the idea to categorize think tanks in a two level system. The first levels are so called 'Virtual Networks' and the second are the semantic fields. Accordingly every semantic field entered here has to be attached to a virtual network. If you would like to follow a special phenomenon among think tanks please contact us and we are going to add a new virtual network. Semantic fields are topics that promote a virtual network. Lets take climate change as an example: 'climate change skeptics' is the virtual network and 'adaption instead of mitigation' would be one possible semantic field.

• Austerity measures (Austerity Politics): Cut state spending, lower wages