Organized by:
JSC “Economic Research Institute”;
University of Pennsylvania.

Concept

Think Tanks in the Age of New Economics and Geopolitics

Brief session description:
Think tanks weight important influence on the government’s policymaking. They advise and provide crucial expertise to the decision makers. Central Asia and Caucasus (region) think tanks face challenges impeding the quality of the advice provided, which frames the first part of the session.
Today think tanks of the region are cognitively detached from the cutting-edge policy and economic thinking. The isolation of the region from the global community is reflected in small number of international publications, underrepresentation of the think tanks in global rankings, etc. There is a strong need to integrate regional and Kazakhstan's think tank research community by building global pipelines and establishing local clusters of research excellence. The Regional Asian Think Tank Summit serves as an opportunity for researchers to network and establish productive working relationship.
To promote the excellence in economic policymaking the Economic Research Institute in partnership with Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program of the University of Pennsylvania will commemorate the Top 3 International Economic in 2015-16 and the Top 3 Regional Economic Think Tanks in 2015-16 at award ceremony organized within the framework of the event.
In the second part of the session the prominent researchers will discuss the role/solutions that think tanks can offer to the world leaders facing today’s new economic and geopolitical reality. The emerging market economies are hit by low commodity prices, currency exchange rate fluctuations, economic slowdown and geopolitical turbulence. The researchers will share their insights and ideas on the possible solutions to the emerging countries developmental challenges in the era of uncertainty and volatility.

More specifically, the session will cover:
• What strategies decision makers of the region can use to overcome the challenge of low commodity prices and weak growth in trading partners?
• What is the appropriate policy response for the regional decision makers to navigate in the geopolitical standoff between the West and Russia?
• Lessons learned and success stories from advising the decision makers over the past decade. Can we develop common solutions for the regional problems?

Key speakers for the session include a range of international and regional think tanks researchers who offer solutions to the economic and geopolitical challenges facing the emerging economies.

Program

09:00am	Key questions: • What strategies decision makers of the region can use to overcome the challenge of low commodity prices and weak growth in trading partners? • What is the appropriate policy response for the regional decision makers to navigate in the geopolitical standoff between the West and Russia? • Lessons learned and success stories from advising the decision makers over the past decade. Can we develop common solutions for the regional problems? Opening remarks: Aset Irgaliyev, Chairman of the Board of JSC “Economic Research Institute”
09:05am	Keynote Address: Global and Regional Trends in Think Tanks and Policy Advice: Rise of Think Tanks in Central Asia Speaker: James G. McGann, Senior Lecturer, Lauder Institute, Wharton Business School at University of Pennsylvania
09:30am	Panel Session: Building capacity of regional think tanks and networking Moderator: James G. McGann, Senior Lecturer, Lauder Institute, Wharton Business School at University of Pennsylvania Speakers: Naoyuki Youshino, Dean of the Asian Development Bank Institute Erik Berglof, Director, Institute for Global Affairs, London School of Economics and Political Science Ariel Cohen, Director of The Center for Energy, Natural Resources and Geopolitics at the Institute for Analysis of Global Security Richard Dobbs, Director, McKinsey Global Institute Jessica Brandt, Deputy Chief of Staff and Associated Fellow at Brookings Institution
10:45am	Open discussion: The role of think tanks in the age of New Economic and Geopolitical Reality Moderator: Andrey Bystritsky, Chairman of the Board of Valdai International Discussion Club Speakers: Matthew P. Goodman, Senior Adviser for Asian Economics, Center For Strategic and International Studies Erlan Karin, Director of Kazakhstan Institute for Strategic Studies under the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan William Tompson, Head of Division, Eurasia, Global Relations Secretariat, OECD Vugar Bayramov, Chairman of Center for Economic and Social Development, Azerbaijan Alexander Gabuev, Chair of the Russia in the Asia-Pacific Program at the Carnegie Moscow Center
12:15pm	Close

Think Tanks in the Age of New Economic and Geopolitics
Think tanks weight important influence on the government’s policymaking. They advise and provide crucial expertise to the decision makers. Central Asia and Caucasus (region) think tanks face challenges impeding the quality of the advice provided, which frames the first part of the session.
Today think tanks of the region are cognitively detached from the cutting-edge policy thinking. The isolation of the region from the global community is reflected in small number of international publications, underrepresentation of the think tanks in global rankings, etc. There is a strong need to integrate regional and Kazakhstan's think tank research community by building global pipelines and establishing local clusters of research excellence. The Regional Asian Think Tank Summit serves as an opportunity for researchers to network and establish productive working relationship.
To promote the excellence in economic policymaking the Economic Research Institute in partnership with Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program of the University of Pennsylvania will commemorate the Top 3 International Economic in 2015-16 and the Top 3 Domestic Economic Think Tanks in 2015-16 at award ceremony organized within the framework of the event.
In the second part of the session the prominent researchers will discuss the role/solutions that think tanks can offer to the world leaders facing today’s new economic and geopolitical reality. The emerging market economies are hit by low commodity prices, currency exchange rate fluctuations, economic slowdown and geopolitical turbulence. The researchers will share their insights and ideas on the possible solutions to the emerging countries developmental challenges in the era of uncertainty and volatility. More specifically, the session will cover:
• What strategies decision makers of the region can use to overcome the challenge of low commodity prices and weak growth in trading partners?
• What is the appropriate policy response for the regional decision makers to navigate in the geopolitical standoff between the West and Russia?
• Lessons learned and success stories from advising the decision makers over the past decade. Can we develop common solutions for the regional problems?
Key speakers for the session include a range of international and regional think tanks researchers who offer solutions to the economic and geopolitical challenges facing the emerging economies.

Regional Think Tank Summit