Strategic Use of Evidence and Data

We know that evidence and data are essential for informing action and building sound policy. But can they also play a greater role in shaping attitudes and fostering openness to change and reform?

Evidence is key to informing policy, improving practices, and guiding effective steps toward achieving a goal. It is crucial for building on learnings from the past. However, in environments characterized by polarization and misinformation, evidence is easily dismissed or selectively used only when it aligns with the preexisting beliefs of decision-makers or the private interests they seek to protect.

We also need the right data.

At the Governance Action Hub, we see the potential for coalitions for change to strategically collect and use evidence and data. We believe that establishing collaborations between think tanks, academia, civil society, movements, media, and yes, politicians, is critical to inform pathways for reform and multi stakeholder action.

We will explore ways to strengthen collaboration between providers and users of evidence and data. This will inform better approaches to policy, programming, and advocacy, all of which will have a greater chance of success and demonstrate resilience in sustaining progress.

To start, we will connect with specific communities, particularly think tanks and research centers in Latin America, Asia and Africa, that are interested in two topics: how to tackle state capture, and governance for climate action and energy transition. We will coordinate activities leading up to key global events and shape strategies within specific countries. We already started developing our thinking on this at the 2024 OnThinkTanks conference where we hosted a session focused on the first topic.

Interested? Join us!

State Capture: a worldwide measure

The State Capture Index, developed by Daniel Kaufmann, measures the evolution of state capture in 172 countries over almost three decades. The results point to important differences between traditional measures of corruption and those of state capture across many countries, and in particular to a relatively higher prevalence of state capture compared with traditional corruption measures in advanced economies.