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Think tanks are often thought of as a uniquely US phenomenon. Although the largest concentration of think tanks is in the United States, they can be found in virtually every country. Often overlooked, Canada's think tanks represent a highly diverse and eclectic group of public policy organizations such as the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, the C.D. Howe Institute, the Fraser Institute, and the Mowat Centre among others. In Northern Lights, Donald Abelson explores the rise of think tanks in Canada and addresses many of the most commonly asked questions about how, and under what circumstances, they are able to affect public opinion and public policy. He identifies the ways in which Canadian think tanks often prioritize political advocacy over policy research, and seeks to explain why these organizations are well-suited and equipped to shape the discourse around key policy issues. The first comprehensive examination of think tanks in Canada, Northern Lights is both a primer for those looking to understand the role and function of think tanks in the policy-making process and a guide to the leading policy institutes in the country.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

It is often assumed that think tanks carry enormous weight with lawmakers. In "Do Think Tanks Matter?" Donald Abelson argues that the basic question of how think tanks have evolved and under what conditions they can and do have an effect is consistently ignored. Think tank directors often credit their institutes with influencing major policy debates and government legislation and many journalists and scholars believe the explosion of think tanks in the latter part of the twentieth century indicates their growing importance in the policy-making process. Abelson goes beyond assumptions, identifying the influence and relevance of public policy institutes in today's political arena in the United States, where they've become an integral feature of the political landscape, and in Canada, where, despite recent growth in numbers, they enjoy less prominence than their US counterparts. By focusing on the policy cycle, issue articulation, policy formation, and implementation, Abelson argues that individual think tanks have sometimes played an important role in shaping the political dialogue and the policy preferences and choices of decision-makers but often in different ways and at different stages of the policy cycle. This revised and updated edition of the book includes up-to-date data (2000-08) on the growing visibility and policy relevance of think tanks in Canada and the United States.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)
Do Think Tanks Matter? evaluates the influence and relevance of public policy institutes in today's political arena. Many journalists and scholars believe the explosion of think tanks in the latter part of the twentieth century indicates their growing importance in the policy-making process. This perception has been reinforced by directors of think tanks, who often credit their institutes with influencing major policy debates and government legislation. Yet the basic question of how and in what way they influence public policy has, Donald Abelson contends, frequently been ignored. Abelson studies the experiences of think tanks in the United States, where they have become an integral feature of the political landscape, and in Canada, where their numbers have grown considerably in recent years but where, compared to their U.S. counterparts, they enjoy less prominence in policy-making. By focusing on the policy cycle, issue articulation (that is, getting issues on the political agenda) and policy formation and implementation (actually affecting the outcome of policies already on the political agenda), he argues that think tanks have sometimes played an important role in shaping the political dialogue and the policy preferences and choices of decision-makers, but often in different ways and at different stages of the policy cycle.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Contributors include Basma Abdelgafar (Carleton), Barbara Allen (Birmingham), Scott Bennett (Carleton), Malcolm Bird (Carleton), Peter Calamai (Toronto Star), G. Bruce Doern (Carleton), Robert Hilton (Carleton), Derek Ireland (Carleton), Uma Kumar (Carleton), Vinod Kumar (Carleton), Judith Lipp (Dalhousie), Joan Murphy (Carleton), Stephen Murphy (Sprott School of Business), Elizabeth Nisbet (Carleton), A. Jai Persaud (Natural Resources Canada), Halla Thorsteinsdottir (Toronto), Jac van Beek (National Research Council of Canada), and John Zelenski (Carleton).
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Introduction
• 1 What's (and is Not) a Think Tank?
• 2 Are All Think Tanks Alike?
• 3 How Has the Role of Think Tanks Changed?
• 4 What Do Think Tanks Do, and How Do They Don't?
• 5 With Whom Do Think Tanks Communicate?
• 6 In What Ways Are Canadian and American Think Tanks Similar? How Are They Different?
• 7 How Do Think Tanks Evaluate Their Impact, and Why Should We Be Skeptical?
• 8 Conclusion: Looking Back and Thinking Ahead: The Cuture of Canadian Think Tanks
• 9 Profiles of Canadian Think Tanks
• Appendixes. 1 References to Selected Canadian Think Tanks in the National Media, 2000-2015
• 2 Appearances by Selected Canadian Think Tanks before Parliamentary Committees, 1999-2015
• 3 References to Selected Canadian Think Tanks in Parliament, 1994-2015.

"With an estimated 1830 think tanks stretched across its 50 states and close to 400 public policy institutes in Washington, D.C. alone, the United States possesses the largest concentration of think tanks on the globe. But despite being home to several prominent think tanks such as the Brookings Institution, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Rand Corporation, think tanks are not a uniquely American phenomenon. Indeed, institutes with considerable expertise in the broad fields of domestic and foreign policy have taken root in virtually every country in the world. Although often overlooked, Canada's think tank population represents a highly diverse and eclectic group of organizations that have made their presence felt in key policy-making circles. This study explores the rise of think tanks in Canada and addresses many of the most commonly asked questions about how, and under circumstances, they are able to affect policy change. Heading North is both a primer for those looking to understand the role and function of think tanks in the policy-making process and a guide to several of the leading policy institutes in the country. Recognizing the premium think tanks in Canada place on political advocacy over policy research, this study also seeks to explain why these organizations are well suited and equipped to shape public opinion and public policy. It represents the first comprehensive examination of think tanks in Canada and contributes to our knowledge of what is often described as the global think tank phenomenon."-- Provided by publisher.

• Surveying the think tank landscape in the United States and Canada
• Thinking about think tanks : a conceptual framework
• In the arena : opportunities, constraints, and incentives for think tanks in the United States and Canada
• Competing in the marketplace of ideas : the strategies of think tanks
• Public visibility and policy relevance : assessing the influence of think tanks
• On the road to the White House : presidential candidates and the think tanks that advised them
• Policy experts or policy instruments? Think tanks and the debate over constitutional reform in Canada
• In the pipeline : think tanks and the debate over Keystone XL
• Conclusion : the more things change...policy influence, policy relevance, and the future of think tanks in Canada, the United States, and beyond.

It is often assumed that think tanks carry enormous weight with lawmakers and other key stakeholders. In Do Think Tanks Matter? Donald Abelson argues that the question of how think tanks have evolved and under what conditions they can and do have an impact continues to be ignored. Think tank directors often credit their institutes with influencing major policy debates and government legislation, and many journalists and scholars believe the explosion of think tanks since the latter part of the twentieth century is indicative of their growing importance in the policy-making process. Abelson goes beyond assumptions, highlighting both the visibility and relevance of public policy institutes in what has become a contentious and polarized political arena in the United States, and in Canada, where, despite recent growth in numbers, they enjoy less prominence than their US counterparts. By focusing on how think tanks engage in issue articulation, policy formation, and implementation, Abelson argues that they have helped to shape the political dialogue and the policy preferences and choices of decision-makers, but in different ways and at different stages of the policy cycle. This expanded and revised third edition includes additional institutional profiles of key think tanks, an updated chapter on presidents and think tanks, a new chapter on the efforts of a group of public policy institutes to shape the discourse around the possible construction of the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, and dozens of new graphs and tables that track the public visibility and perceived policy relevance or impact of top-tier think tanks.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

Do Think Tanks Matter? evaluates the influence and relevance of public policy institutes in today's political arena. Many journalists and scholars believe the explosion of think tanks in the latter part of the twentieth century indicates their growing importance in the policy-making process. This perception has been reinforced by directors of think tanks, who often credit their institutes with influencing major policy debates and government legislation. Yet the basic question of how and in what way they influence public policy has, Donald Abelson contends, frequently been ignored. Abelson studies the experiences of think tanks in the United States, where they have become an integral feature of the political landscape, and in Canada, where their numbers have grown considerably in recent years but where, compared to their U.S. counterparts, they enjoy less prominence in policy-making. By focusing on the policy cycle, issue articulation (that is, getting issues on the political agenda) and policy formation and implementation (actually affecting the outcome of policies already on the political agenda), he argues that think tanks have sometimes played an important role in shaping the political dialogue and the policy preferences and choices of decision-makers, but often in different ways and at different stages of the policy cycle.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Surveying the think tank landscape in the United States and Canada
• Thinking about think tanks : a conceptual framework
• In the arena : opportunities, constraints, and incentives for think tanks in the United States and Canada
• Competing in the marketplace of ideas : the strategies of think tanks
• Public visibility and policy relevance : assessing the influence of think tanks
• On the road to the White House : presidential candidates and the think tanks that advised them
• Policy experts or policy instruments? Think tanks and the debate over constitutional reform in Canada
• Conclusion : the more things change ... policy influence, policy relevance, and the future of think tanks in Canada, the United States, and beyond.

Do Think Tanks Matter? evaluates the influence and relevance of public policy institutes in today's political arena. Many journalists and scholars believe the explosion of think tanks in the latter part of the twentieth century indicates their growing importance in the policy-making process. This perception has been reinforced by directors of think tanks, who often credit their institutes with influencing major policy debates and government legislation. Yet the basic question of how and in what way they influence public policy has, Donald Abelson contends, frequently been ignored. Abelson studies the experiences of think tanks in the United States, where they have become an integral feature of the political landscape, and in Canada, where their numbers have grown considerably in recent years but where, compared to their U.S. counterparts, they enjoy less prominence in policy-making. By focusing on the policy cycle, issue articulation (that is, getting issues on the political agenda) and policy formation and implementation (actually affecting the outcome of policies already on the political agenda), he argues that think tanks have sometimes played an important role in shaping the political dialogue and the policy preferences and choices of decision-makers, but often in different ways and at different stages of the policy cycle.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Contributors include Bert Backman-Beharry (Calgary-based consultant), N. Bruce Baskerville (National Research Council of Canada - NRCC), Francois Bregha (Stratos Inc), Don Di Salle (NRCC), G. Bruce Doern (Carleton and Exeter), Carey Hill (PhD candidate, British Columbia), Jeffrey S. Kinder (PhD candidate, Carleton), Russell LaPointe (doctoral student, Carleton), Debora C. Lopreite (PhD candidate, Carleton), David Robinson (Laurentian), Mike Rosenblatt (Carleton), Stephan Schott (Carleton), Robert Slater (Carleton), Jac van Beek (Ottawa), and Coady Wing (graduate student, Carleton).
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

Inter-disciplinary essays on ISE and related sustainable development policy priorities of the federal government.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• The reshaping of an agenda for innovation, science, and environment (ISE) / G. Bruce Doern
• The struggle over Canada's role in the post-Kyoto world / Peter Calamai
• Canadian innovation in a changing world: towards better S & T priority-setting / Jac van Beek
• Innovation and natural resources: myths and realities about the "old" economy versus the "new" economy / A. Jai Persaud, Uma Kumar, Vinod Kumar
• The path to local sustainable development: two approaches / Robert Hilton
• Canadian internet pharmacies and the USA technological and regulatory market change / Scott Bennett
• Promoting partnerships in biotechnology for development / Basma Abdelgafar, Halla Thorsteinsdóttir
• Biotechnology regulatory regime shift in the growing bio-health products era / G. Bruce Doern
• Renewable energy policies and the provinces / Judith Lipp
• The human nature connection: sustainable development policy implications / Elizabeth Nisbet, John Zelenski, Steven Murphy
• Putting the squeeze on procurement: procurement policy as a lever for innovation, science, and environment / Barbara Allen
• Transforming health sciences research: from the Medical Research Council to the Canadian Institutes of Health research / Joan Murphy
• Intellectual property rights and competition policy in the knowledge-based economy: compatible or colliding policy regimes? / Derek Ireland
• Harmful distraction: the commercialization of knowledge at Canada's public universities / Malcolm G. Bird.

• Contributors include Bert Backman-Beharry (Calgary-based consultant), N. Bruce Baskerville (National Research Council of Canada - NRCC), Francois Bregha (Stratos Inc), Don Di Salle (NRCC), G. Bruce Doern (Carleton and Exeter), Carey Hill (PhD candidate, British Columbia), Jeffrey S. Kinder (PhD candidate, Carleton), Russell LaPointe (doctoral student, Carleton), Debora C. Lopreite (PhD candidate, Carleton), David Robinson (Laurentian), Mike Rosenblatt (Carleton), Stephan Schott (Carleton), Robert Slater (Carleton), Jac van Beek (Ottawa), and Coady Wing (graduate student, Carleton).
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

Inter-disciplinary essays on ISE and related sustainable development policy priorities of the federal government.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Surveying the think tank landscape in the United States and Canada
• Thinking about think tanks: a conceptual framework
• In the arena: opportunities, constraints, and incentives for think tanks in the United States and Canada
• Competing in the marketplace of ideas: the strategies of think tanks
• Public visibility and policy relevance: assessing the influence of think tanks
• On the road to the White House: presidential candidates and the think tanks that advised them
• Policy experts or policy instruments? Think tanks and the debate over constitutional reform in Canada
• Conclusion: policy influence, policy relevance, and the future of think tanks in Canada, the United States, and beyond
• Appendix one: a profile of selected American think tanks
• Appendix two: a profile of selected Canadian think tanks.

Do Think Tanks Matter? evaluates the influence and relevance of public policy institutes in today's political arena. Many journalists and scholars believe the explosion of think tanks in the latter part of the twentieth century indicates their growing importance in the policy-making process. This perception has been reinforced by directors of think tanks, who often credit their institutes with influencing major policy debates and government legislation. Yet the basic question of how and in what way they influence public policy has, Donald Abelson contends, frequently been ignored. Abelson studies the experiences of think tanks in the United States, where they have become an integral feature of the political landscape, and in Canada, where their numbers have grown considerably in recent years but where, compared to their U.S. counterparts, they enjoy less prominence in policy-making. By focusing on the policy cycle, issue articulation (that is, getting issues on the political agenda) and policy formation and implementation (actually affecting the outcome of policies already on the political agenda), he argues that think tanks have sometimes played an important role in shaping the political dialogue and the policy preferences and choices of decision-makers, but often in different ways and at different stages of the policy cycle.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)

• Introduction to A Century of Maritime Science (Jennifer Hubbard)
• Chapter 1: Science in Canada: The Context of the Biological Board of Canada's St. Andrews Biological Station (Eric L. Mills)
• Chapter 2: Some Contributions of Women to the Early Study of Marine Biology of Canadian Waters (Mary Needler Arai)
• Chapter 3: The Gospel of Efficiency and the Origins of Maximum Sustainable Yield (MSY): Scientific and Social Influences on Johan Hjort's and A.G. Huntsman's Contributions to Fisheries Science (Jennifer Hubbard)
• Chapter 4: Public Science and Government Policy in the History of St. Andrews Biological Station (Robert L. Stephenson)
• Chapter 5: Technology in Marine Science at the St. Andrews Biological Station, 1908-2008 (Timothy James Foulkes)
• Chapter 6: An Overview of Physical Oceanographic Research at the St. Andrews Biological Station During its First Century (Blythe D. Chang and Fred H. Page)
• Chapter 7: Experimental Flow Studies at St. Andrews Biological Station (David J. Wildish and Shawn M.C. Robinson)
• Chapter 8: A Personal Perspective on the Historical Role of the St Andrews Biological Station in Investigations of Canadian Scallop Fisheries (John F. Caddy)
• Chapter 9: Fifty years of Atlantic Salmon Field Studies at St. Andrews Biological Station (Richard H. Peterson)
• Chapter 10: Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning (PSP) Research - Seventy Years in Retrospect (Jennifer L. Martin)
• Chapter 11: A History of Research in Environmental Science and Ecotoxicology at the St. Andrew's Biological Station (Peter G. Wells)
• Chapter 12: Aquaculture Research and Development at the St. Andrews Biological Station: 1908-2008 (Robert H. Cook).
• (source: Nielsen Book Data)

Located on the Bay of Fundy, the St. Andrews Biological Station is Canada's oldest permanent marine research institution. A Century of Maritime Science reviews the fisheries, environmental, oceanographic, and aquaculture research conducted over the last hundred years at St. Andrews from the perspective of the participating scientists. Introductory essays by two leading historians of science situate the work at St. Andrews within their historical context. With topics including the contributions of women to the early study of marine biology in Canada; the study of scallops, Atlantic salmon, and paralytic shellfish poisoning; and the development of underwater camera technology, A Century of Maritime Science offers a captivating mixture of first-hand reminiscences, scientific expertise, and historical analysis.
(source: Nielsen Book Data)