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OTT PodcastAuthor: On Think Tanks
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Crises and Responsibilities: Rosa Balfour's Insights from Carnegie Europe
Episode 1
Monday, 6 July, 2026
In this episode of OTT Talks, co-hosts Enrique Mendizabal and Goran Buldioski speak with Dr Rosa Balfour, Director of Carnegie Europe, about how Europe’s successive crises since the 2008 financial crash—through the Arab Spring, Crimea, Brexit, and Trump—have reshaped the foreign policy landscape and the role of think tanks.Rosa describes Brussels as a more process-driven but increasingly closed policy ecosystem, contrasts it with more politically aligned national capitals, and explains the leadership demands of running a pan-European think tank: thought leadership, fundraising, visibility, and supporting staff across multiple capitals. She discusses the tension between 24/7 commentary and deep research, the responsibility to contribute to public debate (including in smaller countries), the funding constraints facing European think tanks, and the growing but still limited mainstream influence of radical-right think tank ecosystems such as Hungary’s MCC.This episode is part of a series, Think tanks in a changing Europe, supported by the Open Society Foundations. You can listen to the whole series here.Tune in, and visit Carnegie Europe to learn more about what was discussed during this podcast.About OTT Talks:OTT Talks is a platform for sharing learning among think tanks, funders, and other policy actors on a range of topics, from think tank governance to communicating research. Learn more.About On Think Tanks: On Think Tanks focuses on a range of issues relevant to think tanks, their staff, and supporters. We hope that our initiatives and the articles and resources we publish will help think tanks make short- and long-term decisions more strategically, resulting in better policy advice and policy outcomes for all. Learn more & support us.
