Worldwatch Institute

The worldwatch institute is a nonprofit independent research organization focusing on environmental and social policy. Lester Brown founded the Worldwatch Institute in 1974 with a grant from the Rockefeller Brothers Fund and funding from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). Christopher Flavin has been president since 2001, and Oystein Dahle is chair of the board of directors. Worldwatch Institute has an annual budget of approximately $4 million. Major support comes from foundation grants, the sale of publications, and individual donations. The institute has around 28 full- and part-time staff. An academic advisory panel advises Worldwatch on how it can serve professors and students.

One guiding vision of the institute is to find ways to meet the needs of people without endangering the natural environment or the welfare of future generations. An institute hallmark is to use fact-based and accessible analysis to address key global issues with environmental and development consequences and inform individuals and public officials worldwide about the underlying causes of complex and interconnected problems; the focus is on practical solutions to guide citizens and policy makers.

Four main research areas of the institute are: people, nature, energy, and economy. The institute addresses these areas through a wide range of perspectives (ecology, public health, political science, and economics) to address problems from an interdisciplinary perspective. Unlike related organizations, the Worldwatch Institute has continued to serve as a research institute rather than an interest group.

This agenda follows directly from the long-term leadership of Brown. Brown, a former staffer at the U.S. Department of Agriculture and developer of the Overseas Development Council, has long seen his role as a “synthesizer” of insights drawn from academic disciplines for solving the world's food, population, and economic problems. Early driving forces at the Institute included Eric Eckholm, Jim Fallows, Orville Freeman, and Denis Hayes (coordinator of Earth Day). The institute's founding was part of the third wave of growth in the American public policy research sector.

The Worldwatch Institute disseminates its analysis and viewpoints through three primary and high profile annual publications: State of the World, Vital Signs, and World Watch, a bimonthly magazine, along with other papers and books. State of the World was first published in 1984, and has since been translated into over 25 languages worldwide. It is widely read by policy analysts, legislators, world leaders, students, and citizens. Its central purpose is to provide accessible summaries of issues related to the global environment; in recent years each issue has focused on specific topics such as “Redefining Global Security,” “The Consumer Society,” and “China and India.” Vital Signs was first published in 1992 and provides analysis of key global trends using graphs and charts to offer visual references; recent topics include energy and climate, resource economics, agricultural resources, and transportation.

World Watch started in 1988. One recent addition to the World Watch portfolio of information sources includes Eye on Earth, a new endeavor in partnership with Blue Moon Fund to provide the institute's perspective on current events and global trends. All Worldwatch Institute publications use environmentally sound paper supplies, and the organization pursues other measures to promote sustainability in the office environment.

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