Our mission
Our mission statement is comprised of four key areas of action,
'arrows' that relate to today's global challenges and threats.
We direct the first arrow towards climate change that is a creeping catastrophe but the more dangerous.
Early wake-up calls issued by science were overheard or even denied. We remember the Club of Rome already in 1968! Now the clock shows already 5 past 12 if not more.
Today, Climate Change gains much more attention than 50 years ago. International accords ll such as the Paris Agreement and many others are certainly cause for hope, but they have one deficiency in common: measures stopping at the national border.
Our Institute seeks to highlight, promote and propose cross-border solutions, which are urgently needed. Key part in this is to assist stakeholders in developing and implementing green cross-border activities.
Second Arrow
Globalization brings increased levels of: international trade, access to resources, flow of capital, communication, and exchange of knowledge. However, it is also associated with growing inequality, enormous accumulations of wealth in the hands of the few, the collection and (ab)use of personal data.
The very cumbersome way of the international community to minimum taxation demonstrates the difficulties to tackle this aspect of globalization. For the wealthy countries, that minimum taxation will bring additional income for the treasury. But a fair distribution of assets for economically weaker countries needs much more.
Our second arrow is geared towards finding solutions towards global inequality and understanding the varied ramification of a globalized (hyper) capitalist economy.
Third Arrow
Terrorist attacks, (violent) extremism and radicalization are major challenges to practically every country in the world. Despite the variance in terms of threat nature and degree, the key problematics remain the same: preventing and countering terrorism and the radicalization processes that often lead to it.
We firmly believe that any successfull counter-terrorism strategy must be rooted in sciences. Just as the Covid-19 pandemic cannot be correctly contained by pursuing political and ideological agendas, terrorism should not be treated any differently.
Our team is dedicated towards producing high-quality research that is rooted in scholarly work, yet relevant for practitioners. Countering terrorism successfully is neither an intellectual exercise nor a security task, but a combination of both.
Therefore, we would like to bring together members of both fields to exchange knowledge, experiences and best practices for cooperation. Just as with any global problem, cooperation between academia and praxis is vital. Using the lens of Critical theory to study terrorism, we seek to highlight to what extent, if at all, this is currently the case and how we can move forward.
Fourth Arrow
Most of our experts and academics have very good memories of two excellent projects fostering peaceful international relations on equal footing based on the paradigm of dialogue.
The World Public Forum 'Dialogue of Civilizations' would celebrate next year its 20th anniversary. In 2016, the Vienna based WPFDC was transmitted to the 'Dialogue of Civilizations Research Institute' DOC in Berlin, Germany. Both institutions acted as an independent platform for dialogue that brings together diverse perspectives from the developed and developing worlds in a non-confrontational and constructive spirit. This is a legacy worth continuing.
It is our strong belief that conflicts and tensions can only be solved through dialogue and upright international relations on the basis of multilateralism. Fostering multilateralism is therefore our 'fourth arrow'.
First Arrow
We are not a closed circle. Our international platform is open for researchers, scientists, experts, authors, and lecturers who share our values and want to become a part of our social and economic studies, with a focus on moderating climate change, preventing radicalization, diminishing global inequalities, and fostering multilateralism in international relations. We warmly welcome interested citizens too who want to support the unique project IISES.
Join Us Now. You are not only welcome, you are urgently needed.