TNI envisions a world of peace, equity and democracy on a sustainable planet brought about and sustained by an informed and engaged people.
Message from the director
Solidarity is the cure. Justice is the vaccine. This was TNI’s rallying call as the pandemic broke in 2020. We knew that the pandemic impacted on a world already in crisis. Many existing inequities would be amplified – with a disproportionate impact on the most vulnerable people, particularly in the Global South.
OUR MISSION
TNI’s mission is to strengthen international social movements with rigorous research, reliable information, sound analysis and constructive proposals that advance progressive, democratic policy change and common solutions to global problems. In so doing, TNI acts as a unique nexus between social movements, engaged scholars and policy makers.
OUR GOALS
TNI’s overarching goals for 2016–2020, consistent with our emancipatory vision for society, remain:
Strategies
Construct a broadly-shared understanding of what blocks realization of an emancipatory vision of the world and of viable ways towards achieving that vision, especially from the perspective of people in the Global South.
Empowerment
Achieve the realization of potentials by citizens everywhere, but especially those suffering exclusion and poverty, to organize around, articulate and amplify their concerns and proposals.
Transformation
Advocate for the transformation of norms, policies and practice of key public and private institutions, especially those with transnational influence, towards greater transparency, accountability, engagement with and responsiveness to citizens in democratic, equitable and inclusive ways.
To these ends, TNI has followed a five-year strategy up to the end of 2020. In this last year of that cycle, we have been reflecting on progress towards the ambitious objectives we set back in 2016. Achievements are elaborated in this report. We are pleased to report that in many instances, we exceeded even our own expectations of what could be achieved.
Forthcoming five year plan
Reflections on our successes and challenges over the past five years have also contributed to the process of developing a new set of five-year strategic goals for the 2021–2026 period. As part of this process, we have also taken stock of contextual conditions for our work, including assessing the current opportunities and threats for TNI. We sought input from over 300 allies and associates, and held online workshops involving our teams as well as members of our Supervisory Board. We look forward to sharing the new five-year strategic plan with you in 2021.
TNI’S 2020 IN NUMBERS
Research output
TNI launched
74
publications in 9 languages
Media
TNI’s ideas were mentioned in
217
media stories reaching a conservatively estimated audience of
28.2 million
almost double that in 2015
Podcasts
TNI released
20
podcasts with an average of 400 listeners per episode
TNI’s web pages
TNI’s web pages were viewed more than
1.7 million
times, almost double that in 2015
Social media
TNI’s ideas were viewed
275,339
times through Facebook
TNI’s ideas were viewed by
3.4 million
people on Twitter, an average of 15,000 per day
Webinars
58,786
people from more than 138
countries viewed the 41 webinars TNI co-organized
TNI’s most popular webinar (on globalised food systems) was viewed 4.749 times by people in more than
83 countries
Scholarly Citations
TNI Fellows and staff were cited
3,691
times in scholarly publications, 8% more than last year
Dialogue with policy makers
TNI was in dialogue with policy makers from
32
countries and
12
international organisations
Newsletter
Subscriptions to TNI’s e-newsletters grew 30% to
35,000
subscribers
How we work
For nearly 50 years, TNI’s mission has been to serve emancipatory social movements world-wide. The Institute serves as an activist think tank – providing well-researched analysis, supporting public education, and the development of popular advocacy campaigns.
TNI worked directly with
246 partners in 48 countries,
as well as through 29 global and 39 regional networks.
Who We Work With
Movements
TNI works in support of, and as part of, progressive social movements in developing a relevant and useful research and advocacy agenda. We work with a broad range of organizations including trade unions, organizations of small-scale farmers and fishers, environmental and feminist networks, and numerous issue-specific advocacy groups – both directly and within intersectional coalitions. We help to make links wherever possible and, in so doing, contribute to building powerful transnationally-connected movements for change.
Activist-Scholars
TNI strives to be a useful think tank for social movements. We work with activist-scholars to provide movements with the tools necessary to understand and take on the forces of wealth, power and control; analyses of developments that help movements stay one step ahead; and evidence-based argumentation. Activist-scholars can also serve as influential and visionary public intellectuals, and provide persuasive expertise in engagements with policy-makers and in the media. TNI also sees merit in building new generations of critical and radical intellectuals dedicated to serving the public good, providing a strong body of knowledge on which they can draw and build, and seeing knowledge production itself as a site of struggle.
Policy Makers
From local to international levels, and across the political spectrum, TNI provides civil servants and elected representatives with information and analysis on a wide-range of themes. We do this, for example, through co-convening informal policy dialogues, presentations to parliamentary committees, or side events at UN meetings. Wherever possible we work with allies. We want to ensure a seat at the table for those being advocated for.
Media
TNI works with media to amplify the struggles of movements, to give visibility to progressive innovations, and to provide a critical perspective on the issues of the moment. This includes press outreach, active social media engagement as well as partnerships with progressive media platforms.
PROGRAMME ACHIEVEMENTS IN 2020
We began a five-year programme in 2016 in support of our long-term goals. This was organized as seven broad programme areas, each with an ambitious objective to be achieved by the end of 2020. In most instances, these are objectives shared with allies within broader social movements for change and achieved together. TNI’s particular role and contributions to successes are elaborated further below. In this last year of the programme, we are very proud to present how far we have come in meeting these objectives, often exceeding our own expectations.
“The TNI has built the deserved reputation of providing an international voice and platform for exploring and advancing radical alternatives, backed by serious research and critical thought. In many respects, TNI has been ahead of the curve, boldly advancing progressive ideas before they become accepted by the mainstream. Nowhere has this role been clearer than in the path breaking work TNI has done since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic: in the bold proposals they have advanced for financing a fair international post-pandemic order in their Paying for the Pandemic report; or bringing activists, researchers, and policymakers together in their dynamic series of webinars which have explored different dimensions of the post Covid crisis. As a progressive research and policy institute of the Global South, we urge continued support for the TNI’s invaluable work.”
Neil Coleman
Co-Founder Institute for Economic Justice, South Africa
BOARD REPORT
“Last year, PHM collaborated with TNI on the corporate capture of global governance and the impact of capitalism on people’s health, especially as seen during the pandemic. Our collective work on highlighting the adverse consequences of ‘multistakeholderism’ across sectors resonates with PHM’s belief that the health sector cannot be seen in isolation and any work on the right to health must incorporate perspectives on social determinants of health. PHM looks forward to continuing our joint efforts towards Health For All.”
Sulakshana Nandi
Co-chair, People’s Health Movement (PHM), Global Steering Council
“I’ve become familiar with TNI through the excellent reports they publish about the global border security industry. These reports have filled a crucial gap in our knowledge of border militarization. Previously, most scholars studied one country or another, but TNI has brought a global frame to the question and helped to document the scope of issue in a way that no one else was. Their work is indispensable.”
Reece Jones
Professor of Geography and Environment at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa
FINANCES
TNI is committed to the principles of independence, transparency, and accountability. TNI’s financial reporting was rated 5 stars for ‘excellence’ by the Transparify initiative.
What
we spent our money on
Where
we got our money
For a full breakdown of expenditures per donor see FUNDING AGREEMENTS ACTIVE IN 2020 below.
Income
over the last 5 years
Financial result
The result in 2020 was 76,253, which amount has been added to the reserves for continuity purposes. The sources for this surplus were as follows:
- Unrestricted income
- Restitution of reserved staff vacation days
- Lower costs (due to COVID)
- Rounding of the tariff rate
TNI’s reserves, at the end of 2020, stood at Euro 1,250,574. Towards the end of the year, the Management and Supervisory Boards reviewed the reserve policy and the method of calculating this. It was agreed that the target is one year’s operating costs. The formula to be used is: liquid reserves/fixed operational costs x 365 days. Liquid reserves are approximately 86% of the amount listed as reserves in our annual accounts, with the remaining 14% requiring the Institute to sell its building. By this method of calculation, we reached 58% of our goal or a survival rate of 212 days at the end of 2020.
The ratio of current assets to short-term liabilities remains healthy at 138% (compared to 153% in 2019).
Financial statements
Source: TNI Audited Financial Accounts 2020
TNI STAFF IN 2020
MANAGEMENT TEAM
Fiona Dove (Executive Director)
Pietje Vervest & Ernestien Jensema (Programmes)
Denis Burke (Communications)
John Kerseboom (Personnel)
COMMUNICATIONS
Denis Burke (Coordinator)
Mercedes Camps (Spanish translator)
Shaun Matsheza (Podcasts/writer)
Hilde van der Pas (Dutch press liaison/social media)
Jorrit Stoker (Webmaster)
COMMUNITY-BUILDERS
Nick Buxton (Think Tank Coordinator)
Jess Graham (Fundraiser)
Niels Jongerius (Netherlands)
OFFICE & ADMINISTRATION
Misrak Alayu (Front Office)
Katja Gertman (Bookkeeping Assistant)
Albi Janssen (Network Engineer)
John Kerseboom (Personnel)
Stephanie Olinga-Shannon (Evaluation)
Sebastian Stellingwerf (ICT)
Sasha Trifkovich (Information Manager)
VOLUNTEERS
Mustaffa Habashi (Handyman)
Susan Medeiros (Front Office)
Nicholas Santiago Martinez Rivera (Researcher)
INTERNS
Nada Baraka (Egypt)
Ivo Didden (Netherlands)
Sara Elkan (UK)
Omar Jamal (Canada)
Inés McKechnie Charle (Spain)
Sophie Rogers (UK)
Daisy Termorshuizen (Netherlands)
Josephine Valeske (Germany)
Yue Wang (China)
Li Zhiyuan (China)
RESEARCH ASSOCIATES
Zoe Brent
Jenny Franco
Luciana Ghiotto
Naomi Kreitman
Bettina Müller
Carsten Pederson
Andy Rutherford
Marcela d’Olivera
Sofia Scasserra
Martin Smith
Maria-Sol Reindl
PROGRAMME DIRECTORS
Martin Jelsma (Drugs & Democracy)
Pietje Vervest (Economic Justice)
PROGRAMME COORDINATORS
Brid Brennan (Corporate Power)
Lyda Fernanda Forrero Torres (Agrarian & Environmental Justice)
Ernestien Jensema (Drugs & Democracy)
Satoko Kishimoto (Public Alternatives)
Niamh Ni Bhriain (War & Pacification)
Cecilia Olivet (Trade & Investment)
PROGRAMME STAFF
Lucía Barcéna
Gonzalo Berrón
Tom Blickman
Daniel Chavez
Hamza Hamouchene
Sylvia Kay
Melissa Koutouzis
Pien Metaal
Dania Putri
Katie Sandwell
Lavinia Steinfort
Sol Trumbo Vila
Monica Vargas
FELLOWS
Click on photo for more
Achin Vanaik (India)
Ben Hayes (UK)
Daniel Chavez (Netherlands / Uruguay)
David Fig (South Africa)
Edgardo Lander (Venezuela)
Hilary Wainwright (UK)
Jun Borras (Netherlands / Philippines)
Phyllis Bennis (USA)
ASSOCIATES
Boris Kagarlitsky (Russia)
David Bewley-Taylor (UK)
David Sogge (Netherlands)
Francesco Martone (Italy)
Harris Gleckman (USA)
Hermann von Hatzfeldt (Germany)
Howard Wachtel (USA)
James Early (USA)
Jochen Hippler (Germany)
Joel Rocamora (Philippines)
John Cavanagh (USA)
Kamil Mahdi (Iraq)
Kees Biekart (Netherlands)
Manuel Pérez-Rocha (Mexico)
Marcos Arruda (Brazil)
Mariano Aguirre (Colombia)
Myriam Vander Stichele (Netherlands)
Peter Weiss (USA)
Ricardo Vargas (Colombia)
Roger van Zwanenburg (UK)
Sebastián Torres (Uruguay)
Tom Reifer (USA)
Walden Bello (Philippines)
TNI COLLABORATIONS IN 2020
TNI would like to thank all those individuals who cooperated with us in 2020. Your time, labour and expertise has been much appreciated. Apologies in advance to anyone who was inadvertently omitted. There are many, in Myanmar particularly, who cannot be named for reasons of safety but know that we thank you too.
Africa
Algeria
- Brahim Rouabah
- Samir Larabi
Burkina Faso
- Koumbou Boly Barry
Egypt
- Mohamed Ramadan
Gambia
- Alagie Jinkang
Ghana
- Clement Bofa-Oppong
- Daniel Oberko
Kenya
- Agnes Midi-Keita
- Alvin Mosioma
- Awino Okech
- Felogene Anumo
- Nanjala Nabola
- Nanjira Sambuli
Mauritania
- Mohamed Yahia Mohmeden
- Nedwa Moctar Nech
Morocco
- Abdellatif Adebibe
- Atika Al Fazazi
- Brahim Mounassir
- Fatima-Zahra El Belghiti
- Omar Aziki
- Shadia El Brahimi
Mozambique
- Ilham Rawoot
Nigeria
- Aderonke Ige
- Akinbode Oluwafemi
- Baba Aye
South Africa
- Anastasya Eliseeva
- Brian Ashley
- Dominic Brown
- Kea Seipato
- Lebohang Liepollo Pheko
- Mark Heywood
- Mark Swilling
- Mazibuko Jara
- Naseegh Jaffer
- Philasande Mahlakata
- Richard Worthington
- Ruth Hall
- Sandra van Niekerk
- Tlaleng Mofokeng
- Vahini Naidu
- Zwelinzima Vavi
Senegal
- Hakima Abbas
- Koumbou Boly Barry
Sierra Leone
- Sabrina Mahtani
Sudan
- Muzan Alneel
Tunisia
- Layla Riahi
- Torkia Chaibi
Uganda
- Faith Lumonya
Asia-Oceania
Australia
- David Legge
- Nick Crofts
- Philip Alston
- Sam Cossar-Gilbert
India
- Anita Gurumurthy
- Anuradha Chenoy
- Benny Kuruvilla
- Jayati Ghosh
- Kajal Bhardwaj
- Kavita Krishnan
- Nandini Chami
- Orijit Sen
- Parminder Singh
- Romesh Bhattacharji
- Sulakshana Nandi
- Tripti Tandon
- Vrinda Grover
- Walden Bello
Indonesia
- Arie Kurniawaty
- Maidina Rahmawati
- Marthin Hadiwinata
- Rachmi Hertanti
Japan
- Evan Clayburg
Malaysia
- Charles Santiago
- Umyra Ahmad
Pakistan
- Farooq Tariq
Philippines
- Joseph Purugganan
- Josua Mata
- Tina Ebro
- Walden Bello
Americas
Antigua and Barbuda
- Franklin Lennox Francis/Ras Franki Tafari
- Taswan Ras Milla
Argentina
- Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky
- Mabel Thwaites Rey
- Marcelo Saguier
- Maria Chevalier
- Nicolás Arata
- Ofelia Fernández
- Pablo Bertinat
- Romina Urfeig
Belize
- Susan Fuller
Bolivia
- Diego Giacoman
- Maria Lohman
- Maryann Manahan
- Patricia Chulver Benítez
- Roberto Calzadilla
- Rose Marie Achá
- Sara Shields
Brazil
- Ana Carolina Lourenço
- Gabriel Casnati
- Jocelio Drummond
- Juliana Borges
- Léo Heller
- Martin Dietrich Brauch
- Tchenna Maso
Canada
- Alain Deneault
- Arthur Bull
- David McDonald
- Filipa Pajević
- Firoze Manji
- Harsha Walia
- Jade Saab
- Joel Bakan
- Leilani Farha
- Naomi Klein
- Nazlee Maghsoudi
- Petra Molnar
- Quinn Slobodian
- Sonia Shah
- Susan Spronk
- Vasanthi Venkatesh
Chile
- Magdalena Sepúlveda
- María Paz Canales
- Víctor Chanfreau
Colombia
- Alejandro Salazar
- Andres Lopez
- Isabel Pereira
- Jaime Diaz
- Jhoni Trejos
- Julian Caicedo
- Pedro Arenas
- Sergio Mauricio Zamora
Costa Rica
- Alberto Cortés Ramos
- Ernesto Cortés Amador
Ecuador
- Pablo Fajardo
Guatemala
- Briseida Milán Lemus
Jamaica
- Annette Henry
- Ryan ‘Kush’ Morrison
- Ras Iyah V
- Vicky Hanson
Mexico
- Fernanda Justo Hernández
- Luis Ortiz Hernandez
Paraguay
- Francisco Larrea
Peru
- Ana Romero
- Hugo Cabieses
- Ricardo Soberón
St Vincent and the Grenadines
- Alvin Collin / Bufa
- Junior Spirit Cottle
- Ackly Olto
Trinidad and Tobago
- Rose Marie Antoine
United States
- Alan McPherson
- Allen White
- Andrea James
- Arun Kundnani
- Ben Tarnoff
- Bill Fletcher, Jr
- Carlos Marentes
- Cathy Feingold
- Dana Brown
- Dov Baum
- Fionnuala Ni Aolain
- Frieda Afary
- Gerardo Reyes Chavez
- Johanna Bozuwa
- John Feffer
- John Treat
- Justine Moore
- Khara Jabola-Carolus
- Khury Petersen-Smith
- Larissa J. Maier
- Laura Flanders
- Liz Niarhos
- Marjorie Kelly
- Meena Jagganath
- Mildred E. Warner
- Noam Chomsky
- Nomi Prins
- Patrick Barrett
- Peter Ramand
- Rob Wallace
- Richard Kozul-Wright
- Sean Sweeney
- Thenjiwe McHarris
- Tithi Bhattacharya
- Todd Miller
Uruguay
- Alberto Villareal
- Damian Osta
- Danilo Urrea
- Guillermo Garat
- Karin Nansen
- Karina Bathhyány
- Martín Sanguinetti
- Natalia Carrau
- Natalie Uval
- Pablo Messina
Europe
Austria
- Martin Konecny
Belgium
- Bram Michielsen
- David Dessers
- Hans van Scharen
- Izabella Majcher
- Jill Alpes
- Martin Pigeon
- Meera Ghani
- Michaela Kauer
- Olivier De Schutter
- Olivier Hoedeman
- Tomaso Ferrando
Croatia
- Mladen Domazet
- Vedran Horvat
Czech Republic
- Ondrêj Slacálek
Denmark
- Chenchen Zhang
- Erick Gonzalo Palomares Rodrígue
- Kenneth Haar
- Mads Barbesgaard
- Mathias Hein Jessen
France
- Anne Sophie Olmos
- Benedicte Kurzen
- Charlène Jouanneau
- David Gallar
- Deborah Eade
- Eric Piolle
- Fatima-Zahra El Belghiti
- Olivier Petitjean
- Selma Oumari
- Thibault Josse
- Yasser Louati
Germany
- Anna Cavazzini
- Fabian Flues
- Paula Gioia
- Pia Eberhardt
Greece
- Andreas Pottakis
- Apostolis Fotiados
- Christos Giovanopoulos
- Yanis Varoufakis
Hungary
- Agnes Gagyi
- Imres Szucs
- Tessza Udvarhelyi
Ireland
- Carla Maria Kayanan
- Fleachta Phelan
- Siobhan Airey
Italy
- Alagie Jinkang
- Delphine Ortega-Espes
- Francesco Alfonso Leccese
- Nora McKeon
- Rosa Pavanelli
Netherlands
- Alberto Alonso Fradejas
- Aleksi Hupli
- Alexander Beunder
- Anna Bissila
- Bas Coenegracht
- Bas van Beek
- Cailtin Schaap
- Caroline Nevejan
- Chihiro Geuzenbroek
- Damian Zaitch
- Dionne Abdoelhafiezkhan
- Eveline Lubbers
- Faiza Oulahsen
- Femke Sleegers
- Florian Wolff
- Guido Jelsma
- Hannes Gerhardt
- Harriet Bergman
- Has Cornelissen
- Hilde Anna de Vries
- Jan Douwe van der Ploeg
- Janneke Prins
- Jelle Klaas
- Jille Belisario
- Jilles Mast
- John van Mullem
- Jurjen van De Bergh
- Karen Paalman
- Kauthar Bouchallikht
- Kees Stad
- Keimpe van der Heide
- Kim van Sparrentak
- Kirstie Crail
- Kitty Jong
- Laura Basu
- Laurie van Der Burg
- Lena Hartog
- Linder van den Heerik
- Liset Meddens
- Lynn van Leersum
- Maina van der Zwan
- Mariana Gkliati
- Marie-Sol Reindl
- Mark Akkerman
- Merel de Buck
- Miriyam Aouragh
- Natasja van den Berg
- Nawal Mustafa
- Nina Ciadella
- Noor Blokhuis
- Paolo Demas
- Raki Ap Rene Danen
- Robin Bruisje
- Rutger Groot Wassink
- Sinde de Strijcker
- Suzanne Dhaliwal
- Tatiana Lukman
- Tineke Strik
- Tjalling Postma
- Tuur Elzinga
- Wouter van der Klippe
Portugal
- Boaventura de Sousa Santos
- Giovanni Allegretti
- Sheila Holtz
Romania
- Attila Szocs
Serbia
- Andras Juhasz
Spain
- Adoración Guamán
- Ainhoa Ruiz Benedicto
- Blanca Bayas Fernández
- Daniel Díaz-Fuentes
- David Gallar
- Ernest Urtasun
- Eva Garcia Chueca
- Felip Daza Sierra
- Janet Sanz
- Joan Herrera
- Jordi Calvo Rufanges
- Laura Roth
- Lucia Martín
- María Eugenia Rodríguez Palop
- Mikel Otero
- Nuria del Viso
- Oscar Reyes
- Pedro Rojo
- Pere Brunet
- Stacco Troncaso
Sweden
- Natalia Mamonova
- Zeidon Alkinani
Switzerland
- Emilie Ferreira
- Frank Zobel
- Joey Ayoub
- Lynn Fries
- Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder
United Kingdom
- Adam Winstock
- Andrew Cumbers
- Ann Pettifor
- Asim Qureshi
- Awino Okech
- Azfar Shafi
- Ben Tippet
- Bridget Henderson
- Chris Jones
- David Miller
- Grietje Baars
- Hafsah Aneela Bashir
- Ilyas Nagdee
- James Angel
- Jane Kilpatrick
- Jean Blaylock
- Biswas
- Laura Roddy
- Manoj Dias-Abey
- Mariana Gkliati
- Narzanin Massoumi
- Neil Woods
- Niovi Vavoula
- Olivia Rope
- Rafeef Ziadah
- Shelagh Smith
- Suzanne Jeffery
- Tatiana Garavito
West Asia
Turkey
- Irmak Ertor
- Joris Leverink
Iraq
- Zahra Ali
Lebanon
- Rima Majed
Palestine
- Moayyad Bsharat
- Saad Ziada
FALLEN COMRADES
TNI was deeply saddened at the passing away of two Associates in February 2020, both after a long bout of ill health.
Dot Keet (b. Bulawayo, 1942) passed away in London. She had been a Fellow for a decade from 2001 during which time she played a pioneering role in the establishment of the Southern African Peoples Solidarity Network and had a long association with the African Trade Network and the Alternative Information and Development Centre in Cape Town. With a background in the liberation movements of Southern Africa, Dot was a passionate socialist who dedicated her entire life to serving this cause. More here can be found about the incredible life of Dot.
Photo: Luna duna
Teodor Shanin (b. Vilnius, 1930) passed away in Moscow. He had been one of TNI’s original batch of Fellows, appointed in 1974 and serving for almost a decade, reconnecting from the 2000s. He had been a founder of the Journal of Peasant Studies in 1973, which published all his writings as a tribute to him in 2020. Teodor’s other legacy is a post-graduate school in Moscow, fondly known as Shaninka, and for which effort he was recognised with an O.B.E in England. Hear Teodor memorably speaking to the political significance of La Via Campesina, and telling his amazing life story.
We will cherish the memory of Dot and Teodor’s association with TNI and give them both a place of honour in our history so future generations can come to know them too.