Swedish foreign policy think tank offering EU governance analysis, science diplomacy expertise, and political science advisory to research consortia.
The Swedish Institute of International Affairs (UI) is an independent research institute in Stockholm specializing in foreign policy analysis, international relations, and EU governance. In H2020, they contributed as a policy expert and analytical partner — not as a technical research body. Their work spans the intersection of science and diplomacy (InsSciDE) and EU integration governance (InDivEU), making them a specialist voice on how political frameworks shape — and are shaped by — science, security, and European identity. Businesses and consortia bring them in when a project needs credible political science analysis, policy advice, or EU governance framing.
InsSciDE (2017–2022) explicitly targeted the invention of a shared European science diplomacy framework, covering health, environment, heritage, security, and space as diplomatic domains.
InDivEU (2019–2021) focused on integrating diversity in the EU, with UI contributing expertise on EU policy-making, multilevel governance, and political science.
The security and space keywords in InsSciDE reflect UI's core institutional mandate as a Swedish foreign affairs think tank — contributing strategic and geopolitical framing to interdisciplinary consortia.
InDivEU listed 'policy advice' and 'political science' as direct keywords, consistent with UI's public role advising Swedish and EU policymakers on international affairs.
In their first H2020 project (2017–2022), UI operated under a broad science diplomacy lens — their keywords spanned environment, health, heritage, security, and space, suggesting they were helping map how science intersects with diplomatic and foreign policy agendas across multiple domains. By their second project (2019–2021), the focus narrowed sharply to EU institutional mechanics: EU integration, multilevel governance, policy-making processes, and law. This shift suggests a move from exploratory, interdisciplinary diplomacy framing toward more focused EU political science and governance analysis.
UI appears to be moving toward EU institutional and governance research — making them a relevant partner for projects dealing with EU policy reform, differentiated integration, or the political dimensions of any sector-level European regulation.
UI has never coordinated an H2020 project — they join as a participant or third party, contributing expert analysis rather than leading technical execution. Despite only two projects, they sit within consortia totaling 45 unique partners across 25 countries, which signals that they are drawn into large, high-visibility research networks as a specialist voice. Working with them means accessing their policy credibility and network in EU and Nordic foreign affairs circles, not a lab or engineering team.
UI has reached 45 unique consortium partners across 25 countries through just two projects — an unusually wide network for so few engagements, likely reflecting the large multi-partner consortia typical of RIA projects in the Society pillar. Their network is European in orientation, consistent with their EU and Nordic foreign policy focus.
UI is one of the few Swedish foreign-policy think tanks with direct H2020 participation, giving them credibility at the intersection of academic research and policy advice that purely academic institutions lack. For consortium builders who need a recognized policy voice — especially on EU governance, science diplomacy, or security dimensions — UI brings institutional legitimacy and political science expertise that engineering or natural science partners cannot. Their small size and non-coordinator posture means they are easy to bring in as a focused expert contributor without competing for project leadership.
