Analyses Library

Long-form analysis on the policies that shape democratic life

A filterable archive of independent commentary, policy briefs, and investigative essays — written by researchers, written for citizens. Browse by topic, format, or author.

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This week's featured analysis

Featured · Long read

When platforms become parliaments: regulating digital public squares

How a decade of platform governance failures has quietly rewritten the rules of democratic speech — and what a serious regulatory response actually looks like.

28 min

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14,200

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Digital democracy

A policy brief that traces moderation, market power, and free expression from Brussels to Brasília

Drawing on six months of interviews with regulators, civil society leaders, and platform engineers, this analysis argues that the next phase of digital governance must move beyond content takedowns and toward structural remedies. We map three competing models now in play and assess which can survive contact with both constitutional courts and the realities of cross-border enforcement.

Dr. Elena Marchetti

Senior Fellow · Published 3 days ago

Read the full analysis

Library · 147 pieces

Recent analyses and commentary

Filter the archive by format, region, or topic. Every piece is independently authored and externally reviewed.

Climate · Policy brief

Carbon border adjustments after the WTO ruling: what changes, what doesn't

The Appellate Body's narrow decision leaves the EU's CBAM legally intact but politically exposed. We outline the four adjustment strategies member states are now quietly pursuing.

JT Jonas Teller · 2 days ago

Economy · Data essay

Productivity is not the problem: why the "secular stagnation" debate misses the point

Re-reading the last twenty years of growth data through a distributional lens reveals that the question was never about how much we produce — it was always about who captures it.

PA Priya Anand · 5 days ago

Justice · Commentary

Prosecutorial independence is not a luxury: lessons from three constitutional crises

Comparing recent interventions in Brazil, Peru, and Israel, this piece argues that the slow erosion of prosecutorial autonomy is the canary in the democratic coal mine.

DK Daniela Kessler · 1 week ago

Foreign affairs · Long read

The new map of middle-power diplomacy: small states, big coalitions

From the Jakarta-Bandung corridor to the Nordic-Baltic eight, middle powers are quietly rewriting the playbook of multilateral influence. We trace what works, and what is performative.

RO Dr. Rafael Okonkwo · 1 week ago

Tech policy · Investigation

Inside the procurement state: how algorithmic public services escape accountability

A six-month investigation into how opaque contracting has allowed welfare-scoring systems to spread across local administrations, often in violation of public-procurement law.

SV Sofia Velazquez · 2 weeks ago

Migration · Field report

Asylum by algorithm: testing the new EU pre-screening tools against the people they judge

We sat beside interpreters and legal aid workers at three border posts to see how the AI-assisted interview tools actually perform — and where they fail the people they were meant to help.

MH Marcus Holm · 2 weeks ago

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