Economic Development
ORF America
India and Brazil: Translating Multilateral ...

By Anit Mukherjee

Lula’s state visit to India will underscore the important role of Brazil and India as leaders of the Global South helping countries navigate geopolitical uncertainty, rebalanced global trade and supply chains, rapid diffusion of transformational technologies, and accelerating impact of a changing climate. With the United States hosting the G20 this year, a strong relationship between the two countries will be critical to consolidate the achievements and keep the priorities of the Global South on the agenda.

India and Brazil: Translating Multilateral Cooperation into Robust Bilateral Ties
Energy & Climate
ORF America
Greenland’s Mineral Promise Is Limited by ...

By Sarah Salah

There is no question that Greenland holds substantial mineral wealth. Most mining exploration sites in Greenland are located along the coast, making port infrastructure essential for transporting heavy equipment and extracted materials. Yet declining sea levels threaten the long-term viability of deep-water ports built today, potentially rendering them too shallow within decades.

Greenland’s Mineral Promise Is Limited by Geological Impediments
Economic Development
ORF America
India’s Evolving Approach to Finance in its ...

By Udaibir Das

When finance is discussed in the context of India’s trade agreements, the debate polarizes: either India is genuinely opening, or it remains stuck in defensive regulation. But neither captures what is happening: India is selectively binding regulatory discretion, exporting specific platforms, and keeping control over balance-sheet risks.

India’s Evolving Approach to Finance in its Trade Agreements
ORF Global Quarterly V1
ORF America
Education, Skills, Labor, and Immigration: ...

By Sunaina Kumar, Soumya Bhowmick, Anasua Basu Ray Chaudhury, Arpan Tulsyan, and Manish Vaidya

By 2033, the Global South is projected to account for 1.2 billion youths aged 15–24, yet only 480 million are projected to be enrolled in school, and about 420 million to secure employment, leaving nearly 300 million young people facing severely constrained opportunities. Equipping them with quality education and relevant skills is crucial.

Education, Skills, Labor, and Immigration: Turning Risks Into Opportunities
ORF Global Quarterly V1
ORF America
Agriculture, Health, and Urbanization: ...

By Nilanjan Ghosh, Ramanath Jha, Oommen C. Kurian, Soma Sarkar, and Shoba Suri

A distinctive feature of the year 2026 is the convergence of several transitions: food systems are being reshaped by regenerative practices and digital technologies, health governance is undergoing reform within a post-pandemic framework, and cities are simultaneously sites of vulnerability and centers of innovation.

Agriculture, Health, and Urbanization: Convergence of Transitions

2026

India and Brazil: Translating Multilateral Cooperation into Robust Bilateral Ties

India and Brazil: Translating Multilateral Cooperation into Robust Bilateral Ties

By Anit Mukherjee

Lula’s state visit to India will underscore the important role of Brazil and India as leaders of the Global South helping countries navigate geopolitical uncertainty, rebalanced global trade and supply chains, rapid diffusion of transformational technologies, and accelerating impact of a changing climate. With the United States hosting the G20 this year, a strong relationship between the two countries will be critical to consolidate the achievements and keep the priorities of the Global South on the agenda.

Greenland’s Mineral Promise Is Limited by Geological Impediments

Greenland’s Mineral Promise Is Limited by Geological Impediments

By Sarah Salah

There is no question that Greenland holds substantial mineral wealth. Most mining exploration sites in Greenland are located along the coast, making port infrastructure essential for transporting heavy equipment and extracted materials. Yet declining sea levels threaten the long-term viability of deep-water ports built today, potentially rendering them too shallow within decades.

India’s Evolving Approach to Finance in its Trade Agreements

India’s Evolving Approach to Finance in its Trade Agreements

By Udaibir Das

When finance is discussed in the context of India’s trade agreements, the debate polarizes: either India is genuinely opening, or it remains stuck in defensive regulation. But neither captures what is happening: India is selectively binding regulatory discretion, exporting specific platforms, and keeping control over balance-sheet risks.

Education, Skills, Labor, and Immigration: Turning Risks Into Opportunities

Education, Skills, Labor, and Immigration: Turning Risks Into Opportunities

By Sunaina Kumar, Soumya Bhowmick, Anasua Basu Ray Chaudhury, Arpan Tulsyan, and Manish Vaidya

By 2033, the Global South is projected to account for 1.2 billion youths aged 15–24, yet only 480 million are projected to be enrolled in school, and about 420 million to secure employment, leaving nearly 300 million young people facing severely constrained opportunities. Equipping them with quality education and relevant skills is crucial.

Agriculture, Health, and Urbanization: Convergence of Transitions

Agriculture, Health, and Urbanization: Convergence of Transitions

By Nilanjan Ghosh, Ramanath Jha, Oommen C. Kurian, Soma Sarkar, and Shoba Suri

A distinctive feature of the year 2026 is the convergence of several transitions: food systems are being reshaped by regenerative practices and digital technologies, health governance is undergoing reform within a post-pandemic framework, and cities are simultaneously sites of vulnerability and centers of innovation.

The Future of Think Tanks in the Age of AI

The Future of Think Tanks in the Age of AI

By Katherine Salinas

As AI rapidly transforms the landscape of research and knowledge production, think tanks face an existential question: what is their role when AI agents can conduct research at speeds no human could match? 

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Climate and Energy Transitions: Hanging in the Balance

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Climate and Energy Transitions: Hanging in the Balance

By Mannat Jaspal, Parul Bakshi, Cauvery Ganapathy, Lydia Powell, and Piyush Verma

As we enter 2026, climate and energy policies are being shaped not only by decarbonization imperatives. Geopolitical upheaval, technological competition, economic transformation, supply chain resilience, and national security concerns are exerting influence over the future of energy and climate policies worldwide.

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Technology: Brave New World

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Technology: Brave New World

By Anirban Sarma with Sauradeep Bag, Anulekha Nandi, Prateek Tripathi, and Siddharth Yadav

The year 2025 saw several disruptive and emerging technologies advance from rhetoric, and experimentation, into ongoing expansion, to an accelerated phase of growth. At the same time, there emerged a rising sense of urgency about the need for digital sovereignty. Taken together, AI, quantum computing, digital currencies, and nanotechnology represent a frontier where technology, power, and the political economy increasingly converge.

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Geoeconomics and Trade: A Year of Rebalancing

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Geoeconomics and Trade: A Year of Rebalancing

By Anit Mukherjee with Dhruba Purkayastha, Arya Roy Bardhan, Srijan Shukla, and Jhanvi Tripathi

The “reciprocal tariffs” announced by the United States in early April disrupted the global trade flows and unsettled the multilateral system built over several decades. As a result, global players are adjusting to this new reality and altering their behavior beyond tariff measures to safeguard their own interests.

India’s 2026-27 Budget Tackles Energy Security: Carbon Capture, Grid Stability, and More

India’s 2026-27 Budget Tackles Energy Security: Carbon Capture, Grid Stability, and More

By Piyush Verma

India’s latest Union Budget marks a subtle but important shift in how the country is framing its energy priorities. Rather than centering the narrative solely on clean energy targets or renewable capacity additions and relevant policy support, the Budget signals a broader and more mature emphasis on energy security.

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Geopolitics, Defense, and Security: Turbulence Ahead

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Geopolitics, Defense, and Security: Turbulence Ahead

By Dhruva Jaishankar with Pratnashree Basu, Kartik Bommakanti, Lindsey Ford, and Kabir Taneja

The re-election of Donald Trump in the United States (US) has introduced a wave of turbulence to the international system, reversing certain pre-existing trends while accelerating others. Meanwhile, the war in Ukraine continues to contribute to Europe’s rearmament. Israel’s strikes in Iran, Syria, Qatar, and Yemen reflect broader upheaval spreading across the Middle East and beyond. China’s competition with the US persists, extending across multiple domains and regions. Amid this backdrop, at least five major geopolitical megatrends are likely to unfold.

The India-EU Trade Deal: Two Billion People, One Economic Hedge

The India-EU Trade Deal: Two Billion People, One Economic Hedge

By Marta Bengoa

The India-EU free trade agreement will connect over two billion people across a market representing nearly a quarter of global GDP. But the real story isn't about size. It's about timing. After seventeen years of false starts and negotiations, both parties finally grasped what's at stake: in a world fragmenting between Washington's capricious tariffs and Beijing's economic coercion, this deal is economic insurance.

How Australia, Canada, and India Can Reshape Critical Minerals Supply Chains

How Australia, Canada, and India Can Reshape Critical Minerals Supply Chains

By Holly Stevens and Siddharth Sharma

As demand for electric vehicles, battery storage, clean energy systems, and advanced technologies continues to accelerate, Australia’s resource base and mining history, Canada’s resource base as well as its mining and industrial capabilities, and India’s market scale and commitment to value-added manufacturing could support diversification across multiple stages of the value chain.

Trump's Greenland Reversal: From Tariff Threats to Negotiation

Trump's Greenland Reversal: From Tariff Threats to Negotiation

By Marta Bengoa

Speaking at Davos, Trump first ruled out using military force to acquire Greenland (after weeks of refusing to do so), then hours later announced what he called a "framework of a future deal" with NATO on Arctic security. Whether the framework leads to substantive Arctic security cooperation or remains another example of Trump declaring victory without achieving objectives, the damage to transatlantic economic relations has been done.

The Importance of U.S.-India Cooperation on Professional Military Education and Training

The Importance of U.S.-India Cooperation on Professional Military Education and Training

By Ammar Nainar

For the first time in a defense framework agreement, India and the United States specified “operational coordination” as an objective for enhancing collaboration in Professional Military Education (PME) and training. While earlier exchanges largely involved India borrowing best practices from the United States, recent cooperation between the two countries has emphasized greater joint activities and operations.

Cybersecurity as Economic Security: The Case for U.S.-India Coordination

Cybersecurity as Economic Security: The Case for U.S.-India Coordination

By Krishnaveni Palanivelu

Cybersecurity must be treated as a shared economic security challenge. By aligning standards, strengthening cooperation, and embedding cyber resilience into trade, infrastructure, and foreign policy, democracies like the United States and India can better protect their digital foundations and sustain long-term economic stability. 

The Necessary Ingredients for Critical Mineral Processing

The Necessary Ingredients for Critical Mineral Processing

By Ashwini Thakre and Piyush Verma

No single country can efficiently develop the entire critical minerals value chain on its own, particularly for rare earths and battery materials. Cooperation among the United States, Australia, Japan, and other Indo-Pacific economies reflects a growing recognition that resilience lies not in isolation, but in diversified and trusted networks.

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