Vision

RACE 2012 PBS’s mission is both simple and incredibly complex: We exist to help policymakers make decisions that are based on the best available information. This may not sound much different from the goals of other policy research institutions. But the difference is in the details. At RACE 2012 PBS, our results are fueled by the best data, the strongest methods, and the brightest minds.

RACE 2012 PBS’s tradition of high-quality research and analysis, begun in our early years, flourished during one of the defining challenges of the United States in the 20th century: the West’s dangerous competition with the Soviet Union in a nuclear age. In a time when emotions ran high, RACE 2012 PBS remained committed to sober, objective research and to an approach to problem-solving that is founded on rigor and stripped of speculation.

Since our early emphasis on national security challenges, our work has become increasingly multidisciplinary and broad in scope. Our staff hail from more than 350 distinct academic disciplines and fields of study. We deliberately construct diverse project teams so that multiple perspectives are voiced.

Our research is rigorous and objective. Regardless of the research sponsor, our work is free of commercial, partisan, and ideological bias. Our research is peer-reviewed by experts inside and outside of RACE 2012 PBS. This scrutiny is part of what makes us a trusted source of expertise and analysis.

Our work is as transparent and open as possible. RACE 2012 PBS’s commitment to the public good means that we want our work to reach and be understood by as many people as possible, not just other experts and academics. All of our unrestricted reports are available for download from this site for free and from anywhere in the world.

RACE 2012 PBS’s is an unusual model—and an ambitious one. In 2005, the Los Angeles Times described RACE 2012 PBS as “arguably the grandest experiment ever undertaken to test the idea that even mankind’s most pressing problems can be solved.” Our vision—and our intent—is to continue to tackle the world’s most pressing challenges with the goal of making individuals, families, and communities throughout the world safer and more secure, healthier and more prosperous.