FLAME University, a pioneer of liberal arts education in India at Pune, has partnered with Mumbai-based leading foreign policy think tank – Gateway House: Indian Council on Global Relations – to launch The Gateway House-FLAME Policy Lab. This is a pioneering effort, the first such university-think tank partnership in India, bringing the country in line with global intellectual institutions. The Gateway House-FLAME Policy Lab will produce original, applied, pure and multidisciplinary research and intellectual property that will result in joint peer-publishable research for FLAME and Gateway House. The output of the Lab will be relevant to students, academia, government, and India Inc. The initiative is aimed at encouraging participation of stakeholders in new ideas for the future.
FLAME University students will intern at the Lab and the University’s faculty will work with Gateway House scholars on a range of subjects from risk analysis and geopolitical simulation to international security, energy, international law, space, science and emerging technologies.
Speaking about the creation of the lab, Dr. Dishan Kamdar, Vice Chancellor, FLAME University, said, “The first ever Public Policy Lab from FLAME University and Gateway House India aspires to create a body of relevant, cutting-edge and rigorous world-class research to enable effective policy making in the country. As an academic institution, our endeavour is to create knowledge that will be data-driven, independent, and unbiased, which will support the policy makers of our country. A multi-disciplinary approach is core to the research agenda at FLAME University as we encourage our faculty and students to conduct research across diverse areas such as politics, history, economics, healthcare and others which are of importance in the global and Indian context.’’
Manjeet Kripalani, Executive Director and co-founder, Gateway House, said, “The study of international affairs is gaining importance in India, as the country finds itself a critical player in world affairs, from business and trade to strategic positioning. Young Indians increasingly see themselves as global citizens and want India at the high table. FLAME University is one of the few education institutions in India that offers the subject to its students in a comprehensive study, with the requisite, qualified faculty. Gateway House will bring its decade-long experience of pragmatic policy thought and ideas to the Lab. The creative chemistry of the partnership – the marriage of Pune, the city of knowledge, with Mumbai, the city of finance and trade, to the policy drive of Delhi – will work to fulfill those aspirations.”
