CSEP started in 2013 as the Brookings Institution India Center (BIIC), an overseas centre of the Brookings Institution, one of the world’s oldest and premier think tanks. After seven years of a fruitful partnership, the two institutions formally separated as of September 10, 2020. CSEP seeks to carry forward the legacy of BIIC and build upon it by further expanding the research agenda and sharpening the policy insights. CSEP inherits Brookings India’s personnel, values and funding structures.

As a public policy research institution, our mission is to conduct research and analysis on urgent and critical policy issues and offer solutions that are both relevant and practical. Our researchers produce reports, papers and briefs that reflect rigorous scholarship. All of our research and other products are freely available to the public.

We are also conveners by bringing together policymakers, academics, diplomats, industry insiders, media practitioners and other experts for a frank exchange of ideas about key policy challenges in India, the region and the world. CSEP researchers participate frequently in public events and write for leading Indian and global publications to disseminate their work to wider audiences. All of CSEP's research and engagements is driven by our core values of ‘Independence, Integrity, Impact’.

Our researchers set the research agenda. All content reflects the individual views of the scholars. CSEP does not hold an institutional view on any subject.