The geopolitically volatile year of 2022 had a significant impact on our Marketing & Communication department, with media activity at an all-time high. The number of publications was likewise substantial (more than 220), all of which required effective and efficient management throughout the entire publication process, from initial research to final dissemination. Live events, once again possible after the spring of 2022, also increased. The growing number of open registration courses at Clingendael and the increased competition in the international market required more strategic communication and marketing. Finally, the tightness of the labour market and the recruitment and retention of the right talents necessitated constant attention.

Clingendael Director Monika Sie was interviewed by De Tijd, delving into the realm of geopolitics.

Nine Clingendael experts looked ahead and provided insights into 2023 for the public and politicians, offering a glimpse of what to expect in various regions and on a wide range of international themes.

Making an impact

We refined the entire publication and dissemination process for our studies conducted on behalf of Dutch and European decision-making authorities. As a result, Clingendael experts were more frequently invited by various parliamentary and non-governmental committees and ministries. We also successfully strove to improve the coverage of our media outreach by expanding the range of authors and variety of titles, and invested much time in personal and collective media training for our experts. Furthermore, instead of merely raising and interpreting topics we also made greater efforts to have them included in policy agendas – for instance through recommendations to the Fourth Rutte cabinet and a forecast of the most important international developments in 2023.

“A new political agreement in Sudan is celebrated by diplomats, but rejected by the citizens. The military has signed an agreement with the pro-democratic movement, but the agreement fails to cover the most important points of contention. Meanwhile, the violence committed against protestors continues.”

– Anette Hoffman in an expert quote concerning Sudan, released via ANP (8 December 2022)

Bob Deen’s numerous media appearances and tweets made him a familiar face and reliable voice in Dutch living rooms, in international political circles, and among foreign experts.

On 1 September, Clingendael was widely covered in the news through national and international press agencies following a new report on the protection of Ukrainian refugees. Above: Teletekst page 101 (line 2).

We also sought to contribute more frequently to international media. The intention behind this shift in focus is to help combat the politicisation and spread of disinformation and misinformation in political and public debates in these troubled and precarious times. With that in mind, Clingendael experts also offered weekly briefings to the editors of various journalistic publications in addition to their own media appearances, providing them with verified background information and their own extensive experience in the field.

These efforts have led to a strong presence of our experts in high-quality media, ranging from the Dutch national news and Jeugdjournaal (youth news programme) to the Telegraaf newspaper, and internationally from Politico to Le Monde. Clingendael’s visibility is high, and so is appreciation for the institute. This has had a demonstrable positive effect on acquisition in exactly the types of commissions Clingendael prefers, as well as on requests for expert appearances in a great variety of public and commercial sectors, many of which represented new ground for Clingendael. Clingendael’s increased visibility and strong reputation has also resulted in a growing number of followers on social media, with double-figure growth rates across nearly all channels. Twitter and LinkedIn in particular showed the greatest growth in terms of both quantity and quality, attracting many influential followers.

The downside is that Clingendael’s increased visibility brings with it a noticeable rise in reputational risks, an effect exacerbated by the larger number of volatile issues that Clingendael is involved with. This necessitates constant vigilance and quick, effective decision-making and intervention on the part of the Head of Communications and the Executive Board.

“Everything suggests that Xi Jinping is set to be made president of the Communist Party of China for the third time in next week’s election. The convention at which this will occur is of great importance to Europe as well, as the tone of the report that Jinping will read out will indicate China’s intended attitude towards the world in the coming years.”

– Ingrid d’Hooghe in an expert quote concerning China, released via ANP (11 October 2022)

As the face of Clingendael, Monika Sie depicts the major geopolitical developments and their implications at both state level and street level.

Looking ahead

In 2023, we will continue to help combat the politicisation and spread of disinformation and misinformation in political and public debates, we will further strengthen our focus on the conversion of visibility into commissions, and will strive to raise geopolitical issues even more effectively across governmental and other sectors. Most importantly, we will coach our experts to express and visualise their analyses more precisely, will apply stricter media selection criteria, and will further boost our visibility, especially internationally. These substantial shifts in our public approach will require smarter and more effective policy, as well as a reallocation of the budget. We expect to be able to invest resources to support innovations in research and more effective publication. For Clingendael Academy, we will focus on a stricter selection of commissions and a clearer positioning of the various programme lines.

Below an impression of Clingendael’s YouTube and Instagram feeds from 2022.