“Expert Clearing Houses” in Vienna as Transfer Hubs of Ideas

During Cold War, Austria obtained a special position as a permanently neutral state situated between the blocs. So, scientific institutes were founded in Vienna in order to enable exchanges, meetings and cooperation between scientists across the blocs. At these institutes, experts also worked on joint projects to find solutions for global problems and challenges. Among others, these interactions took place at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), which was founded in 1972 in Laxenburg near Vienna, and at the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM), which was founded in Vienna in 1982. These contacts and meetings continued even after the end of the Cold War and the transformation of many former communist East Central European states into democratic capitalist states from 1989 onwards. The research project Expert Clearing Houses in Vienna as Transfer Hubs of Ideas aims to examine how exchanges of antagonizing political and economic concepts took place at these two institutes: Which researchers participated? Which topics were discussed? What solutions and recommendations were found and how did these affect the political and economical sphere during the last period of the Cold War as well as after 1989? Which long-term effects did these interactions provoke on economic and political issues during the last phase of the Cold War and on the transformation from 1989 onwards? The project is in line with the assumption that these exchanges of ideas among scholars had an influence on politics and the economy in both Western and Eastern countries. The research work is based on the analysis of unknown international archival and private sources and of oral history interviews with the participating experts. The project team of this research project with Oliver Rathkolb as principal investigator is affiliated with the Department of Contemporary History of the University of Vienna, Austria.

The research project examined the role of Vienna as a nexus for expert exchange between West and East during the late phase of the Cold War, focusing on the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and the Institute for Human Sciences (IWM). Founded in the early 1970s amid the détente between the United States and the Soviet Union, IIASA was established as an international scientific body dedicated to natural sciences and multifaceted research programs. In contrast, IWM-founded a decade later through the initiative of Polish philosopher Krzysztof Michalski-was rooted in the humanities and emphasized intellectual and academic exchange on an individual level including regime opponents from the East. The project explored the exchange of ideas at both institutes, as well as the profiles of scientists who conducted their research there. It investigated how political and economic ideas were exchanged and transferred during the 1980s and assessed the impact of these interactions on decision-making processes, decision-makers, and economic developments in the 1990s. The research team used a combination of archival research, network analysis and oral history to answer the research questions. The complete IIASA archival materials were essential to understand the creation and development of the institute and its research programs, as well as to identify the scientists who visited, resided and worked at the institute. For IWM, unprocessed materials needed first to be identified and catalogued. Only then was it possible to map the personal exchange and network at the institute. This archival work resulted in a dataset with over 700 records-documenting managers, fellows, and visitors to both institutes between 1980 and 1990. To analyze this dataset, the team partnered with FAS Research, a strategic intelligence firm specializing in network analysis. Quantitative analysis revealed the structure and dynamics of expert networks, uncovering collaboration patterns and influence that transcended institutional and national borders. From these 700+ entries, the team selected suitable individuals for interviews. The interviews were used in qualitative analyses to trace institutional processes, ideas exchanged, and personal impacts on career trajectories. This qualitative approach provided insight into how idea exchange influenced individuals and their professional paths in the 1990s. Ultimately, the project demonstrated that idea transfer occurred on multiple levels-including vigorous debates over university reform, the establishment of new scientific bodies and research methods, and the emergence of new economic thinking. These exchanges also contributed to the founding of private companies, the operation of broadcasting corporations, and the launch of political movements and parties.