The third edition of the Think and Link programme for emerging think tanks and research centres in the region started with a 3-day inception training which took place in Budva, Montenegro, on March 16, 2011. Twelve new organisations were supported through unique grant giving and capacity building programme which is strengthen through the partnership with the Overseas Development Institute from the UK. The trainers from the ODI worked with researchers from selected organisations on the all important aspects of the think tank work and specifically towards the development of research proposals. This event was also a good networking opportunity for people from the same type of organisations to get together and to discuss their work in a broader regional context. After the seminar, mentorship process started, guided by two experienced ODI mentors. The mentorship process will last throughout the research period of 10 months and will end with the final conference which is scheduled to take place in late November 2011 when the selected organisations will present the results of their work. The next, fourth call for applications for the Think and Link Programme will be announced in December 2011.
