Research & publications

Evidence you can cite, verify, and apply

We publish working papers, open data, and policy briefs using open methodologies. Below is our flagship analytical paper.

Flagship policy brief

Transparency first: why open-data infrastructure must precede large-scale reconstruction capital

A policy brief on the sequencing of recovery financing for Ukraine

Ukraine's recovery will require an unprecedented inflow of capital from international partners, private investors, and state programmes. Yet the experience of previous post-conflict reconstructions reveals a pattern: when large sums arrive before transparency infrastructure — open data, shared assessment methodologies, and spending-tracking mechanisms — is in place, the risk of misallocation, duplication, and abuse rises, and donor trust is quickly exhausted. In this brief we make the case for a sequencing in which investment in transparency precedes large-scale reconstruction capital. Drawing on recognised methodologies for assessing damage, loss, and needs (the World Bank RDNA and DaLA) and on the principle of open by default, we show that transparency should be regarded not as an administrative burden but as infrastructure that lowers the cost of capital, accelerates decisions, and makes reconstruction verifiable. The brief is addressed to donors, international financial institutions, and the bodies responsible for coordinating recovery.

Read the key points

Key messages

Capital poured into reconstruction before transparency infrastructure is built systematically raises the risk of inefficient spending and lost donor trust.
Open data and spending traceability are not an add-on to reconstruction but a precondition for it: they lower the cost of attracting capital and accelerate decisions.
A shared assessment methodology (RDNA/DaLA) and open datasets make comparison across sectors and periods possible and verifiable.

Recommendations

1Introduce a shared, open methodology for assessing damage, loss, and needs (based on RDNA/DaLA) as a mandatory condition of coordinated financing.
2Build and fund open-data and spending-tracking infrastructure before or alongside the deployment of large-scale capital, not after it.
3Make open by default the norm: datasets, methodologies, and assessment results should be public and machine-readable.
4Provide for independent peer review and audit of assessment methodologies so that the figures underpinning decisions withstand external scrutiny.

Working paper series

Working papers and analytical notes

The institute publishes its own working papers, methodological and analytical notes using open methodologies. These are preliminary research texts, open for citation, verification, and refinement by the community; as they undergo peer review they form the basis for further publications.

Methodological noteWorking paper

Consistent assessment of damage, loss and needs: an operational protocol based on RDNA and DaLA

The note proposes a reproducible, sector-level protocol for applying the RDNA (World Bank) and DaLA methodologies with open datasets, explicit assumptions, and verifiable sources. The aim is to make assessments comparable across sectors and periods and fit for coordinated donor and state decisions.

Reconstruction Science & Economics

Analytical noteWorking paper

Sanctions circumvention and asset tracing: an evidentiary framework for future reparations

The note systematises the typical mechanisms by which the aggressor circumvents sanctions — shell jurisdictions, chains of intermediaries, virtual assets, and parallel payment instruments — and proposes an evidentiary methodology for tracing assets and illicit financial flows. The framework is oriented to the evidentiary standards of the Register of Damage (RD4U) and international judicial mechanisms.

Law & International Justice

Technical specificationIn preparation

An open-data architecture for tracing reconstruction spending

The document describes machine-readable standards, data structures, and accountability principles that make reconstruction spending traceable end to end — from a donor commitment to an outcome on the ground. The specification is built on open formats and is fit for independent verification.

Open Data & Digital Transparency

Working paperIn preparation

Environmental war-damage assessment and the carbon footprint of reconstruction

The study integrates soil and water pollution assessment and carbon accounting under ISO 14064 into recovery planning, so that reconstruction does not lock in environmental harm for decades. A set of indicators for pilot territories is proposed.

Environment & Climate Science

Technical reviewIn preparation

Sensing and materials for accelerated demining: a review of dual-use technologies

The review systematises current approaches to sensor-based detection of explosive ordnance and to protective materials with dual-use potential for the safe civilian recovery of territories. This is scientific and engineering work, not arms trade.

Defence & Dual-Use Technology

Working paperIn preparation

Quantum-inspired optimisation of reconstruction logistics: problem statement and baseline benchmarks

The document formalises resource-allocation and reconstruction-logistics tasks as optimisation problems and compares classical and quantum-inspired methods on open benchmarks. The aim is reproducibility of methods and an honest assessment of real-world gains.

Quantum Computing & Advanced AI