The 2026 Action Plan –a year that marks the 25th anniversary of the Elcano Royal Institute– provides an opportunity to take stock and to look to the future.
The Plan is centred on the 10 priority themes which are relevant and useful in shaping the Elcano’s research agenda. These are complemented by five cross-cutting themes: cities, culture, gender, migration and global health.
This research agenda aims to fulfil the Elcano’s founding mandate with rigour, a multidisciplinary approach and a Spanish perspective: to analyse the international issues affecting Spanish society and to bring innovative ideas to the public debate that will serve government departments and institutions, the private sector, universities, research centres, and civil society. The agenda also responds to an increasingly complex and unpredictable international landscape.
To this end, the support of the Board of Trustees, as well as the Protector and Collaborating partners make the Elcano’s work possible and help to identify the issues that deserve special attention.
In this 2026 Action Plan, the Elcano prioritise addressing the factors that are shaping the reconfiguration of the world order: security and defence (both European and transatlantic); geoeconomics and technology; Latin America (in particular Euro-Latin American relations in the geopolitical and commercial spheres, as well as the Ibero-American region and Spain’s role); the future of Europe (its reform and enlargement, the budgetary framework, security and defence, energy security, regulation, competitiveness and industrial policy, as well as its external relations); and the geopolitics of the energy transition and climate change. Furthermore, it continues to analyse regions of key importance to Spain’s interests, such as North Africa and the Middle East, West Africa, and the southern and eastern neighbourhood, as well as the Asia-Pacific region (with a particular focus on China and India).
The Elcano will examine key phenomena for which it possesses robust research tools, such as globalisation and its evolution, international governance, development, global terrorism, disinformation and the challenges facing democracy worldwide. Spain’s influence and image will remain a priority area of work, including culture, a theme that cuts across several of the areas mentioned.
This research agenda clearly demonstrates the Elcano’s commitment to strengthen scientific excellence and its international networks as the Spanish leading think tank and a key partner for other think tanks. By participating in competitive calls for proposals –and in the consortia that apply for them– the Elcano continues to strengthen its partnerships, particularly in Europe, to develop many of its areas of work (European strategic autonomy; disinformation; EU-China relations; climate governance; and migration). Likewise, the ElcanoNET helps to deepen and broaden these partnerships, drawing on the relevant contributions and expertise of the Scientific and Advisory Councils.