The Institute for Socioeconomic Studies (INESC) is a public-purpose, non-partisan, democratic and pluralist non-profit organization. Its mission is to “Contribute toward improving representative and participatory democracy with the aim of ensuring human rights, by fostering links in civil society and strengthening it to influence domestic and international governance spaces.” Founded in 1979, INESC’s work, in all its projects, is based on two main goals: strengthening civil society and enhancing social participation in public policy-making.