The German Institute for Economic Research (DIW Berlin) is one of the leading economic research instituts in Germany. Its core mandates are applied economic research and economic policy as well as provision of research infrastructure. As an independent non-profit institution, DIW Berlin is committed to serving the common good. The institute was founded in 1925 as Institut für Konjunkturforschung (Institute for economic cycle research). Since 1982, the Research Infrastructure SOEP (German Socio-Economic Panel Study), a long-term study, is affiliated to DIW Berlin.
Thematically, the scientific work of the Institute is divided into ten Research Departments: Macroeconomics; Forecasting and Economic Policy; Development and Security; International Ecocnomics; Energy, Transportation, Environment; Climate Policy; Firms and Markets; Competition and Consumers; Public Economics and Education and Family.
The institute has been headquartered in Berlin since its founding. As a member of the Leibniz Society, DIW Berlin is predominantly publicly funded.