The Karl Renner Institute is the political academy of the Austrian Social Democratic movement. It is a forum for political discourse, a centre for education and training, and a think tank on the future of social democracy.
In this capacity, it aims at
· establishing a discourse between experts from various fields and the Austrian Social Democratic Party in order to develop and realize new political positions;
· generating a forum for political discussion and thus helping to introduce social democratic positions into the public discussion;
· training representatives of the Austrian Social Democratic Party so that they are optimally prepared for their present and future tasks;
· fostering the organizational development of the Austrian Social Democratic Party in order to open up and modernize party structures.
To this end, the Karl Renner Institute and its nine regional offices (one in each of Austria’s federal provinces) organise a broad range of activities: Publications, debate evenings, seminars and lectures, appealing at a politically interested public; special conventions and seminars, targeted at experts, teachers and educators; workshops and consultations for officers, parliamentary representatives and employees of the Austrian Social Democratic Party.