What Peace Research Institute Frankfurt does

Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF – Leibniz-Institut für Friedens- und Konfliktforschung) is a German non-profit research institute founded in 1970 as the Hessische Stiftung Friedens- und Konfliktforschung (HSFK) and rebranded to PRIF in 2021. The institute is a member of the Leibniz Association, headquartered in Frankfurt am Main with a secondary office in Berlin, and employs 51-100 staff. Its research is organised across five program areas (International Security, International Institutions, Transnational Politics, Intrastate Conflicts, Local Peace Orders) and at least ten research groups spanning topics such as radicalisation, climate-conflict linkages, regime competition, nuclear diplomacy, and emerging disruptive technologies. PRIF coordinates or participates in a dense web of national and European research networks, including ACONA, ANCIP, CAPAZ, CBWNet, CNTR, the EU NPD Consortium, and the Leibniz Research Network Environmental Crisis.

PRIF's core outputs are research publications (PRIF Reports, PRIF Spotlights, PRIF Working Papers, PRIF Studien), the annually co-published Friedensgutachten (Peace Report, jointly with BICC, IFSH Hamburg, and INEF), podcasts (PRIF talk, RADIS redet), and a multi-channel digital presence across YouTube, X/Twitter, LinkedIn, Mastodon, and Bluesky. Educational and civic engagement programs include PRIF@Schule, Debattierkünstler*innen, Global House of Young Voices, and eLearning, while the institute administers the Hessischer Friedenspreis (25,000 EUR endowment) and the Ernst-Otto-Czempiel-Preis (5,000 EUR endowment). Advisory services are delivered to German federal ministries, political parties, NGOs, and companies through policy dialogue, panel discussions, and crisis talks.

The institute's business model is non-commercial. Core funding flows from the German federal government (BMBF) and the state of Hesse via the Leibniz Association, supplemented by third-party project grants from foundations, EU programs, and government agencies, plus donations earmarked for knowledge-transfer formats and the #PRIF@Schule_Preis. The operating footprint is European, with global research collaborations and a self-described status as one of the leading peace research institutes in Europe.

Name

Peace Research Institute Frankfurt

Legal name

PRIF – Leibniz-Institut für Friedens- und Konfliktforschung

Website

https://prif.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1970

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

PRIF is a Frankfurt-based, Leibniz-affiliated non-profit peace and conflict research institute employing 51-100 staff that conducts interdisciplinary research, publishes open-access analyses, and advises German ministries, parties, NGOs, and companies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Peace and Conflict Research Services

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (541720)

akta.pro primary industry

Think Tanks, Policy Research & Public Policy Institutes (BPAGAFAO)

akta.pro secondary industries

Humanitarian-Development-Peace Nexus & Resilience Programming (BPADAEAK), Conference Proceedings & Research Reports Publishing (EDAGAFAL)

Keywords

• Peace and conflict research
• Policy advisory services
• Security studies
• Interdisciplinary research
• Political education

Headquarters

HQ city

Frankfort

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Public Institutional Funding: As a Leibniz Institute, PRIF receives core funding from the German federal government and the state of Hesse. This constitutes the primary institutional funding for its research activities.
2. Third-Party Project Funding: PRIF conducts externally funded research projects supported by foundations, EU programs, and government agencies, supplementing core institutional funding.
3. Donations: The institute accepts donations to support research and knowledge transfer formats including events, network projects, and the #PRIF@Schule_Preis award. Tax-deductible donation receipts are issued.

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

PRIF is a non-profit research institute that conducts interdisciplinary basic research on the causes of international and intrastate violent conflicts and develops pathways for their resolution. It combines scholarly research with knowledge transfer to politics, media, and society through policy advice, publications, educational programs, and public events. Its portfolio includes research publications (PRIF Reports, PRIF Spotlights, PRIF Working Papers, PRIF Studien, Friedensgutachten), policy dialogue, educational programs, and event series for ministries, political parties, NGOs, companies, the academic community, and the general public.

Product overview

PRIF is a leading European peace research institute combining interdisciplinary basic research with knowledge transfer to politics, media, and society. The organization operates as a unified research institute rather than a commercial product company, offering a portfolio of research publications (PRIF Spotlights, PRIF Reports, PRIF Working Papers, PRIF Studien, and the annual Friedensgutachten), educational programs (PRIF@Schule, Debattierkünstler*innen, Global House of Young Voices), event series (Panel Discussions, Crisis Talks, Annual Conference, Science Festival Frankfurt), awards (Ernst-Otto-Czempiel-Preis, Hessischer Friedenspreis), and digital content (PRIF Blog, PRIF talk Podcast, RADIS redet Podcast, Newsletter). PRIF also provides policy dialogue and advisory services to ministries, parties, NGOs, and companies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PRIF Reports
• PRIF Spotlights
• PRIF Working Papers
• PRIF Studien
• Friedensgutachten (Peace Report)
• Policy Dialogue (Politikberatung)
• PRIF@Schule – Netzwerk Friedensforschung und Bildungspraxis
• Debattierkünstler*innen
• Global House of Young Voices
• Annual Conference (Jahreskonferenz)
• Panel Discussions (Podiumsdiskussionen)
• Crisis Talks
• Science Festival Frankfurt
• PRIF talk Podcast
• PRIF Newsletter
• eLearning

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Leibniz Research Network Environmental Crisis – Crisis EnvironmentscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021PRIF has been the lead coordinator of this network since 2021. The network examines how environmental crises can lead to social and political crises and how these can be prevented. Builds on the Leibniz Research Alliance 'Crises in a Globalized World' established in 2013.
• Frankfurt AlliancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Goethe University and fifteen other research institutions in the Rhine-Main region, organized since 2024 to present Frankfurt as a research hub through joint events including the Science Festival Frankfurt
• Leibniz-Forschungsverbund Krisen einer globalisierten WeltcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeibniz research alliance on crises in a globalized world, building on earlier collaborations
• ACONAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch alliance and network coordinated by PRIF focusing on armed conflict and its transformation
• CNTRcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch network on arms control and disarmament, producing fact sheets and analyses
• EU NPD ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean consortium on non-proliferation and disarmament bringing together research institutions
• CBWNetcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch network on chemical and biological weapons disarmament and security
• ANCIPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch alliance on international conflict prevention
• CAPAZcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerColombian-German research exchange on peace and conflict
• BICC (Bonn International Center for Conversion)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on the annual Friedensgutachten (Peace Report) together with IFSH Hamburg and INEF
• IFSH Hamburg (Institut für Friedensforschung und Sicherheitspolitik an der Universität Hamburg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on the annual Friedensgutachten (Peace Report) together with BICC and INEF
• INEF (Institut für Entwicklung und Frieden)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborates on the annual Friedensgutachten (Peace Report) together with BICC and IFSH Hamburg
• Leibniz AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPRIF is part of the Leibniz Association, a network of non-university research institutions, providing core institutional support and collaboration opportunities
• Haus am DomminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on panel discussions addressing current issues, held 3-4 times annually in Frankfurt
• Frankfurter RundschauminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner for panel discussions series since 2013
• Katholische Akademie Rabanus Maurus (Haus am Dom)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerVenue and co-organizer partner for panel discussions series

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights10 records

Broad incumbents

• Chatham House (Royal Institute of International Affairs): Established international affairs think tank with comparable mission of informing policy on peace, security, and international relations, though operating at substantially larger scale.
• RAND Corporation: Large, diversified policy research organization with significant work on peace, security, and conflict; comparable research-to-policy mission but vastly larger scale and broader portfolio.
• IISS (International Institute for Strategic Studies): Global research institute analyzing armed conflict, military capabilities, and strategic issues; overlapping subject matter with PRIF but with a commercial research and subscription model.
• Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: Large global think tank producing policy research on international peace and security; broader geographic scope but overlapping audience of governments, media, and academia.

Direct peers

• INEF (Institut für Entwicklung und Frieden, University of Duisburg-Essen): German university institute studying development and peace, co-author of the Friedensgutachten with PRIF; comparable focus on conflict research, policy advice, and academic publishing.
• SIPRI (Stockholm International Peace Research Institute): Independent international institute dedicated to research on peace, armed conflict, and arms control; directly comparable mandate, funding mix, and global policy advisory role.
• SWP (Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik / German Institute for International and Security Affairs): Berlin-based German policy advisor on international security that serves the same federal ministerial clientele as PRIF and publishes overlapping analyses on conflict and security policy.
• IFSH Hamburg (Institut für Friedensforschung und Sicherheitspolitik an der Universität Hamburg): German peace and security policy research institute that co-publishes the Friedensgutachten with PRIF and operates in the same interdisciplinary space of conflict analysis and policy advice to German federal actors.
• HIIK (Heidelberg Institute for International Conflict Research): German academic institute publishing the annual Conflict Barometer and conducting systematic conflict research; closely comparable scope, methodology, and policy relevance.
• BICC (Bonn International Center for Conversion): Leibniz-affiliated institute focused on conflict, displacement, and arms conversion that co-produces the annual Friedensgutachten with PRIF, sharing research mandates and target audiences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xsocial.bund.de/@PRIF
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC6kND96sf0SsR8Fb2nwQ1_Q
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/peace-research-institute-frankfurt

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Peace Research Institute Frankfurt