The Liechtenstein Institute was founded on August 15, 1986, the national holiday of the Principality of Liechtenstein, by the initiative of Gerard Batliner as a research center for practical and fundamental research relating to Liechtenstein. The institute does not award degrees and does not offer primary class lectures, differing from the large majority of universities; however, it does offer presentations, lecture series and symposia for topics relevant to Liechtenstein. Therefore, the Liechtenstein Institute is a university-like institution according to the higher education act of the Principality of Liechtenstein. The institute’s organising institution is an incorporated non-profit society, according to the private and corporate law of Liechtenstein. Since 1998 the Liechtenstein Institute is located in the present building, the old parsonage on the chapel hill of Bendern. In the first years, the founding of the institute relied solely on private contributions. Nowadays the public authorities provide two-thirds of the means.
Research
The historical research at the Liechtenstein Institute focuses on the time between the two World Wars and the transition to the reign of the Princely Family of Liechtenstein over the territory of the present state of Liechtenstein. The political and social sciences sector is primarily dedicated to the political system of Liechtenstein and questions of European integration, since Liechtenstein is a member of the European Economic Area. The jurisprudence at the institute is concerned with the public law of Liechtenstein, particularly administrative and constitutional law. The economic sciences section at the Liechtenstein Institute focuses on political economics, especially economic cycles. The institute’s research results are published as books and papers in scientific journals. In addition to that, the institute prepares reports and surveys for the government of the Principality of Liechtenstein, including government agencies and municipalities. The Liechtenstein Institute achieves its goals also through contributions to external scientific conferences, its own events, media coverage, and international cooperation. In addition, the staff of the Liechtenstein Institute supervise dissertations and diploma theses, and teach within the framework of continuing professional education, adult education, and at universities and colleges. In many of its areas of research the Liechtenstein Institute is the sole academic-scientific institution in Liechtenstein which devotes itself to issues that are of importance for the country and its neighbouring regions.
Library
The Liechtenstein Institute has a special library for the specialist fields of history, law, politics and economics, with a focus on Liechtenstein. The library is publicly available. The books and journals are not available for loan, however. The library has the profile of a research-oriented working library.
