Hong Kong is a tiny city with lots of think tanks. According to the latest statistics, the city has over 30 think tanks and the number is steadily growing.

To gauge how good they are, let us take a brief look at 2015 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report compiled by the University of Pennsylvania. Dubbed as the "think tanks' think tank", the institute has been specializing in identifying and recognizing public policy research organizations around the globe for over 25 years. Only two Hong Kong think tanks are credited. One is the Civic Exchange, which ranked 46th in the Top Environment Policy Think Tanks category, the other is Our Hong Kong Foundation under the Think Tank to Watch category.

Of course, whether the two are good enough to represent the best interests of Hong Kong depends very much on how you view them.

Overall, there are close to 7,000 think tanks in the world. China has the second-largest number of think tanks in the world, behind only the US. But when it comes to achievements and global recognition, China still has a long way to go before it catches up with the developed countries.

Compared with their Western counterparts, Chinese think tanks tend to be State-run and less influential on a global scale. Yet their ability to strengthen China's soft power and policy-making are growing along with their research capacities.

In Hong Kong, the existing think tanks are widely seen as not being "very effective". Still, seasoned politicians and newbies from both the pro-establishment and "pan-democrat" camps are flocking to set up their own. For example, claiming "mine is different from others", former lawmaker Ronny Tong Ka-wah, who broke away from the Civic Party, has founded a "third path" think tank Path of Democracy. Legislative Council President Jasper Tsang Yok-sing a few months ago launched Hong Kong Vision in an attempt to push for better governance. Pledging to forge social consensus, to boost social upward mobility for young generations and to groom political talents the city desperately need, source-abundant former chief executive Tung Chee-hwa is also running the Our Hong Kong Foundation, which is thought to be the biggest think tank in town.

While the passion and ambition of think tanks should be appreciated, whether they are able to achieve desirable results is another matter. Take a look at some of the big names like the Hong Kong Policy Research Institute, the Bauhinia Foundation Research Centre, the One Country Two Systems Research Institute, the Central Policy Unit, then you get your answers.

With limited resources and talents, a think tank must clearly position itself from the very beginning, to work out what you can and can't do. According to my own observations over a long time, China Energy Fund Committee (CEFC) - one much less-noticeable and least-mentioned think tank by locals, shows us what we can do best for Hong Kong and the country as a whole.

The CEFC, positioning itself as a Hong Kong-based and high-end strategic think tank with global vision, has made the best possible advantage of Hong Kong's unique position as a free-flowing information hub and also its proximity with the Chinese mainland. It is the first home-grown think tank to engage with important groups and people across the Pacific Ocean, telling "China's story" at the UN Headquarters in New York, hosting the Sino-US Colloquium in Washington DC, offering its Western audiences refreshing ideas on world affairs from China's perspective.

A constant "record-breaker", the CEFC last year even teamed up with the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs to launch a project titled "Powering the Future We Want - Recognizing Innovative Practices in Energy for Sustainable Development". This offered an annual grant in the amount of $1 million with the objective of promoting leadership and innovative practices. This is not a small feat, considering Hong Kong's tiny size on the world stage - the award is by far the biggest energy grant worldwide. It is solely sponsored by the Hong Kong-registered think tank, which also epitomizes China's greater clout in regard to global affairs.

In short, for a think tank to take root and thrive it must show its value, be able to put forth visionary and strategic ideas that inspire us. It must also bridge the gap between knowledge and policy, produce timely and workable policy-oriented research that effectively engages policymakers either in Hong Kong and Beijing.

The author is a senior staff writer of China Daily Hong Kong Edition.

(HK Edition 06/13/2016 page9)