What Is the International Doctoral Council
A Global Doctoral Authority
The International Doctoral Council is a global network of doctoral-level professionals—PhDs, DBAs, MDs, DPhils, EngDs, and EdDs—who exercise leadership through their individual epistemic authority. We are not a membership organization, not a professional association, and not a credentialing body. We are a council of experts committed to using rigorous methodology to inform complex decisions.
Individual Doctoral Responsibility
Members of the Council act in their personal capacity as doctoral professionals, not as representatives of their institutions. This distinction is fundamental. A professor at a university who contributes to the Council does so through their own expertise and judgment, not on behalf of their university.
This model preserves institutional independence while recognizing that doctoral training creates unique obligations: to seek truth, to question assumptions, to examine evidence, and to contribute knowledge for the public good.
Independence from Governments, Corporations, and Ideologies
The Council maintains strict independence from:
Governmental influence: We do not serve any government, party, or political movement
Corporate interests: We are not funded by or accountable to any commercial entity
Ideological agendas: We reject activism, advocacy, and predetermined conclusions
This independence is not neutrality for its own sake—it is the precondition for producing guidance that serves long-term human flourishing rather than short-term interests.
Our Institutional Form
The Council operates as a distributed network with transparent governance, selective participation, and rigorous standards. We publish statements, frameworks, and analyses that provide scientific grounding for decisions affecting industry, policy, education, and society. We do not issue mandates, lobby for legislation, or claim to have final answers. We frame questions, clarify trade-offs, and illuminate paths forward using the best available evidence.