G20/G7 Priorities

Founded in 1999, the Group of Twenty (G20) is the central forum for international cooperation on financial and economic questions. The G20 is comprised of nations with the most advanced and emerging economies in the world: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States and the European Union. The G20 economies collectively account for two-thirds of the world population and 80 percent of the world’s Gross Domestic Products (GDP).

Governments and central bank governors from these nations meet year-round at the ministerial-level. Outcomes from the ministerial-level meetings are brought together at the annual G20 Summit, where leaders prepare and implement their decisions based on the findings in a communiqué. Every year, a different G20 member country assumes the presidency starting from December 1 until November 30.

Initiated in 2012, the Think20 (T20) engagement group is independent from national governments and comprised of prestigious think tanks and academia from the international community. The engagement group does not advocate or campaign around specific ideas, but serves rather to generate insightful policy proposals, analyzed by high-level experts. These proposals provide an analytical depth to G20 discussions that assists G20 leaders in developing concrete and sustainable policy measures centered around G20 priorities.

Each year, under a new G20 Presidency, the T20 creates Task Forces to structure their proposals around the most critical issues, driving policy innovation.

Established in the mid-1970s, the Group of Seven (G7) is an informal forum that brings together seven of the world’s most advanced economies: Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, along with the European Union as a non-enumerated member. The G7 plays a key role in shaping global responses to major economic, political, and social challenges through dialogue and coordination among its members.

Although it does not have a permanent secretariat or legal foundation, the G7 is a driving force behind collaborative efforts on issues such as climate action, international security, development, health, and the digital transition. G7 leaders meet annually at a dedicated summit, where they adopt a joint communiqué outlining shared priorities and future commitments. Ministerial meetings on topics ranging from finance and foreign affairs to gender equality and digital policy take place throughout the year to support these high-level deliberations.

The G7 presidency rotates annually among the member states, with each host country setting the agenda and organizing key meetings from January 1 through December 31.

The Think7 (T7) is the official G7 engagement group of leading think tanks and research institutions, established under the German G7 Presidency in 2022. Operating independently of governments, the T7 brings together global experts from academia, civil society, and policy research to develop evidence-based policy recommendations aligned with G7 priorities.

Each year, the T7 is led by think tanks in the country holding the G7 Presidency, who coordinate international collaboration across key policy areas. Structured into thematic Task Forces, the T7 process produces concrete, research-driven proposals addressing global challenges such as climate action, digital governance, economic resilience, health equity, and effective multilateral cooperation. These outcomes are shared with decision-makers ahead of the annual G7 Summit.

The Global Solutions Initiative is an active partner in the T7 process. As co-organizer during Germany’s G7 Presidency in 2022, GSI played a central role in shaping the thematic agenda and hosting the T7 Summit. Drawing on its expertise in multistakeholder dialogue, GSI continues to support the T7’s mission by bridging the gap between research, policy, and implementation. T7 recommendations inform GSI’s ongoing work and are featured regularly at the Global Solutions Summit and in related publications.