The Institute for Protest and Social Movement Research (Institut für Protest- und Bewegungsforschung – ipb) aims to provide a platform for social science research on protests, social movements, and their relationship to democracy. The initiative for the Institute originated in April 2012, when a group of social scientists who study protests and social movements presented the Memorandum for the Establishment of a Social Science Institution. The ipb defines itself as a network institute that brings together researchers, mainly from German-speaking countries. Members of the ipb conduct studies and research projects independently or in cooperation with universities and non-university research institutions and make the research results publicly available, for instance through publications and media presence. In doing so, the ipb collaborates with colleagues and institutions in Europe and beyond.
The Institute is supported by the Association for Protest and Movement Research (Verein für Protest- und Bewegungsforschung e.V.), a non-profit organization registered with the Berlin-Charlottenburg District Court. The board of the Association also serves as the board of the Institute.