Senate House Library has recently subscribed to Policy Commons, one of a number of grey literature resources produced by Coherent Digital. This resource is now also available to all LSHTM staff and students through LSHTM’s affiliation with the University of London.
What is Policy Commons?
Policy Commons is a database of grey literature resources, including reports, surveys, budgets, proceedings, podcasts and other information sources. Senate House Library has subscribed to four collections, these are:
- Global Think Tanks: contains over 7.5 million items from over 27,500 organisations from around the world. It includes information from IGOs, NGOs, nonprofits and think tanks, and a wide variety of type of information, including reports, books, articles, working papers, briefs, data sets, tables, charts, media, case studies, blogposts and statistics.
- Public Health and Social Care: contains over 1.9 million items from over 7000 organisations from around the world. Research, real-world evaluations, newsletters, reports from a range of institutions including: public health agencies, medical associations, medical foundations, pharmaceutical and medical companies, data collection agencies, charities etc.
- World Cities and Local Governments: research, real-world evaluations, newsletters, reports from city and local government agencies across the world, including the Global South. Includes over 3,500 organisations and urban governments.
- World Governments: research, real-world evaluations, newsletters, reports from governmental organisations from around the world. It has comprehensive coverage from the UK, Ireland, Canada, US Federal Agencies and Oceania, with select coverage of over 700 other organisations from over 180 countries.
Most resources are available in full-text. Results can be exported in .ris format to import into reference management or systematic review software, and searches can be saved with new items emailed to you as they are added.
The database is produced by Coherent Digital.
Who will find it useful?
Anyone who is looking for grey literature such as government publications, NGO reports, official statistics. Instead of searching using the biased and limited options available with a search engine, or browsing individual organisation websites, you can now search in one place and easily export your results.
How do I get access?
Just login to Senate House Library search with your LSHTM email (DL students use your University of London email).
From there, find the database using the A-Z databases link at the top of the Senate House Library search screen. Links are also available from the LSHTM Library Databases A to Z page.
Contact staff at Senate House Library if you have any problems accessing their resources.
Does Senate House Library provide access to other Coherent Digital products?
Yes, Senate House Library has subscribed to a number of other grey literature collections which may be useful to LSHTM staff and students. These include:
- Africa Commons
- Applied Science Commons: Applied Psychology
- Canada Commons
- History Commons: Indigenous Peoples Social Justice and Culture
- History Commons: LGBTQ+ Social Justice and Culture
- History Commons: Refugees, Migration, and Borders Social Justice and Culture
- Latin America Commons
- South Asia Commons
Links to all of these databases can be found on the LSHTM Library Databases A to Z page, or on the A-Z Databases link at the top of Senate House Library search.
