Ethics Review Board

An Ethics Review Board (ERB) is an institutional body charged with assessing whether proposed research, operational activities, or staff conduct meet defined ethical standards before work proceeds or while it is underway. In academic and policy research settings, ERBs are most commonly associated with the review of studies involving human subjects, sensitive data, vulnerable populations, or potential conflicts of interest. In think tanks, NGOs, and international organizations, the remit often extends to donor vetting, partnership due diligence, fieldwork safety, and the handling of confidential informants.

Membership typically combines internal staff with external experts — lawyers, ethicists, subject-matter specialists, and sometimes community representatives — to reduce institutional bias. Boards usually operate under a written charter that specifies quorum, conflict-of-interest recusal rules, and appeal procedures.

Core functions generally include:

• Protocol review: approving, modifying, or rejecting research designs before data collection begins.
• Risk assessment: weighing harms to participants, partners, or the institution against expected public benefit.
• Ongoing monitoring: reviewing adverse events, mid-study amendments, and final reports.
• Advisory opinions: issuing guidance on emerging issues such as AI-generated content, dual-use research, or engagement with sanctioned entities.

For IR students and junior researchers, the most familiar form is the university Institutional Review Board (IRB) in the United States or its equivalents elsewhere — Research Ethics Committees in the United Kingdom and much of the Commonwealth, and Comités d'éthique de la recherche in francophone systems. These bodies derive their legitimacy from post-war instruments such as the Nuremberg Code (1947) and the Declaration of Helsinki (first adopted by the World Medical Association in 1964), as well as national regulations like the U.S. Common Rule.

In Model UN and policy contexts, the term may also describe bodies set up by intergovernmental organizations to police staff conduct, procurement integrity, and whistleblower protection. Their decisions are typically advisory to senior management rather than judicially binding.