The International Statistical Institute, ISI, is a diverse and vibrant organisation, with a long history and a rich tradition.

ISI’s mission is to promote the understanding, development and good practice of statistics worldwide. This is reflected in its slogan ‘Statistical Science for a Better World”.

The institute was founded in London in 1885 by 81 prominent statisticians from governments and academia. The ISI, its seven Associations and its organisational members, covering a range of statistical areas and interests, make up the ISI family with over 4,500 members from over 100 countries. Their work and influence within the international statistical community are supported by standing and operational committees, special interest groups and regional networks.

The ISI is unmatched in its global reach among statisticians and those interested in the field of statistics. It is also an association which links with many international and national organisations, including national statistical societies, with special focus on organisations in or supporting developing regions of the world. A majority of the world’s central bureaus of statistics and many central banks are represented within the ISI network of institutional and corporate members.

ISI has had consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations since 1949. It provides a welcoming environment for advancing statistical knowledge and learning best practices, for sharing state-of-the-art developments and for creating opportunities to network.

The ISI flagship event is the biennial ISI World Statistics Congress, where several thousand participants from around the globe meet to exchange and explore new ideas and to network. Different countries organise the World Statistics Congresses and the hosts invest tremendous effort into making sure the conference is a memorable occasion for participants. ISI Regional Statistical Conferences serve as a platform to promote statistics and the ISI in different parts of the world.

ISI’s Declaration on Professional Ethics provides a framework for statistical professionals to make individual decisions, based on common values and experiences.

Prestigious awards of ISI and its Associations recognise statistical achievements and accomplishments. ISI obtains and administers support for members from developing countries to attend an extensive variety of international conferences. It also develops and delivers statistical capacity building programmes, often in partnership with other stakeholders, including workshops to develop skills and leadership and mentoring programmes. ISI organises activities to promote the careers of young statisticians.