The establishment of the IWA came amid, according to Schofield (2014),[1] the launch and subsequent failure of the 1979 Welsh devolution referendum, and the resulting “tug-of-war between a desire for a measure of independence for Wales and concerns about the country's ability to function under such a system.”[1] In 1986, controller of BBC Wales Geraint Talfan Davies and Cardiff lawyer Keith James (of Hugh James LLP) set out a paper which established their case for "a body that can provide a regular intellectual challenge to current practice in all those spheres of Welsh life and administration that impact on our industrial and economic performance.

In April 2013, John Osmond was succeeded as Director by Lee Waters, who had previously run the environmental charity Sustrans Cymru and had been Chief Political Correspondent for ITV Wales.

Its focus post-devolution has shifted to more of a public policy advocacy function, facilitating debate by leading industry and political figures on its ClickOnWales platform, as well as preparing reports on specific areas for reform, including the environment, higher education, transport, justice, European Union membership, healthcare, the media, and inequality.

Its reports have in the past been sponsored by businesses, such as AB Electronics and Hodge Bank,[13] as well as Government or voluntary sector bodies such as the former Welsh Development Agency.

In 2011 Liberal Democrat AM Aled Roberts argued in a speech at the Eisteddfod organised by the IWA that "house building would strain (the) Welsh language"[14] in north east Wales.

Directors Chairpeople Board Members Original list The Institute has published reports on issues across a number of fields relating to Welsh life.

Prior to its inception, Davies and James produced a 1986 paper on the need for "a body that can provide a regular intellectual challenge to current practice in all those spheres of Welsh life and administration that impact on our industrial and economic performance."

[25] The IWA in 1999 published a report arguing for expansion of the A470 north-to-south-Wales trunk route in order to better facilitate road travel from North to South Wales.

The Independent newspaper however reported the IWA had persisted, having taken “up the reins (of the project) with grim determination.”[28] Supported by Anthony Freud, director of the Welsh National Opera and Michael Trickey, director of policy and planning at the Arts Council of Wales,[28] the Institute began fielding ideas for the project which had been rejected by both the Millennium Commission and the general public during Wales Secretary John Redwood’s unsuccessful consultation.

[28] The establishment of an arts centre had been key to the Cardiff Bay Development Corporation’s plans for what was at the time “the biggest such inner- city undertaking in Europe”,[28] and which was forecast to cost £2.75bn in 1997 (£4.9bn adjusted for 2019 inflation).

[28] At the time, CBDC Chairman Geoffrey Inkin stated he had “no great hopes for the initiative taken by the Institute of Welsh Affairs”,[28] but the Institute’s then Director John Osmond said at the time that it had “brokered a (public-private) package to bring the lights up again on the project.”[28] The work of the IWA in drawing attention to what it said was “some 83 per cent of arts funding from the Lottery” going to England,[28] as well as its leadership in pushing the now Wales Millennium Centre to seek Millennium Commission, Arts Council, and Heritage Fund investment,[28] is attributed as being hugely impactful on the later construction of the Centre.

[32] Rowlands called for the Secretary of State to continue to serve as a catalyst for foreign direct investment and engagement with Wales from London to the rest of the world.

[34] In 2015 Professor Dylan Jones-Evans and Dr Martin Rhisiart published a 20 year review of the 1993 publication of "Wales 2010" in the journal Technological Forecasting and Social Change.

It found that the resulting Entrepreneurship Action Plan (EAP) for Wales had a "profound" impact,[35] but that its removal years later was a severe mistake along with the abolition of the Welsh Development Agency.

[35] It praises the appointment of a new Minister for the Economy within the Welsh Government in 2011[35] but notes that the Labour-Plaid coalition's 2010 Economic Renewal Programme only briefly mentioned entrepreneurship once in 53 pages.

It cited Ian Rush, Neville Southall and Michael Owen[37] as well as the cross-border health service and economic ties between the regions as evidence for some in the area that "North Wales does look to Liverpool as the capital to this day.

"[42] The report's author Geraint Davies however argued that the majority of flights would be "taking off and landing over water, (meaning) the noise and air pollution for nearby residents would be minimised.

"[44] It found that "little evidence that devolution has had much effect on the Welsh economy",[44] and made recommendations for projects to stimulate growth included Wales becoming a net exporter of renewable energy.

[49] In reporting on the Institute's work, The Guardian found that the Welsh media faces "market failure"[50] after "a total reduction in spending on TV programmes for Wales across the BBC and ITV from £39m to £27m.

[52] IWA trustee and Plaid Cymru politician Eurfyl ap Gwilym argued in a 2017 report[53] that UK Government should consider lowering the rates of corporation tax paid in the poorest parts of the UK[53] due to what he described as the severe scale of upheaval faced by Wales in leaving the European Union[53] He argued that Wales was more reliant on EU exports and up to £680m a year in CAP and Structural Fund payments,[53] which he suggested necessitated devolution of corporation tax to stimulate investment post-Brexit.

"[54] Writing for the IWA's Click on Wales website, UK Minister of State for Employment Priti Patel MP wrote that the European Commission was, prior to Brexit, planning cuts "in the region of 27%" to Wales-specific structural funds,[55] and that "Wales would be better off out of the EU (...) with the future funding for these types of projects determined by politicians accountable to the Welsh electorate.

"[55] The piece drew criticism from pro-European AMs and MPs, with Cardiff South and Penarth MP Stephen Doughty contending that Wales remains the largest beneficiary of EU funds in the UK.

"[57] The IWA's 2017 report "The Single Market of the Mind" studied the implications of the UK leaving the European Union for higher education providers and students.

To mark the anniversary of the 1977 "no" vote to the question of Welsh devolution, in 2017 the Financial Times looked at the work of the IWA as part of its "four key challenges for the Wales assembly.