STRENGTHENING THE
WORLDWIDE FREEDOM
MOVEMENT

Atlas Network is a nonprofit organization connecting a global network of
more than 475 free-market organizations in over 90 countries to the
ideas and resources needed to advance the cause of liberty.

See how Atlas Network makes a difference.
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See how Atlas Network makes a difference.
Discover more about one of our featured partners
Centre for Public Policy Research >>

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THE DIMINISHING ROLE OF THE WORLD BANK: HOW LOCAL THINK TANKS ARE LEADING THE POVERTY FIGHT

News that the World Bank’s president, Jim Yong Kim, is calling it quits to join the private sector has heightened the debate over what to do about foreign aid inefficacy. Kim made clear in an email to staff that, in his view, the “massive development finance gap” in low-income countries is best addressed by private investment. K...

RAINBOW@ATLAS FUND ANNOUNCED

Atlas Network is proud to announce the creation of Rainbow@Atlas, a special fund dedicated to the principles of inclusivity, tolerance, and diversity. We believe that no one should ever be excluded from participating in the benefits of liberty on the basis of gender, race, religion, ethnicity, or sexual orientation. Rainbow@Atla...

BUILDING ON 40 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE IN REGION, ATLAS NETWORK LAUNCHES CENTER FOR LATIN AMERICA

Atlas Network’s new Center for Latin America promotes peace, justice, and opportunity for all in a region in the midst of volatile change. Building on decades of collaborative work in the region, Atlas Network will strengthen and leverage a partner network of more than 80 independent civil society organizations based in the coun...

THE JOY OF FREEDOM

It is a joy to take part in a festival of liberty, a truly liberal event. “Festival” is really the right word, because liberty is truly something to be celebrated, its realization a cause for joy and an occasion for happiness. And the occasion for happiness is not merely our own freedom, but the freedom of other people as well....

AMLO—IS MEXICO HEADED BACK TOWARD THE ROAD TO SERFDOM?

On Dec. 1, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, better known as AMLO, will become the next President of Mexico for the six-year term of 2018-2024. His stunning victory represents a watershed moment in the nation’s transition to a modern democracy. AMLO won with almost 53 percent of the popular vote; and his party, Morena, was able to ca...

CHOOSING A BIGGER POND: WHY NONPROFIT LEADERS NEED A GLOBAL NETWORK

Without profit motive, can nonprofit leaders be as innovative and successful as their profit-seeking counterparts? As it turns out, there’s a type of motivation that transcends the drive for profit and it can influence the behavior of nonprofit leaders towards improving results as well. It’s called social comparison—and research...

INSTITUTE FOR SPENDING REFORM TARGETS WASTEFUL PENTAGON SPENDING

For many in the United States, whether they be liberal interventionists or conservative defense hawks, military spending cuts are radical and fall far outside of the Overton window. In 2017, the total military expenditure by the U.S. was $610 billion, the largest in the world. The Institute for Spending Reform (ISR), an Atlas Ne...

LITHUANIAN REFORMS LOWER TAX BURDEN FOR 1.3 MILLION

In late June, the Lithuanian parliament consolidated the tax base for the country’s social security contributions and reduced the contribution rate. This reform was a part of the Lithuanian Free Market Institute’s (LFMI) project within Atlas Network’s Leveraging Indices for Free Enterprise Policy Reform, or LIFE, program. The re...

EUROPE THINK TANK SHARK TANK 2018 CONTESTANTS ANNOUNCED FROM BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA, SERBIA, AND UKRAINE

Atlas Network is excited to announce the finalists of this year’s Think Tank Shark Tank — Europe competition, which is sponsored by the Smith Family Foundation and will be held during Europe Liberty Forum from May 29-30 in Copenhagen, Denmark. Three think tank professionals will compete in a showcase of the region’s most excitin...

EASE OF DOING BUSINESS, PROPERTY RIGHTS, AND BLOCKCHAIN: ASIA LIBERTY FORUM 2018

More than 250 people from 30 countries gathered in Jakarta, Indonesia from February 10-11 for Asia Liberty Forum 2018. Hosted by Atlas Network with local co-host the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS), the conference featured several thought-provoking breakout sessions examining the trajectory of liberty, property right...

INSTITUTO MEXICANO PARA LA COMPETITIVIDAD (IMCO) WINS 2017 TEMPLETON FREEDOM AWARD

For the first time in the history of modern Mexican democracy a credible, relevant, and effective anticorruption legal infrastructure exists. It holds Mexican politicians accountable and keeps them honest from the get-go, all thanks to Instituto Mexicano para la Competitividad (IMCO)’s revolutionary “3for3” campaign. As of July...

ALEXANDRE PESEY OF INSTITUT DE FORMATION POLITIQUE WINS 2017 THINK TANK SHARK TANK COMPETITION

The winner of Atlas Network’s 2017 Think Tank Shark Tank competition is Alexandre Pesey, founder of Institut de Formation Politique (France), for his pitch to create a civic incubator (“The incubator Le Coquetier”) designed to identify, select, train, coach, and guide intellectual entrepreneurs across France. Through the project...

TEMPLETON FREEDOM AWARD WINNERS & FINALISTS

Awarded since 2004, the Templeton Freedom Award is named for the late investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton. The award annually honors his legacy by identifying and recognizing the most exceptional and innovative contributions to the understanding of free enterprise, and the public policies that encourage prosperity, in...

PETAR ČEKEREVAC’S LIGHTHOUSE PROJECT FOR SERBIA WINS 2017 EUROPE THINK TANK SHARK TANK COMPETITION

The winner of the Europe Think Tank Shark Tank competition is Petar Čekerevac – executive manager of Libertarian Club Libek in Serbia – for his organization’s proposed Lighthouse Outlet project to establish an online media outlet bringing together the brightest libertarian minds of Serbia. The proposed online platform will serve...

THINK TANK LEADERS GATHER IN BUDAPEST TO PUSH FOR INNOVATION IN FREEDOM ADVOCACY

One of the improvised strongholds during Hungary's anti-Soviet revolution in October 1956 was the Corvin cinema in central Budapest. Here, ordinary citizens joined hometown soldiers in a spontaneous attempt to take back their government. More recently, the site served as a memorable stop and cause for reflection for a gathering...

UEFF’S WORK TO ABOLISH BAN ON SALE OF AGRICULTURAL LAND IN UKRAINE WINS 2017 EUROPE LIBERTY AWARD

A major spectacle accompanied UEFF’s submission of a constitutional complaint to the Constitutional Court of Ukraine, which was signed by 55 People’s Deputies (Members of Ukrainian Parliament). Two UEFF founders – Maryan Zablotskyy and Sergiy Fursa – publicly submitted the complaint to the Constitutional Court, joined by People’...

ATLAS NETWORK-SUPPORTED RESEARCH LINKS EASE OF DOING BUSINESS REFORMS AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION

New research supported by Atlas Network demonstrates impact of ease of doing business reforms on poverty.

OVERCOMING THE OUTSIDER’S DILEMMA: CAN PHILANTHROPISTS HELP THE DEVELOPING WORLD?

Today’s top-down, economic development aid model is unavoidably flawed. The nature of economic development requires idiosyncratic solutions that can’t be successfully designed or administered by outsiders. Instead, locally grown solutions aimed at transforming the institutional environment in favor of market growth, primarily th...

THINK TANKS IN BRAZIL, CANADA, GHANA, MEXICO, U.S. NAMED FINALISTS FOR 2017 TEMPLETON FREEDOM AWARD

Awarded since 2004, the Templeton Freedom Award is named for the late investor and philanthropist Sir John Templeton. The award annually honors his legacy by identifying and recognizing the most exceptional and innovative contributions to the understanding of free enterprise and the public policies that encourage prosperity, inn...

2017 AFRICA LIBERTY FORUM TACKLES CONTINENT’S BARRIERS TO PROSPERITY AND OPPORTUNITY

During Africa Liberty Forum 2017, more than 125 influencers and think tank professionals from 16 countries gathered to discuss the best and the brightest work breaking down the barriers to prosperity and opportunity on the continent. Sponsored by Atlas Network with organizing host the South Africa-based Free Market Foundation (F...

PROMOTING LIBERTY IN SPAIN THROUGH GRASSROOTS ACTIVISM

Spain has long had excellent think tanks that specialize in the economic aspects of freedom, and carry out the crucial work of producing high-level academic, theoretical papers. In 2015, though, a group of Spanish libertarians were concerned about the need to develop a more engaging approach toward civil society — a task that we...

POLL SHOWS THAT GREEKS TURN AWAY FROM BIG GOVERNMENT AS THEY SEEK JOBS AND GROWTH

The Greek economy has deteriorated steadily during the past eight years of unprecedented fiscal collapse, and the people may finally be fed up with big government, runaway spending, public-sector corruption, and job-killing regulations. A recent in-depth survey, published by the daily Kathimerini newspaper and the new think tank...

SLOVAKIA’S CATALYST FOR CHANGE

Modern Slovakia is like night and day compared to its years under communist rule, before the 1989 Velvet Revolution hastened the end of communist control, ultimately dissolving the Soviet Union in 1991. The nation has forged its own path since its Velvet Divorce separated Slovakia from the Czech Republic only two years after tha...

PULLING THE ANDON CORD: USING TEAMS TO MAKE DECISIONS

In the early 1980s, the workers at a General Motors plant in California had become so disillusioned with their jobs that they sometimes sabotaged the quality of the cars on purpose. The plant began to perform so poorly that the company shut it down. That failure, though, is only the first part of a great turnaround story. In a s...

ASIA LIBERTY FORUM SPOTLIGHTS EFFORTS TO REDUCE BARRIERS TO PROSPERITY IN THE REGION

Asia Liberty Forum brought together more than 225 leaders, advocates, and think tank professionals from 22 countries to explore the work being done to break down the barriers to prosperity in the region.

LFMI CASE STUDY SHOWS HOW STUDENTS ARE GETTING AN ECONOMIC EDUCATION FOR THE FUTURE

In 2002, Lithuania added economic education to its national school curriculum, mandating that 9th or 10th grade students take 31 hours of classroom study. Teachers, many of them working out of their field, struggled to make outdated textbooks relevant to their students, especially as the available material emphasized government-...

INVESTIGATORY POWERS ACT SUBJECTS UK TO DYSTOPIAN SURVEILLANCE AUTHORITY

Intelligence agencies and police in the United Kingdom have been secretly using unauthorized techniques to eradicate what they defined as online “safe spaces,” where criminals, terrorists, and paedophiles are believed to hide. In 2015, the U.K. government proposed legislation to make these techniques lawful, and ultimately passe...

INEQUALITY, LIBERTY, AND THE PURSUIT OF MOBILITY

For Christmas, our five-year-old son Sebastian wants a Hot Wheels Ultimate Garage. Our two-year-old daughter Arianna will also play with those cars, although we will continue to try to get her to like dolls. Despite these presents and all the presents in the years to come, however, my wife and I think the best present we ever co...

LITHUANIAN FREE MARKET INSTITUTE ‘ECONOMICS IN 31 HOURS’ TEXTBOOK WINS 2016 TEMPLETON FREEDOM AWARD

In high schools across the world, most students graduate without any exposure to the concepts of market economics. The Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI), based in Vilnius, sought to change that by developing its Economics in 31 Hours textbook, which has been awarded this year’s prestigious $100,000 Templeton Freedom Award....

DR. TOM G. PALMER NAMED TO NEWLY ESTABLISHED GEORGE M. YEAGER CHAIR FOR ADVANCING LIBERTY

WASHINGTON, D.C., Nov. 10, 2016 — Dr. Tom G. Palmer has been named the George M. Yeager Chair for Advancing Liberty at Atlas Network. Palmer has devoted his life to the promotion of the common-sense principles of liberty in the United States and worldwide. He has created and taught numerous educational programs, authored and edi...

COMMONWEALTH FOUNDATION CASE STUDY: HOW TO PLAY THE LONG GAME — ACHIEVING STATE-LEVEL PENSION REFORM

In 2017, after years of sounding the alarm on Pennsylvania’s billions of dollars in state pension debt, the Commonwealth Foundation (CF) saw its hard work pay off. That’s because state policymakers came together — conservatives and progressives alike — to sign off on Act 5, a plan that is projected to save the state billions and...

LIPA TAXPAYERS ASSOCIATION CASE STUDY: HOW A SMALL TEAM REPEALED CROATIA’S PROPERTY TAX

Lipa Taxpayers Association is a small shop, with just one full-time employee and a modest budget. But with grit and ingenuity it stopped Croatia’s new property tax dead in its tracks, unleashing such a powerful public backlash that Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic was forced to repeal the tax in 2017 before it was ever implemente...

MERCATUS CENTER CASE STUDY: PROVIDE A CATALYST FOR REINING IN OUT-OF-CONTROL GOVERNMENT REGULATIONS

When it comes to effecting change, the first step is knowing the facts. Sometimes change starts with a story. For the Mercatus Center at George Mason University, that story came from an unlikely source: British Columbia.

LIBERTAD Y PROGRESO CASE STUDY: RIGHTSIZING AN OUTSIZED ARGENTINIAN GOVERNMENT

How a free-market think tank challenged a long-standing culture of patriarchal government and encouraged the people of Argentina to believe in a better future through freedom and innovation.

BUCKEYE INSTITUTE CASE STUDY: RETHINKING OHIO’S ENTIRE CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

In a Rust Belt swing state where “tough on crime” has been the norm for decades, one think tank has dared to challenge preconceived notions about crime, ex-offenders and why it’s so important for a state’s economy to tap into a segment of human capital that has been squandered for far too long.

AUDITING ECONOMIC FREEDOM IN CÔTE D’IVOIRE

The Fraser Institute releases its Economic Freedom of the World Index annually, which ranks every country based on the degree to which each country’s policies and institutions support economic freedom. Audace Institut Afrique (AIA), an Atlas Network partner located in Côte d'Ivoire, recently ranked 132nd in the index. While thei...

THE DIMINISHING ROLE OF THE WORLD BANK: HOW LOCAL THINK TANKS ARE LEADING THE POVERTY FIGHT

‘FREE MARKETS SERIES’ SEASON 4 REACHES MILLIONS IN US AND CANADA

Montreal Economic Institute (MEI)’s Season 4 of the Free Market Series discusses and promotes classical liberal ideas through engaging talks and lessons from some of the best and brightest minds in the think tank industry. This series was made possible through support from the Smith Family Foundation.

FIGHTING POVERTY WITH OPPORTUNITY IN HONDURAS: GLOBAL POLICY PERSPECTIVES WITH ELENA TOLEDO

Last night over 75 people gathered together in New York City to hear how Elena Toledo fights for the voiceless in Honduras during the Global Policy Perspectives event: “Overcoming Poverty in Central America.” Toledo is currently the CEO of Fundación Eléutera, an Atlas Network partner in Honduras, but she didn’t start out in publ...

SMITH FELLOW SPOTLIGHT: LINDA KAVUKA

A recent alumna of the Smith Fellowship, Linda Kavuka, is African programs manager at Students For Liberty (Africa), a partner organization with coordinators located throughout Africa. She is based in Kenya and was one of the Cornerstone Talk presenters at Liberty Forum & Freedom Dinner 2017, and she completed Atlas Network’s Sm...

CENTER FOR INDONESIAN POLICY STUDIES SEEKS TO IMPROVE ACCESS TO STAPLE FOODS

Center for Indonesian Policy Studies (CIPS), attempts to tackle high maize prices. Their paper, “Reforming Trade Policy to Lower Maize Prices in Indonesia” shows how stifling regulations has contributed to high maize prices that negatively impact the nation’s poor.

BOOK TRANSLATION PROMOTES PEACE, LOVE, AND LIBERTY IN AFGHANISTAN

Of the many positive benefits of liberty (increased commerce, economic prosperity, and personal freedom, to name a few), peace is often overlooked. The principles of liberty provide the framework for equality and civility wherever they are applied. The Afghanistan Economic and Legal Studies Organization (AELSO) understands the i...

ATTENDEES FROM AROUND THE GLOBE GATHER FOR STUDENTS FOR LIBERTY ANNUAL LIBERTYCON

LibertyCon is where ideas are incubated and brought to life. With access to world-class speakers, inspiring panels, and workshops — at LibertyCon, “knowledge sharing” is more than a buzzword. LibertyCon 2019, hosted in Washington D.C. on January 17–19, kicked off with educational breakout sessions on “conscious capitalism,” the...

AEI ANNOUNCES NEW PRESIDENT ROBERT DOAR

American Enterprise Institute, an Atlas Network partner, announced that Robert Doar will replace Arthur Brooks as its next president. Brooks has served as AEI’s president since 2009. Prior to that, he was a professor of business and government in the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.

CAN THINK TANKS SUCCEED WHERE FOREIGN AID HAS FAILED?

In Ruhiira, Uganda, an international aid project once offered villagers $300,000 to grow maize instead of matoke, a banana-like starch. Maize, the aid experts reasoned, was better to farm because it is nutritious, drought-resistant, and produces high yields. The experts were right. At harvest time, the villagers found themselves...

EMPOWERING THE NEXT GENERATION OF CLASSICAL LIBERAL MINDS IN AFRICA’S GREAT LAKES REGION

The Center for Development and Enterprises Great Lakes (CDE-Great Lakes) operates in Burundi, Rwanda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Its goal is to reduce barriers to prosperity and opportunity by promoting classical liberal ideals. One way it does that is through its Great Lakes Academy, which seeks to educate people on...

BOOK TRANSLATIONS SPREAD THE IDEAS OF LIBERTY TO THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE

Estudiantes por la Libertad (EsLibertad) has distributed over 1,000 copies of After the Welfare State and Peace, Love, Liberty — edited by Atlas Network executive vice president for international programs and George M. Yeager Chair for Advancing Liberty, Dr. Tom Palmer — throughout Latin America in order to promote the ideas of...

MANNKAL PROGRAM ANNOUNCES UPDATE FOR 2019

The Mannkal Foundation launched in 1997, and since the founding, has sponsored roughly 300 Perth university students to attend conferences and participate in internships. These sponsorships were awarded on a competitive basis in order to focus attention to develop future leaders in the global liberty movement.

IN MEMORIAM: CAROLINA BOLÍVAR, RAFAEL MERCHÁN, AND ROBERTO VILLACRECES

Atlas Network is sad to have lost a few great friends and allies in Carolina Bolívar from Mexico, Rafael Merchán from Colombia, and Roberto Villacreces from Ecuador.

CENTRE FOR CIVIL SOCIETY WORKS TO ESTABLISH APPEAL FOR REPEAL LAW DAY

India is the largest democracy in the world. With an increasing population comes the need for more development and freedom. However, outdated and redundant laws stand in the way of such development. Contradictory language and information makes it difficult for an ordinary citizen to access and comprehend legal information with e...

FORMER LIGHTS, CAMERA, LIBERTY PARTICIPANT TO LAUNCH ‘BIG FISH’ TV SHOW IN GREECE IN FEBRUARY

To combat increased government hostility towards entrepreneurship and economic growth, Greek Liberties Monitor (GLM), is launching the TV series Big Fish in February, which will feature positive stories about entrepreneurship, free markets, and capitalism. Greece has been consumed by a declining labor market that has hindered pr...

THE HUMAN FREEDOM INDEX PROVIDES A SNAPSHOT OF GLOBAL LIBERTY

As a new year begins, it is important to pause and take a look at the state of global liberty. The Human Freedom Index makes it possible to do just that. Through a holistic range of categories, the Human Freedom Index measures aspects of human freedom including the size of government, freedom of movement, identity, and relations...

BEYOND GREED AND ENVY, BEYOND RIGHT AND LEFT

Two vices loom large within our modern dialogue over policy and politics: greed and envy.

LFMI RELEASES STUDIES ON EMPLOYMENT FLEXIBILITY, ‘SHADOW ECONOMY’

The Lithuanian Free Market Institute (LFMI) recently released two studies about the power of free market capitalism in the Baltics and beyond. The first study ranks the employment flexibility of select Baltic, Central, and Eastern European countries. The second examines the nature of illegal trade (also known as “shadow economie...

THE BUCKEYE INSTITUTE RELEASES THE ECONOMIC FREEDOM OF NORTH AMERICA RANKINGS

The Buckeye Institute has had a year filled with accomplishments in Ohio. Its research and advocacy have led to a prison population decrease of nearly ten percent, the exposure of coercive civil asset forfeiture laws, and the passage of some of the most comprehensive occupational licensing reform in the country. These successes...

FIRE PROTECTS THE FREE SPEECH RIGHTS OF 150,000 STUDENTS

The Philadelphia-based Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) — an Atlas Network partner — successfully defended the First Amendment in a recent case. This represents a win for 150,000 students attending Los Angeles Pierce College of the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD). A student, Kevin Shaw, brought...

INSIDE THE BATTLE ON THE RETAILER TAX IN SLOVAKIA

The tax policy public discussion in Slovakia has been overwhelmed by a single topic during the last three months – the retailer tax. After a presidential veto, the law was voted on again in the national parliament and passed with a narrow margin of 78 in favor (out of 76 needed).

APPLY TODAY FOR SUPPORT IN YOUR ACADEMIC CAREER FROM INSTITUTE FOR HUMANE STUDIES

The mission of the Institute for Humane Studies is to support the achievement of a freer society by discovering and facilitating the development of talented students, scholars, and other intellectuals who share an interest in liberty and in advancing the principles and practice of freedom.

FOURTH ANNUAL ARAB LIBERTY FESTIVAL DISCUSSES ECONOMIC PROSPERITY AND DEMOCRATIC TRANSITIONS IN MENA

The fourth annual Arab Liberty Festival, held from Dec. 7–8 in Rabat, Morocco, focused on the role of institutions in fostering and consolidating a democratic transition in the Arab world.

THIS NEW YEAR MAKE A RESOLUTION TO LEARN HOW TO WIN WITH ATLAS NETWORK TRAININGS

As we bid a fond farewell to 2018 you may be wondering how you and your think tank can make the most out of the next year. Atlas Network is prepared to teach you how to win with dozens of training courses in 2019. Whether you are the CEO of a think-tank, a part-time intern, or are just interested in the think tank world, Atlas N...

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UPCOMING ATLAS NETWORK EVENTS

Lights, Camera, Liberty

Thursday-Sunday, March 21 - 24

The Lights, Camera, Liberty workshop is a highly interactive storytelling, messaging, and video production workshop held in partnership with Taliesin Nexus.

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Asia Liberty Forum 2019 - Colombo, Sri Lanka

Thursday-Friday, February 28 - 1

Atlas Network's 2019 Asia Liberty Forum in Colombo, Sri Lanka, February 28 – March 1, 2019.

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WEBINAR: March Partnership Orientation

Wednesday, March 20

In this 30 minute webinar you will have the chance to learn about the Programs, Grants, Awards, and Networking Opportunities that our network offers to its partners worldwide.

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