On May 22–23, Atlas Network’s Europe Liberty Forum 2025 gathered in Brussels, Belgium and brought together liberty-minded leaders to engage in inspiring conversations, forge new connections, and exchange bold ideas. Co-hosted with EPICENTER (European Policy Information Center) and ECIPE (European Centre for International Political Economy), the two-day event featured keynote speeches, engaging panel discussions, networking opportunities, and deep-dive conversations on case studies from among our partner organizations that reinforced a commitment to building free and prosperous societies.
Cornerstone Talks
The event opened with Cornerstone Talks delivered by three leaders from Atlas Network partner organizations from across Europe: Tom Clougherty of Institute of Economic Affairs, Mari Kapanadze of Georgia’s Future Academy, and Richard Durana of Institute for Economic and Social Studies. Their prompt was to discuss what the freedom movement should start doing, continue doing, and stop doing. Each speaker shared their unique perspective, discussing ideas such as that the liberty movement should continue staying true to our principles, stop assuming we already have all the answers about how best to apply those principles in policy, and be unafraid to label authoritarians as such.
After these presentations, Dr. Tom Palmer moderated a reaction conversation with Adam Bartha of EPICENTER and Frederik Erixon of ECIPE.
Notable Speakers and Sessions
From Policy to Persuasion: Making Freedom Ideas Resonate with the Public
This session explored strategies for crafting compelling narratives that make complex economic and policy ideas accessible to broader audiences. Panelists shared practical approaches for engaging the public, leveraging storytelling, and adapting messaging to different cultural and political contexts.
This panel featured Adam Weinberg (Atlas Network), Medeni Sungur (DIGIMAR, Turkey), Sebastian Stodolak (Warsaw Enterprise Institute, Poland), and Yevghen Shulgha (CASE Ukraine).
What’s Holding Back Innovation? Exploring Europe's Missing Entrepreneurial Spirit
Europe was once a powerhouse of innovation, risk-taking, and economic growth. But today, excessive regulations, rigid labor markets, and a lack of entrepreneurial incentives are stifling its potential. This session explored the barriers preventing businesses from thriving, from outdated policies to the neglect of entrepreneurship in major economic reports. Panelists discussed strategies to reignite Europe’s innovative drive, foster a culture of entrepreneurship, and ensure that technological advancements and the future of work create more opportunities rather than roadblocks. This panel featured Natalia Macyra (ECIPE, Belgium), Glen Hodgson (Free Trade Europa, Sweden), Oscar Guinea (ECIPE), and Marek Tatała (Economic Freedom Foundation, Poland).
Europe’s Security Dilemma: Debt, Defense, and Liberty
The expansion of defense budgets across Europe is reshaping the continent’s economic landscape. While security is a pressing concern, unchecked military spending threatens to erode fiscal responsibility and expand the role of the state. How can free-market advocates respond? Should they push for spending limits, advocate for private-sector solutions in defense, or propose a new framework for national security? This session discussed the future of European defense policy through the lens of economic liberty. Our panel included Robert Tyler (New Direction, Belgium), Rutger Brattström (Timbro, Sweden), Andrea Dugo (ECIPE, Belgium), and Javier Fernández-Lasquetty (Fundación Internacional para la Libertad, Spain).
Disinformation, Free Speech, and the Battle for Truth in Europe
As governments and tech platforms grapple with disinformation, the line between security and censorship is becoming increasingly blurred. Russian interference and EU digital regulations have reignited debates over free speech, with clashes between policymakers and tech leaders shaping the future of online expression. This panel explored the risks of both disinformation and overregulation, examining how Europe can defend democracy without undermining fundamental freedoms. This panel included Christian Năsulea (IES-Europe, Romania), Remigijus Simasius (Former Minister of Justice, Lithuania), Pieter Cleppe (Brussels Report), and Berin Szóka (TechFreedom, United States).
The second day of the forum also featured presentations from each of three finalists of the 2024 Europe Liberty Award—Bendukidze Free Market Center (Ukraine), Adam Smith Institute (United Kingdom), and Institute for Market Economics(Bulgaria)—on the work that earned them that recognition. This allowed each speaker to explain their strategic approach, why their success mattered in advancing freedom, and what lessons their story could offer to other Atlas Network partner organizations. Attendees then had the opportunity to attend a deep-dive session focused on the project of their choice from among the three, allowing them to learn more and discuss with other participants.
Europe Liberty Awards Dinner
Europe Liberty Forum 2025 closed with the celebratory Europe Liberty Awards Dinner, a venue that featured several highly-anticipated announcements. The traditional Toast to Freedom was delivered by Błażej Lenkowski, founder and president of the board of Fundacja Liberte!, an Atlas Network partner based in Poland.
Nataliya Melnyk of Ukraine-based organization Bendukidze Free Market Center was announced as the winner of the Europe Smart Bets semi-final pitch competition, held earlier in the day on Friday, and its US$65,000 prize. As a winner of this regional competition, she will also have the opportunity to deliver her pitch in New York City at Liberty Forum & Freedom Dinner for a chance to win an additional US$50,000 prize.
Nataliya pitched her organization’s plan to expand their already-successful work reaching students and teachers with free market education. Interest in their educational programs are so strong that waitlists are now two or three times longer than the number of participants they can accommodate. To meet this demand and take the next step in this program’s evolution, Bendukidze Free Market Center hopes to expand their impact by embracing digitalization by creating an online training platform for teachers who want to use their economic education curriculum. The platform will also serve as a space for educators to interact, share ideas and results, and develop peer-reviewed content.
Benedukidze Free Market Center has already reached over 100,000 students with rigorous economic education. This growth plan will help them reach the next 100,000 even faster.
Next, it was announced that Georgia’s Future Academy, represented by Alexander Zibzibadze, was the winner of the 2025 Europe Liberty Award. Georgia’s Future Academy has emerged as a crucial pro-democracy force through strategic youth mobilization. During the 2024 parliamentary elections, the organization mobilized, trained, and deployed over 2,000 election observers for the “My Vote” campaign to counter widespread electoral fraud in Georgia and address the country’s severe democratic backsliding. Georgia’s Future Academy also built several of the country’s largest civic education programs, including the #IDEBATE program and the Franklin Academy, totaling more than 5,000 alumni who now make up Georgia’s largest and most engaged pro-liberty youth network—both in-person and online. Georgia’s youth liberty movement is now an integral bulwark against increasing restrictions on civil society, such as the “Foreign Agents Law.” And young Georgians’ efforts have been amplified on social media, with the organization’s #MartisIdebi channel garnering over 10 million views in a matter of months.
Finally, the evening concluded with the revelation that next year’s Europe Liberty Forum will take place in Berlin, Germany, co-hosted with Prometheus.
As the movement for liberty continues to grow in Europe and around the world, the ideas from this event will help drive meaningful change. Be sure to stay tuned for the next Regional Liberty Forum as Atlas Network continues working to advance freedom worldwide. For more details on upcoming forums, visit our Events page.