Atlas Network partners with local civil society organizations across the region to solve complex issues from the bottom up. Together we can build an inclusive prosperity and a future of freedom in Latin America.

Latest regional updates

The ascent of illiberal populism from Mexico to Argentina, plus setbacks in places like Chile and Perú, coupled with the devastation occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic, has been interpreted by many as the beginnings of a dark road ahead for Latin America, thus confirming its reputation as the perpetual “land of mañana.”

Our 100+ partners in the region, however, work hard, every day, to demonstrate how bloated bureaucracies, regulatory extortion and more limits on freedom of choice keep small business, women entrepreneurs, young innovators, and everyday citizens from moving forward and reaping the rewards of inclusive prosperity, social mobility, and human dignity.

Against the odds of rising autocracies, intolerance, and widespread misinformation about open markets and liberal democracies, our partners have shown, with creative stories and imaginative policy proposals, why Latin America is, rather, the land of “sí se puede.”

We are convinced, indeed, that the ideas of liberty will flourish as the best possible course to meet the challenges that lie ahead.

We invite you to learn more about Atlas Network initiatives in Latin America, and the extraordinary work of our partners across the region.

Dr roberto salinas leon 31

Roberto Salinas-León

Director, Atlas Network, Center for Latin America

Experts

A photo of Roberto Salinas Leon in front of a building.

Dr. Roberto Salinas, Executive Director

Roberto Salinas is the Executive Director of the Atlas Network Center for Latin America. He is also currently President of the Mexico Business Forum, President of the Alamos Alliance, Senior Debate Fellow and Debate Lecturer at the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, and an Adjunct Scholar of the Cato Institute. He has published more than 2,000 editorials (English and Spanish) on public policy topics, in The Wall Street Journal, The Journal of Commerce, Investor’s Business Daily, Barrons, and others. He is an occasional commentator for CNN, CNN Latinamerica, CNCB, BBC, and others. Roberto Salinas León holds a B.A. in political economy, history and philosophy from Hillsdale College, Michigan; and an M.A. and Ph.D. in philosophy from Purdue University, Indiana.

A photo of Axel Kaiser in front of a stone building.

Axel Kaiser, Senior Fellow

Axel Kaiser Barents von Hohenhagen is a Chilean-German lawyer, Master in Investments, Commerce and Arbitration, Master of Arts and Doctor of Philosophy from the University of Heidelberg (Germany). He is Director of the FA Hayek Chair at the Adolfo Ibáñez University in Santiago de Chile, and co-founder and president of the think tank Foundation for Progress in Chile. He is a columnist for the newspapers Financiero and El Mercurio and his opinions have been published in international media such as The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Quillette, Forbes.com, La Nación de Argentina, El País de Uruguay and El Mundo, among others. He is an international lecturer and author of several best-selling books including El Engaño Populista (Deusto, 2016), The Pope and Capitalism (2018), The Tyranny of Equality (El Mercurio, 2015) La fatal ignorancia (2009) and The Neo inquisition (Deusto 2020).

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Our initiatives aim to complement – and finds ways to collaborate with – other efforts to advance sound policy ideas in Latin America. Two organizations with long and friendly relationships with Atlas Network, which come immediately to mind are Fundación Internacional para la Libertad and Red Liberal de América Latina. We welcome inquiries about how we might work cooperatively with other organizations pursuing similar ends.

  • Our initiatives are not endowed and does not accept funding from any government. It relies entirely on the generosity of individuals and institutional donors that share its desire to create greater freedom and opportunity for the people of Latin America.

  • Since we believes the best policy solutions come from the bottom-up, our strategy is to listen to our partners rather than direct them. The principal focus of our work is in supporting our partners’ locally-grown solutions to poverty and other problems via training, grants, and networking opportunities.

    That said, we do bring together our Council of Ideas to identify areas of collaboration around big themes that resonate with many partners. Current themes include:

    • Improving understanding of the benefits of trade and the dangers of protectionism, so that political leaders will less inclined to indulge in demagoguery that could undermine beneficial trading relationships.

    • Rooting out corruption and political privileges that distort the economic playing field. Such work will help us clarify that enlightened political actors will be “pro-market” (since market competition produces innovation and lowers prices for consumers), not “pro-business” (a euphemism for helping existing businesses at the expense of competitors and consumers).

    • Using tools like the Doing Business report of the World Bank and the Fraser Institute’s Economic Freedom of the World report to identify “low-hanging-fruit” reforms that can measurably increase economic freedom.

  • The mission of our initiatives is to help achieve a lasting peace and inclusive prosperity in Latin America, providing justice and opportunity to all its citizens. Our strategy is to assist civil society organizations in the region to implement bottom-up projects that increase freedom.

    This means we focus our attention on helping our partners by providing (1) training; (2) competitive grant opportunities; and (3) networking opportunities. Through our annual Latin America Liberty Forum and other events and public campaigns, we also bring public attention to the projects of our partners and the importance of their work.

  • Our initiatives serve a network of independent think tanks and civil society organizations that take their own positions on specific policy topics in specific countries. We are not a think tank ourselves, so we are not in the business of giving hot takes on the news of the day. On occasion, our team can assist media inquiries by providing references to experts associated with our partner organizations, but these individuals do not speak for the initiatives themselves.

  • If you would like to learn more about the initiatives and meet those involved in their work, consider attending our next Latin America Liberty Forum.

    If you are working for a think tank or civil society group that would like to take part in training programs and grant competitions, the first step is to go through Atlas Network’s partner approval process

    If you are a philanthropist wanting to learn about the initiatives' work, please contact Antonella Marty. We would be happy to provide details that will help you make an informed decision about how gifts to our initiatives in Latin America may fulfill your philanthropic goals. Those who become sponsors are invited to take part in our annual Día Logos retreat, which fosters camaraderie and collaboration among those with shared ambitions for building freer societies across the Americas.

    If you are a member of the academy or the media, we welcome your inquiries about how you might contribute to a better understanding of the work of our initiatives and the achievements of our independent partners.

  • We welcome speaking invitations for Roberto Salinas-Leon. Please contact Dr. Lyall Swim with the details of your invitation. We must warn that Dr. Salinas needs to decline most of the invitations he receives, but we will give consideration to each request that is received. On occasion, Atlas Network may able to suggest one or more alternate speakers for your event should Dr. Salinas be unavailable.

  • Our initiatives in Latin America collaborate with partners that understand how individual rights, limited government under the rule of law, and free markets tend to create prosperity and improve the prospects for peace. The initiatives call for an end to cronyism, corruption, and political privileges of all kinds, and looks forward to working with all people of goodwill who share this vision. In this way, the initiatives adhere to a set of principles, but not to a narrowly-defined ideology or political orientation.

  • No. Our initiatives in Latin America do not engage in partisan politics. Our focus is on building a long-term consensus around the principles that foster peace and prosperity, with the sincere hope that such a future will see ‘less at stake’ in individual elections, because all parties will be respectful of fundamental freedoms.

    • Manuel Hinds, former Minister of Finance, El Salvador; author of Money, Markets & Sovereignty, and In Defense of Liberal Democracy.
    • Martín Aguirre, editor, El País (Uruguay); editor of Atlas Network’s Mirada Sur.
    • Marcel Granier, former Executive Director, Radio Caracas Televisión; one of the region’s most distinguished policy journalists.
    • Juan José Daboub, former Chief of Staff and Minster of Finance, El Salvador; former Managing Director, The World Bank, Chairman, The Daboub Partnership (Washington D.C.)
    • Guillermo Cabieses, Principal and General Counsel, Nexus Group (Peru); Professor of Law and Economics at several universities

In the Media