Atlas Network

Coordinates: 38°54′14″N 77°01′43″W / 38.9038°N 77.0285°W / 38.9038; -77.0285
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This article is about the United States-based organization that supports think tanks. For the European police organization, see ATLAS Network. For other networks, see Atlas (disambiguation).
Atlas Network
Founder(s)Antony Fisher
Established1981; 43 years ago (1981)
ChairDebbi Gibbs[1]
Chief executive officerBrad Lips
BudgetRevenue: $15,545,000
Expenses: $12,963,000
(2020)[2]
Members506[3]
Formerly calledAtlas Economic Research Foundation
Location
Arlington, VA
,
United States
Websitewww.atlasnetwork.org

Atlas Network, formerly known as the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, is a non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States that provides training, networking and grants for libertarian, free-market, and conservative groups around the world.[4][5][6][7][8] It partners with about 500 organizations in nearly 100 countries.[9][10]

History

Atlas Network was founded in 1981 by Sir Antony Fisher, a British entrepreneur, who was influenced by economist F.A Hayek and his book, The Road to Serfdom.[11][12] After founding the Institute of Economic Affairs in London in 1955, Fisher had helped establish the Fraser Institute, the Manhattan Institute and the Pacific Research Institute in the 1970s.[12] The late Linda Whetstone, Fisher's daughter and a classical liberal, served as chairman of Atlas Network.[13][14]

Fisher conceived of Atlas Network as a means to connect various think tanks via a global network through which the organizations could learn best practices from one another and "pass the best research and policy ideas from one to the other"[15] Atlas Network would receive funding from American and European businesses and think tanks to coordinate and organize neoliberal organizations in the developing world.[6] With few exceptions, all affiliated think tanks were established with Atlas Network funding.[16] The organization has been described as "self replicating, a think tank that creates think tanks."[17]

According to its website, it is not named after Ayn Rand's novel Atlas Shrugged.[18]

In 1981, Atlas Network helped economist Hernando de Soto found the Institute for Liberty and Democracy (ILD) in Peru[10] and invested in the Institut Economique de Paris (IEP) in France.[19] In 1983, Fisher helped launch the National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) in Dallas, Texas,[10] and the Jon Thorlaksson Institute in Iceland.[19] That organization was replaced by the Icelandic Research Centre for Innovation and Economic Growth.[19] Atlas Network helped establish the Hong Kong Centre for Economic Research in 1987 and the Liberty Institute in New Delhi in 1996.[10] Margaret Thatcher, F. A. Hayek, and Milton Friedman formally endorsed the organization.[10] 

The 2019 and 2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report, published by the University of Pennsylvania, ranked the Atlas Network as 54th among the "Top Think Tanks in the United States."[20][21]

Atlas Network has been criticized for its links to the tobacco industry.[22][23][24] A 2017 paper in the International Journal of Health Planning and Management described the organization as a "strategic ally" of the industry, saying that it "channeled funding from tobacco corporations to think tank actors to produce publications supportive of industry positions."[25] The University of Bath's Tobacco Control Research Group described the network as having a "longstanding funding relationship with the tobacco industry" and that it "appears to have played a particular role in helping the tobacco industry oppose tobacco control measures in Latin America."[26] Atlas Network is also described as having close ties to oil and gas producers.[8]

Atlas Network was noted by The Intercept and The Guardian for links to right-wing and conservative movements, including the administration of Donald Trump in the United States, Brexit in the United Kingdom, and anti-government protests in Latin America.[27][28] According to The Guardian, "Atlas took no position on Brexit itself, and many of its European partners were opposed, but directors of UK groups in the network were prominent in the official campaign to take Britain out of the EU."[28]

Disinformation expert Julián Macías Tovar told The Guardian that the Atlas Network was in part responsible for an online propaganda campaign against the Cuban government during the 2021 Cuban protests. The Guardian stated that the Atlas Network had been involved in bot or troll centre campaigns during the 2019 Bolivian political crisis, the 2021 Ecuadorian general election, and the 2021 Peruvian general election.[29]

Leadership

The chief executive officer of Atlas Network is Brad Lips.[30] Lips joined Atlas Network, then known as Atlas Economic Research Foundation, in 1998[10] and became CEO in 2009. He is the author of Liberalism and the Free Society in 2021.[31] He has said he advocates for a "freedom philosophy",[32] and summarized Altas Network's function as "to develop alternatives to existing policies, to keep them alive until the politically impossible becomes the politically inevitable".[28]

Matt Warner is the organization's president, while Tom G. Palmer serves as executive vice president for international programs.[33][34] Warner and Palmer co-authored the book Development with Dignity: Self-Determination, Localization, and the End of Poverty.[35] Palmer, known in libertarian circles since the 1970s, has promoted libertarian efforts in various countries including communist and post-communist Eastern Europe, Iraq and Afghanistan; after the 2022 Russian invasion, he traveled inside Ukraine to help coordinate Atlas Network aid.[36]

Atlas Network is organized into centers by region.[37] Entrepreneur Magatte Wade is director of the Center for African Prosperity and the historian Ibrahim B. Anoba is a fellow at the center. Antonella Marty of Argentina serves as a fellow for the Center for Latin America.[38][39][40][41][42][43][44] Atlas Network also runs the Center for United States and Canada and the Center for Asia and Oceania.[45][46]

Activities

Training and networking

The Atlas Network Academy teaches management and communication through credit-based courses.[47] In 2020, Atlas Network trained nearly 4,000 people in promoting free-market voices, preparing nearly 900 people to work at global think tanks.[9][48] Philadelphia Magazine described the Atlas Network as "supporting free-market approaches to eliminating poverty and noted for its refutation of climate change and defense of the tobacco industry".[22]

Atlas Network holds four regional Liberty Forums (in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe) and an international conference in the United States.[33] At its December 2021 "Liberty Forum and Freedom Dinner" in Miami, Florida, for think tank partners from around the world, Mario Vargas Llosa and Yeonmi Park were among the 800 attendees, and Yotuel performed.[49][50][51] [52]

In Canada, where Atlas Network partners with about a dozen think tanks including the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, it has pushed for oil and gas development on Indigenous land.[8]

Atlas Network has partnered with the F.A. Hayek Foundation in Slovakia, the Association for Liberal Thinking in Turkey, the Lithuanian Free Market Institute, and Libertad y Desarrollo in Chile to establish Free Enterprise Training Centers.[33]

In 2021, Atlas Network partnered with Cuban anti-communism activist Ruhama Fernandez to share her story after Fernandez was arrested for criticizing the Cuban government.[53] The Ukraine-based Bendukidze Free Market Center is also an Atlas Network partner.[54]

Grants

Atlas Network provides limited amounts of financial support to new think tanks on a case-by-case basis. Grants are usually given for specific projects and range between $2,000 and $5,000.[55] In 2020, Atlas Network provided more than $5 million in the form of grants to support its network of around 500 partners worldwide.[56][non-primary source needed]

The organization funds Costa Rica's IDEAS Labs, which helped reform the country's pension laws in 2020.[57] Atlas also supports the Philippines-based Foundation for Economic Freedom, which works on property rights.[57]

Atlas Network’s Templeton Freedom Award, supported by Templeton Religion Trust and named after Sir John Templeton, was established in 2004.[58][59] In 2015, the Acton Institute was awarded $100,000 for its documentary film, “Poverty, Inc.”[59] In 2020, the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies won the award for their Affordable Food for the Poor Initiative.[60][61]

Awards

Atlas Network's Think Tank Shark Tank competition allows professionals to pitch their projects to judges.[62] In 2018, Dhananath Fernando won the Asia Think Tank Shark Tank championship for his research on the high cost of construction in Sri Lanka and his proposal to lower the taxes on construction materials.[63] Students for Liberty Brasil won the 2021 Latin America competition for their project on educating Brazilian favela residents about property rights.[64]

Financials

As a non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization, Atlas Network receives donations from different foundations, individuals, and corporations, but does not accept government funding.[47]

As of 2005, Atlas Network had received $440,000 from ExxonMobil,[65] and has received at least $825,000 USD from the tobacco company Philip Morris.[25] Of Atlas Network partners, 57% in the United States had received funding from the tobacco industry.[25] Atlas Network has received funding from Koch family foundations.[4] Corporate funding accounted for less than 2% of Atlas Network's total donations in 2020. Atlas Network partners have received tobacco-related funding in the past, although "fossil-fuel and tobacco interests" have provided less than 1% of Atlas’ funding over the last two decades.[9][66]

Atlas Network receives donations primarily from individuals and foundations, such as the John Templeton Foundation and the Lilly Endowment.[67]

As of 2020, Atlas Network had assets of $15,450,264.[68]

References

  1. ^ "Atlas Economic Research Foundation – Form Form 990 for period ending Dec 2020". ProPublica. May 9, 2013.
  2. ^ a b "Annual Report 2020" (PDF). Atlas Network. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  3. ^ "Global Directory". Atlas Network. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  4. ^ a b Fang, Lee (August 9, 2017). "Sphere of Influence: How American Libertarians Are Remaking Latin American Politics". The Intercept. Retrieved 27 December 2017.
  5. ^ Subramanian, Samanth (24 March 2021). "Why have two long-dead Austrian economists become cult figures in Brazil?". Quartz. Retrieved 2021-09-27.
  6. ^ a b Mitchell, Timothy (2005). "The work of economics: how a discipline makes its world". European Journal of Sociology. 46 (2): 299–310. doi:10.1017/S000397560500010X. S2CID 146456853.
  7. ^ Neil (2019-12-01). "The Foundation for Economic Freedom and the Templeton Prize". BusinessWorld Online. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  8. ^ a b c "How a conservative US network undermined Indigenous energy rights in Canada". the Guardian. 2022-07-18. Retrieved 2022-07-28.
  9. ^ a b c "Vaping: The real dollars behind fake consumer organisations". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2021-11-04.
  10. ^ a b c d e f Plehwe, Dieter (2020). Nine Lives of Neoliberalism (PDF). London: Verso. p. 259. ISBN 978-1-78873-253-6.
  11. ^ "Margaret Thatcher and Antony Fisher: Free markets and philanthropy". Philanthropy Daily. 2013-04-10. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
  12. ^ a b "A quiet Briton whose think tanks back a free market". Christian Science Monitor. 1984-01-19. ISSN 0882-7729. Retrieved 2021-07-31.
  13. ^ "Linda Whetstone, evangelist for the free market who also helped to raise standards in British dressage – obituary". The Telegraph. 2021-12-20. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
  14. ^ "Global Freedom Fighters Remember Their Humble Leader, Linda Whetstone". National Review. 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
  15. ^ Steinmo, Sven (2007). Growing Apart?: America and Europe in the 21st Century. Cambridge University Press. pp. 145–149. ISBN 978-1139468619.
  16. ^ Kopstein, Jeffrey; Steinmo, Sven (2008). Growing apart? : America and Europe in the twenty-first century. New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-511-36771-7. OCLC 191887434. With only a few exceptions, the birth of these organizations came after Atlas set up shop ...
  17. ^ Meagher, Richard (2008). Right Ideas: Discourse, Framing, and the Conservative Coalition. City University of New York. p. 94. ISBN 978-0549807100.
  18. ^ "Was Atlas Network named after the book Atlas Shrugged?". Atlas Network. 2014-08-14. Retrieved 2018-04-20.
  19. ^ a b c Salles-Djelic, Marie-Laure (2017-10-27). "Building an architecture for political influence: Atlas and the transnational institutionalization of the neoliberal think tank". Power, Policy and Profit: 25–44. doi:10.4337/9781784711214.00007. ISBN 9781784711214.
  20. ^ James G. McGann (Director) (January 27, 2020). "2019 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report". Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  21. ^ McGann, James G. (January 28, 2021). "2020 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 2021-03-07. (QUOTE[s]: "one measure of a think tank's performance and impact" ... "designed for use in conjunction with other metrics to help identify and evaluate public policy research organizations around the world")
  22. ^ a b Hingston, Sandy (2020). "Science and Religion Have Never Been More at Odds. Can Conshohocken's Templeton Foundation Bridge the Divide?". Philadelphia Magazine. Archived from the original on 2020-10-13.
  23. ^ "Revealed: the free-market groups helping the tobacco industry". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
  24. ^ "Vaping: The real dollars behind fake consumer organisations". Le Monde.fr. 2022-03-15. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
  25. ^ a b c Smith, Julia; Thompson, Sheryl; Lee, Kelley (2016-01-01). "The atlas network: a "strategic ally" of the tobacco industry". The International Journal of Health Planning and Management. 32 (4): 433–448. doi:10.1002/hpm.2351. ISSN 1099-1751. PMC 5716244. PMID 27125556.
  26. ^ "Atlas Network - TobaccoTactics". tobaccotactics.org. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
  27. ^ Fang, Lee (August 9, 2017). "Sphere of Influence: How American Libertarians Are Remaking Latin American Politics". The Intercept. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
  28. ^ a b c Lawrence, Felicity; Evans, Rob; Pegg, David; Barr, Caelainn; Duncan, Pamela (2019-11-29). "How the right's radical thinktanks reshaped the Conservative party". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-07-30.
  29. ^ "Why the internet in Cuba has become a US political hot potato". the Guardian. 3 August 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
  30. ^ "People". Atlas Network. Retrieved May 16, 2020.
  31. ^ "As we endure COVID-19, don't underestimate our extraordinary freedom crisis". Washington Examiner. 2021-09-17. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  32. ^ "Interview: Brad Lips, CEO of Atlas Network". Merion West. 2022-08-11. Retrieved 2022-08-19.
  33. ^ a b c Ball, Stephen (2012). Global Education Inc: New Policy Networks and the Neo-liberal Imaginary. Routledge. pp. 19–40. ISBN 978-0415684095.
  34. ^ Francovich, Eli. "Spokane doctor arrives at Ukraine military hospital ready to help — but what will that entail?". The Wenatchee World. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  35. ^ Palmer, Tom G.; Warner, Matt (2022), Development with dignity, Routledge, doi:10.4324/9781003229872, ISBN 978-1-003-22987-2, S2CID 244873522, retrieved 2022-03-25
  36. ^ "In Ukraine, an informal web of Libertarians becomes a 'resistance network' | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved 2022-08-19.
  37. ^ Pozzebon, Stefano. "Analysis: Ecuador and Peru signal political divides that could trouble the region". CNN. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  38. ^ Wade, Magatte (2021-11-26). "Opinion | The COP26 Plan to Keep Africa Poor". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  39. ^ "Magatte Wade: The Power of Free Markets for Africa". Merion West. 2022-01-09. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  40. ^ "How Leftist 'Saviors' Ruined Latin America". Reason.com. 2021-12-14. Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  41. ^ de la Cruz, Diego Sánchez (2021-06-12). "Antonella Marty: "El liberalismo no son solo gráficos y números. Tiene un lado humano"". Libre Mercado (in European Spanish). Retrieved 2022-03-25.
  42. ^ "Burkina Faso's most recent coup proves the African Union is a toothless bulldog". The Mail & Guardian. 2022-02-08. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  43. ^ Adetayo, Ope. "Nigerian students stranded in Ukraine amid Russian invasion". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2022-09-03.
  44. ^ ECOWA IMPOSES SANCTIONS ON GUINEA, MALI - IBRAHIM ANOBA, retrieved 2022-09-03
  45. ^ Dembicki, Geoff (2020-04-24). "The Emperor Kenney's New Clothes". The Tyee. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
  46. ^ "Atlas Network". www.atlasnetwork.org. Retrieved 2022-06-10.
  47. ^ a b McGann, James; Whelan, Laura (2020). Global Think Tanks: Policy Networks and Governance. New York, NY: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-367-27854-0.
  48. ^ Armiak, David. "Koch-Backed Donor Network Wants to Blame COVID Deaths on Public Health Measures". Truthout. Retrieved 2021-10-11.
  49. ^ "Global Freedom Fighters Remember Their Humble Leader, Linda Whetstone". National Review. 2021-12-22. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
  50. ^ "Think Tanks Can Be a Frontline Defense against Pandemic Setbacks". National Review. 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
  51. ^ Rosell, Rosi (2021-12-22). "Yotuel Romero Shook Up LoanDeopt Park – Calle Ocho News". calleochonews.com. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
  52. ^ ""En Cuba se está dando un cambio fenomenal"". diariolasamericas.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 2022-02-14.
  53. ^ Fernandez, Ruhama. "I'm a Cuban dissident. We need America to stand with us against this communist regime". USA TODAY. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  54. ^ Melnyk, Nataliya. "A plea from Ukraine: Continue to stand with us". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
  55. ^ Wyszomierski, Sara (2010). Guide to Funding for International & Foreign Programs. University of Michigan. p. 409.
  56. ^ "Atlas Economic Research Foundation – Form Form 990 for period ending Dec 2020". ProPublica. 9 May 2013. Retrieved 2021-08-22.
  57. ^ a b "Think Tanks Can Be a Frontline Defense against Pandemic Setbacks". National Review. 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
  58. ^ "Commemorating Sir John Templeton (1912–2012)", The Science and Religion Dialogue, Peter Lang, 2014, doi:10.3726/978-3-653-04874-2/12, ISBN 9783631651858, retrieved 2021-08-31
  59. ^ a b "Acton Institute film about poverty wins $100,000 Templeton Freedom Award". mlive. 2015-11-13. Retrieved 2021-08-31.
  60. ^ "Promoting Food Security Through Free Trade Ideas, A Congratulations to the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies". www.propertyrightsalliance.org. Retrieved 2021-09-30.
  61. ^ "Promoting Food Security Through Free Trade Ideas, A Congratulations to the Center for Indonesian Policy Studies". www.propertyrightsalliance.org.
  62. ^ "ILAPI to compete in 2019 Think tank shark tank Award in Kenya". Rainbow Radio International. 2019-08-18. Retrieved 2021-09-10.
  63. ^ "Dhananath Fernando wins US$ 10,000 for Sri Lanka in Think Tank Shark Tank in Asia". www.dailymirror.lk. Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  64. ^ "Projeto para favelas do Brasil vence Shark Tank da América Latina". Click Guarulhos (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2021-06-26. Retrieved 2021-09-10.
  65. ^ "Put a Tiger In Your Think Tank". Mother Jones. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  66. ^ "Think Tanks Can Be a Frontline Defense against Pandemic Setbacks". National Review. 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  67. ^ "Think Tanks Can Be a Frontline Defense against Pandemic Setbacks". National Review. 2021-12-13. Retrieved 2022-01-24.
  68. ^ "Atlas Network | Arlington, VA | Cause IQ". www.causeiq.com. Retrieved 2021-08-05.

Further reading

  • Marie Laure Djelic: Building an architecture for political influence: Atlas and the transnational institutionalization of the neoliberal think tank. In: Christina Garsten, Adrienne Sörbom (eds.), Power, Policy and Profit. Corporate Engagement in Politics and Governance. Elgar, Cheltenham 2017, ISBN 978 1 78471 120 7

External links

38°54′14″N 77°01′43″W / 38.9038°N 77.0285°W / 38.9038; -77.0285

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