Organizations that support Liberty

The Association of Private Enterprise Education (APEE) is an association of teachers and scholars from colleges and universities, public policy institutes, and industry with a common interest in studying and supporting the system of private enterprise. APEE hosts an annual conference for members to share their scholarly findings and offers a number of awards to recognize individuals who have contributed to the cause of private enterprise. Support for young scholars is often available to attend the annual conference. The association sponsors the Journal of Private Enterprise so scholars may share their research with the wider academic community.

The Clemson Institute for the Study of Capitalism is dedicated to exploring the moral, legal, constitutional, political and economic foundations of capitalism. The Clemson Institute is particularly devoted to fostering a serious examination of a free society.

The Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), one of the oldest free-market organizations in the United States, was founded in 1946 by Leonard E. Read to study and advance the freedom philosophy. FEE’s mission is to offer the most consistent case for the “first principles” of freedom: the sanctity of private property, individual liberty, the rule of law, the free market, and the moral superiority of individual choice and responsibility over coercion.

Liberty Fund, Inc. is a private, educational foundation established to encourage the study of the ideal of a society of free and responsible individuals. The Foundation develops, supervises, and finances its own educational activities to foster thought and encourage discourse on enduring issues pertaining to liberty.

Click here to see Liberty Fund co sponsors.

For over 25 years, the Mercatus Center at George Mason University has sought to bridge this gap. Mercatus applies scholarly research to the problems facing policy makers. Bringing together a network of scholars and experts from around the globe, the Mercatus Center provides policy makers with the economic tools to make sense of today's most pressing issues. Mercatus turns ideas into action.

The Ludwig von Mises Institute was founded in 1982 as the research and educational center of classical liberalism, libertarian political theory, and the Austrian School of economics. It serves as the world's leading provider of educational materials, conferences, media, and literature in support of the tradition of thought represented by Ludwig von Mises and the school of thought he enlivened and carried forward during the 20th century, which has now blossomed into a massive international movement of students, professors, professionals, and people in all walks of life.

Reason is the monthly print magazine of “free minds and free markets.” It covers politics, culture, and ideas through a provocative mix of news, analysis, commentary, and reviews. Reason provides a refreshing alternative to right-wing and left-wing opinion magazines by making a principled case for liberty and individual choice in all areas of human activity.

Understanding Liberty and Choice: Property Rights and Economic Development

Co-sponsored by Liberty Fund, Inc.

Expert panel, featuring: Lee Alston Ph.D. Director, Environment and Society Program, Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado;Research Associate, National Bureau for Economic Research (NBER)

Gary Libecap Ph.D. Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, University of California at Santa Barbara;Fellow, Hoover Institution

When: October 22-24, 2009

Where: Scottsdale, AZ-Scottsdale Marriott Suites

Sessions and readings

Session 1: Large Group activity


Session 2: Why Are Some Nations Rich and Others Poor?
North, Douglass C. “Institutions, Ideology, and Economic Performance, “ Cato Journal, 11(3), 1992. pp. 477-88.

Easterly, William. “Planners Versus Searchers.” The White Man’s Burden: Why the West’s Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good. New York: Penguin, 2006. pp. 3-37.

Session 3: The Philosophy of Property Rights
Hume, David. “Of the Origin of Justice and Property.” A Treatise of Human Nature. London: Oxford University Press, 1896. pp. 176-194.

Locke, John. “Of Property.” in The Founders Constitution, Vol. 1, ed. By Philip B. Kurland and Ralph Lerner. Indianapolis, IN: Liberty Fund, Inc., 1987. pp. 580-85.

Session 4: Property Rights and Markets
Alchian, Armen with Harold Demsetz. “The Property Rights Paradigm.” The Collected Works of Armen Alchian, Volume 2: Property Rights and Economic Behavior. Indianapolis, IN: Liberty Fund, Inc., 2006. pp. 84-96.

Alchian, Armen. “Market Prices, Property, and Behavior,” The Collected Works of Armen Alchian, Volume 2: Property Rights and Economic Behavior. Indianapolis, IN: Liberty Fund, Inc., 2006. pp. 460-80.

Lawson, Robert. “Economic Freedom and Property Rights: The Institutional Environment of Productive Entrepreneurship,” in Making Poor Countries Rich: Entrepreneurship and the Process of Economic Development, ed. by Benjamin Powell. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2008. pp. 112-133.

Session 6: Institutional Weakness, Characteristics and Consequences
DeSoto, Hernando. “The Mystery of Legal Failure,” The Mystery of Capital: Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West and Fails Everywhere Else. New York: Basic Books, 2000. pp. 153-206.

Easterly, William. “You Can’t Plan a Market,” The White Man’s Burden: Why the West’s Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good. New York: Penguin, 2006. pp. 60-112.

Session 7: Property Rights and the Future of Economic Development
Leeson, Peter. “Escaping Poverty: Foreign Aid, Private Property, and Economic Development.” The Journal of Private Enterprise, Spring, 2008. pp. 39–60.

Sachs, Jeffrey. “Making the Investment Needed to End Poverty.” The End of Poverty. New York: Penguin, 2005. pp. 244–265.

Anarchy and Development: An Application of the Theory of Second Best

Anarchy and Development: An Application of the Theory of Second Best

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Peter Blair Henry

Peter Blair Henry of Stanford University talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about economic development. Henry compares and contrasts the policy and growth experience of Barbados and Jamaica. Both became independent of England in the 1960s, so both inherited similar institutions. But each pursued different policies with very different results. Henry discusses the implications of this near-natural experiment for growth generally and the importance of macroeconomic policy for achieving prosperity. The conversation closes with a discussion of Henry's research on stock market reactions as a measure of policy's effectiveness.

http://www.econtalk.org/archives/2009/07/peter_henry_on.html

Understanding Liberty and Choice: Free Trade and Globalization

Featured speaker:
Russell Roberts, author of The Price of Everything: A Parable of Possibility and Prosperity and The Choice: A Fable of Free Trade and Protection.

Co-sponsored by Liberty Fund, Inc.

When: May 14-16, 2009

Where: Washington D.C., Hotel TBD

What: Working conference, including:

* Keynote address and extended Q and A with Russell Roberts.
* Required pre-conference readings (298 pages) and 2.5 hours of podcasts.
* Small group Socratic seminars.

Who: PTA members only, by application (limited to 30 participants)

* Deadline: Applications must be received by February 25, 2009.
* Selected attendees notified via email February 27, 2009.
* $200 deposit due with application. (Deposit refunded after the program or upon notification of non-acceptance to the program.)
* Participants responsible for their own travel.

2 nights single occupancy lodging and meals plus $500 travel stipend.
(Attendance at all sessions required to receive stipend.)

Selection from the applicant pool will reflect the FTE's desire to assemble a conference group with the following characteristics:

* commitment to excellence in teaching economic reasoning;
* diversity of teaching experience, background, current economics-related teaching assignment, and school type; and
* geographic/demographic diversity (regional, rural/urban, etc.).

Apply on-line Here

Questions: Ken Leonard, kleonard@fte.org
206-910-9374



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Foundation for Teaching Economics

Understanding Liberty and Choice:
Free Trade and Globalization

Featured speaker:
Russell Roberts, author of The Price of Everything: A Parable of Possibility and Prosperity and The Choice: A Fable of Free Trade and Protection.


Co-sponsored by Liberty Fund, Inc.


When: May 14-16, 2009

Where: Washington D.C., Hotel TBD

What: Working conference, including:

* Keynote address and extended Q and A with Russell Roberts.
* Required pre-conference readings (298 pages) and 2.5 hours of podcasts.
* Small group Socratic seminars.

Foundation for Teaching Economics

Understanding Liberty & Choice: Property Rights in American History
Welcome to the FTE blog supporting the joint FTE/Liberty Fund conference on Property Rights in American History to be held Dec. 4 - 6, 2008, in Denver.

We are delighted that you will be participating in this conference. As you're aware, the conference combines presentations, interactive learning, and Socratic Seminar sessions. This pre-conference blog has several functions: First, it is designed to introduce you to your Socratic seminar discussion group. Then, in a few weeks, we'll ask each of the 3 seminar discussion groups to help us in planning the panel presentations and formulating questions for the panelists - but that's down the road a little way. For now, we just want you to get to know one another.


There will be 3 Socratic Seminar groups in Denver, and you've been assigned to the BLUE group. All members of your Socratic Seminar group have been invited to join this blog. Given the range of experience with online conversation, we'll start simply - by meeting one another.

Foundations of a Free Society

June 12 - 15, 2008 the Liberty Fund colloquium entitled "The Foundations of A Free Society" will be held in Indianapolis. Steve Pejovich, conference director, has selected a number of readings designed to generate discussion.

Milton Friedman - Free to Choose

B Roggy - Can Capitalism Survive?

Adam Smith - The Wealth of Nations

D. North and B. Weingast - The Constitution and Commitment

F. Hayek - Liberalism

P. Manet - Intellectual History

S. Pejovich - Transaction Costs

G. Libecap - Contracting for Property Rights

R. McChesney - Government as Definer of Property Rights

S. Huntington - Clash of Civilizations

S. Pejovich - The Role of Culture

Other Pejovich readings

Capitalism and the Rule of Law

Understanding the Transactions Costs of Transition

Property Rights and Economic Theory

Free Trade, Globalization, and Economic Development

The series of joint FTE and Liberty Fund colloquium continues in May with:
Understanding Liberty and Choice: Free Trade, Globalization, and Economic Development.

As with the previous colloquium, the unique characteristics of the FTE and Liberty Fund approaches will be integrated. The keynote speaker, Pietra Rivoli will bring her expertise to our discussion which is centered around a number of readings including her acclaimed book - The Travels of a T Shirt in the Global Economy.

Looking forward to our discussions in May. Please feel free to post questions, comments or resources here that are relevant to our meeting.


Click here for a look at the full conference schedule as well as our readings.

Capitalism, Morality, and Liberty

I will attend the Liberty Fund colloquium in Denver on “Capitalism, Morality, and Liberty” on April 3-6, 2008.

Liberty Fund - March 17-19

I will be in Indianapolis as an FTE representative for the Liberty Fund “Co-Sponsored Alliance Meeting”, March 17-19, 2008.

This meeting will consist of two Socratic sessions on the morning of the 18th followed by 4 breakout sessions relating to the logistics of Liberty Fund conference.

Socratic Session One

Why Liberty? A Collection of Liberty Fund Essays

On Liberty - JS Mill

The Use of Knowledge in Society - FA Hayek

Capitalism and Freedom

Socratic Session Two

Why Liberty? A Collection of Liberty Fund Essays

A Place of Learning - M Oakeshott

Breakout session one

Discussion Leading

Database Management

Breakout session two

Program design and best practices

Conference guidelines and administration

Breakout session three

Liberty Fund Conference Program

Proposal Development

Breakout session four

Readings and copyrights

Conference evaluation and feedback

“Understanding Liberty and Choice: The Contributions of Experimental Economics” - Sept. 26-28

This conference on experimental economics would include thirty participants drawn from the Foundation for Teaching Economics’ Professional Teacher Association membership. The conference would be a modified repeat of a conference we previously co-sponsored with the Foundation for Teaching Economics. The goal of the conference would be to introduce a group of outstanding teachers to the classical underpinnings of experimental economics and its theory and current practice. The program would also give these participants the opportunity to discuss, in detail, the nature of experimental economics and its relation to issues of liberty and responsibility with professional researchers in the field.