The International Policy Network (IPN) was a

neoliberal Neoliberalism is a political and economic ideology that advocates for free-market capitalism, which became dominant in policy-making from the late 20th century onward. The term has multiple, competing definitions, and is most often used pej ...

think tank based in the

City of London The City of London, also known as ''the City'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county and Districts of England, local government district with City status in the United Kingdom, city status in England. It is the Old town, his ...

, founded 1971, and closed in September 2011. The

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

said it was a non-partisan, non-profit organization, although critics argued that it was a "corporate-funded campaigning group". IPN ran campaigns on issues such as trade, development, healthcare and the environment. IPN's campaigns were pro-

free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...

and in line with neoliberal policies, and also expressed climate change sceptic views.

Vision

According to its website, "IPN aims to empower individuals and promote respect for people and property in order to eliminate

poverty Poverty is a state or condition in which an individual lacks the financial resources and essentials for a basic standard of living. Poverty can have diverse Biophysical environmen ...

, improve human

health Health has a variety of definitions, which have been used for different purposes over time. In general, it refers to physical and emotional well-being, especially that associated with normal functioning of the human body, absent of disease, p ...

and protect the environment. IPN promotes public awareness of the importance of this vision for all people, both rich and poor. IPN seeks to achieve its vision by promoting the role of market institutions in certain key international

policy Policy is a deliberate system of guidelines to guide decisions and achieve rational outcomes. A policy is a statement of intent and is implemented as a procedure or protocol. Policies are generally adopted by a governance body within an or ...

debates:

sustainable development Sustainable development is an approach to growth and Human development (economics), human development that aims to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.United Nations General ...

, health, and

globalisation Globalization is the process of increasing interdependence and integration among the economies, markets, societies, and cultures of different countries worldwide. This is made possible by the reduction of barriers to international trade, th ...

and

trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. Traders generally negotiate through a medium of cr ...

. IPN works with academics, think tanks, journalists and policymakers on every continent."

History

IPN was founded as a UK charity by Sir

Antony Fisher Sir Antony George Anson Fisher (28 June 1915 – 8 July 1988), nicknamed AGAF, was a British businessman and think tank founder. He participated in the formation of various neoliberal organisations during the second half of the 20th century, ...

in 1971. The mission of this body is to "Promote the advancement of learning by research into economic and political science and the publication of such research". The charity's original name was The International Institute for Economic Research, and The Atlas Economic Research Foundation (UK), but operated under the name International Policy Network. IPN's sister organization, International Policy Network US Inc., is a non-profit started in 2001.

Funding

IPN was funded entirely by voluntary, charitable gifts from foundations, individuals and businesses. IPN did not receive any funding from governments or political parties, and it did no contract work. IPN developed and implemented a research and advocacy agenda that encompasses not one or a few, but many public policy issues. IPN has received grants totaling hundreds of thousands of pounds from the multinational energy company

ExxonMobil Exxon Mobil Corporation ( ) is an American multinational List of oil exploration and production companies, oil and gas corporation headquartered in Spring, Texas, a suburb of Houston. Founded as the Successors of Standard Oil, largest direct s ...

, although it had not received money from the energy sector for some years.

Programs

IPN undertook ongoing work on public policy in the areas of health, environment, economic development, trade, creativity and innovation. The Freedom to Trade Campaignis ran in collaboration with the Atlas Global Initiative. The campaign joined 73 think tanks in 48 countries to support

free trade Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold Economic liberalism, economically liberal positions, while economic nationalist politica ...

and oppose

protectionism Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations ...

. IPN's Bastiat Prize for Journalism was founded in 2002 and is ongoing. The prize recognises and rewards journalists and commentators who support the free society. In 2009, IPN awarded the first Bastiat Prize for Online Journalism.

Links to other organisations

Institute of Economic Affairs The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) is a British right-wing free market think tank, which is registered as a charity. Associated with the New Right, the IEA describes itself as an "educational research institute", and says that it seeks to ...

Atlas Economic Research Foundation Atlas Network, formerly known as Atlas Economic Research Foundation, is a non-governmental, non-partisan 501(c)(3) organization based in the United States that provides training, networking, and grants for libertarian, free-market, and Conserva ...

* CriticalOpinion.org * Electronic Journal of Sustainable Development IPN was founded by

in the UK as the International Institute for Economic Research (IIER) in 1971. Fisher went on to set up a think tank creating other think tanks to promote neoliberalism, and founded the

in the US in 1981, and from this point the IIER traded as Atlas Foundation UK. This organisation underwent a further rebranding in 2001, when it changed its name to IPN. In the US, the Atlas Foundation also provides training and funding to start

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

think tanks. Fisher founded the influential

(IEA), a neoliberal think tank based in London. The founding director of IPN, Julian Morris, was previously director of the IEA's Environment and Technology Programme.

People

Past notable trustees/directors

* John Blundell

Past notable staff

* Julian Morris, executive director * Roger Bate, director (left in 2003)

Some of IPN's partners

* Institute of Public Policy Analysis, Nigeria *

Inter Region Economic Network The Inter Region Economic Network (IREN) is a private Limited company based in Nairobi, Kenya, which advocates for free market economics for the development of Africa. Its founder and director is James Shikwati. IREN's key focus areas include targe ...

, Kenya * Free Market Foundation, South Africa * Africa Resource Bank * Action Research Community Health, India *

Institute of Public Affairs The Institute of Public Affairs (IPA) is a conservative non-profit free market public policy think tank, Political links and networking The IPA Victoria was founded during World War II by businessmen in response to the feared growing power of ...

, Australia *

Making Our Economy Right Making Our Economy Right (MOER) is a free market think tank in Bangladesh. Headquartered in Dhaka, the institute was established in 1991 by Nizam Ahmad. MOER is sponsored by the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, Atlas Foundation in the United ...

, Bangladesh * Association for Liberal Thinking (Liberal Düşünce Topluluğu), Turkey * Timbro, Sweden * Liberty Institute, India * Centre for Civil Society, India *

Montreal Economic Institute The Montreal Economic Institute (MEI) is a non-profit research organization (or think tank) based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It aims at promoting economic liberalism through economic education of the general public and what it regards as effici ...

* Centro de Divulgacion del Conocimiento Economico, Venezuela * Libertad y Desarrollo, Chile * Fundacion Libertad Democracia y Desarrollo, Bolivia * Instituto de Libre Empresa, Peru * The Lion Rock Institute, Hong Kong * Instituto Liberdade, Brazil

References

SourceWatch The Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) is a progressive nonprofit watchdog and advocacy organization based in Madison, Wisconsin. CMD publishes ExposedbyCMD.org, SourceWatch.org, and ALECexposed.org. History CMD was founded in 1993 by prog ...

web site. *

George Monbiot George Joshua Richard Monbiot ( ; born 27 January 1963) is an English journalist, author, and Environmental movement, environmental and political activist. He writes a regular column for ''The Guardian'' and has written several books. Monbiot ...

"Smoke in our eyes"
''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', 27 September 2006 * George Monbiot
"Pundits who contest climate change should tell us who is paying them"
''

'', 26 September 2006 {{Authority control Climate change denial Libertarian organisations based in the United Kingdom Libertarian think tanks Organizations disestablished in 2011 Think tanks established in 1971 Organizations of environmentalism skeptics and critics Political and economic think tanks based in the United Kingdom 1971 establishments in England