After increases in the 1990s and 2000s, political freedom across the globe has been on the decline since 2013. Political rights and civil liberties have seen especially sharp drops in the past decade.

Atlantic Council Freedom and Prosperity Center Deputy Director Nina Dannaoui breaks down the g...

2024 FREEDOM AND PROSPERITY INDEXES LAUNCH - 2024 is set to shape the global trajectory of freedom and prosperity for years to come, as nearly half of the world’s population is voting in elections in sixty-four countries, representing over half of the global gross domestic product.

According to...

FREEDOM, PROSPERITY AND SENEGAL’S ELECTION - After a period of uncertainty, Bassirou Diomaye Faye has won the election in Senegal, and April 2 marks the day of his inauguration. As his term commences, Rutendo Mudzamiri, Director of Development with the Atlantic Council Freedom and Prosperity Cent...

WE WIN, THEY LOSE: REPUBLICAN FOREIGN POLICY AND THE NEW COLD WAR - In 1977, then presidential candidate Ronald Reagan was discussing foreign affairs when he said, “My idea of American policy toward the Soviet Union is simple, and some would say simplistic. It is this: We win, and they lose.” Jus...

DECODING PROGRESS: INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY AND THE EVOLUTION OF WOMEN'S ECONOMIC FREEDOM - Dive into the global evolution of women's economic freedom with our latest video. Join us in celebrating International Women's Day by exploring the strides made and the work that lies ahead.

The Atlanti...

PATRICK QUIRK AND LAUREN VAN METRE CONTRAST DEMOCRATIC AND AUTHORITARIAN DEVELOPMENT MODELS - At the second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference, nonresident senior fellows Patrick Quirk and Lauren Van Metre compare the authoritarian development models in Russia and China with the de...

ALEJANDRA LÓPEZ DE ALBA GÓMEZ AND RECREATING THE PROSPERITY INDEX IN MEXICO - Alejandra López de Alba Gómez of the Mexican Council on Foreign Relations discussed how her organization recreated the Prosperity Index for Mexican states and broke down the key takeaways from their findings

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JÉRÉMIE BERTRAND AND JOSEPH LEMOINE DISCUSS THE PRIMARY FACTORS TO ATTRACT FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT - Presenting their research at the second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference, Jérémie Bertrand of the IÉSEG School of Management and the Atlantic Council’s Joseph Lemoine used the F...

ADRIAN BĂZĂVAN ON THE IMPORTANCE OF INNOVATION IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES - Presenting his findings at the second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference, Adrian Băzăvan of the Romanian Ministry of Energy discusses the importance of innovation in developing countries and its role in promot...

JULIO AMADOR DIAZ LOPEZ ON INVESTMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION AROUND THE WORLD - At the second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference, senior advisor Julio Amador Diaz Lopez highlights how different investments in technology help push innovation in countries around the world. 
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IGNACIO CAMPOMANES ON THE LINK BETWEEN FREEDOM AND ECONOMIC GROWTH - Speaking at the second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference, senior advisor Ignacio Campomanes uses the Freedom Index to analyze the interaction between economic, political, and legal dimensions of freedom and their...

KELLEY CURRIE ON DEVELOPMENT IN MYANMAR - At the second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference, nonresident senior fellow Kelley Currie discusses how development efforts by both multilateral organizations and China have impacted Myanmar.

Learn more about the Freedom and Prosperity C...

SECOND ANNUAL FREEDOM AND PROSPERITY RESEARCH CONFERENCE - On February 27, 2024, the Freedom and Prosperity Center will host its second annual Research Conference at the Atlantic Council Headquarters in Washington, DC. Scholars and policymakers from around the world will have an opportunity to pr...

At a time where authoritarianism is rising worldwide, it is more important than ever to address research that showcases the best path to prosperity. The second annual Freedom and Prosperity Research Conference will bring together scholars and policymakers from over 16 different countries to prese...

Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party has won the election in Taiwan, and will be inaugurated as Taiwan's next president on May 20. As his term commences, James Storen, Program Assistant with the Freedom and Prosperity Center, breaks down Taiwan's performance in the Freedom and Prosper...

FREEDOM AND PROSPERITY IN BRICS — Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, the economic bloc known as BRICS, convene this week in South Africa. James Storen, Program Assistant at the Atlantic Council's Freedom and Prosperity Center, breaks down the performance of these countries in the 202...

LAUNCH AND KEY TAKEAWAYS OF THE 2023 FREEDOM AND PROSPERITY INDEXES - The Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center, in partnership with Devex, hosted the launch of the 2023 Freedom and Prosperity Indexes on Thursday, July 6, at the Atlantic Council headquarters in Washington, DC.

This ev...

An overview of the methodologies and takeaways behind the 2023 Freedom and Prosperity Indexes, which measure freedom and prosperity for 164 countries around the world.

The annual Freedom and Prosperity Indexes are a primary output of the Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center. The Fr...

Fostering a Fourth Democratic Wave is a joint project between the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security and the International Center on Nonviolent Conflict (ICNC), aimed at catalyzing support for nonviolent pro-democracy movements fighting against authoritarian rule.

The...

HOW FREE MARKETS SHAPE GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT - One of the defining questions of our time is whether free markets or economies controlled by authoritarian regimes are better at delivering prosperity for their people.

A panel of distinguished experts held a discussion on free markets and development ...

NATO’S MIRCEA GEOANA ON SECURITY, FREEDOM, AND PROSPERITY IN EASTERN EUROPE - The Atlantic Council’s Freedom and Prosperity Center hosted a discussion featuring Mircea Geoană, Deputy Secretary General of NATO.

Post-communist Eastern Europe has made impressive strides on the path to freedom and p...

The Freedom and Prosperity Center, in partnership with Center for International Private Enterprise and the Heritage Foundation, held a panel discussion at the National Press Club on November 2, 2022.

Panelists representing six different think tanks analyzed China and Taiwan’s performances in key...

Do countries need freedom to achieve prosperity? We built an index to measure the relationship between the relationship between these two indicators to see whether countries with higher levels of freedom are also more prosperous.