Interaction Times, a Brazilian international relations consultancy which organises academic trips around the world, brought a group of 20 students to visit the ASI yesterday. Their tour of Europe is also set to include visits to the World Trade Organisation, World Health Organisation, OECD, NATO and the European Commission, which sounds like rather an interesting way to spend a few weeks. I told them about the Institute, its history and its current activities, about the way we operate and about the role of think tanks in general. Dr Madsen Pirie then told them more about the liberal approach to public policy, noting that while the ideology of the free market is the same the world over, the policy instruments used to promote it do, by necessity, vary from country to country. The key is to come up with solutions that are politically acceptable, and which work. We took questions afterwards, and it was clear they were a very bright bunch. Many of them seemed to have market-liberal leanings as well, which is always nice to see!
