The Atlas Network scaled from fifteen think tanks to 457 across ninety-six countries.

Evidence

An important case in point is the Atlas Economic Foundation (later Atlas Network), started in the early 1980s by Antony Fisher, the founder of the UK’s Institute of Economic Affairs. Marie-Laure Djelic and Reza Mousavi trace the development of the Atlas Network under the long-term leadership of the Argentine economist Alejandro Chafuen, from a modest network of fifteen think tanks in nine countries in the mid-1980s to a partnership of 457 in ninety-six countries. Beyond strongholds in North America and Europe (both West and East), the network is strong in Latin America and has reached significant membership in the Asia-Pacific Region and even Africa. In only a few decades, Atlas moved from the equivalent of small trade or handcraft to mass production, creating replicable templates for the production and diffusion of neoliberal ideas. — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 43

Categorization

• SEED: The ‘from handcraft to mass production’ framing for think tank franchising is a striking metaphor worth building an essay around — the industrialization of political idea diffusion.
• XREF: Echoes the Champagne Fairs’ controlled-entry system as institutional design for reputation and diffusion — parallels the trader/private-judge work. — connects to: Atlas emerged from the IEA as a deliberate global franchising of think tanks — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 542; Atlas incubated think tanks by identifying and financing local individuals — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 572; The Atlas Network grew from 15 to 457 think tanks within decades — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 43

Broader Connections

• Atlas emerged from the IEA as a deliberate global franchising of think tanks #expands (0.85) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 542
• Atlas incubated think tanks by identifying and financing local individuals #expands (0.80) — Dieter Plehwe, Quinn Slobodian & Philip Mirowski (eds.), Nine Lives of Neoliberalism, 572