Polish-American Foundation for Economic Research and Education

The Polish-American Foundation for Economic Research and Education (Polish: Polsko-Amerykańska Fundacja Edukacji i Rozwoju Ekonomicznego, PAFERE) is an independent, non-governmental Polish think tank devoted to free-market economic education, the promotion of economic freedom and free trade, the relationship between ethics and economics, and the development of economic sciences. Its headquarters are in Warsaw, and it operates primarily in Poland while retaining strong ties to the United States through its founder and its earlier American incarnation. PAFERE traces its origins to Polish refugees who escaped Communist Poland for the free-market United States. Having observed how free-market economics, untamed entrepreneurship and individualism inspired people's initiatives, they decided to help Poles in Poland, after the dismantling of Soviet domination, better understand the rules of the free-market economy. After several years of individual activity, Jan Michał Małek decided in 2000 to establish the Polish-American Foundation for Economic Research and Education, with the goal of promoting free-market economic education among Polish society. The organization first operated as a branch of the American PAFERE Pro Publico Bono foundation, founded in 2000 in California. In 2007 the Polish foundation PAFERE was formally established by Jan Michał Małek, a Polish émigré and private entrepreneur permanently resident in the United States and a member of the Mont Pelerin Society. The foundation's intellectual starting point is the claim that the main cause of economic problems and crises leading to unemployment, poverty and other social problems is widespread non-observance of the commandments "Thou shalt not steal!" and "Thou shalt not covet any thing that is thy neighbour's!". Applying these commandments to the economy, the foundation treats them as imperatives and as the basis of Christian economic thought, relevant both to ordinary citizens and, above all, to governments, and as a condition for dynamic and successful general economic development and prosperity. PAFERE pursues its goals by publishing free-market literature and sponsoring books, essays and other literary forms concerning various aspects of human freedom (it has published 17 issues of the PAFERE bulletin "IDEE"); organizing conferences, lectures, seminars and language camps; organizing competitions aimed at bringing basic economic knowledge mainly to young people; cooperating with other Polish and foreign organizations pursuing goals similar to PAFERE's statutory aims; and running the website www.pafere.org, social-media profiles, an online shop with free-market literature and a YouTube film channel. Its flagship recurring projects include the international PAFERE Liberty Weekend conference (six editions), Liberty Camp for young people (four editions), the Magister PAFERE competition (five editions), and the book series Biblioteka Rządzących i Rządzonych (Library of Rulers and Ruled), in which authors debunk myths about economics and politics and explain key mechanisms of state governance to the public. Other projects listed on its website include the Generator Referendów (Referendum Generator), Rewolucja w edukacji (Revolution in Education), brochures and leaflets, Weto (Veto), and Inicjatywa Referendum (WIR). PAFERE has received international recognition, including the Templeton Freedom Award in 2008 for achievements in promoting free-market economic solutions and the Sir Anthony Fisher Award, funded by the American Atlas Foundation, in 2009 for publishing Prof. Michał Wojciechowski's book "Moralna wyższość wolnej gospodarki" (The Moral Superiority of the Free Economy).

PAFERE's history begins with Polish refugees who escaped Communist Poland to the free-market United States. According to the foundation's own account, they quickly learned how free-market economy, untamed entrepreneurship and individualism inspire people's initiatives, and they decided to help Poles in Poland after the dismantling of Soviet domination to better understand the rules of the free-market economy. After several years of individual activity, Jan Michał Małek decided in 2000 to establish the Polish-American Foundation for Economic Research and Education (PAFERE) with the goal of promoting free-market economic education among Polish society. The organization initially operated as a branch of the American PAFERE Pro Publico Bono foundation, founded in 2000 in California. After seven years of managing all activities — including two major international conferences — from the United States, the leaders felt it necessary to establish a Polish entity. In 2007 the Polish foundation PAFERE was formally established by Jan Michał Małek, a Polish émigré and private entrepreneur permanently resident in the United States and a member of the Mont Pelerin Society. Its seat is Warsaw. The foundation's intellectual framework rests on the claim that the main cause of economic problems and crises leading to unemployment, poverty and other social problems is widespread non-observance of the commandments "Thou shalt not steal!" and "Thou shalt not covet any thing that is thy neighbour's!". Applying these commandments to the economy, PAFERE treats them as imperatives and as the basis of Christian economic thought, relevant to ordinary citizens and, above all, to governments, and as a condition for dynamic and successful general economic development and prosperity. PAFERE's statutory goals center on maximally contributing to the rapid economic development of Poland, to make it a wealthy, strong and secure country, by promoting economic knowledge based on Christian economic thought: showing the relationship between ethics and the economy, developing research in free-market economics, and promoting the idea of a free market based on the law of respect for honestly acquired private property. It pursues these goals through publishing and sponsoring free-market literature (including 17 issues of the PAFERE bulletin "IDEE"), organizing conferences, lectures, seminars and language camps, organizing competitions to bring basic economic knowledge mainly to young people, cooperating with Polish and foreign organizations with similar aims, and running its website, social-media profiles, an online shop with free-market literature and a YouTube film channel. Among its most important achievements, PAFERE lists six editions of the international PAFERE Liberty Weekend conference, four editions of Liberty Camp for youth, five editions of the Magister PAFERE competition, and the publication and sponsorship of numerous books, including the series Biblioteka Rządzących i Rządzonych, in which authors debunk myths about economics and politics and explain key mechanisms of state governance to the public. The foundation received the Templeton Freedom Award in 2008 for achievements in promoting free-market economic solutions, and the Sir Anthony Fisher Award, funded by the American Atlas Foundation, in 2009 for publishing Prof. Michał Wojciechowski's book "Moralna wyższość wolnej gospodarki". It also produced a 35-minute educational film titled "LEWIATAN". Since its inception PAFERE has hosted in Poland many distinguished economists and thinkers from various countries involved in promoting and popularizing free-market economics, among them Robert Sirico (Acton Institute), Alejandro Chafuen (Atlas Economic Research Foundation), Thomas DiLorenzo (Mises Institute), Michael Reagan, Mart Laar, Victor Claar, Samuel Gregg, Ken Schoolland, Daniel J. Mitchell, Thomas Woods, Lee Edwards, Petr Mach, Lawrence W. Reed (Foundation for Economic Education) and Sheldon Richman. PAFERE's leadership has changed several times. Jan Michał Małek, the founder and funder, served as president from 2007 to 2011. He was followed by Paweł Toboła-Pertkiewicz (2011–2013), Piotr Zapałowicz (2013), Paweł Budrewicz (2014–2015) and Jan Kubań (since 2016). Board members have included Piotr Żak, Damian Kot and Paweł Sztąberek, while the foundation council has included Jan Michał Małek, Piotr Andrzejewski, Stanisław Michalkiewicz and Prof. Witold Kwaśnicki. Collaborators have included Prof. Michał Wojciechowski, Jacek Gniadek SVD, Andrzej Barański and Konrad Rajca, the originator and coordinator of the Magister PAFERE competition. The foundation continues to publish commentary and analysis on its website, including texts on direct democracy, journalism and the history of communism, and it accepts public support through memberships, internships and the Polish 1% personal income tax donation mechanism.

• 2016

  Jan Kubań becomes president of PAFERE.

• 2014

  Paweł Budrewicz becomes president of PAFERE, serving until 2015.

• 2013

  Piotr Zapałowicz serves as president of PAFERE.

• 2011

  Paweł Toboła-Pertkiewicz becomes president of PAFERE, succeeding founder Jan Michał Małek.

• 2009

  PAFERE receives the Sir Anthony Fisher Award, funded by the American Atlas Foundation, for publishing Prof. Michał Wojciechowski's book "Moralna wyższość wolnej gospodarki".

• 2008

  PAFERE receives the Templeton Freedom Award for achievements in promoting free-market economic solutions.

• 2007

  The Polish foundation PAFERE is formally established by Jan Michał Małek, with its seat in Warsaw.

• 2000

  Jan Michał Małek establishes the Polish-American Foundation for Economic Research and Education (PAFERE) in the United States; it initially operates as a branch of the American PAFERE Pro Publico Bono foundation, founded in 2000 in California.

Independent, non-governmental free-market think tank promoting economic education grounded in Christian economic thought, economic freedom, free trade and the link between ethics and economics.

• PAFERE Liberty Weekend

  International conference organized by PAFERE; six editions held.

• Liberty Camp

  Camps for young people; four editions held.

• Magister PAFERE

  Competition aimed at bringing basic economic knowledge mainly to young people; five editions held.

• Biblioteka Rządzących i Rządzonych (BRIR)

  Book series in which authors debunk myths about economics and politics and explain key mechanisms of state governance to the public.

• IDEE bulletin

  PAFERE's free-market bulletin; 17 issues published.

• Generator Referendów

  A PAFERE project listed on its website.

• Rewolucja w edukacji

  A PAFERE project listed on its website.

• Weto

  A PAFERE project listed on its website.

• Inicjatywa Referendum (WIR)

  A PAFERE project listed on its website.

• LEWIATAN

  A 35-minute educational film produced on PAFERE's commission.

1. 1PAFERE - Polsko-Amerykańska Fundacja Edukacji i Rozwoju Ekonomicznegopafere.org
2. 2About PAFERE - PAFEREpafere.org
3. 3Polish-American Foundation for Economic Research and Education - Wikidatawikidata.org
4. 4Polsko-Amerykańska Fundacja Edukacji i Rozwoju Ekonomicznego - Wikipedia (Polish)pl.wikipedia.org