In recent years, liberty-oriented organizations have relied too heavily on passive online content. This has left many young people familiar with free-market ideas, but few who understand them deeply enough to articulate them well. These same liberty organizations are now experiencing the effects of this reality. A survey conducted by the Libertas Institute found that about 75% of free-market think tank leaders said that it is difficult to find quality candidates. The liberty pipeline is broken.
FEE's new strategy, Building the New Liberty Pipeline, creates a structured path to develop intellectual leaders and professionals who can drive forward innovation and leadership in liberty and economics. Through five strategic stages, from Online Engagement to Sustained Empowerment, we transform casual interest in the freedom philosophy into deep commitment. Our approach is informed by Leonard Read's insight that significant changes are led by a small minority of individuals who possess "depth of understanding, strength of conviction, and power of attractive exposition."
To close the gap between exposure and true understanding, FEE’s Bootcamps revive and reimagine our classic in-person seminars for a new generation. Bootcamps offer an immersive learning experience through lectures, discussions, and hands-on exercises, as well as opportunities to form lasting connections with like-minded peers. Fellowships extend this process, providing structured mentorship and project-based learning that promote both intellectual development and community engagement.
By the end of the project, hundreds of high-potential students will engage deeply with the freedom philosophy. FEE will cultivate a new generation of public intellectuals and liberty professionals who can effectively advance free markets, individual flourishing, and human progress. Leonard Read once dreamt of "10,000 Bastiats" to promote sound economic education. FEE’s immersive programs will move us closer to that vision.
