The MEI ranked amongst the 15 top new think tanks in the world

Montreal, March 7, 2004 – The Montreal Economic Institute (MEI), a Quebec-based public policy think tank, has just won one of the prestigious Templeton Freedom Award Grants for Institute Excellence, which are awarded to fifteen young think tanks around the world in recognition of the outstanding way in which, thanks to the excellence of their operating practices and public relations, they have accomplished their missions.

The MEI is the first Canadian think tank to carry off the prize offered by Sir John Templeton, in the face of competition from close to 140 institutes from 49 countries. The Atlas Economic Research Foundation will make the official disclosure of the names of the award winners tomorrow in Washington, and the President of the MEI, Michel Kelly-Gagnon, will receive the award at a ceremony to be held in Chicago on April 28 (photographs of the event).

Five years of accomplishments

For Michel Kelly-Gagnon, this honour could not have come at a better time: “The MEI will be celebrating its 5th anniversary this year, and the award confirms that after barely five years, we have managed to build up one of the most efficient think tanks in the world!” In his letter to the award winners, the President and CEO of the Atlas Economic Research Foundation, Alejandro A. Chafuen, declared that the MEI could serve as a model for think tanks the world over.

New public policy ideas

Michel Kelly-Gagnon attributes the success of the organization he directs to “the high standards of scientific objectivity that characterize the work done at the MEI, together with the growing appetite of the population of Quebec for new ideas in the realm of public policy.”

The MEI, which has been operative since 1999, is an independent, non-profit, non-partisan research and educational institute, that works to promote an economic approach to the study of public policy issues. Its studies, conferences and regular appearances in the media focus on subjects as varied as reform of the health care system, the evaluation of the performance levels of public institutions, the weight of the tax burden and of the regulatory process, and globalization.

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For further information, please contact: Michel Kelly-Gagnon, President of the MEI / Phone: (514) 273-0969 / Email: mkellygagnon@iedm.org