LIMS attended Atlas Network’s annual Liberty Forum and Freedom Dinner, from December 13 to 14, along with nearly 700 activists, intellectuals, and individuals from about 50 countries. The event was a fantastic opportunity to meet organizations from across the globe, while sharing challenges and experiences on how to effectively advance market reforms.
Linda Whetstone, Rest in Peace on the Wings of Eternity
The 2021 edition will always be remembered as the most emotionally charged. It started with the joy and excitement of coming back after long months of COVID lockdowns and ended on a very bitter note, with the passing away of our Lady liberty, Mrs. Linda Whetstone. Linda was a very good friend of LIMS and a hero able to discover free market advocates in the darkest places on the planet. She took pride in being the first female, non-academic, non-PhD holder, president of the legendary Mont Pellerin Society. As well, she was enthusiastic about her new project, spreading free market books in Africa, in places where the internet was not available to everyone. The good spirit of Linda, her constant drive, and her contagious happiness and optimism shall always remain in our hearts and minds. She will be dearly missed.
LIMS Wins Top Award at Investors Summit
LIMS won the top prize at the Investors Summit for the Lebanon News and Opinion Website project, or Lebanon NOW. The project aims to create a platform able to provide the people in Lebanon with accurate news, verified economic data, and free market analyses. The event was modeled on venture capital investor summits where LIMS Director Ms. Kristelle Mardini, pitched the project to a curated selection of high-capacity investors during one concentrated networking event. Thanks to this unique opportunity, LIMS was able to benefit from increased recognition and win the prize. The prize comes with the responsibility of delivering a relevant, modern, and effective multimedia platform.
Taking on Cronyism
Dr. Patrick Mardini, the CEO of LIMS, was the speaker at a session dedicated to discussing cronyism. He explained how Lebanon changed from being the Switzerland to the Venezuela of the Middle East. The government created massive hyperinflation though the constant increase in money supply. Then, when prices soared, the same government reacted by designing a subsides program to “help the poor”. Subsidies lead to massive shortages of fuel and medicine, while profiting those in power and their cronies, who were able to smuggle subsidized goods and sell them aboard. Dr. Mardini then explained the advocacy campaign led by LIMS that managed to lift those subsides and get the commodities back into the market.
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