The Mises Institute Network and Climate Policy. 9 Findings

The report analyzes the Mises Institute Network, a global group of ultra-libertarian think tanks, and its efforts to obstruct climate change mitigation. It finds that the network uses the philosophy of Ludwig von Mises to argue against state intervention and climate science, promoting 'free-market environmentalism' instead. While climate change was not a primary focus before 2016, there was a significant spike in opposition content in 2019, coinciding with the U.S. and EU Green Deal proposals. The network operates across 25 countries, utilizing social media and university presence to recruit young activists and employing climate contrarians to spread its messaging.

• The Mises Network utilizes the philosophy of Ludwig von Mises to provide a structured set of arguments against climate change mitigation, focusing on radical anti-government interventionism, critiques of climate science, and opposition to social movements supporting mitigation.
• The network promotes 'free-market environmentalism' and market democracy as superior alternatives to state-led climate policy, viewing government intervention as a form of 'eco-dictatorship'.
• The Mises Network expanded globally from 2000 onward and maintained a presence in 25 countries as of 2021, with origins in the U.S. Mises Institute founded in 1982.
• There was a marked increase in the network's focus on climate change starting in 2016, with a specific spike in published articles in 2019 linked to the U.S. Green New Deal and the European Union Green Deal.
• The network employs climate contrarians and economists, such as Robert P. Murphy, to disseminate obstruction discourse through research, op-eds, and books, rather than relying on climate or environment researchers.
• Mises Institutes use social media and university outreach to recruit young people and activists, with the U.S. Institute showing higher web traffic than other major denial sources like the Heartland Institute.
• While fossil industry funding is not explicitly evidenced due to lack of transparency, the network has ties to various business groups, including tobacco companies in the U.S., gold and investment firms in Germany, and financial groups in Sweden.

APA

Plehwe, D., Goldenbaum, M., Ramanujam, A., McKie, R., Moreno, J., Ekberg, K., Hall, G., Araldi, L., Walker, J., Brulle, R., Neujeffski, M., Graham, N., & Hrubes, M. (2021). The Mises Institute Network and Climate Policy. 9 Findings. Climate Social Science Network. https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/CSSN-Mises-Research-Report.pdf

Chicago

Plehwe, Dieter, Max Goldenbaum, Archana Ramanujam, Ruth McKie, Jose Moreno, Kristoffer Ekberg, Galen Hall, et al. The Mises Institute Network and Climate Policy. 9 Findings. Climate Social Science Network, 2021. https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/CSSN-Mises-Research-Report.pdf.

Wikipedia

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BibTeX

@techreport{plehwe2021mises, author = {Plehwe, Dieter and Goldenbaum, Max and Ramanujam, Archana and McKie, Ruth and Moreno, Jose and Ekberg, Kristoffer and Hall, Galen and Araldi, Lucas and Walker, Jeremy and Brulle, Robert and Neujeffski, Moritz and Graham, Nick and Hrubes, Milan}, title = {{The Mises Institute Network and Climate Policy. 9 Findings}}, institution = {Climate Social Science Network}, year = {2021}, month = jul, url = {https://cssn.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/CSSN-Mises-Research-Report.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }