The Buenos Aires-based organization formerly known as Instituto Acton Argentina became a subsidiary of the Acton Institute in the spring of 2015. Instituto Acton, while independent for the time being, will mon objectives and goals with the Acton Institute. It is led by Executive Director Cecilia G. de Vázquez Ger and conducts its work primarily in Spanish. The institute’s mission is to promote a free and virtuous society, characterized by the validity of personal rights and the market economy in harmony with the principles of the Judeo-Christian faith.

The core of the Instituto’s work consists of academic activities, such as conferences and research, and also sharing work and events through munication and institutional relations. Programs include: Acton Joven, cursos online, presentaciones de PovertyCure and seminarios. Acton Joven (Young Acton) is a program designed specifically for young people interested in a free and virtuous society. They meet monthly to learn about, discuss and debate important topics. Cursos online are virtual classrooms that allow students of all ages to learn from leaders in real time using webpages, live videos, and the opportunity to live chat with the course teachers. For their presentaciones de PovertyCure (PovertyCure presentations), the Instituto works with PovertyCure resources and team members to explain how to rethink aid and poverty alleviation. The Instituto holds several seminarios (lectures and seminars) throughout the year on various topics. Its impressive program lineup plemented by its successful outreach. In 2014, the Instituto was Latin America’s top think tank in terms of the number of social media profiles managed by the organization, especially on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Instituto Acton should not be confused with Istituto Acton (note the subtle spelling difference), the office representing Acton in Rome. This office has done considerable work reaching leaders throughout Europe for nearly a decade, and we’re excited to see the great work from Instituto Acton in Latin America. For more information, please visit www.institutoacton.org.