The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, DC considered to be the most influential, most quoted and most trusted think tank. The Brookings Institution traces its beginnings to 1916, when a group of leading reformers founded the Institute for Government Research (IGR), the first private organization devoted to analyzing public policy issues at the national level (Ref: Brookings Institution History). Two sister organizations were created. First, in 1922, the Institute of Economics was created. Then, in 1924 a graduate school was created. They merged in 1927 and the Brookings Institution Trustees picked the first president, University of Chicago professor, Harold Moulton.
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| Harold Moulton First President | Brookings Institution |
In the past year, Dan Zwirn contributed to a Brookings Institution publication entitled, "Rebuilding America: The Role of Foreign Capital and Global Foreign Investors". Summarily, the paper was about the influence that foreign government entities had in the world economy and the mere "partial" understanding that American political leaders and policy makers had of investing practices, management and governance of these sources of foreign capital. Below is an excerpt:
Sovereign wealth funds, foreign state managed social security plans, foreign currency reserve funds, foreign government employee pension funds, state-controlled operating companies and other foreign investing vehicles today collectively control trillions of dollars in assets and are projected to maintain significant growth over the next decade. These disparate foreign government entities－characterized in this report as Global Public Investors (“GPIs”)－are becoming increasingly influential players in the world economy. In the volatile contemporary global financial environment, the investment strategies of these foreign entities will impact capital flows and affect markets around the world.
Currently we find ourselves faced with an economy filled with uncertainty. However, we find it certain that the U.S. economy is influenced by foreign investment activity whether it be directly or indirectly. Mr. Zwirn, among many other highly intelligent and dedicated experts, has dedicated a career to understanding finance and developing sound investment strategies. His contribution of knowledge to various organizations such as the Brookings Institution is an invaluable service that helps decision makers understand and manage the uncertainty of the world market - bringing the U.S. economy one step closer to success.
