Fraser Institute News Release: New Project Makes Theories and Writings of Legendary F.A. Hayek Accessible to New Audiences

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwired - June 15, 2015) - A new book, supported by a website and animated videos, makes the ideas of Nobel laureate economist F.A. Hayek easily accessible for a new generation.

Published by the Fraser Institute, The Essential Hayek book and website are being released five years after Hayek's classic 1944 book, The Road to Serfdom, unexpectedly rose to Number 1 on the Amazon best-seller list.

Hayek, who died in 1992, has long been considered one of the most influential thinkers of the 20th century and his work still resonates with economists and scholars around the world today.

"Hayek's theories are among the deepest and most profound ideas ever developed in the social sciences. His ideas can continually nourish the intellectual and moral case for freedom for generations to come," said Donald J. Boudreaux, Fraser Institute senior fellow and author of Essential Hayek.

"But as Hayek himself understood, the case for freedom and free markets must continually be rejuvenated and society constantly needs to be reminded of the benefits that accrue to everyone from these freedoms."

The book, Essential Hayek, is made up of 10 chapters, each exploring one of Hayek's more profound ideas, including the concepts of knowledge and prices, the difference between law and legislation, and the challenges of living in a modern society.

The book is supported by a website, www.essentialhayek.org, where the complete book and individual chapters can be downloaded for free. As well, the website contains six videos summarizing the key points of individual book chapters. The videos are also available on the Fraser Institute's YouTube channel.

"The work of F.A. Hayek delves deeply into the relationship between individual people and both the market and the state. He was a major influence on the formation of the Fraser Institute. But while much has been written about Hayek's ideas, little has been done to make them accessible until today," said Jason Clemens, Fraser Institute executive vice-president.

"Reading Hayek directly isn't always easy. His prose, while unfailingly proper and precise, is very academic and dense," Boudreaux said.

"With this book, we've tried to explain Hayek's ideas in clear language that anyone can understand while the videos use a lighthearted approach to present his theories in a context that applies to our everyday lives."

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The Fraser Institute is an independent Canadian public policy research and educational organization with offices in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto, and Montreal and ties to a global network of think-tanks in 87 countries. Its mission is to improve the quality of life for Canadians, their families and future generations by studying, measuring and broadly communicating the effects of government policies, entrepreneurship and choice on their well-being. To protect the Institute's independence, it does not accept grants from governments or contracts for research. Visit www.fraserinstitute.org