Lessons from Business Improvement Districts: Building on Past Successes

This paper provides basic background information on the history, legal framework, and past successes of Business Improvement Districts.

Mercatus On Policy: Using Economics Experiments to Evaluate Tort Reform Proposals

Mercatus Scholar Kevin McCabe and Laura Inglis examine U.S. tort reform proposals through economic experiments.

Using Neuroeconomics Experiments to Study Tort Reform

Mercatus Scholar Kevin McCabe and Laura Inglis provide an overview of the tort process and introduce a scientific approach for evaluating tort reform proposals. In this Mercatus Policy Series, they describe an experiment that models the tort process and attempt to identify factors that promote pre-trial settlements.

Church Provision for Club Goods and Community Redevelopment in New Orleans East

This working paper examines how the church provision of club goods, or quasipublic goods, can foster community rebound in the wake of disaster.

Discover Your Inner Economist

In Discover Your Inner Economist one of America’s most respected economists presents a quirky, incisive romp through everyday life that reveals how you can turn economic reasoning to your advantage—often when you least expect it to be relevant.

"Is the Gulf Coast Open for Business?"

Three years after Hurricane Katrina, rebuilding efforts in the Gulf Coast have been plagued by well-documented challenges. But left largely unexplored is the question of what?s working on the ground. In Louisiana and Mississippi, entrepreneurs and the commercial sector have been quietly playing a critical role in helping communities rebuild, create jobs, and re-establish a sense of normality.

The panel will answer the questions: What's working in the commercial sector in post-Katrina recovery? Why is it working? And, how can public policy better support the critical role that commercial actors, from small entrepreneurs to large companies, play in responding to disasters and rebuilding communities?

By Judge and Jury: Case Studies in Regulation by Litigation

In a special Capitol Hill Campus program, Dr. Bruce Yandle of Clemson University will present two case studies involving regulation by litigation, one on diesel engines and the other on tobacco products, to delve into the implications of regulatory lawsuits.

The Economic and Religious Systems of Virtual Worlds

The Mercatus Center at George Mason University presents a special Social Change Project Lecture: The Economic and Religious Systems of Virtual Worlds, a talk by William Bainbridge, adjunct professor at George Mason University.

The Zimbabwean Crisis

Mr. Coltart’s Talk will focus around Zimbabwe’s decline in the last decade, especially with regards to weakening institutions such as property rights and the rule of law. Drawing on his lifetime of experience in the region, Mr. Coltart will share his account of the problems that have been facing Zimbabwe in recent years, giving his recommendations for what can be done to move the nation forward towards a more prosperous future.  

Don't Call it Sprawl: Metropolitan Structure in the 21st Century

The Social Change Project at the Mercatus Center at George Mason University presents a Brown Bag Lecture by Professor William T. (Tom) Bogart of York College on his recent book Don't Call it Sprawl: Metropolitan Structure in the 21st Century.

Economic Thinking Outside the Box

The Mercatus Center at George Mason University will hold a two day course: Economic Thinking Outside the Box to explore and address two important issues that are not commonly associated with economics in The Market for Martyrs and Radical Religion and Solutions to Organ Donor Shortage.