About Us
-
Our Purpose
The Carl Menger Institute exists to educate the people who will create a more peaceful and prosperous social order, harnessing market exchange and entrepreneurial problem-solving, where proprietary, polycentric forms of governance innovate to serve people rather than rule them. Through its programs, the Institute provides the economic foundations for thinkers and leaders to shape the future with intellectual depth, courage, and resolve.
-
Our History
Founded in 2024 by Professor Daron Djerdjian alongside his students Ethan Akimoto, Peter Vartanian, Matthew Geiger, and Patil Kojikian, the Carl Menger Institute was established in response to an academic culture increasingly shaped by conformity and ideological indoctrination. The Institute is committed to advancing freedom of thought, intellectual progress, and a scholarly environment grounded in open inquiry rather than enforced uniformity.
Carl Menger Institute for Market Economics is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. EIN: 99-3145046
Our Team
-
Daron O. Djerdjian
Founder & President
Daron Djerdjian founded the Carl Menger Institute. He earned his Ph.D. in economics at Syracuse, teaches at UCLA, and has taught for over two decades, including at Occidental College and the American University of Sharjah. He is the progenitor of praxeonomic order, the theory that social norms emerge and evolve through market processes. -
Ethan Akimoto
Executive Director
Ethan Akimoto directs academic programs, operations and funding. He holds a B.A. in Mathematics from Occidental College, and his academic work centers on Popperian epistemology and how cooperation emerges from individual interest.
-
Patil Kojikian
Operations Manager & Coordinator
Patil Kojikian runs the Institute's operations and editorial, keeping its programs, events, and publications on track. -
Matthew Geiger
Faculty & Media Director
Matthew Geiger leads the Institute's media production, hosts the Menger Institute Podcast, and teaches as faculty. He is pursuing his Ph.D. in economics at Rey Juan Carlos University in Madrid under Philipp Bagus, and his research has appeared in the Quarterly Journal of Austrian Economics. -
Dr. James Lawson
Advisor
Dr. James Lawson, a California Licensed Professional Fiduciary and National Certified Guardian, brings decades of experience in law, finance, and estate administration to the Institute.
