About Us

     


TIGER was founded in 2000 at the initiative of Professor Grzegorz W. Kolodko, the Director of TIGER and a key architect of Polish economic reforms, who as First Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance led Poland to the OECD.  During his tenure in government (1994-97) and based on his program, Strategy for Poland, the annual rate of growth averaged an astonishing 6.5 percent. This put Poland in the undisputed forefront of successful transition and made it the fastest growing economy in Europe. The stellar performance earned Poland a nickname of the "European Tiger."  

TIGER was established to bring together people and ideas through innovative research projects that would have the potential to advance economic equity while building democratic and market institutions in post-socialist countries.

 

In its short history, TIGER has had many accomplishments.

  • TIGER hosted two conferences.  The first was an international conference held in March 2001, drawing many papers from illustrious economists worldwide.  The second was a regional conference held in May 2001.  Both conferences gained interest from the broad business, academic and political communities.

  • Together WSPiZ and TIGER presented a Distinguished Lecture Series.  Robert Mundell, 1999 Nobel Laureate in Economics, Vito Tanzi, Director of Fiscal Affairs for IMF and Undersecretary of the Italian Treasury, D. Mario Nuti, London Business School, Mario I. Blejer, Sr. Advisor, Asian and Pacific Dept. at IMF and Deputy Head of the Central Bank of Argentina, Donald Johnston, Secretary-General of OECD, and Janos Kornai, Harvard University were among the lecturers.

  • A notable international Scientific Advisory Board was created, with Robert Mundell as Chairman. Members are from Canada, China, Chile, Hungary, India, Israel, Italy, Poland, Russia, Tanzania, and the USA.

  • Three books were published, along with fourteen working papers and several journal publications. A web site was created as part of a dissemination strategy and as an effective communication tool that could easily reach people all over the world.

  • TIGER seminars were held monthly for faculty and students and a student Science Club called "Little Tigers" was established.  In May 2001, the "Little Tigers" organized their first conference aimed at enhancing their knowledge of current business and economic issues in Poland.

  • TIGER opened an American Office and a development director was appointed.

  • The Leon Kozminski Academy of Entrepreneurship and Management Foundation, a US nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, was formed to increase funding sources.

  • TIGER and the University of Rochester Press, USA announced a new book series - TIGER and U of R Studies in Globalization and Economic Transformation. This series will focus on the interrelation between globalization and economic transformation and will be published exclusively in English.