Our History

The Beatriz Merino Institute was created with the purpose to serve the strengthening of democracy and to face an undeniable truth: democracy is under attack. Corruption and populism are the tools of the counterpart. To respond to this challenge, Beatriz Merino identified a powerful weapon in the concept of citizenship.

The experience that energized this idea took place in 2018 in the classrooms of Harvard University. In that year, Merino returned to Harvard to join a group of world leaders participating in the Advanced Leadership Initiative (ALI) program. This was an opportunity for academic reflection on her contribution to Peru and her life´s legacy. By connecting the knowledge she acquired during her vast professional career as a global executive and as a public servant, Ms. Merino decided to create a research institute in Peru, with the aim of proposing a new governance model based on the citizen’s commitment to the values and principles that underpin democracy.

Today this idea is a reality. The Beatriz Merino Institute brings together researchers under the leadership of its founder to provide the society with high-quality research in the service of democracy.