He passed away in the night in Rome, at the age of 77, Lorenzo Infantino, economist, social philosopher and among the most influential interpreters of classical liberalism in Italy.
Professor emeritus at Luiss Guido Carli, Infantino, born in Gioia Tauro (RC), has dedicated his career to the study of liberal thought and the Austrian School of Economics and Social Sciences, delving into themes such as spontaneous order, individual freedom and the criticism of collectivism. This was made known by the Rubbettino publishing house for which he was the author of fundamental works such as «Ignorance and freedom» (1999), «Individualism, market and history of ideas» (2008), «Power: The political dimension of human action» (2013), «Freedom seekers» (2019), «At the origins of social sciences» (2022), «Knowledge, government of men and government of law» (2024) and founded, again for Rubbettino, the publishing series «Biblioteca Austriaca», in which the Italian translations of the major works of Carl Menger, Ludwig von Mises and Friedrich A. von Hayek appeared, making the pillars accessible to the Italian public of this intellectual tradition. He was president of the Italian Linacre Society. He was also president of the Hayek Foundation – Italy. The second edition of “The Order Without a Plan” was scheduled to be released in Rubbettino these days.
Infantino – we read in an editor’s note – was able to intertwine philosophy, economics and social sciences, offering an essential contribution to the understanding of social and economic dynamics.
«For someone like me who had the privilege of being first his student, then his friend and editor and of having shared with him important projects for the study and diffusion of liberal thought, this is an enormous loss» he states Florindo Rubbettino.
«A master of liberalism, a rigorous scholar – he adds – and profound, always critical of all dogmatisms and systems of thought that reduce the complexity of society. For him, individual freedom was a pillar of society and he was able to explain the concept of spontaneous order with clarity and rigor in the wake of the great tradition of the Scottish Enlightenment and the thought of the Austrian school, showing how rules, institutions and markets are not the result of centralized planning, but emerge from the interaction between individuals. As an academic and essayist, he stood out for his ability to make complex issues related to liberalism accessible. He has trained generations of students and readers, spreading not only economic ideas, but also ethical and political principles that guide liberal thought.”
