Who was Manuel F. Ayau C., this man affectionately known by all as Muso?
A scholar, educator, and entrepreneur, Manuel F. Ayau founded the Center for Economic-Social Studies (CEES) in 1959 as a center for classical liberal thought. It was through CEES that Universidad Francisco Marroquín was born in 1971. His was a life committed to the ideas of liberty and continued to be involved with them right up to his final days, when he was promoting the State reform project known as ProReforma. This is not all, among his other activities, he participated in the founding of organizations such as the National Stock Exchange and the Chamber of Industry of Guatemala. In true entrepreneurial spirit, he participated in the cultivation of cotton and rice, and founded the largest tile and ceramic flooring factory in Central America.
Muso chaired organizations such as the Mont Pelerin Society, founded by Friedrich A. Hayek and which counts numerous Nobel Prize winners among its members. He was also a director of Liberty Fund, Indianapolis, and a board member of the Foundation for Economic Education, New York.
He was the author of books such as Not a Zero-Sum Game, El Proceso Económico (The Economic Process), Cómo Mejorar el Nivel de Vida (How to Improve Living Standards), De Robinson Crusoe a Viernes (From Robinson Crusoe to Friday), La Década Perdida (The Lost Decade), No Tenemos que Seguir Siendo Pobres para Siempre (We Don’t Have to Stay Poor Forever), and Trade. For years, he published a weekly column in local newspapers, and his articles were featured in newspapers and magazines such as the Wall Street Journal and The Freeman, among others.
Muso Ayau Library
Build with us the next stage in the evolution of our campus!
With the construction of this 4-story building at the heart of our campus we will ensure that future generations learn the legacy of Muso—the man whose spirit is the heart of UFM’s story.
UFM has been spreading the ethical, legal, and economic principles of a society of free and responsible persons for more than 50 years. To celebrate such important mission, we are building the Muso Ayau Library, in memory of the innovator, rebel, and first president of this university.
Details of the Muso Ayau Library
The project is for a four-story building in which spaces for reading and dialogue will converge, and where the ideas of freedom can take shape and be disseminated. The building is designed to encourage dialogue and seek solutions to today´s problems. Inside, a special space will be dedicated to Muso´s private library, which contains his books and writings, a source of inspiration for those who follow his ideas.
With Muso Ayau´s Library we intend to narrate our past, communicate our present, and keep alive our principles as embodied in the UFM mission.
Where will the construction take place?
The building will be located on the shore of the lagoon in front of the Ludwig von Mises Library. An aerial walkway will connect the two.
Level 1
Bahía
With this space we intend to commemorate Muso’s chalet in Amatitlán, where he used to meet with friends to discuss freedom and an endless number of interesting topics. His friends used to call it the Bahía School of Economics.
This level will consist of an open space on the shore of the lagoon, where students and visitors can go to relax and discuss.
Level 2
Laissez-Faire
As you might recall, this was the title of Muso’s Prensa Libre column, the cornerstone of his thinking. This level will be dedicated to the research and development of critical thinking. The CEES offices will be on this floor, so that the center can continue its mission to study and spread the ideas of freedom.
Level 3
Muso Ayau Library
With this name we want to capture the essence of Muso’s world: his ideas, concerns, dreams and endeavors. It will be used to hold various Socratic activities.
Level 4
Mezzanine
This will be a space to house Muso’s personal library and a series of his belongings.
Terrace
Pan y circo
With this we intend to commemorate Muso’s first column, published in La Hora. It will be an open space, with a bell that will ring at graduation and closing of Pensum ceremonies, as a new UFM custom.
Help us build the Muso Ayau Library!
As a non-profit university, we rely on your generous donations to carry out such projects. Your input will help us to:
- Fulfill our commitment to UFM’s mission: To teach and disseminate the ethical, legal, and economic principles of a society of free and responsible persons.
- Encourage an interest in reading, so that young people form their own critical judgment and can face the challenges that are presented to them.
- Promote the free market, so that we can be an example to the world of how creativity and entrepreneurship are the engines of progress.
- Encourage discussion and the search for solutions to current problems, which will lead Guatemala to the prosperity so desired by all.
- Reinforce our world-class teaching.
Build with us the next stage in the evolution of UFM’s campus and enable us to continue spreading libertarian principles, so that Guatemala may prosper peacefully.
