[3] The Saint-Simon Foundation was created in 1982 by a group of business figures and public intellectuals centered on industrialist Roger Fauroux, historian François Furet, maverick essayist Alain Minc, and sociologist Pierre Rosanvallon, with inspiration from French Resistance hero and journalist Philippe Viannay.
[6] Rosanvallon argued that the impulse for the foundation's creation came in the wake of the 1981 French presidential election and the victory of Socialist François Mitterrand.
Its aim was to create a social exchange network that would be independent from existing political clubs and university institutions.
[3] The foundation broadly supported democracy and economic liberalism, and aimed to create bridges between Universities, business and public administration.
[citation needed] The Saint-Simon Foundation was a member of The Hague Club international network of think tanks.