John Dobra, associate professor of economics at the University of Nevada, Reno College of Business, has been named the newest senior fellow of the Fraser Institute, Canada's leading public policy think-tank.

An expert in natural resource economics, Dobra is the director of the University's Natural Resource Industry Institute, which he founded in 1994 with a mission of providing service and outreach to natural resources industries, primarily the minerals industry. The Institute offers a variety of workshops for those in the industry and governmental officials, and conducts research on public policy issues affecting natural resource industries.

Dobra has been called on to testify numerous times in the Nevada Legislature and in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. He has served as a consultant for state and federal government agencies, corporations and industry associations, and has been in the economics department at the University of Nevada, Reno since 1980.

"Professor Dobra offers an unparalleled perspective on the natural resource policy questions that underpin the Canada-U.S. relationship," said Jason Clemens, Fraser Institute executive vice-president. "He brings a wealth of experience to our Centre for Energy and Natural Resource Studies and we're honored to have him join our team."

Dobra is one of only 32 senior fellows appointed by the Institute, which was ranked No. 1 among 97 think-tanks in Canada in 2011, for the fourth year in a row, in the University of Pennsylvania's Global Go-To Think-Tank Index, a global survey of more than 1,500 scholars, policymakers and journalists. The report also named the Fraser Institute as the only Canadian organization in the Top 30 leading think-tanks in the world, out of a global group of 6,545 think-tanks.

"I am very honored by the Fraser Institute's appointment and look forward to working with them on natural resource policy issues around the world," Dobra said. "In addition to the staff at the Fraser Institute, I would like to thank the many people in Nevada, the University community and Nevada's mining industry for their support of my work over the years.

The Fraser Institute is headquartered in Vancouver and has ties to a global network of 85 think-tanks. Its mission is to measure, study and communicate the impact of competitive markets and government intervention on the welfare of individuals.