The Evian Group, founded in 1995, is an international coalition of corporate, government and opinion leaders, committed to fostering an open, inclusive, equitable and sustainable global market economy in a rules-based multilateral framework.

The Evian Group advocates trade liberalisation to achieve growth and sustain the momentum of globalisation.

The Evian Group believes that international trade and investment has the great potential of uniting people through greater mutual understanding and common interest across countries, continents, cultures, and generations, rather than dividing them.

The Evian Group has been described as a “birthplace of ideas” and in its diverse activities draws on the collective wisdom and experience of its members, Brains Trust, and associates, to provide greater knowledge, vision and direction in meeting the economic and social challenges of the 21st century.

The Evian Group has also been described as a “bridge between North and South”; in its diverse activities it seeks to reduce the “trust deficit” that has been an increasingly prominent feature of the early 21st century between “developed” and “developing” countries. Greater transparency in trade can foster better understanding and more dynamic relations.

The Evian Group, although global in its outlook and outreach, initially mainly focused on four key regions: Europe, the Arab Region, Greater China and South Asia. All four have played a major role in the development of global trade and world civilisation. The four regions are vital to the establishment of the 21st century global community, without which the global market cannot be sustained. The Evian Group is committed not only to establish a constructive and strong presence in the four regions, but also to act as a bridge between them.

More recently, The Evian Group has also become much more involved in Africa as it has developed greater strategic concentration on the global challenges of “inclusive growth”. Furthermore as South-South economic dynamics are becoming far stronger, The Evian Group has worked in particular with Brazil in its ties with China and other parts of the “global South”.

The Evian Group adheres to the view that poverty, inequality, injustice and intolerance are the key moral issues of the 21st century, as slavery was in the 19th and fascism in the 20th. It believes that a market economy, founded on responsible capitalism, combining the critical role of government in providing public goods, a strong ethical base of good governance, and free enterprise are the best means for generating growth, employment, empowerment and enrichment in terms of both wealth and welfare.

The Evian Group is strongly engaged in working with the next generation of leaders and with youth, convinced that if youth does not have hope in the 21st century, there will be no hope for the 21st century.

The Evian Group strongly believes in the benefits that globalisation can provide to humanity. For that to occur, however, globalisation must be inclusive, equitable, sustainable and robust. Globalisation as it currently has been developing is badly off track on all of these key areas. As Kofi Annan stated, “globalisation must be for everyone or it will be for no-one”.

Until September 2001 The Evian Group was a "project" under different institutional umbrellas. In September 2001 it was established as a not-for-profit organisation registered as an "association" in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland.

Its membership is composed of Council and Private Members. Its projects are sponsored by government and institution partners. Along with prominent Western institutions, The Evian Group has recently developed close ties with a number of groups and think tanks from the South, including CUTS (Consumer Unity & Trust Society) in India, the Centre for Policy Dialogue in Bangladesh, Mthente Research Centre in South Africa, and Imani in Ghana. 

The Brains Trust members advise on the agenda and intellectual input of meetings and contribute to the knowledge base of events and projects.

The Evian Group is located at IMD in Lausanne; IMD is a founding member of The Evian Group and its president (or his representative) is ex officio member of the Executive Committee.

The governing body of The Evian Group is the General Assembly which appoints the Executive Committee.

The Co-Chairs of The Evian Group are :
- Victor K. Fung, Group Chairman, Li & Fung
- Michael W. Garrett, Former Executive Vice President Asia, Oceania and Africa, Nestlé
- Dhruv Sawhney, Chairman, Triveni Engineering and Industries

The Evian Group's Brains Trust is composed of opinion leaders, drawn from industry, academe, think tanks, international organisations, NGOs and the media, from both industrialised and developing countries, and from different generations.

Its members are called upon to:

• Advise on the agenda and intellectual input of Evian Group meetings and actively participate in at least one, ideally more, Evian meeting/s per annum.
• When appropriate, contribute directly or indirectly (eg by proposing students, colleagues or younger members of staff) to The Evian Group knowledge base by providing papers, writing policy briefs, etc.
• Participate in Brains Trust meetings and discussions, both virtual and locational.
• Give advice to the Director and other members of The Evian Group in respect to its development and strategy.
• Brains Trust members should agree in principle to provide advice on the research and project work of Evian Group interns and, where feasible and appropriate, to act as faculty in Evian Group educational workshops, seminars, etc.
• Depending on their availability and commitments, Brains Trust members should be willing to be co-opted on to The Evian Group Executive Committee.
• The Director appoints a Chair of The Evian Group Brains Trust with whom he coordinates Brains Trust activities and who may also serve as a conduit for ideas and suggestions.
• Brains Trust members are encouraged to promote the visibility and reputation of The Evian Group when the opportunity might arise by publicising their affiliation.