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Aspen Institute

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TheAspen Instituteis an international nonprofit organization founded in 1949 as theAspen Institute for Humanistic Studies.[2]It is headquartered inWashington, D.C.,but also has campuses inAspen, Colorado,its original home.[3]

Aspen Institute
Formation1949;75 years ago(1949)
FounderWalter Paepcke
TypeResearch institute,think tank
84-0399006
Headquarters2300 N Street, NW, Suite 700
Location
President & CEO
Daniel R. Porterfield
Revenue$160,402,073[1](in 2019)
Expenses$147,137,098[1](in 2019)
Websitewww.aspeninstitute.orgEdit this at Wikidata

The Institute is largely funded by foundations such as theCarnegie Corporation,theRockefeller Brothers Fund,theGates Foundation,theLumina Foundation,and theFord Foundation,by seminar fees, and by individual donations.[4]Its board of trustees includes leaders from politics, government, business and academia who also contribute to its support. A report by theCenter for International Policy'sForeign Influence Transparency Initiativeof the top 50 think tanks[5]found that from 2014 to 2018 the Aspen Institute received more than US$8 million in funding from outside the United States, the fifth-highest amount the think tanks. This funding originated primarily in Western democracies but also included "sizeable donations from undemocratic regimes in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates."[6]

History

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The institute was largely the creation ofWalter Paepcke,aChicagobusinessman who had become inspired by theGreat Booksprogram ofMortimer Adlerat theUniversity of Chicago.[7]In 1945, Paepcke visitedBauhausartist and architectHerbert Bayer,AIA, who had designed and built a Bauhaus-inspired minimalist home outside the decaying former mining town of Aspen, in theRoaring Fork Valley.Paepcke and Bayer envisioned a place where artists, leaders, thinkers, and musicians could gather. Shortly thereafter, while passing through Aspen on a hunting expedition, oil industry maverickRobert O. Anderson(soon to be founder and CEO ofAtlantic Richfield) met with Bayer and shared in Paepcke's and Bayer's vision. In 1949, Paepcke organized a 20-day international celebration for the 200th birthday ofGermanpoetandphilosopherJohann Wolfgang von Goethe.The celebration attracted over 2,000 attendees, includingAlbert Schweitzer,José Ortega y Gasset,Thornton Wilder,andArthur Rubinstein.[8]

Doerr-Hosier Center at the Aspen Institute in Aspen, Colorado

In 1949, Paepcke founded the Aspen Institute; and later theAspen Music Festivaland eventually (with Bayer and Anderson) the International Design Conference at Aspen (IDCA).[9]Paepcke sought a forum "where the human spirit can flourish", especially amid the whirlwind and chaos ofmodernization.He hoped that the institute could help business leaders recapture what he called "eternal verities": the values that guided them intellectually, ethically, and spiritually as they led their companies. Inspired by philosopherMortimer Adler's Great Books seminar at theUniversity of Chicago,which was later adopted by Encyclopædia Britannica'sGreat Books of the Western World,Paepcke worked with Anderson to create the Aspen Institute Executive Seminar.[10]In 1951, the institute sponsored a nationalphotographyconference. During the 1960s and 1970s, the institute added organizations, programs, and conferences, including theAspen Center for Physics,theAspen Strategy Group,Communications and Society Program and other programs that concentrated on education, communications, justice, Asian thought, science, technology, the environment, andinternational affairs.

In 1979, through a donation byCorning Glassindustrialist and philanthropistArthur A. Houghton Jr., the institute acquired a 1,000-acre (4 km2) campus on the eastern shore of theChesapeake BayinMaryland,known today as theWye River Conference Centers.[11]

In 1983, former United States SenatorDick Clarkfounded the Aspen Institute's Congressional program, which sought to educate members of Congress on foreign affairs issues.[12]

In 2005, it held the firstAspen Ideas Festival,featuring leading minds from around the world sharing and speaking onglobal issues.The institute, along withThe Atlantic,hosts the festival annually. It has trained philanthropists such asCarrie Morgridge.[13]It has since added additional events such as the Aspen Ideas Health and Aspen Ideas Climate.[14]In 2023, the Aspen Ideas Climate event included Vice PresidentKamala Harrisand famed singerGloria Estefan.[15]

Since 2013,[16]the Aspen Institute together with U.S. magazineThe AtlanticandBloomberg Philanthropieshas participated in organizing the annual CityLab event, a summit dedicated to develop strategies for the challenges ofurbanizationin today's cities.[17]

Walter Isaacsonwas the president and CEO of Aspen Institute from 2003 to June 2018. Isaacson announced in March 2017 that he would step down as president and CEO at the end of the year.[18]On November 30, 2017,Daniel Porterfieldwas announced as his successor. Porterfield succeeded Isaacson on June 1, 2018.[19]

In April 2020, the company received approximately $8 million in federally backed small business loans as part of thePaycheck Protection Program.The company received scrutiny over this loan, which meant to protect small and private businesses.The Washington Postnoted their large endowment and membership of billionaires made this problematic.Dele Olojede,a fellow at the institute, called it "contrary to the stated purpose of this institute", that "one of America’s most elite institutions thinks it is okay to take the money", going on to say "Those who purport to be values-based and public-spirited leaders cannot at the same time put self interest first, when there is so much human suffering and death".[20]The day after Olojede and theWashington Posthighlighted the funding, Aspen Institute announced they would return it, stating "Upon listening to our communities and further reflection, we have made the decision to return the loan".[21]

In 2023,Simon Godwinwas named Aspen Institute's Harman/Eisner artist in residence. Godwin is theartistic directorfor theShakespeare Theatre Companyand will serve in a one-year residency at the institute.[22]In June 2023, CAA's Bruno del Granado was named to be head of the Board of the Aspen Institute's Latinos Society Program.[23]

Community Speaker Institute

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2023 Lineup

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The Aspen Institute's community program includes lecturers from the Hurst Lecture Series, the McCloskey Speaker Series, and the Murdock Mind, Body, Spirit series.[24]

Assets

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As of 2019 the Aspen Institute had net assets of $310,055,857.[1]

Funding details

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Fellowships

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Henry Crown Fellowship

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TheHenry CrownFellowship, established in 1997, educates accomplished entrepreneurs from the private sector to become leaders in community and global development projects. The Aspen Global Leadership Network inducts an annual class of 20-22 candidates between the ages of 30-46 for a two-year training program. Instruction takes place at the Aspen Institute's campus inAspen,Colorado, and various sites abroad.[25]

New Voices Fellowship

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The New Voices Fellowship is a year long program for applicants from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Every year, nominations are accepted from August through October. Fellows are selected in December and announced publicly in early January.[26][27]

The New Voices Fellowship is a non-residential program. During the fellowship year, fellows meet three times for one week sessions. There are no age limitations for fellows. All expenses for participation in the fellowship are covered by the program. At times the program will also cover the cost of "media-related activities and conferences."[28][27]

Awards

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Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence

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Community Colleges which succeed in attaining exceptional results for all students during their time in college and as post-graduates are awarded the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence.[29][30]

Recipients to date include:[31]

Aspen Institute Faculty Pioneers and Dissertation Proposal Award

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TheFinancial Timescalled the Faculty Pioneers and Dissertation Proposal Awards the "Oscarsof the business school world ". These honor business school instructors with an outstanding track record of leadership and risk-taking in ensuring that theMBAcurriculum incorporates social, environmental and ethical issues.[34]

Recipients in the Category "Lifetime Achievement" include:

Excellence and Equity in Community College STEM Award

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Community Colleges which demonstrate the provision of outstanding technical education and successfully link students, regardless of their race, ethnicity, family income or gender, withSTEMcareers as a gateway to economic mobility, are eligible to receive the Excellence and Equity in Community College STEM Award. The prize, awarded in co-operation of the Aspen Institute andSiemens Foundation,provides leading college staff with a benchmark standard of development and technical programs which foster equitable student success by highlighting exemplary practices of the winning programs.[36][37]

Recipients include:

Henry Crown Leadership Award

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This annual award was created to honor an outstanding leader whose achievements reflect the high standards of honor, integrity, industry, and philanthropy that characterized the life and career of industrialist and philanthropistHenry Crown.Notable recipients include:

The full list of laureates appears on the Award's web page.[38]

See also

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References

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  1. ^abcd"Annual Report 2019"(PDF).Aspen Institute.Retrieved20 April2021.
  2. ^"About the Aspen Institute".aspeninstitute.org.Retrieved31 March2018.
  3. ^"Contact".RetrievedMay 27,2023.
  4. ^"Aspen Institute".Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. 20540 USA.Retrieved2024-04-30.
  5. ^on theUniversity of Pennsylvania'sGlobal Go-To Think Tanksrating index
  6. ^Freeman, Ben (January 2020).Foreign Funding of Think Tanks in America(PDF)(Report).Center for International Policy.p. 12. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on September 1, 2020.RetrievedSeptember 6,2020.
  7. ^"About - The Aspen Institute".Retrieved18 October2016.
  8. ^"Elizabeth Paepcke, 91, a Force In Turning Aspen Into a Resort".The New York Times.18 June 1994.Retrieved18 March2016.
  9. ^"Herbert Bayer, 85, a designer and artist of Bauhaus School".The New York Times.1 October 1985.Retrieved18 March2016.
  10. ^"ASPEN: A 4TH DECADE FOR ANCESTOR...OF A GROWING BUSINESS BREED".The New York Times.31 August 1981.Retrieved18 March2016.
  11. ^"Cuban boy moves to Md. Shore".The Baltimore Sun.26 April 2000.Retrieved18 March2016.
  12. ^Lampton, David M.(2024).Living U.S.-China Relations: From Cold War to Cold War.Lanham, MD:Rowman & Littlefield.p. 218.ISBN978-1-5381-8725-8.
  13. ^Davidson, Joanne (June 17, 2015)."Need a few million dollars, 10,000 digital whiteboards or a shipment of sheep hearts? Don't ask for them".The Denver Post.RetrievedAugust 15,2016.
  14. ^"Aspen Ideas Festival reacts to a post-Roe world".Aspen Public Radio.2022-06-30.Retrieved2023-03-10.
  15. ^Harris, Alex (9 March 2023)."'The solutions are at hand': Kamala Harris delivers an optimistic climate message in Miami ".Miami Herald.Retrieved10 March2023.
  16. ^"CityLab: Urban Solutions to Global Challenges".The Atlantic.Archived fromthe originalon 2021-03-08.Retrieved2017-10-04.
  17. ^"CityLab 2016".The Atlantic.Retrieved2017-10-04.
  18. ^"Walter Isaacson to leave Aspen Institute, become Tulane professor".NOLA.com.Archived fromthe originalon July 14, 2017.Retrieved2017-05-30.
  19. ^Platts, Barbara."Daniel R. Porterfield named Aspen Institute's next president and CEO".Retrieved2017-11-30.
  20. ^Jonathan O'Connell."Aspen Institute think tank receives $8 million federal small-business loan".The Washington Post.Retrieved13 May2020.
  21. ^Jonathan O'Connell (14 May 2020)."Aspen Institute to return $8 million in small business funds".The Washington Post.Retrieved14 May2020."We believe that our application, which was made in the first week of the PPP, was consistent with the goals of the program. Upon listening to our communities and further reflection, we have made the decision to return the loan," said spokeswoman Amy DeMaria in a statement. "The Aspen Institute is committed to doing our part to help the country and the world both recover from and rebuild after this global pandemic. We stand with all who are trying to make a difference in very difficult times."
  22. ^"Simon Godwin Named Aspen Institute's Harman/Eisner Artist in Residence".www.americantheatre.org.27 April 2023.Retrieved2023-05-02.
  23. ^"CAA's Bruno del Granado Named To Board Of The Aspen Institute Latinos & Society Program - Pollstar News".news.pollstar.com.2023-06-05.Retrieved2023-06-14.
  24. ^"Aspen Institute's free community speaker series summer lineup revealed".www.aspentimes.com.2023-06-02.Retrieved2023-06-09.
  25. ^"Henry Crown Fellowship Program - Aspen Global Leadership Network".Aspen Institute.Retrieved2023-11-03.
  26. ^"About".New Voices Fellowship - Aspen Institute.Retrieved25 July2021.
  27. ^ab"Nominations".New Voices Fellowship - Aspen Institute.Aspen Institute.Retrieved25 July2021.
  28. ^"FAQ".New Voices Fellowship - Aspen Institute.Aspen Institute.Retrieved25 July2021.
  29. ^"The 2015 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence"(PDF).The Aspen Institute.Retrieved27 April2021.
  30. ^abcdef"The Aspen Institute Names Top 150 U.S. Community Colleges Eligible For 2019 Aspen Prize".PR Newswire.11 October 2017.Retrieved27 April2021.
  31. ^"Aspen Prize Winners and Finalists".Aspen Institute.Retrieved19 February2024.
  32. ^abcdefgDobson, Byron."TCC among 150 state colleges chosen nationwide to compete for $1-million Aspen Institute honors".Tallahassee.Retrieved27 April2021.
  33. ^abPennamon, Tiffany (2 April 2019)."Aspen Institute Recognizes 2019 Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence Winners".Diverse.Retrieved27 April2021.
  34. ^"The Aspen Institute Announces the 2010 Faculty Pioneers and Dissertation Proposal Awards".The Aspen Institute.6 October 2010.Retrieved30 April2021.
  35. ^ab"The Aspen Institute Announces the 2010 Faculty Pioneers and Dissertation Proposal Awards".csrwire.10 June 2010.Retrieved30 April2021.
  36. ^"Excellence and Equity in Community College STEM Award".The Aspen Institute.9 March 2020.Retrieved5 May2021.
  37. ^abFerguson, Colleen (6 October 2020)."San Jacinto College receives national award for high achievement, equity in 2 programs".Community Impact Newspaper.Retrieved5 May2021.
  38. ^"Henry Crown Leadership Award - the Aspen Institute".Aspen Institute.Retrieved2023-11-04.
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