Ideas Winter 2020-21

CRITICAL
RESPONSE
MCNULTY FOUNDATION
& GLOBAL FELLOWS
RISE TO THE PANDEMIC
BUSINESS
FOR GOOD
THE C-SUITE GOES
BACK TO SCHOOL
SCREEN TIME
THE STEVENS INITIATIVE
MEETS THE MOMENT
PLUS!
ANNA DEAVERE SMITH
OSKAR EUSTIS
LIPI ROY
UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK
AND MORE
CONTENTS
DEPARTMENTS

7 | W H AT I S T H E I N S T I T U T E ?
12 | A R O U N D T H E I N S T I T U T E
Meet the Institute’s new Hurst Community
Initiative; Aspen Words has your winter reading
Courtesy OneWorld Health

list; the College Excellence Program hands out
STEM awards; Native youth demand to be
counted and heard; and much more.
2 7 | I M PA C T
The Institute’s Health Innovators Fellowship
JoRee LaFrance
takes on the challenges of a global pandemic;
Fellows from the Aspen Tech Policy Hub
12 learn the art of government.
30 3 2 | A S H E A R D AT
Uché Blackstock speaks with Lipi Roy about

diversity in medicine and the effect of the
pandemic on communities of color;
Anna Deavere Smith talks to Oskar Eustis
about race in the arts and what will happen
Shutterstock
Courtesy Alen Voskanian and Uché Blackstock
to live theater in the wake of Covid-19.

60 | FA C T S
Get to know the Institute’s programs.
64 | PA R T I N G S H O T
Distance is relative.
32 ON THE COVER
Gabe Ford
A medical professional
in Uganda with
CRITICAL
RESPONSE
MCNULTY FOUNDATION
OneWorld Health,
& GLOBAL FELLOWS
RISE TO THE PANDEMIC
BUSINESS
FOR GOOD a venture of Liberty
Fellow Matthew
THE C-SUITE GOES
BACK TO SCHOOL
SCREEN TIME
Alexander
Kissane Viola Design
THE STEVENS INITIATIVE

MEETS THE MOMENT
PLUS!
ANNA DEAVERE SMITH
Photo courtesy
OSKAR EUSTIS
LIPI ROY
Dan Bayer
UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK
OneWorld Health
AND MORE
34
4 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

FEATURES
36 | POISED TO RESPOND
Aspen Global Leadership Network fellows always
make an impact on the world. Now, thanks to the
McNulty Foundation, fellows are striking at the heart
of the pandemic with aid, health care, food, and more.
Courtesy OneWorld Health
Johnny McNulty and Samantha Cherry report.
42 | ENLIGHTENED ENTERPRISE
If business leaders are going to have social impact,
then business schools are going to have to wrestle
36
with the critical issues of the day. Ashley Fetters
JoRee LaFrance
explains how the Institute’s Undergraduate

Consortium can show them how.
44 | AN UNFINISHED BEGINNING
In an effort to create a better nation, a new Institute

public program explores America’s potential with

virtual series and creative collaborations.
46 | VIRTUALLY POSSIBLE
Shutterstock
Courtesy Alen Voskanian and Uché Blackstock
The Stevens Initiative digitally connects young

people around the world. With Covid-19, the
42
program is now invaluable to global educators.
THE JOURNAL OF IDEAS
51 | AMERICA’S NEXT CHAPTER

Can the Institute strengthen democracy? Jane
Wales explores how Institute programs are
joining forces to do just that. Introducing the
Pillars of Society.
54 | MAKE JUSTICE LOCAL

Instead of arguing about whether to defund or
44
expand the police, Douglas E. Wood suggests
a third way: justice reinvestment. It’s also the 56
cornerstone of the Institute’s new Criminal
Justice Reform Initiative.
56 | MONEY MATTERS
Covid-19 threatens to shutter businesses across
the US, leading to job loss, massive inequality,
and a dearth of entrepreneurialism. Mark G.
Popovich and Maureen Conway argue the
Shutterstock
Dan Bayer
markets can fix this—with the right incentives.
IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 5

You’ll notice that most of the
stories in this issue, as in our last
issue and our recent Impact Report,
start with some variation of “After
the pandemic struck, the program
adapted and held virtual events
that were not only surprising
successes but moved the Institute’s
work forward with a velocity
the organizers would never have
imagined possible.” (I hope you’ll also notice the near absence of the word “pivot,” which
we tried to abolish in about the third month of lockdown.)
But none of this sudden ability to adapt and find new ways to engage would have been
possible without the true hero of the Aspen Institute: Ben Eyler, the managing associate in
the audio visual department. In his three years with the Institute, Ben, along with his video
colleagues Sam Abdelhamid, Lyle Cowlbeck, Javier Huaman, Raman Ravindran, and Matt
Windholz, was philosophical and calm in the face of staff bafflement at what should have
been simple arrangements to properly provision events for recording and eventual distribution.
Then everyone had to learn Zoom in a gigantic hurry—and Ben’s seemingly endless reservoir
of gracious good sense and reassurance was put to daily, and nightly, tests. As was his ability to
be present not only for dozens of colleagues but his two children, ages two and five.
Overnight, Ben became our Zoom Zen master. Screen sharing, polls, whiteboard
collaboration, breakout rooms that could be seamlessly entered and exited, green rooms,
backstage help available to all speakers and audience members, virtual backgrounds that didn’t
make speakers look phantasmagorical—nothing was beyond Ben’s patient ability to show
slightly panicky program organizers how to achieve virtual excellence, often a few days or
hours before an important meeting.
I speak from experience. A two-day event that was to jump-start the Food & Society
Program’s Food Is Medicine initiative with rich in-person bonding of like-minded
researchers and policymakers who hadn’t met became two Zoom days that, in
a familiar Institute story, were an improbable success and resulted in genuine
bonding we would never have dreamed possible. We received sincerely admiring
and somewhat surprised letters confirming our hopes.
Who were participants really thanking? We might have hoped us, but we knew
better. So do our colleagues across the Institute. They were thanking
Ben, and a team that has calmly carried us all above waves we never
imagined, keeping us on the true course we most want to navigate.
—Corby Kummer
Roman Cho

AROUND THE INSTITUTE
JUSTICE GONE WRONG The United States incarcerates more individuals than any other
nation—nearly 25 percent of the world’s prisoners—and disproportionately imprisons Black and Latinx communities. Lengthy
sentences for nonviolent drug crimes instituted in the 1980s have led to vast increases in Black people’s long-term incarceration.
The new Aspen Criminal Justice Reform Initiative focuses on this dangerous approach to punishment and promotes policies to
transform the justice system and reduce mass incarceration. Among other proposals, the initiative’s first report, Ending This Place
of Torment: A Framework for Transforming the Criminal Justice Continuum, calls for a review of the 40,000 state and local laws that
punish formerly incarcerated Americans by denying them housing, jobs, education, and more—which only cycles them back into
incarceration (see “Make Justice Local,” on page 54). aspeninstitute.org/CJRI | @AspenCJRI
2.2 MILLION The US rate of
PEOPLE
500,000 people incarceration
leave prison each more than
year without an quadrupled
education, housing, are incarcerated in the over the last
a job, health care, or United States, more four decades.
transportation. than any other nation.
7O+ MILLION PEOPLE

one-fifth of the US population—has a criminal record.
BLACK people BLACK and WHITE AMERICANS 3.6 MILLION

make up 12% of use and SELL DRUGS at the same rates, US adults are on
the US population,
yet Black Americans are 5 TIMES more probation and
but 33% of the 870,000 are on
incarcerated. likely to be IMPRISONED for drug crimes.
parole.
Source: Douglas E. Wood. Ending This Place of Torment: A Framework for Transforming the Criminal Justice Continuum. Washington, DC: The Aspen Institute, 2019.

“It’s the responsibility

of older generations
to give resources to
Courtesy A24 and Apple Original FIlms

younger folks—
give us these
platforms—if you
also want to see
America change.”
AMERICAN POLITICS:
Courtesy Aspen Global Leadership Network

THE NEXT GENERATION
How healthy is democracy today? The winner of this year’s Sundance views, revealed humbling and insightful reflections on the state of
Grand Jury Prize Documentary, Boys State, asks that question. The politics and their hopes for the future. Feinstein acknowledged that
film follows high school juniors and seniors at Texas American Legion he mirrored the smear campaigns too often seen in politics today.
Boys State, a highly selective weeklong program (found in every “We’ve denigrated our politics in a lot of ways, and I embodied that,”
state except Hawaii) where teens build a representative government he said. “Boys State was a wonderful opportunity to reflect on it.
from the ground up. Alumni of the Legion’s Boys State and Girls We have a wider democracy to defend that these values are not
State programs include Justice Samuel Alito, journalist Jane Pauley, compatible with.” Asked whether their generation can change the
Senator Cory Booker, Vice President Dick Cheney, Texas Governor current political dysfunction, Otero said he trusts in Generation
Ann Richards, and President Bill Clinton. The Eisner/Lauder New Z’s strength but cautions that the effort can’t be theirs alone: “It’s
Views Documentaries and Dialogue series, part of the Institute’s the responsibility of older generations to give resources to younger
Arts Program, and Aspen Film presented a screening and discussion folks—give us these platforms—if you also want to see America
of Boys State, featuring filmmakers Amanda McBaine and Jesse change.” Garza agreed: “Young people have an interest in politics
Moss and three of the film’s stars, Ben Feinstein, Steven Garza, and getting involved. For the long-term health of our nation, that’s
and René Otero. These teenagers, with diverse backgrounds and a good thing.” aspeninstitute.org/artsprogram

A CALL TO MIND OPPORTUNITY
When face-to-face meetings became untenable last March, the
Institute’s Executive Leadership Seminars team launched the Resources
for Living and Leading website. “Alumni and others told us of their
ROAD
hunger for meaningful connection while social distancing,” says Todd Featuring the experience, wisdom, and
Breyfogle, the Institute’s managing director of Seminars. “They wanted savvy of rural America, the Institute’s
to reflect on what a better society might look like post-pandemic.” The
Community Strategies Group launched a
website’s three sections let them do just that. “Heartspace” offers daily
virtual-exchange series focused on rural
Courtesy A24 and Apple Original FIlms
meditations based on short readings. “Headspace” offers essays and a

weekly curriculum with guiding questions and advice on meaningful health and equity: the Rural Opportunity
exchanges. And “Commonspace” hosts two weekly dialogues: “The and Development, or “ROAD” sessions.
Pursuit of Happiness Hour” and “The Connected Learning Seminar,” The first explored the pandemic’s effect on
each with curated readings. As a public offering, the new site opens
minority small businesses with seven Black,
the Institute’s seminar room to all. “I’m in Zoom meetings all day,”
one participant says. “I come to the virtual Aspen space twice a week, Indigenous, and immigrant women business
because this is the only time I’m asked to think.” The global reach owners and business-assistance providers.
has enriched conversations, too. “It’s food for my soul,” says another The second session looked at rural immigrant
participant, who wakes at two o’clock in the morning to join from New and refugee populations with three innovators
Delhi. “The online community of dialogue is vibrant,” says Breyfogle.
meeting the needs of rural residents. The
“We’re renewed in mind and spirit.” aspeninstitute.org/rll
third session examined housing, showcasing
organizations that address homelessness
and housing distress in rural and Indigenous
communities. Combined, more than 2,000
Courtesy Aspen Global Leadership Network
people registered for these first three events.

A fourth ROAD session promoted National
Rural Health Day in November with a look
at rural health and opportunity. A project
of the Institute’s Thrive Rural, this series is
a collaboration with the Housing Assistance
Council, the Rural Community Assistance
Partnership, and Rural LISC, with support
from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
ROAD reflects the full diversity of rural
America, breaking negative stereotypes
about it. As business owner Guadalupe Milan
explained in one session: “You need to look
at what we are capable of doing, not what is
said about us. Take a look at the reality: we are
creating jobs.” aspeninstitute.org/csg/roads

AMERICA’S
PLACE IN A
CHANGING
Courtesy Michèle Flournoy

WORLD ORDER Flournoy
Faced with a rising death toll from Covid-19, a buckling US economy, General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus—urged the United States
protests over racial inequity, and challenges from China and others, to reclaim its place on the world stage. However, in an exchange
the Aspen Strategy Group explored strategic responses to this with Aspen Strategy Group Executive Director Nicholas Burns,
difficult era. The program’s Summer Workshop, which normally Ambassador to the US from China Cui Tiankai summarized his
assembles its bipartisan group of US and international leaders in nation’s thinking: “Is the United States ready to live with another
Aspen, gathered to virtually discuss foreign policy priorities for 2021 country” as a global power “with a different history, different culture,
Courtesy Ashley Lin

and to explore new themes like racial equality and polarization in maybe a different governmental system?” Former Under Secretary
America. A consensus emerged after two days of digital discussion: of Defense for Policy Michèle Flournoy underscored diversity as a
Americans must respond with bold measures to unite the country. distinct US strategic advantage: “If you have biases against women,
The group proposed a new national service mission to expand you take 50 percent of the population, the talent pool, off the table.
economic opportunity and help promote recovery through building Our strength has always been that we draw from diversity, and we’re
a more unified society. This fall, the group published its book about better for it when we do.”
the workshop and launched a Global Leaders Series, inviting heads The Aspen Strategy Group and Aspen Security Forum,
of state to speak at the Institute. whose discussions help policymakers and others comprehend a
The Aspen Security Forum then gathered leaders from around changing world, will offer programming over the coming months
the world to tackle the urgent global issues. Some—including and will host the Summer Workshop and 2021 Aspen Security
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, Greek Prime Minister Forum next August.
Kyriakos Mitsotakis, and World Health Organization Director- aspeninstitute.org/aspen-strategy-group | aspensecurityforum.org
TWICE AS MUCH WORK . NOT ENOUGH RESOURCES.

At colleges, technical schools, and workforce-development programs across the US, there’s a population of students who have twice as much
work and not enough resources: students who are parents. The 3.8 million student parents need high-quality childcare, financial aid, and health
supports, as well as faculty, staff, and peers who encourage them. This summer, Ascend launched the Aspen Parent Powered Solutions Fund, the
first grantmaking fund led by student parents. Central to Ascend’s work is elevating parent voices in policy decisions that impact their lives. The
fund is a milestone in participatory grantmaking: Ascend’s parent advisors to the Aspen Postsecondary Success for Parents Initiative selected
six nonprofits to receive 12-month grants totaling $150,000 to develop or enhance programs that help student parents earn a postsecondary
degree or workforce credential. The advisors are a group of 11 students from across the US who share their insights with the initiative. Ascend
announced the grantees in October. “Student parents are the new normal for colleges,” says Savannah Steiger, a parent advisor and a psychology
and community-studies major at the University of Maine at Machias. “We are the change-makers and the future.” ascend.aspeninstitute.org

A WORLD OF GOOD FACE TIME
“Virtual exchange helped me promote tolerance and the eradication of stereotypes In the pre-Covid world, most Thursday
within my local community,” says Ashley Lin, one of over 43,000 youth in the US and
mornings the Institute’s Congressional
the Middle East and North Africa who will have participated in one of the Institute’s
Stevens Initiative–funded virtual exchanges by summer 2022. “It has shown me the Program would host a bipartisan gathering
power of learning from and working with people who are different from you to tackle of members of Congress, who would
global goals.” Through her exchange, World Learning’s “The Experiment Digital,” trickle in for an hour of lively discussion
Lin developed leadership skills and friendships around the world. The Experiment on the week’s topic. But in March,
Digital helps high-schoolers become civically engaged through a community-service
the program scrambled to temporarily
Courtesy Michèle Flournoy
project. Inspired, Lin used her new skills to launch Project Exchange, a virtual study-
abroad program that gives middle- and high-school students cross-cultural learning redefine a Capitol Hill institution that has
experiences through text. The youth-led program uses design thinking, community served members of Congress for more
journalism, and UN Sustainable Development Goals to enhance instruction and than 600 breakfasts over 30 years. It
collaboration. Now, Lin is one of the first Stevens Initiative alumni to receive funding joined the rest of the world to go where
from its new Alumni Small Grants program. Lin says, “98 percent of our students feel
it never thought it could: digital. The
more confident about their leadership abilities in a global society.” Lin’s goal for Project
Exchange? To reach 10,000 students by 2030 who don’t traditionally have access to move didn’t come without challenges—
exchanges that include video. She wants all young people to see themselves as global notably, navigating the mute button—but
changemakers. stevensinitiative.org/alumni-small-grants | myprojectexchange.com the program has seen glimpses of the
Fleming
bright side. With time-deprived members

now able to log in from anywhere at a
moment’s notice, more members, new
faces, and a wider variety of perspectives
have joined the conversation. In the first
digital breakfast alone, there were double
the average number of participants, with
34 members tuning in. These forums
are particularly useful for those looking
to stay sharp on ever-evolving Covid-19
scholarship. Members have discussed
how to apply the public policy of past
crises to Covid-19, the virus’s effect on
the US-China relations, stories from an
emergency-room doctor on the front
lines of a New York hospital, and a mayor’s
struggle to manage economic impact.
Until Covid-19 is an issue of the past,
Courtesy Ashley Lin
the Congressional Program will remain

off the record even as it goes online.
Lin (second from right) aspeninstitute.org/congressional-program

JUSTICE LEAGUE
“We are reckoning with historic truths not all of us were willing
to face up to,” said Darren Walker, the president of the Ford
Foundation, at an event hosted by the Institute’s Criminal
Justice Reform Initiative and the Institute’s McCloskey Speaker
Series. “But in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd, we
no longer can deny racism.” It’s hard to overstate how much the
ground has shifted in the effort to transform the criminal justice
system. This year, mass protests erupted across the country
when there was a senseless killing of a Black person at the hands
of the police. It also fueled support to reimagine criminal justice,
taking social, economic, educational, and health disparities into
account. To that end, the Criminal Justice Reform Initiative,
which launched last spring, hosted a discussion with Walker as
well as actress, playwright, and Institute trustee Anna Deavere
Smith and Reverend Vivian Nixon, the executive director
of College & Community Fellowship and an Institute Ascend
Fellow. “It’s important to say clearly that justice and safety are
our objective,” Walker said. “Some have framed this conversation
in a false dichotomy: we either have safety or we have justice. I
categorically reject that. We can have safe communities, and we
can have Black and brown bodies treated with dignity.”
Clint Spaulding
Walker aspeninstitute.org/cjri
MORE ALIKE THAN DIFFERENT

David Brooks, the chair of the Institute’s Weave: The Social Fabric Project,
has long warned of a disconnection crisis in America, arguing that competition,
inequity, and “me-centered” culture have led to widespread personal, social,
and political trauma. With Covid-19, physical isolation threw our disconnection
into even sharper relief. So, Weave and the Listen First Project, creator of
the National Week of Conversation, launched a social media and public-
engagement campaign called #WeavingCommunity During Crisis. The goal
is to help Americans find common purpose in their shared pain and to inspire
millions of them to start or deepen their relationships. After the killing of George
Floyd, racial justice became a key part of the healing message. The campaign
creates a space for people to see and share stories of Americans showing up
Courtesy Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs
for each other in small and big ways—from providing food to neighbors who
lost jobs, to cleaning streets after protests, to offering hotel rooms to those
experiencing homelessness. #WeavingCommunity offers ideas, actions, and
Courtesy Weave: The Social Fabric Project
online conversation platforms so neighbors can discuss challenges and solve

them. The campaign has reached 14 million Americans and engaged more
than 425,000. It has also attracted 117 new partners—including the Institute’s
Better Arguments Project, Braver Angels, Faith Matters Network, Nextdoor,
Urban Rural Action, and Youthivism—and received financial support from
Facebook, Civic Health Project, Einhorn Collaborative, and Well Being Trust.
To get involved, visit weaving.us.

BLACK GIRLS USE THEIR VOICES
The Institute’s latest podcast, Shades of Freedom, from the Criminal Justice Reform Initiative,
amplifies promising efforts to reduce mass incarceration and explores the inequalities that perpetuate
incarceration. The podcast launched with “PUSHOUT: The Criminalization of Black Girls in Schools”
with Dr. Monique Morris, the founder of National Black Women’s Justice Institute and the author
of PUSHOUT, which PBS recently adapted into a documentary, and Stephanie Patton, the principal
of Columbus City Preparatory School for Girls. Increasingly, Morris said, Black girls are subject to
criminalization and “adultification” in schools. Patton agreed, sharing the experience of her school:
“Most of the parents are single mothers. So, if I don’t do my best to understand that trauma and
how we relate as Black women and as Black girls, we’ll never get to the greatness we’re destined for.”
She said her community went through a lot of talking and healing to change the energy at school
and to create a safe space for Black women and girls to be heard. “It reduced our discipline rates, it
knocked out our suspensions, we didn’t have a fight in over two years—because our girls learned to use
their voices.” aspeninstitute.org/podcast/shades-of-freedom
JOINT VENTURE:
Clint Spaulding
PROFIT AND PURPOSE IN LATIN AMERICA

Today, impact investing is a key part of the investment industry. Impact
investors look for financial returns—but in a way that contributes to the
good of society. They use private-sector strategies to fund innovations that
attempt to solve some of the planet’s toughest social and environmental
challenges. In September, the Institute’s Aspen Network of Development
Entrepreneurs released the latest edition of its biennial report, Impact
Investing in Latin America. Using data from investors active in Latin America,
the report offers a snapshot of capital allocation in the region. Roughly half
of the investors targeted market-rate returns, meaning incorporating social
impact into investment decisions is financially viable. Also, the number of
local investors is increasing: more than half of those headquartered in the
region began impact investing in the past five years. Finally, many investors
featured in the study actually measure their outcomes against the UN’s
Courtesy Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs
Sustainable Development Goals, a kind of sustainability roadmap. Yet

challenges remain. Recipients tend to be established agricultural firms,
rather than early-stage enterprises in other vital areas, like biodiversity,
Courtesy Weave: The Social Fabric Project
health care, and energy. Plus, the vast majority of investments use
traditional financing structures (debt or equity), despite the global
industry’s increased focus on alternative instruments (such as quasi-
equity). Currently, investors are concerned about the macroeconomic and
political implications of Covid-19—and hopeful that impact investments
will become a potent solution for recovery. andeglobal.org

HOMETOWN SCHOOL OF LIFE

HEROES At an August webinar with the Institute’s Education & Society Program,
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, Albuquerque Mayor Tim Keller, and Aspen
Courtesy Renick Aspen Action Forum

Even before the pandemic, president and Ascend parent advisor Waukecha Wilkerson explained, “How Governors and
CEO Dan Porterfield and Cristal Logan, the Mayors Can Support Schools so Schools Can Support Students.” Moderated
Institute’s vice president for Community by NPR’s Sasha-Ann Simons and carried live by C-SPAN, the event
Programs and Engagement, saw the highlighted Education & Society recommendations calling on elected officials
opportunity to deploy the Institute’s resources to give educators more money, guidance, collaboration, and leadership. This
and expertise as a force for good in the region year, educators faced intersecting national crises—
from Aspen to Parachute. Aspen locals Bob medical, economic, racial—that disrupted school
Hurst, an Institute trustee, and Soledad for a generation of young people. Meanwhile,
schools ended up acting as first responders,
Hurst saw that need too. The result: the
providing millions of meals and ensuring access
new Hurst Community Initiative, directed
to computers and broadband, straining their
by Evan Zislis, the Institute’s new director
capacity to focus on their core work. Evers
of community engagement. Dedicated to
acknowledged schools shouldn’t handle so much
promoting dialogue and increasing and said multiple agencies should connect their
understanding, the initiative collaborates with work—and their budgets—to better serve families.
Evers
government officials, nonprofits, community aspeninstitute.org/education-and-society
organizers, the private sector, immigrants, and
philanthropists. The initiative began work at a
moment of new need: hard hit by Covid-19,
Aspen and Snowmass endured the highest
unemployment rates in Colorado and an
BEYOND BELIEF
The American idea is rooted in a vision of people from all religious and ethnic
already high suicide rate, with the area’s Latinx backgrounds uniting in a single nation. The Institute’s Inclusive America Project
community bearing the heaviest burden. embraces this pluralism, in which everyone has the rights, freedoms, and safety
Initiative projects already underway include to worship, or not, according to their conscience. Yet distrust among and about
a Hurst Leadership Seminar, conducted with faith communities is increasing and exacerbating polarization. To combat that,
the Institute’s Executive Leadership Seminars the Inclusive America Project launched a new leadership program, the Powering
Program; an Opportunity Youth Forum in Pluralism Network, a group of nearly 70 American civic and religious leaders who
collaboration with the Institute’s Forum for are as diverse as the nation. One member, Simran Jeet Singh, authored the first
Community Solutions; regional BIPOC children’s book, Fauja Singh Keeps Going, from a major US publisher to center
youth outreach designed to introduce and on a Sikh story. Another member, Cheryl Cook, leads
Avodah, an organization
sustain meaningful experiences in the public
that trains young Jewish
lands of the White River National Forest, in Courtesy Penguin Random House
leaders to tackle pressing
collaboration with the Institute’s Energy and
social and economic issues.
Environment Program; and a regional forum in
This program brings these
collaboration with the Institute’s Community leaders together across
Strategies Group. Focused on recovery and religious traditions to
resilience, the Hurst Community Initiative learn, build relationships,
will connect these and the many other and support their work in
community-focused Institute programs with local communities across the
the Roaring Fork and Colorado River Valleys.  country.
aspeninstitute.org/hurst-community-initiative aspeninstitute.org/iap/ppn

“THE
FIERCE
Courtesy Renick Aspen Action Forum
URGENCY
Hildegard Vasquez, Kelsey Wirth, Albright, Gómez-Colón
OF NOW”
The Resnick Aspen Action Forum is a platform for Aspen Global inspired me; fellows and moderators pushed me and, ultimately,
Leadership Network fellows—a community of values-driven invested to make our company happen,” he said. As is tradition,
entrepreneurial leaders—to gather, explore societal challenges, fellows also made Action Pledges, public commitments to social
and act. In a year plagued by crises, the theme, “The Fierce impact. For example, Health Innovators Fellow Megan Jones Bell
Urgency of Now: Uncomfortable Leadership,” was especially pledged to “improve psychological resilience for one million people
relevant. More than 500 participants and 150 youth from 35 in the US.” Central America Leadership Initiative Fellow Jaime
countries joined online. At the opening plenary, Henry Crown Zablah Siri pledged to create 5,000 new jobs for El Salvadorans
Fellow and Institute trustee Jacqueline Novogratz told fellows previously involved in violence. The closing plenary included
that “deep listening” is key to activating the moral imagination. multiple generations of leaders, from former US Secretary of
“What binds this community is a deep desire to be of service,” State Madeleine Albright to youth activist Salvador Gómez-
Novogratz said. Henry Crown Fellow Dan Hoffman then brought Colón, who left fellows with his thoughts on leadership: “Every
the Institute’s seminar experience online with his platform: Circl.es. leader needs to ask: how are my actions today impacting someone
Inspired by his fellowship, Hoffman created the interface to bring else’s tomorrow? Because leadership is not about self or ego but
meaningful connection to a virtual format. “The Aspen curriculum about others.” agln.aspeninstitute.org/resnickaspenactionforum
FAIR SHARE
Structural inequity has created stark wealth divides along
racial and gender lines—divides that have only worsened during
the pandemic. White households have roughly 10 times the
wealth of Black households, and households headed by single
women have less than 40 percent of the wealth of those
headed by single men. This limits critical opportunities like
Courtesy Penguin Random House
home ownership, entrepreneurship, education, and retirement from Recology; Janet Boguslaw from the Institute for the
savings. Employee share ownership, which allows workers to Study of Employee Ownership and Profit Sharing at Rutgers
hold shares or buy shares in their company, has an important University; Todd Leverette from the Democracy at Work
role to play in correcting these inequities and giving workers Institute; Kimberly Adams from Marketplace; and opening
a chance to meaningfully participate in the economy. The speaker Natalie Abatemarco from Citi Community Investing
Economic Opportunities Program held a virtual event—“Can and Development. The event was part of the program’s ongoing
Employee Share Ownership Improve Racial and Gender Wealth Opportunity in America series, which examines economic
Equity?”—that brought a dynamic lineup to the Institute, opportunity in the US and the implications it has for people
including Ayanna Banks, Susan Hoop, and Julie Bertani-Kiser and communities across the country. Watch at as.pn/equity.

COUNT US IN
Mandated by the US Constitution, the Census counts all people Brandon Lujan (Taos Pueblo) created a youth council in his
living in America every 10 years. The data collected determines community of Taos, New Mexico. At 19, Lujan serves as youth chair
funding for critical education and social-services programs. And for Taos Pueblo’s Census Committee. His efforts include advertising
for the past 150 years, Native people have been undercounted. in the native language Tiwa, distributing Census gift bags to tribal
This means minimal funding for improvements on reservation members, and mobilizing youth to post Census flyers around the
infrastructure, health care, and political representation in tribal community. Another participant, JoRee LaFrance (Apsáalooke)
communities. Though the Census Bureau has worked with tribes and empowers youth on the Crow Reservation. LaFrance created an
organizations, and Congress has intervened, much of the burden of initiative inviting youth to create murals that answer the question,
counting falls on the communities themselves. The Institute’s Center “What does the Census and counting mean to me?” Participating
for Native American Youth has worked alongside the National Urban youth were then required to have conversations about the Census
Indian Family Coalition and others to promote youth-led initiatives with their entire family. LaFrance has also partnered with award-
that help ensure tribal communities are accurately counted. CNAY winning artist Ben Pease to create a mural on display at the entrance
launched a Generation Indigenous campaign called “Democracy is to the reservation. Crow is one of the largest Indian reservations in
Indigenous” to train youth across the nation to support community- the country, and the implications of undercounting her community
driven action in a way that elevates Native American culture. All are stark. Despite the current administration’s decision to end
“Democracy is Indigenous” participants received micro-grant Census data collection early, Native youth continue to lead their
funding to support their initiatives. tribal communities and remind them that they count. cnay.org

PLIGHT TO VOTE
Every day, Native people face systemic oppression. These experiences of injustice affect Native
youth’s voting behavior and political engagement. The Institute’s Center for Native American Youth
with partners IllumiNative, Native Organizers Alliance, and the University of Michigan surveyed
1,100 young Indigenous peoples to provide a precise representation of the problem. cnay.org
The most common

reasons Native
youth don’t vote >> 34% Do not update
their address
after moving. 18% Think voting
does not
matter.
Native youth were

24%
Report not being able Report the polling
1.5 times to access polling due

to work hours.
31%
place is too far away.
more likely than older

18% 27%
Report not receiving
adults to experience Report a lack of their absentee ballot
transportation
barriers to voting >> to the polls.
on time.
9 in 10 ONLY 1 in 3
Native youth feel others do not Native youth believe non-Natives are aware
care about their experiences. of the racism Natives experience.
ARTISANS RISE TO THE COVID CHALLENGE

With the decline of international travel and safe employment for
vulnerable populations, Covid-19 has caused a major decrease in
demand for artisan products. In response, the Artisan Alliance, an Aspen
Global Innovators Group program that supports artisan businesses
around the world, created the PPE Grant Fund and Producer’s
Coalition to provide support and resources to artisan enterprises that
are rising to the Covid-19 challenge. With grants from the US African
Development Foundation, Western Union Foundation, and Resolve
to Save Lives/Vital Strategies, the PPE Grant Fund channels small
grants and technical assistance to producers so they can manufacture
personal protective equipment, retrain artisans to make PPE, and
employ artisans to respond to Africa’s Covid-19 crisis. The Producer’s
Coalition then connects enterprises transitioning to PPE production,
so they can share advice and technical assistance. Since the beginning
of the pandemic, Artisan Alliance partners have employed close to
Courtesy Shining Hope for Communities

500 artisans, producing over 100,000 pieces of PPE, including
surgical masks and gowns. To date, the Artisan Alliance has provided
subgrants to Shining Hope for Communities in Kenya, the HEVA
Fund in Kenya, and Gahaya Links in Rwanda. The Artisan Alliance
plans to grow the PPE for Africa Fund to support an additional 10
countries in Africa. artisanalliance.org Shining Hope for Communities
PROTECT THE WORLD

The possibility of a safe and effective Covid-19 vaccine ways to strengthen R&D within the vaccine ecosystem.
seems within reach: fueled by humanitarianism and a vast One of the most important public health advances of the
market, an immense research and development effort is past century, vaccines have long faced scientific, regulatory,
underway around the world. The effort has already yielded technical, manufacturing, and financial challenges. The
crucial lessons. In September, the Sabin-Aspen Vaccine result: huge societal costs and lost opportunities to improve
Science & Policy Group, part of the Institute’s Health, human health. By showing what resources, science,
Medicine and Society Program, met virtually to explore partnerships, and regulatory flexibility can do, Covid-19 has
been a game-changer in the quest to speed the discovery,
testing, and approval of vaccines. Sabin-Aspen members
considered how to apply this response to other infectious
diseases, like malaria, HIV, tuberculosis, and influenza. After
expert presentations and vigorous discussions, members
Scribing by Megan Kearney, the Diffeence
made recommendations to improve vaccine R&D: invest

more in vaccine science, harmonize international regulation,
and reinvent clinical-trial design. Covid-19 shows what’s
possible with the right commitments. It’s time to make those
commitments to all vaccine-preventable diseases.
aspeninstitute.org/sabin-aspen

A FORCE
FOR NATURE
In September, the Institute’s Energy

Courtesy Shining Hope for Communities
and Environment Program launched K12

Climate Action, unleashing education as a
force for climate justice. The K12 Climate
Action Commission, co-chaired by former
Education Secretary John B. King Jr. and
former EPA Administrator and former
New Jersey Governor Christine Todd
Whitman, will prepare children to promote
a sustainable society. The commission will
start with a listening tour to hear from
education leaders and to develop policy
recommendations to support schools’
environmental efforts. In October, K12
Climate Action released a report examining
existing state policies in mitigation,
adaptation, and education. Only six states
have policies targeting net-zero energy
consumption in schools, and 29 states and
DC require teaching human-caused climate
change in science standards. K12 Climate
Action is building a coalition of people and
organizations who know education is key
to fighting climate change. Want to help?
k12climateaction.org
Scribing by Megan Kearney, the Diffeence
THE SOCRATIC METHOD, 2.0

The Socrates Program kicked off 2020
with great optimism, offering five January
programs in Mexico, Maryland, Oregon,
Washington, and London, and a February
Winter Seminar series in Aspen. But as the
pandemic came into focus, the Socrates
Program shifted, launching “Socrates
Goes Digital,” a series of public discussions
and seminars. The first, “Learning from
Lincoln: Leadership in a Time of Crisis,”
was held in April. Since then, Socrates has
offered over 20 discussions with notable
Courtesy Socrates Program

leaders, like Joseph Nye, Henrietta
Holsman Fore, and Daniel Kahneman.
More than 4,500 participants have joined
live or via recording. Next, Socrates will
iStock
Lisa Kay Solomon leads the seminar leads the seminar “Vote by Design: Presidential Election.”
partner with Aspen Romania for digital
seminars on transatlantic relations and
health care, and will offer digital seminars
in Mexico, the United Kingdom, and Japan.
WORKSHOP REGISTRATION The program’s off-the-record, intimate
OPENS JANUARY 4 conversations arise when participants take
the time to grapple with significant texts
Register Today! | andersonranch.org
and topics. Covid-19 has interrupted life,
but the reach of digital programming can
keep us connected.
aspeninstitute.org/socrates-digital
KEEP THE
CONVERSATION
GOING!
This winter, the Socrates Program has
new events planned with its partners at
Amazon Web Services about the future of
Anderson Ranch Arts Center
tech in a post-Covid-19 world. Check out
5263 Owl Creek Road
Snowmass Village, CO 81615 the Calendar on page 63 to learn more.
970/923-3181 | info@andersonranch.org

Courtesy Socrates Program
iStock
GIVING IT THE THE WINNERS ARE:
COLLEGE TRY
Cuyahoga Community College’s nursing program in Ohio improves
degree completion for students of color with mentoring, tuition
assistance, and other strategies.
This year, the Institute’s College Excellence Program Green River College’s information technology program in Washington
gave eight community college technical programs a state increases American Indian enrollment and brings IT courses to
tribal colleges.
$50,000 Excellence and Equity in Community College
STEM Award, funded by the Siemens Foundation. Lake Area Technical College’s welding technology program in South
Dakota recruits refugees from Myanmar and gives them English lessons
These programs are creating strong career tracks for and technical instruction.
diverse students by preparing them for high-demand
Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College’s process operations
jobs in advanced manufacturing, energy, health care, technology program expands women’s access to the well-paid but male-
and IT. Experts predict STEM jobs will grow at almost dominated petrochemical industry.
double the rate of other US occupations, but these San Jacinto College’s nursing program in Texas cuts exam and
careers have racial, gender, and ethnic disparities. equipment costs, and adds test-prep courses to attract and retain
underserved students.
“It’s not enough for community colleges to offer great
pathways to high-demand, high-wage jobs,” says Josh San Jacinto College’s process technology program increases enrollment
of low-income, Hispanic, and female students.
Wyner, the College Excellence Program’s executive
Seminole State College of Florida’s networking technologies program
director. “They must ensure all students have equitable
sees their graduates recruited for jobs that once went only to those with
access to opportunities. These eight programs show bachelor’s degrees.
how it’s done.” Each program targets underserved Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology’s electrical technology
populations and sets students up for success. program works with Pennsylvania nonprofits to increase diverse
enrollment and provide notable financial support and paid internships.
highered.aspeninstitute.org

SPORTING CHANCES
The Institute’s Project Play Summit, part of the Sports & Society
Program and the nation’s premier gathering of sports leaders for
healthy communities, went digital in October with the largest
audience in its six-year history. The summit focused on creating a
sustainable, post-pandemic sports model for all kids, regardless of
race, gender, income, or ability. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver
encouraged young athletes to connect with their feelings: “There’s
nothing wrong with speaking up as a kid and saying, ‘I’m struggling
in these areas,’ or ‘I’m anxious.’” Crystal Dunn, a member of the
US women’s soccer team, said racial representation in sports is
critical. As the only Black girl on her youth soccer team, she said,
“it was quite lonely at times.” Allyson Felix, a six-time Olympic
track and field gold medalist, offered advice: “Young athletes might
feel like they need to have a platform or a following. But we all
have a following in our own lives, and it looks like our families and
friends.” Michael Lewis, the author of The Blind Side and Moneyball,
said pay-for-play travel sports are broken: “You can only look at
it like a market for addictive drugs—an endless supply of anxious
parents willing to cough up whatever it takes to give their kids an
edge.” The travel soccer system “could be so much better,” agreed
US women’s soccer star Alex Morgan. “Kids are forced into one
sport at too young an age.” Other speakers included NFL Hall of
Famer Terrell Owens, retired NBA star Vince Carter, Olympic
gold-medal gymnast Laurie Hernandez, ESPN President
Jimmy Pitaro, 17-time Paralympic medalist Tatyana McFadden,
gold-medal speed skater Apolo Ohno, WNBA player Chiney
Courtesy Allyson Felix

Ogwumike, US Olympic & Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah
Hirshland, and San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg. Check out Felix
Project Play Summit 2020 replays and recaps at as.pn/ppsummit.
P L AY I N A PA N D E M I C
64% 29%
Parents who said their
child is not interested
in sports during the
pandemic.
Parents who fear their child
$903
will get sick by resuming
What the average family
sports when Covid-19
spent per child annually
restrictions are lifted.
across all sports before
the pandemic.
Source: Aspen Institute/Utah State University youth sports parent survey, September 2020

CURL UP WITH A GOOD BOOK
The 24th Winter Words series presents six virtual events featuring some of the world’s most gifted writers. From nonfiction that
examines urgent social issues to fiction that reimagines a famous politician’s life, this season is sure to inspire. aspenwords.org
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents Rodham Homeland Elegies Whale Day
by Isabel Wilkerson by Curtis Sittenfeld by Ayad Akhtar by Billy Collins
This book, by the best-selling Sittenfeld, a New York Times best- Pulitzer Prize–winner Akhtar A former US poet laureate, Collins
author of The Warmth of Other selling author, explores the fantasy combines fiction, memoir, and is known to navigate humor and
Suns, explores how an unspoken of what could have been had Hillary history to tell the provocative story serious reflection on the same
caste system shaped the US. Using Rodham not married Bill Clinton. of a Muslim Pakistani family in the page. In his newest collection, he
real people’s stories, Wilkerson, a The novel pokes holes in real events US and their search for identity again leaps from the quirky to
Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, until the reader is enmeshed in a and belonging as they confront the familiar, taking the everyman
presents a new framework to view new (literary) reality. the possibilities and limitations of experience and revealing the
identity and injustice at home. American life. wonders it embodies.
Aspen | Avon | Carbondale | Crested Butte | Denver Tech Center | Glenwood Springs | Rie
Courtesy Allyson Felix
Big-City Legal Services, Small-Town Practice Attorneys in Litigation & Transactional Law
Gareld & Hecht, P.C. is a proud sponsor of the Sandra Day O’Connor Conversation Series
Now also in Carbondale at 225 Main Street, Suite 306
www.gareldhecht.com | 970.925.1936 ph | atty@gareldhecht.com

IMPACT: ASPEN TECH POLICY HUB
TECH
Photos by Bryan Walker Ting

SUPPORT Jacobs
Tech and Education

MADISON JACOBS
Head of Marketing and Communications, Public Rights Project
When I heard about the Aspen Tech Policy Hub, I was

working at Google. I remember feeling immediately com-
pelled to apply. After spending a decade leading product-
marketing initiatives and loving my work (while hating the
systems of oppression that plague Black folks in a predomi-
Three Aspen Tech Policy Hub nantly white Silicon Valley), I felt hungry to learn about
fellows put their digital skills the ins and outs of policy to drive positive change for the
underserved. I had grown so tired of seeing people of color
to use for the greater good. get shortchanged in many areas of their lives and not seeing
enough actionable policies in place to help shift this nar-
T
rative—especially in government. My hub journey armed
he Institute launched the Aspen Tech Policy Hub in me with the skills I needed to understand how policy is ef-
2019 to bridge the gulf between the US government fectively ideated, created, and adopted, and it ignited a pas-
and the technology industry. Technology innovation sion for public service in me.
and policy development largely occur independent- At the hub, Google’s Nidhi Hebbar, another fellow and
ly of one another, despite the critical role technology plays in education technology expert, and I poured our minds and
shaping society. The hub is changing that by empowering tech- souls into the EdTech Equity Project, which provides edtech
nologists to learn more about policy. The fellowship program companies with tangible, technical practices for more equi-
trains technologists in the policy process during a 10-week in- table product design and development. It also guides schools
residence program in the Bay Area. The first four weeks feature to prioritize racial equity during the edtech evaluation and
an intensive policy bootcamp: fellows study government struc- procurement process. We want to create strong partner-
tures, learn how to advocate for innovative solutions, and hear ships across schools, communities, and the edtech industry
from technology and policy experts on critical issues of the day. to champion the needs of students of color. After complet-
Fellows then spend the next six weeks of the program iterating, ing the hub fellowship, I joined the Public Rights Project—a
developing, and advocating for an innovative solution to a pol- national nonprofit that builds state, local, and tribal govern-
icy problem they are passionate about. Since the 2019 launch, ments’ capacity to equitably enforce residents’ rights—and
the hub has hosted two cohorts of 15 fellows each. Fellows have am now leading their communications team.
gone on to make considerable impact in the technology policy I’m thankful to the hub for creating space for me to do work
world, creating new nonprofits, changing careers, and affecting that is so important—and for its continued support as I light the
corporate culture. Below, three fellows share their experiences. torches of action that ensure the fight for justice always shines
aspentechpolicyhub.org bright. edtechequity.org | publicrightsproject.org

Tech and Crisis Response
RAYLENE YUNG
Co-founder and CEO of US Digital Response
I now lead an organization that works with government

partners in 36 states and territories. But before the Aspen
Tech Policy Hub fellowship, this would have been unthink-
able to me. I’d spent my career immersed in the tech indus-
try, leading engineering teams through rapid scaling and
growth. The public sector is new to me. Within weeks at
the hub, I learned how technology policy plays a role in
everything from how quickly people receive benefits to how
well voting systems function.
Photos by Bryan Walker Ting
Covid-19 hit the United States just as our in-person

fellowship was ending. Armed with new knowledge and a
deep respect for the power of working across disciplines, I
co-founded US Digital Response in March 2020 with help
from another fellow, Jessica Cole. We started with a simple Day
idea: how could volunteer tech talent team up with govern-
ment to bring meaningful and effective change to outdated
systems and services in a time of crisis? What started as a Tech and Justice
pop-up volunteer organization has since turned into a phil- ALLISON DAY
anthropically funded, full-scale, rapid-response network Program Manager, Google Assistant
with thousands of technologists standing by to help and
over 100 projects completed across 36 states and territories. I work at Google alongside teams of engineers, product
So far, US Digital Response teams developed a template managers, creative writers, and linguists to bring the Google
for an elections-information website that is in use across Assistant—next-generation artificial intelligence—to life.
a dozen counties, helped the Commonwealth of Pennsyl- Before coming to tech, I worked in social services combat-
vania track and model hospital capacity at the peak of the ing cycles of violence, homelessness, and poverty. There is a
pandemic, and created a system to let small businesses in stark contrast between building cutting-edge technology and
California find out if they’re eligible for stimulus funds. providing basic shelter and safety to society’s most vulner-
And we’re just getting started. usdigitalresponse.org able. Coming to tech, I wanted to make a broader impact for
justice, equity, and inclusion than I was able to do in direct
social work. I needed to figure out how to bridge the gap
Yung between tech’s power players and the people who have fallen
through the cracks.
At the Aspen Tech Policy Hub, I spent a jam-packed
summer learning about policymaking, critical dialogue, and
hands-on advocacy projects. The hub was a once-in-a-life-
time opportunity to engage deeply on critical contemporary
questions around tech policy with a diverse group of pas-
sionate and talented technologists who share a mission to
change the world for the better. I emerged with solid experi-
ence building policy outputs through my fellowship project,
which improves data accountability within the criminal jus-
tice system.
I returned to Google equipped with new advocacy tools
and a deepened perspective, and I was better able to impact
tech product development. I’ve since been deeply involved
with internal product and policy efforts around tech equity
and inclusion, and I am active in rapid-response efforts for
emerging social and political issues in this unprecedented
year. The hub allowed me to combine my tech and civic ex-
perience for social justice.

IMPACT: HEALTH INNOVATORS FELLOWSHIP
RAPID RESPONSE
The Institute’s Health Innovators fellows have been at the forefront
of the battle against the Covid-19 pandemic—from exploring
precision medicine to securing PPE. By Victoria Scheffel
W Alen Voskanian
ith a global pandemic and a resulting world-
wide economic contraction, we need smart,
values-driven, adaptive leadership more than Medical Director of Cedars-Sinai Medical Group
ever. This is particularly true in the health care industry, As a medical director, I lead about 200 physicians and 50 nurse
which has had to create its own playbook during this high- practitioners and physician assistants. When Covid-19 first
stakes crisis. unfolded, I realized immediately that safety was paramount.
Members of the Aspen Institute’s Health Innovators I needed to put my stake in the ground and say these are the
Fellowship have heeded this call for leadership. The Insti- absolute musts and these are the absolute nos.
tute launched the fellowship in 2015 to create a cadre of We as providers have to have the correct personal
leaders committed to addressing the unique challenges of protective equipment to do our work, and I had to be the
health care in the United States—both individually and col- voice saying, “I’m never going to ask you to do something if
lectively. Guided by their values and working as both indi- you don’t have the proper PPE.”
viduals and a collective, Health Innovators fellows have used I constantly channeled the discussions I had as a Health
the lessons and the support of the fellowship to address the Innovators fellow to help guide my thinking and identify
urgent needs of today. Three fellows write here about how the values I needed to make clear clinical decisions. Who
they changed their work once Covid-19 arrived in the coun- gets an N95 mask? Who gets a surgical mask? How do we
try and in their professional lives. make sure everybody on the team—including nursing and
administrative staff—has access to the right PPE?
Communicating clearly from the onset of the pandemic
that our clinicians and staff would never work in an unsafe
“We quickly created environment fostered critical trust. It also increased everyone’s
GetUsPPE. Although motivation and, ultimately, improved the health and safety
of our staff and patients. Using my fellowship experience
we saw it as a stop-gap and thinking about justice and equity as my foundation, I’ve
been able to respond to challenges and support providers as
at the time, it still we all face this together.
thrives, and has delivered
almost three million pieces
of equipment, developed
the country’s only PPE
Scarcity Index, and created
a ‘fairness framework’ for
equitably directing and
distributing the PPE
Courtesy Alen Voskanian
we receive.”
—Megan Ranney Voskanian

Megan Ranney
Founding Director of Brown-Lifespan Center for Digital Health
Chief Research Officer of AFFIRM
I’m an emergency physician. When Covid-19 struck, my
home state of Rhode Island had one of the earliest identi-
fied cases. But a leadership vacuum at the federal level had
failed to prepare us for the onslaught. When we continued
to see no action, I realized I had an obligation—and an
opportunity—to develop grassroots solutions.
At first, we came together as a group of doctors com-
mitted to do more than just write and talk about Cov-
id-19—we needed something for our colleagues who were
working in dangerous situations without protection. We
quickly created GetUsPPE. Although we saw it as a stop-
Courtesy Patrick Hines
gap at the time, GetUsPPE still thrives, and has delivered

almost three million pieces of equipment, developed the
country’s only PPE Scarcity Index, and created a “fairness
Hines
framework” for equitably directing and distributing the
PPE we receive.
Patrick Hines Unfortunately, as Covid-19 diagnoses inexorably creep
up nationwide, we continue to face shortages of both PPE
Founder and CEO of Functional Fluidics
and testing supplies. I particularly worry about the inter-
When Covid-19 hit, I looked at the world and knew I section of all three epidemics we are facing—Covid-19,
needed to act. My company, Functional Fluidics, develops racism, and violence—and their harm in the months to
technology for pharmaceutical companies and health care come.
providers to evaluate new therapies that modify red blood I continue to have hope. I’m inspired by the hard work
cell health. Because one area for combating Covid-19 fo- and dedication of our volunteers, health care providers,
cuses on the health of red blood cells, I knew that both our and community members, who persevere, coordinate, and
clinical work and research could be relevant to evaluating communicate to realize a better vision of our country.
drugs under development for frontline use. They refuse to let physical separation stop our efforts at so-
People were dying from this virus, and we had a lab to cial and emotional connection and protection. It is because
study it. We saw that Covid-positive patients with red blood of them that I trust we will be okay.
cell damage were more likely to develop severe symptoms as
a result of poor oxygen delivery. Equally important, we saw Victoria Scheffel is the senior communications coordinator for the
that people infected by the coronavirus continued to have Institute’s leadership division.
abnormal red blood cell function even after they recovered
from the acute infection, which could explain many of the Ranney
symptoms reported in post-Covid syndrome. We are work-
ing to identify people with red blood cell damage, which
can potentially be treated both when patients are suffering
from acute infections and when they become part of the
growing post-Covid population. This type of precision-
medicine approach could facilitate better resource utiliza-
tion for health care systems during the pandemic.
Helping those who have or have recovered from Co-
vid-19 fare better, cope better, and feel better by under-
standing the mechanisms of their illness is every bit as
important as diagnosing people to stop the spread. We cre-
ated a tool that could help—and that was where we needed
to focus our efforts.
Courtesy Alen Voskanian
I’m hopeful that the answers are, in many cases, right in

Stephanie Ewens
front of us. The question is if we have the compassion as a

society to think about the whole and not just the individual
so we can make some of these answers real.

AS HEARD AT: ASPEN IDEAS HEALTH
Courtesy Blackstock and Roy

Blackstock Roy
BILL OF HEALTH
As part of the digital Aspen Ideas: Health webinar series,
Dr. Uché Blackstock spoke to Dr. Lipi Roy about a more diverse health
care workforce, disparities in health outcomes, and why hospitals
shouldn’t rely on diversity officers.
T
he Aspen Ideas: Health program hosted a series LIPI ROY: How has this current coronavirus outbreak
of free, public, digital events this year on topics highlighted or reinforced the need to address health
including Covid-19 testing and tracing, advances disparities and inequities? And why is diversifying the health
in Medicare and Medicaid, and the art-brain care workforce a key element to advancing health equity in
the United States?
connection. One event, hosted in September, focused on two of
the biggest stories of the year: Covid-19 and racial equity. Dr. UCHÉ BLACKSTOCK: One of the reasons why I founded
Uché Blackstock, the founder and CEO of Advancing Health Advancing Health Equity was because there were significant
Equity, has seen firsthand how the pandemic has highlighted preexisting racial health inequities, even prior to the
inequities throughout the health system and is actively working pandemic. Often in my talks and trainings, I talk about how
to change that. Blackstock spoke to Dr. Lipi Roy, a clinical we’ve heard about the Black maternal mortality crisis. That
has gotten a lot of press over the last few years. But there’s
assistant professor at NYU Langone Health and a medical
also an infant mortality crisis, with Black babies being more
contributor to MSNBC and NBC News, about everything than twice as likely as white babies to die within their first
from the effect of Covid-19 on minority populations to leaving year of life. That’s a wider disparity now than it was 15 years
academia for a career in social justice. before the end of slavery.

We also know that Black men have the shortest life targeted intentional programs that support students all
expectancy. Communities of color carried the highest the way through the pipeline.
burden of chronic disease even before the pandemic.
Even in my own work—in my clinical work, I still work LR: Beyond creating diversity and inclusion task forces,
part-time in urgent care—I noticed at the beginning of what other meaningful actions can hospitals and health
the pandemic how my patient population had shifted from systems take to support minority physicians and to combat
a very racially and socioeconomically diverse population gender bias and racism?
to mostly Black and brown patients. Many of them were
essential workers and service workers. I saw with my own UB: In my own experience in academic medicine, I
eyes who this pandemic was impacting the most. The got to see firsthand what it’s like to be a Black woman
pandemic has unveiled these profound inequities that physician within academia. I learned that, yes, these
have always been there. We’re seeing them in a starker task forces can be useful, but they really are Band-Aids.
fashion, and we’re seeing Black, Latin, and indigenous What we need is buy-in from institutional leadership. We
populations being decimated by this virus. need to have CEOs and deans of medical centers and
There was an older Black man who came in with medical schools who legitimately care about these issues
Courtesy Blackstock and Roy
Covid-19 symptoms. He had Covid pneumonia. I wanted and understand that if you have an equitable working
to send him to the emergency department, and he said environment, that’s going to trickle down to the care you
to me, “Doc, honestly, I’m scared to go there because provide. These values need to be instilled in strategic
I don’t think I’ll be treated well.” Essentially, he meant plans and to be part of every leadership person’s role,
that as a Black man, he did not think he would get the not just the chief diversity officer. The chief diversity
care he deserved. And we have seen in the data from the officer should not be the only person thinking about
pandemic that there are disparities in care depending on diversity, equity, inclusion, or antiracism. It should be
which hospital you go to; there may be some accentuation within everyone’s roles and responsibilities. Otherwise,
of provider bias. So these were valid and just concerns what happens is people say: “Oh, that person’s dealing
that this patient had. I was glad he was able to express with it. It’s not my problem.” It really should be all of
them to me, and we were able to have a conversation our problems.
about it. We also need to review practices and policies within
institutions to see how they create bias and racism
LR: We know that Black and Hispanic individuals now and sexism. Because we know these policies, whether
make up about 30 percent of the US population, yet they intentional or unintentional, do that. So there needs to be
are only 15 percent of first-year medical students. So more intentionality at every step of the way within these
what gaps in the physician pipeline are preventing more organizations.
minority students from pursuing careers in medicine?
LR: What advice would you give to a young Black woman
UB: Again, the pandemic is revealing these inequities, looking to pursue a career in medicine today?
and we know that a diverse workforce is one of the
solutions, though not the only solution, to addressing UB: The journey I thought I would take as a physician has
these inequities. People need to understand that the same been very different than the journey I’m currently on. I
problem—racism—that has led to these racial inequities thought I would stay in academic medicine for the rest of
among patients is also the problem that’s leading to the lack my career. But I’m actually creating this new path. I was
of Black physicians. The social determinants of health, just promoted last year to associate professor, and people
such as employment, education, and transportation, are thought I was crazy when I said, “I’m leaving to start
all important to developing communities. If you don’t an organization that focuses on addressing racial health
have opportunities for wealth, how can your family ever inequities.” People looked at me like, “What are you
afford to send you to college? If you live in communities thinking?” My message not just to young Black women
that have experienced disinvestment and you have never thinking about medicine but really anyone who really
met someone who is a physician, you have no role model. wants to do advocacy and even social justice work is: Your
If you’re going to chronically underfunded schools that future may look different than what you thought, but you
offer, unfortunately, a poor-quality education, you may not really have to take that leap of faith. If you believe in
even be prepared for a medical education. This pipeline your mission and you walk that path, then everything will
has to start from kindergarten. We need mentoring. We ultimately work out.
need resources going into schools in underrepresented
communities starting from the very beginning, with All transcripts have been edited for length and clarity.

AS HEARD AT: ART
Dan Bayer
RADICAL
SCENE CHANGE
Anna Deavere Smith and Oskar Eustis explore the future of
live theater in a turbulent time.
L
ive theater is intimately connected to the ANNA DEAVERE SMITH: How is The Public Theater
audience watching it. But with the arrival of a responding to this moment in world history? As you know,
African American artists and artists of color from different
global pandemic and social distancing, theater
disciplines are speaking up.
and many other artistic endeavors have been
shuttered. For the moment, live theater is a super-spreader OSKAR EUSTIS: We are being faced with our own
event. At the same time, there is upheaval occuring community, who is asking to hold us accountable for the words
around the country as Americans reckon with racism, and and the values we use. I am spending a lot of time listening
to my own staff, who have a lot to say, and also to the artistic
more and more artistic leaders are being asked to confront
communities that are also speaking up. The job of the Public
white supremacy. This was the backdrop for a recent Theater right now is to recognize that we are entangled in
“Aspen Leadership Series: Conversations with Great white supremacy, we are entangled in the racist assumptions
Leaders: In Memory of Preston Robert Tisch” discussion that have built this country, and we—white leadership—do
between Anna Deavere Smith, an actress, playwright, not see those things as clearly as we must. We need to listen,
learn how to see each other better, and figure out collectively
professor, and Institute trustee, and Oskar Eustis, the
how we’re going to change to be more just, more equitable,
artistic director of the Public Theater and our Harman/ more inclusive, and more democratic, which are values that
Eisner artist in residence. we deeply believe and have so far insufficiently upheld.

ADS: Let’s think for a second about the mission of The from the beginning—that freedom for white males was
Public Theater. I arrived in New York at the end of the ’70s, absolutely dependent on slavery and genocide and was
walked into The Public Theater, and saw Ed Bullins—a never separate from those—that’s beautifully radical.
Black playwright who was really hot in the ’60s cultural
revolution—walking around. I wouldn’t have seen Ed ADS: What can art do? What are the limitations?
Bullins standing in the lobby of any other nonprofit theater
or for-profit theater other than Black theaters. But other OE: Art has so many limitations, it’s almost embarrassing
white theaters? I can’t think of one where Ed Bullins would to talk about. People don’t walk into our theaters thinking
be standing and where Ed Bullins had a writer’s workshop one thing and walk out with a new ideology. I don’t think
that you could just come to on Saturdays. That’s what I call we transmit ideology. I don’t think we transmit information.
a radical welcome. So, there’s something in the mission of The most politically effective piece of theater I was ever
The Public Theater that perhaps you can cultivate further. personally involved with was Angels in America. When I say,
“politically effective,” I don’t think many people walked in
OE: The Public Theater has the most perfect mission of any being right-wing homophobes and then walked out saying,
theater I’ve ever been associated with. We’re being faced “Let me have a drink with Larry Kramer.” But I do think
with one of those moments right now where we have to look people walked into that theater—I know personally a number
Dan Bayer
at ourselves in the mirror and say: “Can we live up to these of homophobic people who walked into that theater—and
values better? Can we do this mission more completely than had the experience of identifying for seven hours with these
we’ve been doing it?” And the answer to that is yes. The brilliant, complex, proudly gay characters, and they walked
public is demanding that we live up to what it stands for. out having had incredible empathy with people they had
previously “othered.” That actually changes people’s hearts.
ADS: Martin Luther King’s Letter from Birmingham Jail, But there was no legislation that happened because of Angels
which is so eloquent, includes one very simple sentence (not in America. I do think it was part of changing how this country
many of the sentences are simple), which is: “Privileged looked at gay people—and only a part of it. But a part that
groups seldom give up their privileges voluntarily.” It takes I’m proud of.
resistance; it takes rebellion. What privileges are leaders of
American artistic institutions going to have to give up? What ADS: What can we, as theater makers, do to uplift other
are some of the things you’re hearing loudest? stories? Do we need to leave that to artists of color? I’m very
concerned about the extent to which my students feel that
OE: There are decision-making processes that feel organic what we can say is connected to our birth race.
and natural to me that other people feel are completely
secretive and opaque. To many, how decisions are made, how OE: It’s a very tricky question because there aren’t any
the levers of power are moved, feels impossible to see—like simple answers to any real artistic questions. There’re a
some kind of illuminati working. It feels private and secret. couple of different values that are warring here. One is
I never would have thought that; that was not how I look the fact that you have to make sure you are giving space
at it. But I’m hearing that criticism, and I’m taking it really to people to tell their own story. Every great movement in
seriously. There is a call for radical transparency. That’s the theater history has come about because we’ve expanded
kind of thing that I’m hearing: unexamined assumptions the enfranchisement of the stage. We’ve given the stage
about who has power, who has control, who gets privilege over to more people who get to be the subjects of their
to access. own history, not the objects of their own history. So,
I come from a Marxist tradition, and the genuine criticism empowering voices of color is absolutely necessary. Yet at
leveled against that tradition is that it privileged class struggle the same time, we as Americans are all bound up together
over racial struggle. It saw racial oppression as secondary to in a system that is built on racism and oppression, and that
class oppression. It saw racism as a class phenomenon, not a implicates all of us. We are responsible for our own actions,
root cause. I’ve known for a long time that that analysis was we are responsible for our own lives, we’re responsible for
flawed. But in the last weeks, I’ve been educated about how the art we make. If we want the art we make to change the
racism and capitalism have been utterly entwined from the world, we have to find ground on which we can stand to
very beginning of this country. Of course, we always knew talk about changing the world—and that’s always going to
that freedom and slavery stood side by side as seemingly be vexed ground.
contradictory elements: the good America and the bad
America. But when you realize they were interdependent All transcripts have been edited for length and clarity.

The McNulty Foundation
partnered with the AGLN
to offer support to fellows
through their Global
Response Fund.
POISED TO
Courtesy AGLN fellows
36
O RESPOND
The Covid-19 pandemic threw communities the world over into tumult—but Aspen
Global Leadership Network fellows, with the help of the McNulty Foundation,
were ready with food programs, mental health services, microgrants, and more for
communities in need. By Johnny McNulty and Samantha Cherry
where employment was massively disrupted by quarantine.
Operating in Uganda’s already fragile health care system,
Left: Courtesy McNulty Foundation; Right: Courtesy Lebanese Food Bank

Liberty fellow Matthew Alexander and OneWorld Health
partnered with communities on the local level to employ
skilled medical professionals from the community and to
fortify health systems so that they could remain open and
provide quality and affordable health care.
Connections between fellows also played a critical role.
A joint effort sparked by two Henry Crown Fellows, Devon
Spurgeon and Blair Christie, resulted in Project Isaiah, an
initiative that addresses both job loss and food insecurity.
Partnering with local restaurants, which would have otherwise
laid off staff, to provide meals to families in need, the initiative
connects prepackaged airline meals with domestic-violence
Youth Local Councils run by Shiam assist families in the West Bank.
shelters, food banks, senior housing facilities, and other
nonprofits in 11 major US cities.
W
Although the immediate dangers presented by the
hen crisis strikes, values-based, purpose-driven pandemic were front of mind, fellows also took quick action
leadership can make the difference between a to begin reimagining a post-Covid-19 world that addresses the
struggle and a disaster. As the pandemic spread deeply entrenched systemic and structural issues that were an
across the globe, Aspen Global Leadership accelerant to this crisis. In New Orleans—a city still scarred by
Network fellows stepped up to act and meet the needs of their the unequal help given to citizens after Hurricane Katrina—
communities. Fellows have deeply examined the fundamental the Campaign For Equity, led by Civil Society fellow Shawn
values and beliefs that compel them to act. Tests like these are Barney, helped draft many recently unemployed people as
what their journeys prepared them for. contact tracers and other relief workers. The Campaign for
With a long history of supporting fellows and high-impact Equity is also ensuring that the funds and programs being put
ventures, the John P. and Anne Welsh McNulty Foundation in place help the city solve preexisting inequities rather than
partnered with the AGLN to offer rapid-response support to keep them in place or worsen them.
fellows through the Global Response Fund. The McNulty On the following pages, please find contributions from a
Foundation has pledged up to $1 million in funding. To date, few of these talented fellows.
the fund has supported 70 fellows’ organizations with $750,000
directly helping vulnerable communities in the United States A nurse at a OneWorld Health
medical facility in Uganda
and over 20 other countries.
The key to success was the leaders’ connection to the
communities they served. Their quick responses were
made possible by years of groundwork forming long-term
relationships and deep understanding.
In New York City, the first US epicenter for Covid-19, the
East Harlem COAD, supported by Health Innovators fellow
Ann-Gel Palermo, linked local business owners, volunteers,
and community leaders to quickly communicate needs in the
neighborhood—a capability that scaled rapidly and ensured
businesses could survive and citizens remain safe in a densely
populated low-income borough.
In the West Bank, the organization Shiam, led by Middle
East Leadership Initiative fellow Lana Abu-Hijleh, tapped
youth democracy groups to distribute groceries, personal
protective equipment, and information on how to stay safe to
communities bordering Israel—where many people work and

CREATIVE REACTION LAB | ANTIONETTE CARROLL
Civil Society Fellow, a partnership between the Anti-Defamation
League and the Aspen Institute
Providing hyper-local microgrants for Black and Latinx youth, their families,
and their communities disproportionately impacted by the pandemic
As a Black woman and social entrepreneur, I’m constantly

grappling with my duality of privilege and targeted identities—
having to think about how I can leverage my access for
historically under-invested communities like the one I grew
up in. Through my experience in building a movement of
Redesigners for Justice, who address issues of race and health
banese Food Bank
in communities, I’ve learned the power of centering folks in

the closest proximity to issues as the decision-makers we need.
The Lebanese Food Bank distributes food to families.
Building on this lesson and our own experiences at Creative
Reaction Lab, we’ve found that youth have been the architects
of change throughout our communities. So when Covid-19
and its impact in the United States further exacerbated the
LEBANESE FOOD BANK | WALID MAALOUF disparities across health, technology access, and housing, we
Middle East Leadership Initiative Fellow began to ask, “How can we support and amplify Black and
Providing food on a daily basis to families and individuals in Lebanon Latinx youth in addressing the hyper-local realities of Covid-19
in communities of color?”
I can safely say that the past year has been a major milestone Long-standing systemic health and social inequities have put
for the Lebanese Food Bank. As Lebanon experiences one historically under-invested groups of color at increased risk of
crisis after another, our organization has constantly adapted getting Covid-19 or experiencing severe illness, regardless of age.
to both external and internal circumstances. When the In our rapid response to the new normal, Creative Reaction Lab
people of Lebanon took to the streets in 2019 in political launched a microgrant supporting these redesigners and their
protests, the country already suffered from nearly a third Covid-19 needs: the Youth Creative Leadership Fund. YCLF
of its population living in poverty. A currency devaluation launched out of a need to protect Black and Latinx families
rapidly pulled more people into poverty. As Covid-19 hit being disproportionately affected by Covid-19 in the United
the country a few months later, we had to stop all programs States by providing $100 microgrants for youth, their families,
that were putting the health of our team and beneficiaries at and their communities in categories including self-care, creative
risk, while dramatically scaling operations to respond to the projects, and passing it on to an individual or organization in
country’s needs. International agencies estimate that 50 to need. As of July 2020, microgrants have provided 241 youth
65 percent of the Lebanese population now lives in poverty, leaders under the age of 26 with $25,700 in emergency funds,
Left: Courtesy OneWorld Health; Right: Courtesy Creative Reaction Lab
putting more pressure on us to respond. with 112 more being supported by the end of 2020.
By boosting our collaborative efforts both
nationally and internationally and connecting with
the Lebanese diaspora, we went from serving eight
geographical districts to covering all 26. As a result,
we carried one of the largest national food-relief
campaigns, successfully distributing some 50,000
food boxes to 200,000 people in three months.
Then, on August 4, the explosion in Beirut’s port
challenged an already dire situation. This event of
historic proportions forced us to widen our scope.
Now we’re supporting 120 nongovernmental
organizations and growing. Students participate in a Creative
Reaction Lab design program

Left: Courtesy Association of Ghana’s Elders; Right: Courtesy FUNDESA
AGE supports Ghanaian elders.
ASSOCIATION OF GHANA’S ELDERS | ESI ANSAH saw misinformation on the pandemic caused further fear and
Africa Leadership Initiative, West Africa Fellow
panic among the community. We engaged with some people
Building an ecosystem of services to ensure that Ghana’s elders age directly to allay their worry, but that was not enough.
with dignity, and continuing to have an active and productive stake in The solution we came to was quite simple. We organized
their communities an online Zoom meeting for elders to meet and chat. Our
Association of Ghana’s Elders, or “AGE,” started the year off elders were thrilled that they finally got to take part in a virtual
with a lot of energy and were busy scheduling visits with various meeting. Now, these virtual meetings occur once a month and
retiree groups on a monthly basis—until March came along are ensuring the community does not feel alone and that the
and Covid-19 grounded our work, essentially cutting us off from elders’ mental health stays positive. In addition, we are excited
the senior citizens we sought to serve. The restricted movement to launch our Buddy Program to connect seniors with “juniors”
meant that our elders were stuck at home, alone, living in fear, who will check on them, keep them company, and share what’s
unsure of how things would go. On our WhatsApp platform, I going on in the world around them.

FUNDESA | JUAN CARLOS PAIZ, to provide these tests to the public hospitals. With my fellow
MARIA KALTSCHMITT, MARIA ISABEL LUJAN, fellows, we were able to raise $2.3 million, and we distributed
LUIS PRADO, JOSE MIGUEL TOREEBIARTE, 67,220 PCR tests, 70,500 swabs, and 49,000 extraction kits,
SALVADOR BIGURIA, ROBERTO PAIZ as well as other supplies for the public hospitals.
Central America Leadership Initiative Fellows FUNDESA is now supporting the Health Ministry to
A collaboration of fellows working to support Guatemala’s fight increase test acquisition, and we are implementing a study
against Covid-19 to understand the percentage of people who already have
Juan Carlos Paiz: Since the beginning of the pandemic, Covid-19 antibodies. We are also working with the Ministry
our government acted quickly to institute lockdown of Economy in an economic recovery plan to establish key
measures and physical distancing. Face masks are also sectors that can increase investment toward Guatemala.
mandatory all over the country. I believe these measures Partnering with government ministries has presented a great
helped control the number of positive Covid-19 cases opportunity to increase jobs and recover the Guatemalan
Guatemala has experienced, but because of international economy that was affected during this health crisis.”
demand, testing—specifically real-time PCR testing—was
scarce.
With collaboration among seven Central America Johnny McNulty is the director of content for the John P. and Anne
Leadership Initiative Fellows, FUNDESA, a Guatemalan Welsh McNulty Foundation. Samantha Cherry is the digital media
nonprofit think and do tank, launched a national campaign associate and producer for the Leadership Division at the Aspen Institute.
FUNDESA distributes Covid-19 tests and supplies to hospitals.

ENLIGHTENED
ENTERPRISE
The Institute’s Business and Society Program has always strived to make
business education more ethical and sustainable. Its Undergraduate Consortium is
injecting a dose of liberal arts into that model as well—a practice that has
never been more relevant. By Ashley Fetters
I
t has been 50 years since economist Milton Friedman In normal, non-pandemic times, the Undergraduate
famously intoned that the business of business is business. Consortium’s yearly gatherings are high-energy, two-day
But if business schools focus only on technical and affairs. In addition to seminars and discussion groups,
practical skills, says Claire Preisser, an advisor to the Aspen attendees participate in activities like scavenger hunts
Institute’s Business and Society Program, they “miss the huge and silent walks around the host city. Before Covid-19 hit,
opportunity to educate students about things like power, or Business and Society had planned programming of just that
history, or the tensions between capitalism and democracy”— kind for 2020, at a meeting that was to take place in June
tensions that only intensified in 2020. The connection between at the campuses of Franklin & Marshall College, Bucknell
business choices and societal health have long been at the center University, and the University of Pennsylvania. But as most
of Business and Society’s work and perhaps nowhere more things did, the Undergraduate Consortium went virtual.
clearly than in its Undergraduate Consortium. “We believe we have the chance to rebuild our economy
Initiated in 2012, the Undergraduate Consortium and social fabric, and to reimagine how we measure
supports educators who draw on the humanities to bring success as a nation and as businesses,” Judy Samuelson,
timeless questions and urgent contemporary issues into the executive director of Business and Society, said in her
the business classroom. Over the years, Preisser says, opening remarks. Institute CEO Dan Porterfield called the
consortium participants have grappled with everything value of the humanities both intrinsic and instrumental in
from how to teach about the European refugee crisis to fostering a lifelong proclivity to learn new things, and he
how to equip students to have productive conversations stressed the importance of blending the humanities and
about identity and difference. The pandemic and the business education to foster true leadership.
reckoning on racial justice this year, she says, “only
underscore the need to do more.” Continued on page 49
42
43
AN
UNFINISHED
BEGINNING

A new Institute partner is connecting people and institutions
through art, creative media, and new technology to spark civil discourse,
brainstorm solutions, and ultimately, create a more perfect union.
F
or many Americans, it’s clear that the old way of The series’ unique approach was evident from its first
solving big problems with individual actors does episode, which aired at the end of October. Focusing on
not work—and that the topics at the forefront of issues of the economy and justice, the episode explored
social dialogue around the economy, democracy, questions like, “Can we design a better economy?” and
technology, and culture will require innovative approaches. “Will capitalism survive?” And while it included experts
A new organization, Unfinished, provides that new and prominent individuals like filmmaker Abigail Disney,
approach. Unfinished focuses on connecting people and Ford Foundation President Darren Walker, and former
institutions to solve challenging social issues at scale. The presidential candidate Julián Castro, it also lifted up the
organization is premised on the idea that asking questions voices of workers and everyday Americans who are often
Gabe Ford. Ai Weiwei x For Freedoms, “?”, Knoxville, TN, 2020. In Collaboration with Unfinished. From For Freedoms 2020 Awakening
and beginning inclusive conversations is critical to left out and left behind. The series continued with episodes
making progress—and that by tapping into wide-ranging focused on Democracy and Voice, Technology and
communities, creative media, and new technology, it can Humanity, and Culture and Change.
provoke ideas, elevate unheard voices, and create greater Unfinished is the brainchild of Frank McCourt, a civic
impact. Across multiple projects—from Unfinished Network, entrepreneur focused on enterprises that align action and
which curates and amplifies stories and conversations and purpose as a way to create sustainable value and social
creates pathways for civic engagement; to Unfinished Labs, impact. The Institute is a founding member, along with
which builds technology to solve social impact problems; to Ashoka, the Shed, For Freedoms, Georgetown University,
Unfinished Questions, which launched to encourage dialogue PolicyLink, the Ford Foundation, Imperative 21, the Max
and promote trust—Unfinished is taking on urgent problems Steinbeck Charitable Trust, McCourt and Mil M2. By
and creating spaces for new voices, fresh partnerships, and forging connections among diverse members and expansive
novel discoveries. networks, Unfinished hopes to present completely new
Recently, the organization launched Unfinished Live—a ideas and initiatives in interesting and compelling ways.
four-episode digital event series that uses questions as a “Precisely because we live in a divided country where much
starting point to tackle challenging issues and then to ask, progress is needed,” says Institute CEO Dan Porterfield,
“What’s possible now?” The series was made possible in part “the language and spirit of this project are premised on
by the Aspen Institute, which has served as a co-producer the notion that we are called to join the unfinished effort to
through its Public Programs unit and provided vital support build a ‘more perfect union.’”
for the enterprise. Hosted by Baratunde Thurston, a The organization’s name carries echoes of historic
comedian, writer, and cultural critic who helped launch The efforts to bridge divides and find new paths forward. On
Daily Show with Trevor Noah, the series uses art, innovative a brisk autumn day in 1863, amid America’s Civil War,
formats, and unexpected conversations with experts and President Abraham Lincoln spoke at the Gettysburg
everyday people to drive generative questions and capture
new ideas in refreshing ways. Continued on page 49

A participant from
Stevens Initiative
grantee Soliya
Courtesy Soliya
46
VIRTUALLY POSSIBLE
When the world suddenly had to rely on screens to
connect, the Stevens Initiative was ready.
What happens when an exchange program designed to bring international

participants together virtually finds itself in a moment when that’s the only way
anyone is coming together? In April, the Stevens Initiative launched a three-track
response to the coronavirus pandemic to help education and exchange leaders
sustain learning for young people whose lives were being changed by social
distancing.
The Stevens Initiative builds global competence and career-readiness skills for
young people by enhancing the field of virtual exchange. The program focuses its
grantmaking on programs connecting youth in the United States with peers in the
Middle East and North Africa, but it took on a special role in accommodating the
new educational realities of the pandemic. It also offers live training, mentorship,
and resources to help leaders in all regions provide young people with opportunities
to continue global learning.
Grantees’ staff quickly adapted curricula to an unforgiving time frame, hoping to
create the valued community atmosphere of in-person programs. Many participants
joining from home struggled to access technology, faced competing responsibilities,
and weathered unstable political and economic conditions in their communities.
Courtesy Soliya
“During our time together, our team members faced the explosion in Beirut and a
hurricane on the East Coast,” one participant says. “Yet we were able to coordinate
and create a cohesive idea.”

“Team members faced the
explosion in Beirut and
a hurricane on the East
Coast. Yet we were able
to coordinate and create
Courtesy University of Michigan

a cohesive idea.”
Above: Participants from Stevens Initiative grantee the William Davidson Institute Presentations, small group meetings, and one-on-one
at the University of Michigan; Below: A participant from Stevens Initiative grantee
the Karam Foundation sessions created space for hundreds of professionals to quickly
get involved in virtual exchange at a time of extraordinary
momentum. The program also used the sessions to model
Grant proposals adapted in-person education and exchange communicating online, overcoming technology glitches,
programs to virtual ones, helped organizations adapt virtual and demonstrating effective facilitation. Attendees say these
exchanges to crisis conditions, and supported preparation for sessions were very helpful as they rushed to start virtual
future exchanges. The program made 18 grants through a exchange and as many shifted their strategies in the face of
rolling review process in which they received 131 applications months of reduced in-person education and travel.
in under two months. The programs connected youth in the As the pandemic disrupted learning for students around
United States and Middle East and North Africa region for a the globe, the Stevens Initiative team also hosted town hall
range of activities, including collaborative art projects, peace- meetings with virtual exchange practitioners to coordinate
building training, and summer camps. All focused on giving a response and offer solutions. These meetings resulted in
youth an international experience. real-time intelligence to share with all attendees, including
The pandemic-response grants helped 1,077 young associations representing K–12 and postsecondary education.
people gain critical skills, friendships, and invaluable global The town halls also sparked collaboration between the
experiences, and they trained 200 adults to implement program and several associations, resulting in a resource
programs in the future for thousands more. guide for virtual exchange leaders and senior international
Stevens Initiative funding allowed the education officers at postsecondary institutions.
group Engineering World Heath to replace a canceled in- By acting quickly to meet the urgent need to launch online
person summer-abroad program with a five-week Virtual programs, the Stevens Initiative planted the seeds for virtual
Innovation Exchange. Together, students in the US and exchange to continue flourishing long after restrictions
Lebanon created 23 design projects to address the health imposed by the pandemic end.
care challenges posed by Covid-19. One team designed a
low-cost, battery-powered oxygen concentrator to assist
impoverished and rural areas during a global spike in
demand. Despite being a first-time virtual program, the
exchange was a positive experience for participants. “Getting
the chance to coordinate with international colleagues and
learn innovative ideas from them,” one participant says,
“and share experiences and knowledge has certainly aided
in my growth as a biomedical engineering student.”
The program also helped institutions prepare for future
Courtesy Karam Foundation
virtual exchanges. Faculty in the College of Education at

Missouri State University and teacher trainers in Morocco,
for example, developed new virtual exchange curricula. Now
their teachers will be virtual exchange ambassadors in their
own classrooms going forward.

Continued from page 43 Continued from page 45
Higher-learning institutions and their communities can battlefield. He praised the soldiers who had hallowed
come together to counteract both the economic devastation of the ground with their sacrifice; he called for a “new
Covid-19 and long-standing inequality, and business education birth of freedom”; and he implored the citizens of the
can also do its part to thwart the destructive forces of structural warring nation to commit themselves to an ongoing civic
and institutional racism. Michael Sorrell, the president of Paul experiment. “It is for us,” he said, “to be dedicated here
Quinn College, described the school’s efforts to provide access to the unfinished work which they who fought here have
to business education and job training in under-resourced areas. thus far so nobly advanced.”
“Of course, we support lifelong learning—we like nothing better,” Unfinished isn’t putting itself forward as an organization
he said. “But we have to acknowledge the economic realities of that has all the answers. “We’re in a time of great challenge
our students. So maybe we should talk about lifelong earning, and and concern and trepidation, but also opportunity for
providing pathways on and off, and in and out of academia, to growth and positive change,” McCourt says. “We need to be
continue to make progress.” Paul Quinn, a Historically Black thoughtful, patient, humble, and open-minded. That leads
College, created certificate programs that allow students to qualify
for more jobs and create more options for themselves. Adults who
enroll can receive job training without committing to longer-
term degree programs that might sideline them from working.
Graduates can thus leave school in fewer than four years with
“There’s no fee to pay, no
multiple entry points into a workforce that may be both actively
discriminating against them and decimated by a pandemic.
intimidating door to walk
The 2020 Undergraduate Consortium created innovative through, no exclusive club
focused on inviting VIPs.
new collaborations between schools across the globe. The fact
that the gathering was both online and free offered “the chance
You just need to be on a

to engage a more global audience,” Preisser says. As a result,
this year’s attendees included a wider range of international
road to somewhere.”
institutions: some 75 from 14 different countries. Most years, she
says, attendees are largely from North America. Mary Brennan,
the director of undergraduate programs at Scotland’s University
of Edinburgh, noted that the quality of the quickly assembled
Covid-19 course at Wharton inspired her to consider ways to one conclusion: we need to listen and learn.”
virtual instruction could present new possibilities to collaborate Recently, Unfinished joined with the artist-led
with institutions outside the United Kingdom and Europe. organization For Freedoms on a campaign to put creative
The disruptions of Covid-19 can present an opportunity voices at the center of national and international
to reimagine the consortium as something with even greater conversations, generating big questions and displaying
impact than an intensive few days. Already, Preisser says, virtual them in public places on billboards in all 50 states. “Our
programming is making for unique intersections with the day- billboard campaign is the great equalizer for accessing
to-day life and work of participants. Brennan may have been art,” says Claudia Peña, the executive director of For
“heartbroken” when she learned she wouldn’t get to pay her Freedoms. “There’s no fee to pay, no intimidating door to
first visit to Wharton this year. But the virtual programming walk through, no exclusive club focused on inviting VIPs.
allowed her to sign into the webinars from her phone and listen You just need to be on a road to somewhere.”
to discussions as she walked through Edinburgh’s Holyrood The organization’s partners are excited about what the
Park, home of the extinct volcano known as Arthur’s Seat. approach can achieve. “I have been drawn to it in a way
Edinburgh, Brennan pointed out, was “a real center of that is almost magnetic,” says Angela Glover Blackwell,
philosophical and moral and enlightened thinking during the a nationally recognized activist and writer, whose
17th and 18th century.” This summer’s consortium, she said, will organization, PolicyLink, advances racial and economic
help her feel equipped to prepare the next class of Edinburgh equity, and who is part of the Unfinished Council. “The
graduates to join a world that’s rebuilding and recovering. idea of being able to link together multiple networks
connecting organizations and individuals who are ready
to do something transformative—that’s what’s called for
Ashley Fetters is a general assignment reporter for The Washington Post. at a moment that’s so pregnant with change.”

The Aspen Journal of Ideas offers thought-provoking analysis and issue-defining
information from programs and partners of the Institute.
51 54 56
AMERICA’S NEXT CHAPTER MAKE JUSTICE LOCAL MONEY MATTERS
Can the Institute create a more Instead of arguing about Covid-19 threatens to shutter
inclusive world? Jane Wales explores whether to defund or expand the businesses across the nation, leading
how Institute programs are joining police, Douglas E. Wood suggests to job loss, massive inequality, and a
forces to do just that. Introducing the a third way: justice reinvestment. dearth of entrepreneurialism. Mark
Pillars of Society. It’s also the cornerstone of the G. Popovich and Maureen Conway
Institute’s new Criminal Justice contend the markets can fix this—
Reform Initiative. with the right incentives.

AMERICA’S
NEXT CHAPTER
The Institute’s new Pillars of Society is a collaboration among several
Institute programs, each with many policy goals but all with one mission:
create a more inclusive society. By Jane Wales

T
he tumult of 2020 suggests that US society salient, more urgent, and perhaps more achievable.
will not return to status quo ante. Americans The Pillars of Society group also includes the
are likely to rethink the relationship of the Congressional Program, led by Dan Glickman, and the
individual to the larger, diverse society; the Rodel Fellowships in Public Leadership, led by John Kroger,
efficacy and resilience of our democracy; which both build community and bipartisan problem-
the structure and fairness of the economy; solving capability among policymakers at the national and
and the nature of US obligations to the rest of the world. As state levels. They each provide a venue for leaders to discuss
an organization dedicated to the advancement of the Good policy innovations that may be ripe for bipartisan action.
Society, the Aspen Institute has a role to play. Going forward, Congress and state legislatures will not only
In the two years leading up to this moment, Institute have hefty agendas of their own but they will play key roles
CEO Dan Porterfield encouraged Institute when it comes evaluating the swirl of proposals
programs to organize their work around being put forth to reform democratic
clear and compelling social goals—and institutions.
to pursue those goals in collaboration Eric Liu’s Citizenship and
for greater impact. The first out American Identity Program focuses
of the gate was the Aspen on sustaining a strong sense of
Partnership for an Inclusive citizenship and a coherent
Economy, a multi-program national identity at a time of
initiative that promotes an change. In its new “Who Is
inclusive economy and Us?” project, the program
reimagines capitalism in engages people from many
the process. The initiative walks of life to explore
offers analysis and puts what it means to be an
forth sophisticated American now, and who
strategies to address the gets to define the nation’s
global economy’s fault history, character, and
line: searing inequality. future. The program’s
More recently, 12 “What Every American
Institute programs came Should Know” project dives
together under the name into cultural literacy and
“Pillars of Society” with the the common knowledge and
common goal of creating a more associations Americans share. And
inclusive society in which all actors its “Better Arguments” project trains
can contribute to and benefit from a people from across the country to have
robust liberal democracy. Understanding more productive civic arguments.
that the responsibility for self-governance is a Perhaps the most disruptive force when it
shared one, each of these programs strengthens the capacity comes to the practice of democracy is the information
of key democratic actors to contribute to the common good. revolution. Social media platforms are challenging the
In August, the program on Philanthropy and Social business model of traditional media, authoritative sources
Innovation, led by the author, hosted its Aspen Philanthropy of independent information. Under Vivian Schiller’s
Group, comprising 25 foundation CEOs, to share forward- leadership, Aspen Digital explores the impact of new
looking strategies for reimagining democracy, capitalism, technologies on democracy, including how they have
and how to approach community. The program strengthens expanded democratic participation. In the run-up to the
the capacity of civil society actors and the philanthropies election, Aspen Digital hosted webinars covering concerns
that support them to solve societal problems large and small, about digital disinformation, voter intimidation, and possible
and to build social capital and citizen agency in the process. interference in the voting process itself. The program focuses
These attributes of a healthy democracy will play a central on the question of who is responsible for moderating harmful
role in building back better and achieving a just recovery. online content while also protecting free speech—the answer
The foundation leaders and their grantees had already been to which lies at the heart of many proposals for reform.
working to rebuild. With the pandemic and the recession— The Education and Society Program, directed by
and the disproportionate burden of both on people of Ross Wiener, improves public education by informing
color—the boldest of these leaders’ efforts are even more and influencing education leaders, policymakers, and

practitioners. Its emphasis on children of color and children and offers webinars on questions like, Can authors write with
from low-income families allows it to address searing authenticity about experiences and identities that are not their
divides along racial, educational, and economic lines— own? The Arts Program has been addressing the pandemic and
divides that the shift to remote learning has exacerbated. In structural racism and white privilege within cultural institutions,
recent years, Education and Society hosted a Commission and the need for the arts to be more inclusive.
on Social, Emotional and Academic Development, and the Aspen Seminars, led by Todd Breyfogle, helps ground the
program’s report, From a Nation at Risk to a Nation of Institute community in the ideas and ideals that first formed
Hope, offers a roadmap for “whole learners” to contribute the basis of US democracy. It is in Aspen Seminars where one
to democratic society over their lifetimes. reads and discusses the origins of the social contract that so
The Business and Society Program, directed by Judy many now argue about. Seminar curricula—including Thomas
Samuelson, promotes the idea that US businesses Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean-Henri Rousseau,
are obliged to create value not only for the originators of the social contract, and
shareholders but also for stakeholders, many others—provide the intellectual
including employees, customers, Institute and moral grounding for so much
and the communities they touch else that the Institute programs
along their value chains. The programs came do. Skilled facilitators challenge
program offers five principles participants to rethink
for executive pay that align together under the name their assumptions and
purpose and rewards, reevaluate their choices
define fairness, simplify
“Pillars of Society” to create a more by introducing them to
pay structures, and make inclusive society where everyone philosophies that differ
room for non-financial from their own. Both
contributors of real value. can contribute to a robust liberal Breyfogle and Cordell
Business and Society also Carter, the leader of
advances change from democracy. Understanding that the Institute’s Socrates
within corporations by Program, create powerful
identifying and convening
responsibility for self-governance is bespoke seminars to help
first movers—leaders who shared, each program strengthens participants grapple with
take on projects in their contemporary societal
companies to help solve key democratic actors to problems. Carter’s most
societal problems. recent curriculum focuses on
In recent years, the Justice contribute to the the role of race in a democracy.
and Society Program created two While policy programs focus
initiatives important to any democracy-
common good. on society as the unit of change, it
strengthening effort. The Inclusive America is in the seminar room that individual
project, led by Zeenat Rahman, focuses on transformation occurs.
religious pluralism through published primers, essays, Members of Pillars of Society are not alone in
and research as well as workshops for religious leaders, civic strengthening democracy. The Aspen Strategy Group
leaders, and donors across the country. The recently launched advances bipartisan problem-solving. The Stronger &
the Criminal Justice Reform Initiative, led by former Ford Healthier Communities Group, led by Monique Miles of
Foundation program officer and educator Douglas Wood, the Forum for Community Solutions, advances democratic
aims to transform both policy and practice on the national decision-making in communities across the country.
and state levels. Among the reforms the initiative promotes is Taken together, these programs pursue strategies that are
the restoration of federal and state voting rights to formerly bottom-up and top-down, focus on policy and practice, and
incarcerated persons. persuade and motivate through art and argument. Their
Within Pillars of Society are two programs that specifically networks are grassroots and elite. The diversity of their
nurture cultural and creative—as well as political—expression: strategies reflects the multiple ways change happens.
Aspen Words, led by Adrianne Brodeur, and the Arts Program,
led by Erika Mallin. Arts and literature allow people to explore
and deepen their understanding of vital issues, whether they are
evergreen or contemporary topics. Each program is focusing on Jane Wales, an Institute vice president, is the executive director of the
race relations. Aspen Words features books on racial injustice Program on Philanthropy and Social Innovation.

MAKE JUSTICE
LOCAL
The Institute’s newest initiative takes a community-driven approach
to criminal justice by reducing incarceration and reinvesting in
neighborhoods. By Douglas E. Wood
A
fter a searing summer of protests, the communities where peaceful protests have, at times, been marred
continuing impact of Covid-19, and a time by disruptions. Still others are calling for what is known as “justice
of deep, serious discussion and reflection, reinvestment.” This concept is anchored in community-driven
communities across the country are approaches like the ones taken by Oakland’s Neighborhood
reimagining what safety and justice mean Opportunity and Accountability Board, which provides healing-
to them. Many have called for defunding centered alternatives for young people who get involved in the justice
the police. Others have called for an expansion of policing in system, and “Neighborhood Stat,” a program in the New York City

mayor’s office that works closely with communities and their needs essential at the local level to shape policies and practices that
to develop safety priorities. And at the newly formed Aspen Criminal generate actual safety and justice.
Justice Reform Initiative, justice reinvestment is informing the work. But good data are not enough. Even the best data-driven
There is no doubt that the United States has a justice criminal justice reform efforts often fail to incorporate empirical
problem. With only 5 percent of the world’s population, the accounts of community experiences, interests, and priorities
United States holds over 20 percent of all the world’s prisoners. regarding safety and justice, or the perspectives of justice system
The deeper you look at the data, the worse it gets (see “By the practitioners and those who have been involved in the justice
Numbers: Justice Gone Wrong,” page 11). system. This is an especially problematic omission, considering
In 2003, Susan Tucker, the vice president of the Sentencing the well-documented concentrations of incarceration in low-
Project, an advocacy center working for decarceration, and income neighborhoods and neighborhoods of color, which
Eric Cadora, of the Justice Mapping Center, developed the already suffer multiple layers of inequality.
concept of justice reinvestment. Their model uses data-driven To address this need, the Criminal Justice Reform Initiative is
management tools to determine how much money is being working with a cadre of national technical-assistance partners to
invested in the criminal justice system community by community, launch a five-year national criminal justice transformation initiative
how to reduce excessive incarceration, and then how to divert in mid-size cities and rural jurisdictions across the country. Working
savings back into social sectors such as health care, education, with local justice intermediaries, the technical-assistance partners
housing, and employment. Accountability and responsibility will develop and launch the Justice Mapping Center’s Justice Audit,
for reducing incarceration is thus returned to the local level. By support implementation of policy priorities at the local level, and
using local discretionary policy focused on justice reinvestment, press for supportive state and federal policy and statutory reforms.
communities begin to address neighborhood-level high rates of For example, working with the Justice Mapping Center, the
incarceration and the resulting impact. This idea would not only initiative will gather qualitative and quantitative data to reduce
begin to address neighborhood-level high rates of incarceration the criminal justice footprint, as measured by stops, summons,
and their impact on communities. It would also strike at the heart arrests, probation and parole surveillance, and jail and prison
of what criminologist Todd Clear calls “coercive mobility”—a admissions; the critical health care footprint, as measured by
phenomenon that destabilizes neighborhoods by “increasing emergency room admissions for chronic illness and behavioral
levels of disorganization, first when a person is removed to go health crises, as well as for shootings, domestic violence, and
to prison, then later when that person reenters the community.” other assaults; the school discipline footprint, as measured by
Since the idea of justice reinvestment was first introduced, it disruptive school arrests, suspensions, expulsions, and metal
evolved into a federal public-private partnership program known detectors; the residential and family crisis footprint, as measured
as the Justice Reinvestment Initiative. The program has had mixed by evictions, emergency shelter placements, child protective
results, moving away from community-level implementation orders, and behavioral health commitments; and the subsistence
to primarily state-level implementation. Long-term financial dependency footprint, as measured by unemployment claims
sustainability has also been problematic. Researchers concluded and Temporary Assistance to Needy Families and Supplemental
that the model “did not demonstrate … reductions in prison Nutritional Assistance Program filings.
populations, cost savings, or improvements in public safety.” As communities continue to think about how to transform
The fault was the wrong focus. More community-involved the criminal legal system while taking into consideration the
justice approaches, informed by research on the efficacy and larger justice ecosystem, government funding and policy should
impact of long-standing criminal justice reform efforts, can support a comprehensive, cross-agency funding structure
create nuanced ideas and policies that go beyond defunding the that supports and sustains this work over time. A collective
police or federal programs—including the Justice Reinvestment approach could, in fact, promote much-needed collaboration
Initiative itself. among the police, education, health, housing, employment, and
Experience shows that most jurisdictions that have transportation agencies in communities marked by overlapping
substantially lowered their use of jail and prison have done so inequities, excessive incarceration, and poverty.
through intentional policies at the local level. Unfortunately, The United States must think beyond the failed systems and
such jurisdictions are the exception rather than the rule. Today, rhetoric of the past, and beyond a narrow focus on policing, to
most localities lack the analytic tools to systematically conduct, embrace—finally—justice for all.
implement, and evaluate data-driven justice policy reform on
their own. Where analytic capacity does exist, it is often unevenly Douglas E. Wood is the director of the Aspen Institute’s Criminal
distributed among criminal justice agencies. These data are Justice Reform Initiative.

MONEY MATTERS
Why capital markets must address economic and racial inequality.
A
By Mark G. Popovich and Maureen Conway
fter nine months of viral contagion income distribution, as well as among women, mothers ages 20
and economic wreckage, inequality is to 34, and people of color—especially African Americans and
ballooning while economic mobility is in Latinx communities.
free fall. The prosperous are financially Some suggest that modest economic policy changes may be
unaffected amid the most unequal sufficient to yield a more inclusive prosperity. Others insist that
“recovery” in US history. Both illness and radical prescriptions are required. The results of the November
fiscal damage are concentrated among the lower half of the election point to prescriptions aimed squarely at inclusive prosperity.

What if financial markets—the ultimate capitalist tool— for future students and the millions already holding debt. This
incentivized the social impacts the nation needs while delivering three-pronged strategy will leverage the state treasury’s financial
risk-adjusted returns? Investments and loans fuel companies to and administrative resources to create new low-cost, consumer-
expand markets, create products, develop technologies, and add friendly financial pathways for under-served Illinois students
workers. Social impact investors also factor in social outcomes to complete their studies or refinance their student loans after
such as better job quality, diversity and equity, and support for graduation. If successful, the program could drive down student
families and communities. In this crisis, many impact investors loan costs. The Illinois State Treasury lends at lower rates while
are focusing their attention on expanding opportunities for offering acceptable returns, which can trigger other financial
those too long left outside the economic mainstream and on institutions to lower their rates, too.
businesses’ treatment of workers, including worker protections The Good Companies/Good Jobs Initiative, also within the
in a time of layoffs and permanent job cuts. Economic Opportunities Program, facilitates measurement,
Aspen Institute initiatives use an array of tools to tackle benchmarking, and reporting of businesses’ social impacts with
these worker and social impact issues. The Aspen Partnership a focus on frontline workers. With Working Metrics, its for-
for an Inclusive Economy, launched with the support of profit partner, the initiative is commercializing a cloud-based
the MasterCard Center for Inclusive Growth, links software system to benchmark job quality as well as diversity and
programs across the Institute to develop new inclusion. The service operates as an intermediary
proposals, integrate strategies, and gather leaders to between investors or supply chains and smaller-
drive solutions and impact. to middle-market companies to convey
The pandemic presents an existential threat to insights on job quality for frontline workers.
small businesses. More than 100,000 have permanently Data and analytics on worker retention,
closed—cutting jobs, thwarting the dreams of pay increases, number of jobs, benefits, and
dedicated entrepreneurs, and depriving communities diversity and inclusion rigorously gauge each
of key services. The Business Ownership Initiative firm’s impacts on its workforce. The results are also
within the Institute’s Economic Opportunities material to assessing the firm’s prospects for sustained business
Program joined this fall with the Microfinance Impact performance. The demands to address systemic racial and
Collaborative to create the Entrepreneur Backed Assets Fund. gender inequality are finally heightening attention to workplace
The EBA Fund buttresses the capacity of community-based diversity, equity, and inclusion. The initiative’s software shows
financial institutions to lend to small businesses in low-income firms their diversity in these categories as benchmarked to
communities and those owned by people of color. The fund businesses in the same sector at the local, state, and national
assists community-based lenders by buying existing loans and levels. Job-quality variance by gender, race, and ethnicity are
offering capital for new lending. Already, $2 million in loans also highlighted. And work is underway to generate new DEI
have been bought—79 percent were issued to entrepreneurs analytics, infographics, and firm-level ratings.
of color, 36 percent to women entrepreneurs, and 85 percent Economic- and labor-market conditions suggest the country
to businesses in low-income communities. The fund’s goal is is mired in a K-shaped recovery—income and wealth continue
to buy $50 million in loans from the six Microfinance Impact to be concentrated in the top 5 percent while tens of millions
Collaborative members and then to expand purchases to confront the dire consequences of too little food, evictions from
include other community-based lenders. homes and apartments, and too much month with too little
The Aspen Finance Leaders Fellowship inspires a network money. The debate over public fiscal and monetary response
of fellows to work toward increasing trust in the global finance is key. More attention, however, must go to the underlying
industry. In 2019, the fellowship welcomed a visionary leader, incentives for businesses and financial systems to address
Rodrigo Garcia, who as deputy treasurer and chief investment social impacts along with returns on investment. Shaping the
officer for the Illinois State Treasurer directs a combined $35 influence of money in business to attend to social impacts is
billion investment portfolio, $300 billion in related banking good for business and essential to achieve a more just, fair, and
operations and financial services, and a $3.2 billion agency equitable society.
budget and financial services unit. For the fellowship, his team
is tackling mounting student debt with an innovative approach.
In this decimated job climate, more people may benefit from Mark G. Popovich is the director of the Institute’s Good Companies/
education—yet the resulting debt could thwart their prospects Good Jobs Initiative. Maureen Conway, an Institute vice president, is the
for decades. Garcia’s approach makes college more affordable executive director of the Economic Opportunities Program.

Ideas Winter 2020-21

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CRITICAL

Courtesy OneWorld Health

THE STEVENS INITIATIVE

4 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

Johnny McNulty and Samantha Cherry report.

explains how the Institute’s Undergraduate

public program explores America’s potential with

The Stevens Initiative digitally connects young

THE JOURNAL OF IDEAS

51 | AMERICA’S NEXT CHAPTER

54 | MAKE JUSTICE LOCAL

markets can fix this—with the right incentives.

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 5

8 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

2.2 MILLION The US rate of

7O+ MILLION PEOPLE

BLACK people BLACK and WHITE AMERICANS 3.6 MILLION

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 11

“It’s the responsibility

Courtesy A24 and Apple Original FIlms

Courtesy Aspen Global Leadership Network

12 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

meditations based on short readings. “Headspace” offers essays and a

people registered for these first three events.

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 13

Courtesy Michèle Flournoy

Courtesy Ashley Lin

TWICE AS MUCH WORK . NOT ENOUGH RESOURCES.

14 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

bright side. With time-deprived members

the Congressional Program will remain

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 15

MORE ALIKE THAN DIFFERENT

online conversation platforms so neighbors can discuss challenges and solve

16 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

PROFIT AND PURPOSE IN LATIN AMERICA

Sustainable Development Goals, a kind of sustainability roadmap. Yet

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 17

HOMETOWN SCHOOL OF LIFE

Courtesy Renick Aspen Action Forum

18 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 19

20 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

The most common

Native youth were

1.5 times to access polling due

more likely than older

ARTISANS RISE TO THE COVID CHALLENGE

Courtesy Shining Hope for Communities

PROTECT THE WORLD

made recommendations to improve vaccine R&D: invest

22 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

In September, the Institute’s Energy

and Environment Program launched K12

THE SOCRATIC METHOD, 2.0

Courtesy Socrates Program

24 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

GIVING IT THE THE WINNERS ARE:

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 25

Courtesy Allyson Felix

26 IDEAS WINTER 2020/21

IDEAS WINTER 2020/21 27

Photos by Bryan Walker Ting

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