The Aspen Institute drives change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the greatest challenges of our time.

Our Purpose and Mission

Our People

Aspen Institute experts are leaders in their fields, bringing a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives all aimed at doing the most good for the greatest number of people. They have made it their mission to further the ideals of the Institute.


About the
Aspen Institute

Our Impact

The Aspen Institute has earned a reputation for gathering diverse, nonpartisan thought leaders, creatives, scholars and members of the public to address some of the world's most complex problems. But the goal of these convenings is to have an impact beyond the conference room. They are designed to provoke, further and improve actions taken in the real world.

More on Our Impact
  • Dan Porterfield Becomes President and CEO

    He brings to the position an intellectual depth, a commitment to inclusivity and diversity, and an ability to lead a complex, mission-driven organization to create impact.

  • Aspen In Prague

    The Aspen Institute welcomed the addition of its eighth international partner, Aspen Prague.

  • 60th Anniversary of the Goethe Convocation

    This seminal 1949 event gathered intellectuals, artists, and business executives in Aspen and led to the establishment of the Institute.

  • Walter Isaacson Becomes President and CEO

    Author and journalist Walter Isaacson is appointed president and CEO of the Aspen Institute. He was previously CEO of CNN and editor of TIME magazine.

  • Aspen Turns 40

    President George H. W. Bush and Margaret Thatcher, Prime Minister of Great Britain, deliver addresses at the Institute’s 40th anniversary.

  • Aspen Wye River is Born

    Corning Glass’ Arthur A. Houghton, Jr. donates the thousand-acre parcel that is now home to the Aspen Wye River campus.

  • 25 Years of Good

    The Aspen Institute celebrates its 25th anniversary.

  • A New Direction

    President Joseph E. Slater proposes a new programmatic direction focused on “thought leading to action.”

  • Robert O. Anderson Becomes President

    Robert O. Anderson becomes president of the Aspen Institute and the position of chairman is created and filled by Walter Paepcke.

  • The Aspen Institute is Founded

    Chicago industrialist Walter Paepcke, chairman of the Container Corporation of America, founds the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies.

  • 2018
  • 2012
  • 2009
  • 2003
  • 1990
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  • 1949