The Aspen Institute Mourns Robert O. Anderson (1917-2007)


Robert O. Anderson
The Aspen Institute has lost one of its most ardent advocates. Lifetime Trustee Robert O. Anderson, who presided over the Institute for three decades beginning in 1957, passed away Sunday, December 2 at his home in Roswell, New Mexico, at the age of 90. Anderson, a close friend of Institute founder Walter Paepcke, succeeded Paepcke in helping to build the organization that has become today’s Aspen Institute. Anderson served as Institute president from 1957 to 1963 and chairman from 1963 to 1987.

In referring to Anderson, longtime Institute president David McLaughlin expressed it well: “As entrepreneur, visionary, environmentalist and humanist, [Anderson’s] expansive talents and inquisitive mind were imprinted on the Aspen agenda. Seldom in the history of philanthropy has the generosity of one family and individual had such a beneficial impact on a single organization and the society it serves.” During Anderson’s tenure as president and chairman, the Institute achieved numerous milestones, including hosting an interdisciplinary conference on climate change as early as 1962, launching the Society of Fellows in 1964, developing artist and scholar residency programs, establishing several of the Institute’s policy programs, and opening an idyllic campus on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Anderson was also considered a seminal figure in the oil industry, having served as CEO of the Atlantic Richfield Company for 17 years and as chairman for 21 years. New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson ordered that flags were to fly at half-staff in his memory. Robert Anderson gave a great deal to the Institute and to our Aspen community over many years. Our thoughts are with his wife, Barbara, and his family.