Youth Programs

Youth Programs

Since 1999, the Institute has supported a full-time endeavor to share our phenomenal resources with the local Aspen and Roaring Fork Valley community. This mission includes an ongoing effort to share Aspen Institute resources with youth. The response from students and the community has been outstanding and we have forged strong ties to the schools in Aspen and the Roaring Fork Valley. Below please find more information regarding upcoming and past events.

Upcoming Events:

The High School Great Ideas Seminar: "The Good Life and the Good Society: (An Aspen Institute Aspen Seminar for High School Students)
This October 19-22, 25 students selected by five high schools in the valley will participate in the annual High School Great Ideas Seminar. Modeled after the Institute’s cornerstone Aspen Seminar, this four-day program incorporates the discussion and analysis of excerpts from the Great Books series with the practice of applicable leadership and problem solving skills. The method of Socratic dialog and the emphasis of discussion and debate allow the course to delve into the core of cultural values, the origins of American democracy, and what it means to pursue Aristotle’s concept of "the good life.

Students who have participated in this seminar said the following when asked "What did you like best about the seminar?

"The seminar topics were really great, and personally I really enjoyed meeting people from other schools. "I liked talking with kids my age about important topics. "The fact that I was able to question not only the ideas and opinions of others, but the ideas of my own. "Other than EVERYTHING, the power of interaction and style of learning by discussion. "I have never shared a bond of respect and intelligence with other people like I now share with these people. "The experience I had at this seminar is almost indescribable. This was one of the best experiences I have ever had. I will carry this wisdom and passion for knowledge with me for the rest of my life. Thank you!

Aspen Institute Aspen High School "Speaking to the Future Series
The Aspen Institute and Aspen High School speaker series continues this school year. Launched in the 2006-2007 school year, this monthly series will continued throughout the academic year.

October 21, 2008 lecture by Dr. Lee Bycel. Lee T. Bycel is Executive Director, Western Region of American Jewish World Service. AJWS is an international development organization dedicated to alleviating poverty, hunger and disease among the people of the developing world regardless of race, religion or nationality. Prior to joining AJWS, he served as Senior Advisor, Global Strategy of International Medical Corps. During the past four years he has made several trips to East Africa including three humanitarian trips to Darfur and Chad where he visited several refugee camps. In April of 2006 he was in Rwanda for the 12th commemoration of their genocide and also visited IMC projects in the slums of Nairobi. For over a decade, he has moderated a variety of leadership seminars for the Aspen Institute as well as offering seminars on ethics, leadership issues and strategy for a variety of organizations.

December 12, 2008 with Countess Simonetta Brandolini d’Adda. Countess d’Adda is the founder of "Friends of Florence", an international non-profit organization devoted to the restoration of Florentine art and architecture as a means of promoting Florentine history and culture. Since it’s inception in 1998, Friends of Florence has successfully funded the extensive restoration of major works including the marble statues on the Loggia della Signoria and the twenty two paintings which flank the David in the Galleria dell’Accademia. Their most recent project is the restoration of the bronze sculptural group above the north portal of the Baptistry in Florence made by Gianfrancesco Rustici, who worked alongside Leonardo da Vinci in Verrocchio’s studio, scheduled for completion in October 2008.

In addition to her work with Friends of Florence, Countess d’Adda is CEO and founder of Best in Italy Inc, a world reknowned luxury travel and real estate company headquartered in Florence.  She will be in Aspen in December to lead an Aspen Institute Arts & Ideas Series seminar on Leonardo da Vinci entitled, “Florence II: That One-Man Renaissance -- Leonardo da Vinci”.  More information at 970-544-7914 or www.aspeninstitute.org/aspenevents.

Past Events

Summer Dialogues
During the busy summer months, The Aspen Institute invites Tomorrow' Voices on the Summer Dialogues, a program for Roaring Fork Valley students and teachers, to the McCloskey Speaker Series. Made possible by a generous donation from the McCloskey Family Charitable Foundation, this summer evening series features leaders who have a far-reaching impact on society. Before each event, participants engage in a facilitated dialogue. During this dialogue, the students are regularly joined by the evening’s featured speaker. During the summer of 2008, participants met with influential figures including former U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, international expert on the global AIDS crisis and National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases head Dr. Anthony Fauci, and Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy.

The Aspen Institute features public events throughout the year.  Please see the full calendar of events for more detail.