50 Years Aspen Germany - Aspen Institute Germany

50 Years of Aspen Germany

On July 10, 1974, a letter was sent from a young Richard von Weizsäcker to an American journalist, named Shepard Stone, who had recently resettled in West Berlin. In this letter, the parliamentarian who would later become both Mayor of Berlin and Federal President, gave his approval to the foundation of the Aspen Berlin Association, expressing his delight that Stone’s plans of bringing the Aspen Idea to Cold War Berlin were finally taking shape. With this ground-breaking moment, alongside the approval of the other Board and Trustee Members, the Aspen Institute Germany was born.

Half a century later, Aspen Germany sits at the heart of a united Berlin as an unwavering force for promoting values-based leadership, a strong and open society, constructive dialogue, and transatlantic cooperation. It is in this spirit that we will be celebrating our 50^th anniversary.

2024 will be an opportunity for us to draw on both our past and present. Firstly, we look forward to hosting our first Gala since the pandemic, which will present the Shepard Stone Award to an impressive transatlantic duo and bring together many of Aspen’s faces, both old and new. Secondly, our Public Program will be organizing events series to reflect on current world issues and the challenges to our democratic societies. Finally, we will be releasing a special publication in September, which will not only charter Aspen’s history and traditions but will showcase the values that serve as our raison d’être.

With the ongoing war in Ukraine and a renewed Middle East conflict, many issues pose a threat to our common understanding of an open, free, and democratic society. We will thus use our anniversary year to emphasize five core values that we hold crucial to our mission:

Freedom: At the heart of Aspen Germany’s ethos is freedom. In the spirit of healthy democracy, we stand up for a society in which all can express their views and fight for necessary change.
Respect: We believe in respect, empathy, and compassion. Bringing together conflicting parties, we create an environment where individuals can engage in lively debate but equally emphasize empathy and listening to opposing opinions, promoting respect for the “other”in the political sphere.
Pluralism, Diversity, and Belonging: We fight for the values of pluralism, diversity, and belonging. Standing up for an open society, the Institute strives for open dialogue between diverse individuals.
Justice and the Rule of Law: The notions of justice and the rule of lawrepresent core elements of our work, standing up for the norms established in the wake of World War II.
Peace and Security: Finally, the Aspen values encompass peace and security, as they are the basis for promoting all the values we hold dear to our liberal, democratic society.

At the same time, we are aware of the significant challenges that we face as a society and which we can only overcome by working together. We have therefore also identified five global challenges:

Climate Change: The whole world is facing the challenges of climate change. We want to contribute to finding solutions for a better and more sustainable future.
Shifting Geopolitical Environment: We also are aware of the shifting geopolitical environment, which is challenging our understanding of global cooperation. Nevertheless, we want to continue to offer a platform for the exchange of different geopolitical views.
Digital Transformation: Another pressing challenge of our time is digital transformation. In a very short time, artificial intelligence has become part of our everyday lives. We are committed to ensuring that new technologies are used as responsibly as possible.
Democratic Backsliding: We also want to emphasize the problem of democratic backsliding. Aspen Germany is committed to a free, open, and democratic society in which everyone has the right to freely express their opinion.
Erosion of the International Order: Finally, we are aware that the world order has changed significantly. We want to underline the effects of the changing geopolitical situation and the resulting erosion of the international order.

We highlighted these values and challenges in our anniversary year, because they are what has defined and will continue to define Aspen Germany. It was a truly special year for all of us.

Gala of the Aspen Institute Germany 2024

We honored the 50th year anniversary of the Aspen Institute Germany, and in this spirit, we invited you to join our celebration of “Growing with Aspen” at the Aspen Gala on September 26 in the Rotes Rathaus. The event honored Aspen Germany’s long-standing commitment to values-based leadership and to tackling key global challenges.

The Shepard Stone Award

At this year’s gala, we once again presented the Shepard Stone Award, which recognizes outstanding achievements in the promotion of free and open societies and exceptional leadership in transatlantic affairs. It honors individuals in the realms of politics, culture, society, and science who represent the deeply rooted values of freedom and partnership shared by the United States and Germany.

The award was initiated by Aspen Germany in 2014, on the occasion of its 40th anniversary, in order to carry on the memory and spirit of Shepard Stone and to preserve his extraordinary achievements in liberal democracy and the German-American friendship. Previous awardees include Dr. Mathias Döpfner, Chairman of the Board of Axel Springer Publishing, and Leonard Lauder, who had the initial idea to promote the Aspen Idea in Germany and who is the former Chairman of the Board of Estée Lauder Companies.

In 2017, the award was presented to Dr. Guido Goldman, founder of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, and Wolf Biermann, poet, composer, and singer. During the Aspen Gala 2019, the Shepard Stone Award was presented to Madeleine Albright, former U.S. Secretary of State and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations, and Robert B. Zoellick, former President of the World Bank, former U.S. Trade Representative, and Lead U.S. Delegation at Two-Plus-Four Talks.

In 2024, the award was presented to Joachim Gauck, former Federal President of Germany. The laudatory speech was given by Bärbel Bas, President of the Bundestag.