50 Years of Aspen Germany – Gala
On the occasion of our 50th anniversary, we celebrated with the Aspen Germany community the proud history and values of the Institute, as well as the people who have made all of our achievements possible. Through dialogue, values-based leadership, and action, we have worked with our partners over the past 50 years to promote understanding, respect, and peace. We want to uphold this tradition of promoting democratic values among committed people in the future. That is why we invited the Aspen Germany community to celebrate our anniversary under the motto “Growing with Aspen.”
The evening offered an extensive program with speeches from Dr. Stormy-Annika Mildner, Eckart von Klaeden and Günter Ziegler, a festive dinner, the presentation of the Shepard Stone Award to Joachim Gauck, a laudatory speech by the President of the Bundestag Bärbel Bas, and the tribute to Edzard Reuters for his life’s work. In addition, musical performances with a transatlantic message were played by a quartet from the Barenboim-Said Akademie to honor Aspen Germany’s commitment to cross-border dialogue.
We were delighted to welcome around 150 guests, including friends, members, and supporters of our Institute as well as decision makers from politics, business, the public, non-profit sectors, academia, the arts, and culture. After this unforgettable evening, we would like to thank all our guests for coming and look forward to tackling the challenges ahead together.
Laudatory Speech by the President of the German Bundestag Bärbel Bas at the Gala of the Aspen Institute Germany 2024
In September 2024, Aspen Germany honored the life’s work of former federal president Joachim Gauck! Bärbel Bas, President of the German Bundestag, held the laudatory speech for Mr. Gauck, emphasizing his commitment to a democratic and liberal society.
The Gala was kindly supported by:
Program of the Gala:
| From 17:30 | Arrival of Guests |
| 18:30 | Guests Take Their Seats |
| 18:35 | Presentation of the Aspen Germany Anniversary Film “Growing with Aspen” |
| 18:45 | Welcome Speech Dr. Stormy-Annika Mildner Executive Director, Aspen Institute Germany |
| 18:50 | First Musical Performance Barenboim-Said Akademie |
| 19:00 | Welcome Speech Eckart von Klaeden Chairman, Board of Trustees of the Aspen Institute Germany Vice President, Head of External Affairs, Mercedes-Benz Group AG |
| 19:10 | Honor of Ezard Reuter’s Lifetime Achievement Eckart von Klaeden |
| 19:20 | Second Musical Performance Barenboim-Said Akademie |
| 19:30 | Laudatory Speech Bärbel Bas, President of the German Parliament |
| 19:45 | Shepard Stone Award Ceremony Joachim Gauck, former Federal President of Germany |
| 19:50 | Acceptance Speech Joachim Gauck, former Federal President of Germany |
| 20:10 | Voices of Tomorrow: Discussion with Joachim Gauck and Two Young Aspen Staff Members Joachim Gauck, former Federal President of Germany Lena Bühring, Aspen Institute Germany Aineias Engstrom, Geneva Centre for Security Sector Governance |
| 20:25 | Speech by the President of the Free University of Berlin Prof. Günter M. Ziegler |
| 20:40 | End of the Award Ceremony |
| 20:50 | Gala Dinner |
| 23:00 | End of the Gala |
