AIF Blog - World
February 09, 2012
Continuing our series, Matt Flannery tells about his transition from computer programming at TiVo to co-founder of Kiva.org. His experience underlies his belief that we can all apply our knowledge and skillset for social good.Flannery tells how he used computer programming to create a system where someone could get $25 into the hands of a Ugandan woman via the Internet.At Kiva, we’ve experienced this out-pouring of...
January 25, 2012
NOTE: In light of the one-year anniversary of the revolt in Egypt, following is a story about one of the many Aspen Ideas sessions about the Arab Spring. It was first published in The Aspen Idea.In the wake of the incredible changes across the Arab world, Nicholas Burns, director of the Aspen Strategy Group, moderated a vibrant discussion with Marwan Muasher, vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment and...
January 04, 2012
Nicholas Kristof is seemingly tireless when it comes to promoting the cause of equality and opportunity for women worldwide. This is frequent topic of his column in the New York Times as well as an ongoing discussion on his Facebook and Twitter feeds. In the video below, he and his wife, journalist Sheryl WuDunn enlightened Aspen Ideas attendees about their work around the world.Kristof caught our attention again...
September 08, 2011
Photographer Andrea Booher gave an arresting photo presentation at Aspen Ideas, which documents September 11, 2001, and the aftermath at Ground Zero. Assigned by FEMA to photo-document the search and rescue efforts at the World Trade Center, she was one of only two photographers, designated by Mayor Rudolph Guiliani, with unlimited, 24-hour access to the site. In her quest to capture the devastation as well as the...
August 31, 2011
As the 10-year anniversary of September 11 approaches, we focus here on our coverage of the topic at Aspen Ideas.Diplomats, experts, and politicians gathered in Aspen to discuss topics like: Could another 9/11 happen? What have we learned after 60 years of nation building? What have we gained and lost in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq? What will happen this September when the UN votes on Palestine's declaration of...
August 26, 2011
(Wes Moore with fellow veteran and author Rye Barcott)This week, TIME magazine features "The New Greatest Generation" on their cover. Written by Joe Klein (also a presenter at AIF 2011), the story recognizes men and women returning from Iraq and Afghanistan for their service and the way they are redefining leadership at home.Paul Rieckhoff, the founder and executive director of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of...
August 22, 2011
Last week, the US and its allies called for Syria's president, Bashar al-Assad to step down.Today, the embattled leader dismissed the calls as meaningless.Watch what this distinguished panel — including Nigel Sheinwald (pictured above), Jane Harman, John Negroponte, and moderated by Fred Hiatt — had to say on the subject earlier this summer at Aspen Ideas. How does the US enforce its freedom agenda when military...
July 22, 2011
The House Foreign Affairs Committee weighed a bill this week to strip Pakistan of all US foreign aid unless the country can prove it is helping to quell terrorism.Just days before the most recent terrorist attack, on July 13, in Mumbai, Shashi Tharoor, a member of Indian Parliament and former United Nations under-secretary general, was at Aspen Ideas where he spoke on the issue of terrorism in the session “From...
July 01, 2011
Aspen Ideas' Afternoon of Conversation is a signature event, and yesterday's was no exception. Over a thousand guests filled the Benedict Music Tent for a stimulating afternoon of discussions on the dais. Speakers included a Supreme Court justice, the leader of Israel's opposition, a cabinet secretary and more; it was a heady way to spend a rainy day in Aspen.Here are the highlights:"Every time we have a First...
July 01, 2011
Perennial AIF favorite Thomas L. Friedman sat down with Walter Isaacson yesterday at the Aspen Ideas Festival to discuss how America has lost its way in the world. During the course of their engaging conversation, the topic of the "Arab Spring" came up. Friedman asserts here that Israel and Palestine need their own "Arab Spring." Watch his provacative comments in the video above...Then watch the full-length video...
