On the RISe W - Aspen Institute

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on the RISe

When Arne Duncan became a henry Crown Fellow in 2002, it changed his life. "The henry Crown Fellowship was one of the most important opportunities I've had to learn and continue to grow in my professional career," says Duncan. "The ideal of the Aspen experience, of values-based leadership and leading your life in a way that represents those values, is something that I think about constantly." At the time, Duncan was the CeO of his hometown of Chicago's Public Schools--and a rising star.

Members of the Institute's Aspen Global Leadership network are making an impact from positions of power worldwide.

Arne Duncan helps to build a playground as part of his Henry Crown leadership project in 2002.

Over the course of his seven-and-a-half years as CeO of Chicago Public Schools-- the longest-serving urban superintendent in the country--Duncan opened more than 100 new schools, improved the quality of teachers in the inner-city, and made college a reality for students of all backgrounds. Most important, under Duncan's leadership, Chicago's students excelled--with all-time high scores in reading and math. So it was little surprise to many when Chicago-Senatorturned-President Barack Obama named Arne Duncan as his secretary for education.

At his confirmation hearing, Duncan called education "the civil rights issue of our generation." he promised President Obama and the nation that he would work "to enhance education in America, to lift our children and families out of poverty, to help our students learn to contribute to the civility of our great American democracy, and to strengthen our economy by producing a

42 T h E A S p E n I d E A

SUMMER 2009

Leaders

SUMMER 2009

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan walks through a

Chicago public school with President Barack Obama.

Ralf-Finn Hestoft-Pool/Getty Images

workforce that can make us as competitive as possible."

Indeed, Duncan is a source of great hope for parents, teachers, students, and everyone who cares about America's future. But what most people don't know about Duncan is that he is one of nearly 950 members of the Institute's Aspen Global Leadership Network. This group is now a worldwide community committed to values-based leadership. Duncan's dedication to the potential and progress of his country is shared by many of his companions in the Network. The AGLN Fellows have all participated in seminars, discussed the seminal texts of the Aspen programs, argued about the definition of leadership and the good society, and turned their talents and values into actions with leadership projects aimed at improving their communities. With Fellows in 45 countries, this dynamic cohort of leaders is changing the world.

In the pursuit of the good society, Fellows have populated the upper echelons of government throughout the globe. In addition to Secretary Duncan, the Network has seen Fellows become governors, congressmen, ministers of trade, and top policy advisors. And, of course, the Fellows are still a prevailing force in business, the arts, technology, science, environment, communication, and just about every other aspect of civil society--where they are all changing the world. As Duncan says, "Leadership is the opportunity to make a difference."

On the pages that follow are just a few examples of this remarkable group.

T h e A s p e n I d ea 43

Aspen LEADERS

on the RISE

Sonal Shah White House Advisor on Social Innovation Henry Crown Fellow 2006

As a recent Henry Crown Fellow, Shah looked to the environment for her leadership project. Shah was one of the founders of the Aspen Institute Environment Awards, which reward innovative ideas that address current energy- and environment-related problems. Now in their second year, the Awards encourage excellence in inventing, implementing, and communicating energy and environmental solutions. See page 57 for more on this year's Environment Award winners.

Sonal Shah

44 T h e A s p e n I d ea

MIKE THEILER/epa/Corbis

Jack A. Markell

Jack A. Markell Governor of Delaware Henry Crown Fellow 2004 Rodel Fellow 2006

Governor Markell credits the Henry Crown program with his achievements: "My Crown Fellowship experience was pivotal in my successful run for governor. From time to time, I refer back to my readings from the seminars as I think about challenges I face to ground myself and to remind myself that, for thousands of years, leaders have faced similar issues. Amongst the Fellows, I have made new friends who I am able to call on for advice and support. The Crown Fellowship program has been a life-changing experience."

SUMMER 2009

 Cory Booker Mayor of Newark Henry Crown Fellow 2003

As mayor of Newark, New Jersey, Cory Booker has been a champion for innercity Americans. Perhaps that is why, for his Henry Crown leadership project, Booker co-founded The Rutgers Financial Management Program, a learning program for inner-city high school students designed to introduce them to the financial world. The Program is now a semester-long course created to build students' basic financial skills and knowledge so that they are empowered to build an abundant financial future.

SUMMER 2009

Daniel Bayer

James Lambright

Cory Booker

James Lambright Chief Investment Officer, TARP Henry Crown Fellow 2004

Chairman and President of the US Export-Import Bank James Lambright is also the chief investment officer of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) at the US Treasury Department. "It has been a real confidence-boost to be able to draw upon the wealth of perspectives available in the readings and relationships offered by the Crown program."

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Aspen LEADERS

on the RISE

Deval Patrick Governor of Massachusetts Henry Crown Fellow 1999

As governor of Massachusetts, Deval Patrick promotes the recognition of gun violence as a public-health issue. During his Henry Crown Fellowship, Patrick implemented several intervention programs to reduce the chances of gun injury and death. Asked about the most important lesson he took from the Henry Crown experience, Governor Patrick said simply, "Always let your values lead you."

Gisela Alvarez de Porras

Gisela Alvarez de Porras Minister of Commerce and Industry, Panama Central America Leadership Initiative Fellow

"My experience as a Fellow made me realize the urgent need for a publicprivate alliance, where both the government and the private sector have a united vision of where we want to be as a country and how to achieve that goal. It is not anymore a matter of both sectors rowing in the same direction; it is a matter of realizing that we are rowing in the same boat. It is a matter of sharing a common vision of a good society, one that would serve all."

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Rick Friedman/Corbis

Deval Patrick

SUMMER 2009

Mara Rudman

Mara Rudman Deputy Middle East Envoy, US State Department Henry Crown Fellow 2002

Though hard at work in the Obama administration, Rudman is still in touch with her class of Fellows: "My key takeaway from Crown is quite literally the fellowship of those in my class-- appropriately enough named the Six Degrees of Separation Class--and other Crown Fellows through the years. They have provided a great support system that at once challenges, provokes, and also lends a hand in all sorts of situations."

David Agnew White House Advisor, Office of Intergovernmental Affairs Liberty Fellow 2008

"I believe my Liberty Fellowship and Aspen Institute experiences were extremely important in preparing me for service in the Obama administration. Through the Fellowship, I developed a much more balanced view of my professional and personal responsibilities and ambitions, and that helps me put this time of intense service in proper perspective. By learning from other leaders, I was better able to articulate my own goals. I realized that public service is not an end game; rather, it is a way of living that embodies service as an ongoing ideal. The Liberty experience helped me learn to focus on the important in addition to the urgent, to regularly recalibrate my priorities so that lasting and meaningful goals are achieved."

SUMMER 2009

David Agnew

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Aspen LEADERS

on the RISE

Daniel Bayer

Erik Paulsen

Erik Paulsen Congressman, Minnesota Rodel Fellow 2005

"My Rodel experience has given me tremendous insight regarding the founding principles of Western democracy and creating a civil society. The majority of elected officials and public servants--even those with opposing philosophies--ultimately share similar goals. The Rodel Fellowship showed that, through civil dialogue with those who have different philosophies, you can find common ground and solutions without compromising your principles."

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Michael Steele

Michael Steele Chairman, Republican National Committee Rodel Fellow 2006

Part of the inaugural class of Rodel Fellows, thenLieutenant Governor of Maryland Michael Steele engaged in a civil discourse with fellow Republicans and Democrats.

Monique Nsamzabagamwa

Minister of Trade and Industry, Rwanda

Africa Leadership Initiative, East Africa,

Fellow

"The Fellowship has improved

Monique Nsamzabagamwa

my philosophy and attitude

toward my work. Knowing the

impact you can have on oth-

ers by the way you think and

act requires me to be ever more

responsible in decision-making.

It has sharpened my leadership

values," says Nsamzabagamwa.

SUMMER 2009

McNulty Prize Honors Aspen Leaders

When Institute Trustee Anne Welsh

McNulty created the John P. McNulty Prize in 2008,

it was to "recognize and reward

young leaders around the world who

are making a creative and effective

impact on their community." The

hope was also that the prize would

inspire Fellows in the Aspen Global

Leadership Network to really strive

for leadership projects with high

impact, to move from "success to

Bynum

significance." The nominees for the inaugural

prize spanned the globe, from Mississippi to Ghana to

Guatemala. In New Orleans, Henry Crown Fellow and

CEO of Hope Community Credit

Union--which serves the "un-

banked" of the Mississippi Delta

Region--William Bynum started

Home Again, a project designed

to build new houses for victims

of Hurricane Katrina. "Leader-

ship really comes into play when

you're faced with adversity," says Awuah

Bynum, who has built more than

50 new homes so far. "Hope is the look I see on peo-

ple's faces when you give them a key to their home."

After studying at Swarthmore and succeeding

at Microsoft, Henry Crown Fellow Patrick Awuah

returned to his native Ghana--and founded the first

liberal arts college in that country.

Ashesi University is dedicated to

educating a new generation of ethi-

cal and entrepreneurial leaders. Five

years after its inception, Ashesi has

grown from 30 to 400 students and

has quickly gained a reputation for

innovation and quality education in

Africa.

Baghai "To start a newspaper, one needs a dose of courage and a dose of

insanity," says Sylvia Gereda, director of the newspaper

El Peri?dico and Central America Leadership Initiative

SUMMER 2009

Fellow. Inspired by the youth of Guatemala, Gereda

created a magazine insert for El Peri?dico called

Switch. Switch is conceived, designed, and edited

entirely by young people, but its

principal objective is to present role

models to Guatemalan kids through

profiles and feature stories.

In Sydney, Australia, Mehrdad

Baghai--a Henry Crown Fellow,

venture capital entrepreneur, and

author--created a hands-on educa-

tional initiative to teach high school students about leadership, resolving

Gereda

conflicts, justice, and about becom-

ing purposeful global citizens.

Through a creative mix of interactive simulations, role-

playing exercises and small-group discussions, the High

Resolves Initiative seeks nothing less than to transform

the way kids see their place in the world and to create

a new generation of leadership. To date, High Resolves

Initiative has engaged more than 5,000 Sydney high

school students.

But it was Jordan Kassalow,

Henry Crown Fellow and CEO of

VisionSpring, who won the 2008

John P. McNulty Prize. "There are

very few people who can point to

moments in their lives that have

profoundly changed their lives,"

says Kassalow. But that is what hap-

pened to him on a trip to Mexico

as an optometry student. There, he met a young boy who Kassalow

Kassalow

thought was blind. He soon real-

ized the boy was not blind; he simply needed glasses.

Today, Kassalow provides sight to people the world over

with VisionSpring, a company designed to address the

market failure for reading glasses; he is also enabling

people with detailed jobs, like seamstresses and tailors,

to keep their livelihoods while providing new jobs to

those who make and sell his glasses. "The Aspen expe-

rience is critical in helping me magnify and strengthen

VisionSpring," says Kassalow.

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