European Commission, con-sidered these and other ques-tions surrounding religion inthe modern world.

Board ReportAt Institut Aspen France’sboard of trustees meeting inParis on June 12, Jean-PaulBailly, chairman of La Poste,and Charles Beigbeder,CEO of Poweo, were nomi-nated to the SupervisoryBoard. In addition, eight newmembers were nominated tothe Advisory Board: MichelBarnier, former French Min-ister for Foreign Affairs;Isabelle Berrebi-Hoffmann,researcher with CNRS;Emmanuel Cueff, executivedirector of Le Point; MartinHi r s ch , cha i rman o fEmmaüs France; FrédéricLenoir, editing director of LeMonde des Religions; Jean-Christophe Ruffin, chairmanof Action contre la Faim;Javier Santiso, deputy direc-tor and chief developmenteconomist with OCDE;Hubert Védrine, formerFrench Minister for ForeignAffairs.

UPCOMINGNovember13–15 Fourth session of the YoungPolitical Leaders Program “Leadership”

16 Regional conference in pre-lude to the World Life Sci-ences Forum, organized inpartnership with BioVision

DecemberRegional conference on“Competitiveness Clusters:Hopes and Realities?”

7–8 Conference on “The FrenchModel”

Institut Aspen France119, rue Pierre Corneille69003 LyonFranceTel. + 33 4 72 41 93 12www.aspenfrance.org

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Institut Aspen France, founded in 1983, is a nonpartisan,nonprofit, international center for discussion and dia-logue. Aspen France has two goals: to help regional,national, and international leaders — from the economic,political, academic, and nonprofit sectors, unions, andthe media — identify the challenges they must face inseeking solutions to the problems of our times; and tofacilitate informal meetings of leaders from different geo-graphical, cultural, and professional worlds.

To these ends, Institut Aspen France, located in Lyonsince 1994, offers international conferences and semi-nars addressing the major economic, social, and politi-cal issues of the day. It also hosts meetings and debateson regional issues.

RECENTHIGHLIGHTSUS-Europe FocusAt its third InternationalConference on TransatlanticRelations in May, InstitutAspen France narrowed itsfocus to Europe-US relations— specifically external chal-lenges that could strainthem. Conversation immedi-ately turned to Russia, Iran,and energy supplies, and,eventually, the Bush Admin-istration’s policies. Partici-pants including BoydenGray, US ambassador to theEU, former French defenseminister Alain Richard,NATO deputy assistant sec-r e t a r y gene ra l Pa t r i ckHardouin, and trustees of theInstitute (US) built conversa-tion around three topics:“Will the Atlantic Alliancestill be a reality beyond sim-ply a symbolic role?”; “The

Energy Chal lenge: theUnited States and Europefacing Russia and Iran”; and“Expansion of Democracy:European and AmericanViewpoints and Outlooks.”

The Stakes of Religious IssuesWhat impact have religionsfelt from globalization, andhow will they evolve underits influence? Will they inturn have an influence onglobalization? If so, how? InJuly in Lyon at the secondInternational Conference onthe St akes of ReligiousIssues, 40 experts includingPeter Oppenheimer, presi-dent of the Oxford Centre forHebrew and Jewish Studies;Thimothy Shah, senior fel-low for religion and worldaffairs at the Pew Forum onReligion & Public Life; andMichael Weninger, politicaladviser to the president of the

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European government leaders discussed relations with the United Statesat Institut Aspen France’s third annual International Conference onTransatlantic Relations in May in Lyon.

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ety. Participants agreed gen-erally that patriotism — notprotectionism — is a positiveforce that means attractinginvestments to Italy, reinstat-ing the rule of law, and rein-forcing control mechanisms.Participants weighed futurechallenges for Italy and dis-cussed ways to preserve thecountry’s cultural legacy.

As a part of the Institute’s“World Economy” series,Aspen Italia held a confer-ence July 7–8 in Florence,where discussion centeredaround the Asia-Pacific link.Participants looked at howthe East is reshaping theWest, the increasing disparitybetween the developingworld and the developedworld, energy security, andthe prospects for a moreeffective and efficient globalgovernance, especially inlight of strong, dynamicgrowth in the East — not justin China and India but inJapan as well.

Finally, on July 17 inMilan, a fourth Aspen Italiaconference focused on newfrontiers in biotechnology.Participants considered the

consequences of moderndevelopments in science andtechno logy on humanhealth, reproduction, foodsupplies, economic growth,and quality of life. Discus-sion focused particularly onhow Italy might take advan-tage of new discoveries.

Aspenia NewsSince April 2006, AspenItalia has also publishedthree issues of its prestigiousjournal on internationalaffairs, Aspenia. Contribut-ing authors include BobGeldof, Peter Sutherland,Jeffrey Sachs, Carlo Scog-namiglio, Ali Mufuruki,Prince Hassan of Jordan,Robert Kaplan, Daniel Ver-net, Alvin Toffler, Beppe Sev-ergnini, Ivor Roberts, andmany more. Visit www.aspeninstitute.it to read aselection of articles from pastissues.

UPCOMINGNovember 30–December 1The Aspen Women’s Work-shop: “The Future of theBroader Middle East”Rome

December 1–2International Conferenceand Transatlantic Dialogueon “Business and Democ-racy: Bringing the MiddleEast out of Crisis”Rome

Aspen Institute ItaliaPiazza dei Santi Apostoli, 4900187 Roma Tel. + 39.06.9784511 www.aspeninstitute.it

Aspen Institute Italia has established itself as a leader inpromoting enlightened dialogue in Europe and acrossthe Atlantic through conferences, seminars, and studieson international issues relating to economics, business,politics, and security. It has significantly increased itsmembership over the past several years, with a currenttotal of more than 300 board members. It has also con-siderably broadened its outreach through its quarterlyjournal Aspenia, which is sold at bookstores throughoutItaly as well as distributed to embassies, universities,and think tanks all over the world.

Aspen Italia’s policy programs concentrate primarilyon Euro-American issues, including the reorganization ofa 25-member European Union, economic global gover-nance, and the political and economic evolution ofMediterranean and Middle Eastern countries. AspenItalia conferences and roundtables bring together high-level international leaders from business, politics,finance, and academia in off-the-record settings, oftenwith in-depth focus on a single topic.

The Aspen Seminars for Leaders represent an innova-tive, enriched, and distinctly European interpretation ofthe Aspen Executive Seminar. Open to top managers ofenterprises, organizations, and associations (includingnon-members), these discussions have recently includedthemes such as infrastructure and transportation; thepostmodern society; information, democracy, and com-munications; and the challenge of a global market forsouthern Italy.

RECENTHIGHLIGHTSSince April 2006, AspenItalia has organized severalroundtables and conferenceson domestic issues such astelecommunications, eco-nomic leadership, banking,the national interest, Italianculture, poverty, and entre-preneurialism. At a round-table on political and eco-

nomic s t ab i l i t y in theBalkans, the Aspen Instituteannounced its new interna-tional partner in Romania(see page 27).

Aspen Italia also organ-ized a conference specifi-cally for the Aspen JuniorFellows on May 19–20,focusing on redefining patri-otism in Italy in terms ofeconomy, culture, and soci-

Aspen Institute Italia publishesAAssppeenniiaa, a multidisciplinary jour-nal with articles by Italian andinternational figures on a varietyof issues.

The fourth installment of the Aspen Dialogue on World Economy Series,entitled “The Asia-Pacific Link: How the East Is Reshaping the West,” washeld in Florence July 7–8.

ASPEN INSTITUTE ITALIA

Corporate ValuesConferenceIn early June, the AspenInstitute Japan co-sponsoredthe Corporate Values Con-ference in Tokyo with BoozAllen Hamilton, Fuji Xerox,and the Fuji Xerox LearningInstitute. Ralph Shrader,CEO of Booz Allen Hamil-ton, opened the conferenceby reporting the findings of ajoint-research project on thetopic conducted by theAspen Institute and BoozAllen Hamilton.

New Executive SeminarLaunchedIn late September, a newfive-day Executive Seminarfor business executives andlocal government officialswas launched in the Tohokuarea, the northern part ofHonshu Island. After theseminar, Aspen InstituteJapan held a public sympo-sium in Yamagata City incelebration of the 20thanniversary of the sister-staterelationship between theYamagata Prefecture and thestate of Colorado. Modera-

tors from the previous Execu-tive Seminar served as speak-ers on the panel at the sym-posium.

UPCOMINGDecember 1–3Young Executive SeminarKanagawa

February 9–14Nippon Aspen ExecutiveSeminarChiba

Aspen Institute JapanThe International Houseof Japan11-16 Roppongi 5-chomeMinato-kuTokyo 106-0032JapanTel. + 81-3-3470-3211i-house@aspeninstitute.jp

Seminar Office3-1-1 RoppongiRoppongi T-CUBE 14FMinato-kuTokyo 106-0032JapanTel. + 81-3-5574-1801

In Japan, the Aspen idea has been adapted to incorpo-rate Eastern — especially Japanese — ideas. AspenInstitute Japan offers the Nippon Aspen Executive Sem-inar (NAES) three or four times each year. Based on thetraditional Aspen Executive Seminar, NAES featuresmany of the original’s essential characteristics: exten-sive reading and intensive discussion; an emphasis onself-teaching, not training; and diversity as a priority atthe discussion table.

As much as the seminars have in common, the read-ings from NAES diverge from those of the original.Compiled by two Japanese scholars who have taken theAspen Executive Seminar, the readings have beenadapted to include both Western and non-Western — inparticular Japanese — values, history, traditions, andphilosophy so that they may better fit Japanese leaders.

Each seminar focuses on five themes: Japan and theWorld; Nature and Life; Cognition; Beauty; and Faith,Humanity, and Democracy. Readings from Westernsources include Dante’s Divine Comedy; the Dialogues ofPlato; Immanuel Kant’s Perpetual Peace; John Locke’sConcerning Civil Government; Alexis de Tocqueville’sDemocracy in America; Charles Darwin’s Origin ofSpecies; and Francis Bacon’s Advancement of Learning.The non-Western readings include The Ideals of the East,by Tenshin Okakura; The Analects, by Confucius; Flow andStagnation: Fragments of Philosophy, by Shozo Omori;and An Encouragement of Learning, by Yukichi Fukuzawa.

RECENTHIGHLIGHTSYoung Executive SeminarFollowing the success of itsfirst Young Executive Semi-nar, Aspen Institute Japanheld its second Young Execu-tive Seminar in Kanagawa inlate May. The seminar,

which provides rising youngexecutives with valuableopportunities to talk aboutcommon experiences andchallenges, incorporatedreadings by great authorsboth from the East and theWest. The third seminar isscheduled for early Decem-ber 2006.

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The Nippon Aspen ExecutiveSeminar in Chiba, Japan, inmid-July

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RECENTHIGHLIGHTSUS-India RelationsIn collaboration with theConfederation of IndianIndustry and the India Devel-opment Foundation, AspenIndia organized three dia-logues relating to PresidentGeorge W. Bush’s 2006 visitto India. They addressed theimplications of a balance-of-power shift toward Asia, conti-nuity and digressions in for-eign policies, economicinterdependencies, and strate-gic considerations includingenergy and security.

The first session coveredthe strategic partnershipbetween the US and India.Speakers included K. Sub-rahmanyam, chairman ofthe Task Force on GlobalStrategic Developments;Sachin Pilot, member of theIndian Pa r l i ament ; C .

ASPEN INSTITUTE INDIA

Rajamohan, strategic affairseditor of The Indian Express;and Naresh Chandra, formerAmbassador of India to theUnited States. The secondasked whether India’s tradeand investments with the USmight rival China’s. Speak-ers included N.K. Singh, for-mer secretary to the PrimeMinister and former mem-ber of the Indian PlanningCommission; Mr. HarpalSingh, chairman of FortisHealthcare Limited; SurjitBhalla, managing director ofOxus Research and Invest-ment; and Scott Bayman,president and CEO of GEIndia. The final sessionaddressed a future agenda inUS-India relations withspeakers such as ManvendraSingh of India’s BharatiyaJanata Party and Sunil BhartiMittal, chairman and groupmanaging director of BhartiEnterprises.

Democracy andDevelopmentAspen India organized aninteractive session on democ-racy and development fromthe UN perspective, as pre-sented by Shashi Tharoor, anAspen India trustee and UNundersecretary-general forcommunications and publicinformation, in April 2006 inNew Delhi. N.K. Singh, AspenIndia trustee and former mem-ber of the Indian PlanningCommission, introduced thesession, and Gautam Thapar,Aspen India trustee and vicechairman and managing direc-tor of Ballarpur IndustriesLtd., concluded it. In hisaddress, Tharoor said that theUN cannot impose democracyon unwilling countries but willhelp in facilitating democraticinstitutions when requestscome. He also said that Indiahad set an example for the restof the world through its59 years of democracy andindependence.

New Board MembersAnil Shrikhande, managingdirector of Boeing Interna-tional Corp. India, and L.Brooks Entwistle, managingdirector and CEO of Gold-man Sachs India, havejoined Aspen India’s Board ofTrustees.

Eye on the FutureAspen India, in partnershipwith Aspen Institute and theGlobal Markets Institute ofGoldman Sachs, launchedthe India Leadership Initia-tive (ILI), a part of the AspenGlobal Leadership Networkin the fall. Its inaugural classof 24 fellows attended theirfirst seminar, entitled “TheChallenge of Leadership,” inGoa in October.

UPCOMINGFebruary 2–5Second Annual JointRoundtable on Communications Policy Chennai and New Delhi

Aspen Institute IndiaMr. Tarun DasPresident of Aspen Institute India, and Chief Mentor of the Confederation of Indian IndustryPlot No 249-F. Sector 18,Udyog Vihar, Phase IVGurgaon – 122015(Haryana)Tel: (+91) 124.4014081/82Fax: (+91) 124 401 4083aspenindia@ciionline.org

UN Undersecretary-General Shashi Tharoor addresses the audience at anAspen India session on democracy and development.

Aspen Institute India is a nonprofit organization dedi-cated to in-depth discussion of global issues, develop-ment of leadership based on values, and a high-levelexchange of opinions, information and values. Its mis-sion is to bring a value-based perspective to the mostimportant issues of the day and represent the forum ofchoice for convening and developing leaders in India.Aspen India focuses on the most important problemsand challenges facing society, the business communityand the individual. It invites top industrial, economic,financial, political, social and cultural leaders to discussthese issues in reserved settings that encourage frankand open debate.

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The Aspen Institute Berlin is an independent nonprofit,nonpartisan institution dedicated to the promotion oftransatlantic dialogue. Seeking to act as a bridge betweenAmerica and Europe, it convenes programs — in Berlinand throughout Europe, the United States, and the MiddleEast — on foreign policy, defense, and trade issues. Itsprograms and conferences reach out to key decision andopinion makers as well as the broader public, creating amarketplace of ideas.

Aspen Berlin’s work consists of lectures, roundtables,and debates. Its lectures — larger, formal events that areopen to the public and press — usually draw 150 to 200participants. The roundtables are smaller, invitation-onlygatherings for about 20 select participants. The debates,which are lively and informal public sessions held in cafésthroughout Berlin, are designed to foster discussion onissues of transatlantic interest.

RECENTHIGHLIGHTSAspen Berlin continued toaddress Middle East and

transatlantic governmentalcollaboration through thesummer months, while alsodelving into the domestic

ASPEN INSTITUTEBERLIN

Otto Schily (third from left), former German Minister of the Interior andcurrent Bundestag member, with participants in a June Young Professionalsconference on energy, oil, and climate policy in the Middle East

issues of health care andimmigration. In May andJune, Boyden Gray, therecent ly appointed USAmbassador to the EuropeanUnion, hosted a series ofAspen Berlin talks and discus-s ions on government a lresponsibility and health carereform. Victoria Nuland, USRepresentative to NATO,presided at a roundtable on“Transatlantic Relations andNATO’s Current Agenda.”

Aspen Berlin also organ-ized four conferences onpressing Middle East issues.In May, UN RepresentativeDore Gold, former foreignpolicy advisor to BenjaminNetanyahu, as well as twoimportant leaders of theIsraeli Defense Force, Yaa-cov Amidror and MosheYaalon, spoke at a confer-ence on “The ChangingMiddle Eastern SecurityEnvironment and Israel’sDefense Needs.” This wasfollowed by a June confer-ence on energy, oil, and cli-mate policy as it relates todevelopment in the MiddleEast. Aspen Berlin later heldtwo symposia in London andNice on the current state ofaffairs in Syria and Lebanon,which included prominentjournalists and dissidentsfrom the region.

Aspen Institute BerlinInselstr. 1014129 BerlinGermanyTel. + 49 (0) 30 80 48 90-0 www.aspenberlin.org

Aspen Institute Berlin executive director Jeffrey Gedmin and Victoria Nuland, the US Permanent Representativeto NATO, at an Aspen Berlin roundtable on transatlantic relations and NATO’s current agenda