Aspen UK

Despite more content being shared through media outlets than ever before, the issue of whose stories are being told or highlighted in the news remains persistent. There is an ongoing shift towards increased diversity both in the newsroom and in the way we tell news stories, in an attempt to better reflect the society the industry reports. Is there still a way for our media platforms to be used as tools to expose its users to a variety of cultural influences and experiences? What is the best way to tell stories of people from different backgrounds for the audiences at home?

This event brings together industry leaders, academics, and creatives to discuss how our media landscape can best share a more diverse range of stories, art forms, and creative endeavours, moving beyond a surface level ‘diversity’ to creating an environment that facilitates intercultural exchange.

The panel features Marcus Ryder MBE, Head of External Consultancies at the Sir Lenny Henry Centre for Media Diversity; Meera Selva, Chief Executive of Internews Europe; Andrea Medrado, Lecturer at the School of Media and Communication, University of Westminster; and moderator Luba Kassova, journalist, co-Founder of AKAS, and award-winning author of Missing Perspectives of Women in News report series. 

This event was recorded as part of a live broadcast on 22 February 2023.

Baroness Casey of Blackstock sat down with Ruth Warder, Co-CEO UK & EMEA Brand Chair at Edelman, to discuss the breakdown of trust in UK society. The conversation explored how this disintegration contributes to the polarisation we are currently witnessing and, most importantly, what measures should be taken to counteract its driving forces.

Baroness Casey is a leading expert when it comes to this topic; a long time independent advisor on social welfare, her previous roles include: Chair of the Ruff Institute of Global Homelessness, Crossbench Peer in the UK House of Lords, former head of the COVID-19 Rough Sleeping Task Force, and leader of the independent review of the Met Police.

This event is part of the Edelman-Aspen Trust Dialogue series put on in partnership with Edelman UK to understand the causes behind the polarisation that we are seeing in society today and, critically, how its driving forces can be countered.

Edelman has studied the dynamic shifts in trust for more than 20 years. Over the last decade their Trust Barometer study, which measures trust in institutions across 28 markets globally, has shown a deepening divide in trust levels between the elite minority in society and the disenchanted majority.

We will be joined by an expert guest for each event and will seek to understand this trust deficit by identifying key issues for public and private institutions, exploring why mistrust is so pervasive and try to identify how trust can be re-built.

This episode was recorded as a live webinar on 8 December 2022.

The rise of ‘Circular Fashion’ is defined by a shift by producers and consumers in global fashion value chains to products which retain their value for longer. There is a changing consumer market for circular fashion driven by new government policies, shifts in business practices by producers, and consumer demands that are prioritising responsibly sourced and more sustainable fashion products.

This event explored these steps to reduce the fashion sector’s impacts and what the most effectives tools will be to move towards improving sustainability in the clothes we wear. It was held in partnership with the Netherlands Embassy and the EU Delegation to the UK.

This event was recorded live on November 24 2022 at the National Gallery.

Moderator:
Bella Webb - Sustainability Editor at Vogue Business

Panellists:
Shailja Dubé – Institute of Positive Fashion Programme Lead at British Fashion Council
Emilien Gasc – Climate & Environment attaché at the Delegation of the European Union to the UK
Hasna Kourda – CEO and co-founder of Save Your Wardrobe
Safia Minney - founder of People Tree and Fashion Declares and author of Regenerative Fashion

Distrust has become the default for the public’s trust in government and trust in our political leaders is broken. And after a chaotic few months in British politics, the disconnect between politicians and the electorate only seems to be worsening. Do we need a new type of politics to begin to rebuild trust in government? In this episode, we heard The Rt Hon. Baroness D'Souza CMG in conversation with Hugh Taggart, Co–CEO UK & Ireland, and Global Head of Crisis at Edelman.

This event is part of the Edelman-Aspen Trust Dialogue series put on in partnership with Edelman UK to understand the causes behind the polarisation that we are seeing in society today and, critically, how its driving forces can be countered.

Edelman has studied the dynamic shifts in trust for more than 20 years. Over the last decade their Trust Barometer study, which measures trust in institutions across 28 markets globally, has shown a deepening divide in trust levels between the elite minority in society and the disenchanted majority.

We will be joined by an expert guest for each event and will seek to understand this trust deficit by identifying key issues for public and private institutions, exploring why mistrust is so pervasive and try to identify how trust can be re-built.

This event was recorded as part of a live broadcast on 2 November 2022.

The question of how employers can create truly diverse workforces is being asked more and more. From corporate spaces to hospitality, diversity quotas in the recruitment of employees often rely on a tick-box exercise. But once in these spaces, what do organisations do to create a work culture that brings individuals of different backgrounds together in meaningful exchange? And how can such workplaces, which may have in the past been designed to facilitate a narrower group of employees, evolve into an environment that suits the needs of a diverse workforce?

Our experts discuss how employers can recruit and maintain a more diverse workforce, and what are the possible paths to creating an environment respectful of intercultural diversity.

The panel features Marc de Swaan Arons, the Founder of the Institute for Real Growth; Anu Law, the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Leader at the EY Foundation; Christin Owings, Managing Director and Partner in the People & Organization Practice at BCG in London; Ade Rawcliffe, Group Director of Diversity and Inclusion at ITV; and Esther-Miriam Wagner, Executive Director of the Woolf Institute. Emma Jacobs, Work and Careers Features writer at the Financial Times, moderates the conversation.

This event was recorded as part of a live broadcast on 21 November 2022.

After one of the most historic elections in Brazil’s history that saw Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva be elected to the presidency, the future direction of the country is in a uncertain place. President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva will have to navigate stagnated growth and high crime levels, balance supporting agri-business while preventing deforestation and protecting indigenous peoples, and build unity in an increasingly polarised society.

Chargé d’Affaires Melanie Hopkins, United Kingdom Acting Ambassador in Brazil; Richard Lapper, a consultant on Latin America and the author of the book ‘Beef, Bible, and Bullets: Brazil in The Age of Bolsonaro’; Pamella Lessa, Impact Director of the social organisation SEJA; and Dr Carlos Nobre,  Earth System Scientist currently associated with Institute for Advanced Studies, University of São Paolo speak with Michael Stott, Latin American Editor at the Financial Times on the future of Brazil at this historical inflection point. 

This event was recorded at a live event on 15 November, 2022.

The outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic had a devastating impact on the travel industry. International travel ground to a halt in 2020 as four-fifths of countries around the world closed their borders in an attempt to slow down the spread of the virus. The UN World Tourism Organisation estimates that international arrivals fell by 70-75% in 2020.

With border restrictions lifted across the EU and the UK, passenger travel is rapidly ramping up. Airlines and travel carriers are coping with a number of challenges, including increased demand, rising oil prices, staff shortages, flight cancellations, and transition to low-carbon.

This event brought together travel industry professionals, consumer advocacy experts, and policymakers to discuss how the EU and UK travel industries are coping with the post-COVID rebound in tourism and how we can better build resiliency for the future. We explored how travel providers can adapt to meet fast rising demand, scale up staffing, and deal with the impact of the war in Ukraine. We also discussed how to protect passengers in times of uncertainty and explore how travel between the EU and UK is changing.

What will it take for the travel industry to recover? What steps are airlines and airports taking to minimise the chaos? Can we safeguard against future shocks? How can we create better assurances for consumers protection?

This was recorded live on 24 October 2022.

Moderator:
Ben Clatworthy – Ben is the Transport and Travel Correspondent for The Times and The Sunday Times.

Panellists:
Rhea Chatterjee – Rhea is the Assistant Section Secretary to the Civil Aviation and Tourism Services Sections of the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF).
Simon McNamara – Simon is the UK & Ireland Country Manager for the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
Bob Schumacher – Bob is the Director of Sales (United Kingdom, Ireland, Israel Jordan, South Africa and Off-line markets) for United Airlines.
Pierpaolo Settembri – Pierpaolo is an EU official since 2007, currently working as Head of Unit for Coordination and Planning in the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport (DG MOVE).
Christopher Snelling – Christopher is Policy Director at Airport Operations Association (AOA)

The global transition to a net-zero economy hinges on a strong and trusting relationship between business, government and society. How can institutions, businesses and communities unite to forge a path to a clean global future where prosperity is delivered, but not at the expense of the planet?

KEY EXPERT:
Rt Hon Alok Sharma MP – COP26 President and UK Cabinet minister

IN CONVERSATION WITH:
Ed Williams – President & CEO, Edelman EMEA

This event is part of the Edelman-Aspen Trust Dialogue series put on in partnership with Edelman UKto understand the causes behind the polarisation that we are seeing in society today and, critically, how its driving forces can be countered.

Edelman has studied the dynamic shifts in trust for more than 20 years. Over the last decade their Trust Barometer study, which measures trust in institutions across 28 markets globally, has shown a deepening divide in trust levels between the elite minority in society and the disenchanted majority.

We are joined by an expert guest for each event and seek to understand this trust deficit by identifying key issues for public and private institutions, exploring why mistrust is so pervasive and try to identify how trust can be re-built.

This podcast was recorded live on July 14th 2022.

Big tech firms have attracted concerns around the world for their anti-competitive conduct. Their ability to stifle competition and innovation, and so maintain their monopoly over technology markets, has been met with increasing criticism in recent years. Across the world, regulators and policy makers have come up with proposals on how to establish a competitive, safe, and fair online environment that also safeguards users’ fundamental rights.

Announced earlier this year, the EU’s new Digital Markets Act (DMA) is legislation designed to make the digital economy open, fair, and contestable. Likewise, the UK’s new Digital Markets Unit (DMU) will look to hold Big Tech companies to account, with the powers to issue fines for not allowing fair competition. Both regulators will seek to curb the power of companies designated as ‘gatekeepers’, based on their market-share and profits. Will it be enough to reign in the technology giants? Are competition authorities and anti-trust regulators adequately prepared to enforce the new regulatory regimes alongside existing antitrust tools? Can the digital economy ever be made open and fair?

This event brought together industry figures, policy-experts, academics, and civil servants to discuss the different regulatory approaches the UK and EU are adopting, and how their respective ambitions compare. 

This event was recorded live on October 18 2022. 

Moderator:

Tamzin Booth – Partner in the Technology, Media and Telecoms (TMT) sector team at Brunswick Group, and former Technology and Business Editor at The Economist.

Panellists:

Olivier Guersent – Director-General of the Directorate General for Competition at the European Commission. 

Amelia Fletcher CBE – Professor of Competition Policy at Norwich Business School and Deputy Director at the Centre for Competition Policy. 

Niall Mackenzie – Director, Consumers and Competition at the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). 

The modern educational system is designed around academic performance, university admissions and preparing students for their professional careers. But there is less emphasis on the promotion of the skills associated with facilitating inter-cultural dialogue, such as communication, listening, and openness. And this issue isn’t limited to school curricula; classrooms often lack in racial, gender, religious and sexual diversity.

Schools and universities represent ideal platforms to encourage the development of intercultural dialogue in society. Embracing different cultures in the classroom is crucial for uniting communities, developing an awareness of different cultural perspectives, and promoting open-mindedness, tolerance, and empathy.

This event brought together educators, academics, and non-profit leaders to explore how to enhance intercultural exchange in schools, universities, and curricula. Our discussion focused on how we can devise a curriculum to produce a more well-rounded cultural education of our youth and how we can we bring together students of different cultural backgrounds to learn and exchange experiences together.

The Aspen Institute UK, in partnership with the Khalili Foundation, explore these pertinent questions. It is part of the wider World Festival of Cultural Diversity which, in association with UNESCO, is bringing together various intellectual and creative initiatives in collective celebration of our world’s cultures.

This event was recorded as part of a live broadcast on 27 September 2022.

Moderated by:
James Westhead - Head of Engagement at Big Society Capital, previously TeachFirst and BBC News correspondent

Panel:
Victor Adebowale - visiting Professor and Chancellor at the University of Lincoln
Faiqa Amreen – Head of History at Park View School; Professional Development Specialist at Lyfta
Zulum Elumogo – Zulum Elumogo is a Special Advisor at Freuds Communications; on the Board of Directors for the Fair Education Alliance, Dance Umbrella and the Barbican Centre
Tariq Modood – Tariq is Professor of Sociology, Politics and Public Policy and founding Director of the Centre for the Study of Ethnicity and Citizenship at the University of Bristol

This event was recorded as a live broadcast on 30 June 2022.

In the UK, as economic inequality increases, so does public distrust of our economy and its institutions. So, if a more economically equal society is also a more trusting one, what responsibility do our institutions have in rebalancing the system and, consequently, improving trust?

Part of the Edelman-Aspen Trust Dialogue series put on in partnership with Edelman UK, this event saw Miatta Fahnbulleh, Chief Executive at the New Economics Foundation, in conversation with Hugh Taggart, Co-CEO and Global Head of Crisis at Edelman UK. In this timely conversation, Miatta and Hugh explore the role of economic institutions in creating a trusting society, and question how this trust can be promoted in our current polarised climate. 

Edelman has studied the dynamic shifts in trust for more than 20 years. Over the last decade their Trust Barometer study, which measures trust in institutions across 28 markets globally, has shown a deepening divide in trust levels between the elite minority in society and the disenchanted majority.

This event was recorded as a live broadcast on 4 May 2022.  

Trusted information is the lifeblood of a well-functioning society – are our media models and platforms able to support this? In this conversation, our speakers explore the forces driving trust, and distrust, in the media, between those who write & publish the stories and those who read them. 

Part of the Edelman-Aspen Trust Dialogue series put on in partnership with Edelman UK, this event saw Mark Thompson, former CEO of The New York Times Company and Former Director-General of the BBC, in conversation with Ed Williams, President and CEO of Edelman EMEA. Their discussion sought to understand the causes behind the polarisation we see in society today and, critically, how its driving forces can be countered.

Edelman has studied the dynamic shifts in trust for more than 20 years. Over the last decade their Trust Barometer study, which measures trust in institutions across 28 markets globally, has shown a deepening divide in trust levels between the elite minority in society and the disenchanted majority.

Every space we share – offices, schools, parks, and pubs – ought to be shaped by the cultures of those who design, build, and use them. But there is a worry that people feel alien in what should be familiar and welcoming places, owing to narrowness of thinking in how we design public and civic spaces, and for whom.  

This event brings together top architects, urban planners, and policy experts to explore how to make the shared spaces in our cities and communities more welcoming and accommodating to an increasingly diverse public – and ultimately how to make our civic spaces a place for everyone.  

The discussion will explore how we can design public spaces – parks, squares, neighbourhoods – to help people of different cultures interact and enjoy each other. How do we bring together people in a multitude of places to celebrate their differences and engage in cultural exchange? How do we preserve, promote, and integrate cultural markers in our cities in a way that celebrates history and diversity? 

MODERATED BY:  

Paul Owens – Paul is Director of BOP Consulting and Founder of the World Cities Culture Forum.  

ON THE PANEL:  

Shanaz Gulzar – Chair of the Bradford City of Culture Bid 2025 

Sunder Katwala – Director of UK think-tank British Future 

Harriet Wennberg – Executive Director of INTBAU 

Armstrong Yakubu – Senior Partner at Foster + Partners   

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on 18 July 2022. 

The Russian-Ukrainian war has been waging since February 24, with no clear end in sight. The Russian military’s reliance on heavy firepower has caused massive physical destruction, and the cost to Ukraine’s people, infrastructure, and economy has been catastrophic. Having failed to capture Kyiv, Russia has revised its aims – shifting focus in this second phase of the war to the eastern Donbas region. As this next phase intensifies, Ukraine will be even more dependent on Western military aid.

In this special episode, Aspen UK’s CEO Penny Richards joins Andriy Zagorodniuk, the Chairman of the Board of the Center for Defence Strategies, former Minister of Defence of Ukraine; Lesya Vasylenko, Ukrainian MP, Co-Chair of Ukrainian British parliamentary friendship group; Dasha Zarivna, communications advisor to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine; and Anton Drobovych, head of the Ukrainian Institute of National Memory, who is currently taking part in the battles for Kyiv in the ranks of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. They discuss the current situation on the ground in Ukraine, share their personal experiences over the first 100 days of the war and explain what Ukraine needs from its allies as it continues to resist Russian aggression.

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on June 6 2022.

Colombia is recognised for its diverse landscapes, and rich heritage and culture but for years had a reputation for violence and civil unrest. It’s known for its war and peace, with a 50-year civil war officially ending in 2016. Despite this monumental step, Colombia still faces problems, with drug trafficking, illegal armed groups and high levels of internally displaced people. Can Colombia overcome these significant challenges? What will the future look like under the newly-elected President, Gustavo Petro?

In this episode, Pablo Navas, Executive Director of Aspen Colombia is joined by Alejandra Botero Barco, Director of the National Planning Department in the Government of Colombia; Malcolm Deas, Emeritus Fellow at the University of Oxford and Mauricio Rodriguez, founder of Portfolio and former Ambassador to the UK. They discuss how the momentous election of Gustavo Petro, a former guerrilla fighter, will shape Colombia’s economic trajectory, internal security, and standing within Latin America.

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on 28 June 2022.

When Russia’s President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of neighbouring Ukraine in February 2022, he plunged his country and his citizens into an ongoing period of economic decline and global isolation. On day one of the war, he ramped up Russia’s propaganda machine and began conducting country-wide crackdowns on signs of protest and dissent. The government imposed travel restrictions on its citizens, but nearly 4 million Russians were reported to have left the country by early May 2022.

Many of those who have left belong to the generation of outward-looking entrepreneurs and creatives who have lived, worked, or studied outside of Russia in the past – the same people who were driving Russia’s economic and cultural sectors until a few months ago.

Bill Browder, CEO of Hermitage Capital, Head of the Global Magnitsky Campaign, and author of Red Notice and Freezing Order and Nataliya Vasilyeva, Russia correspondent for The Telegraph, join Dr James Rodgers, lecturer at City University in conversation on the future of Russia. They discuss whether Russia is facing a ‘brain-drain, the impact of Western and global sanctions on Russia’s economy and society, and if Russia will ever be able to repair its relations with the rest of the world.

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on 22 June 2022.

Are electric cars the key to hitting our green targets? In Europe, the industry has taken off, and in the UK more electric cars were sold in 2020 alone than in the previous decade.

However, according to the Climate Change Committee, the Government’s ambitious plan to cut CO2 emissions by 68 per cent by 2030 will require 46 per cent of the UK’s 35 million cars to be zero-emission vehicles by the same year. Based on 2020 car ownership levels, this would mean replacing around 16.1 million cars with electric vehicles. To achieve this, almost every single one of the approximately 2 million new cars registered in the UK each year would have to be electric over the next nine years (2021). It’s an ambitious target.   

Leading industry experts Xavier Brice, CEO of Sustrans; and Professor Dale Harrow, Chair of the Intelligent Mobility Design Centre (IMDC) join Aspen UK's Penny Richards in conversation on the future of transportation, mobility and city infrastructure, as they answer: is there a better and more beneficial path to success than investment in electric cars? Should we instead be investing in trains, buses, and roads – changing the way we travel, as well as updating the vehicles we’re travelling in?

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast at The Good Business Festival on 23 March 2022.

The past two years have been monumental for Big Pharma, yet campaigners continue to highlight the moral ambiguity of profit-making from the discovery, development and marketing of life-saving drugs. Our panellists answer hard hitting questions, including: Has the industry changed for the better, and will these changes stick? Could the industry’s solutions-based model be applied elsewhere? How quickly could we solve the climate crisis or income inequality using this model of public-private partnership, streamlined approval processes, and industry agility?

Join Aspen UK CEO Penny Richards in conversation with Professor Iain Buchan, Associate Pro Vice Chancellor Chair for Innovation at the University of Liverpool, and Danny Sriskandarajah, CEO of Oxfam Great Britain as they discuss the impact of Big Pharma on changing economies and the non-western world, and answer tough questions on the morality of profit-driven healthcare in situations of crisis. 

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast at The Good Business Festival on 24 March 2022.

The wellness industry is valued globally at a staggering $4.5 trillion. Wellness trends are built on the prevention-not-cure ethos – they remind us of our ability to look after ourselves through lifestyle choices, encourage us to make time for ourselves, and provide innovative and accessible ways to manage the stressful and frightening times we are living through.

However, the monetisation of personal health goals, particularly on a large scale, poses a risk to the physical, mental, and financial wellbeing of the consumer. If insecurities and ailments equal profit – to what extent is the wellness industry designed to highlight and sometimes to invent them? Is the perfect consumer an insecure one?

In this episode, join panellists Hilda Burke, integrated psychotherapist and author of The Phone Addiction Workbook; Sarah Greenidge, Founder of WellSpoken; Sarah Law, nutritionist, health coach and independent consultant for Arbonne; and Jolawn Victor, Chielf International Officer for Headspace as they shed light on the best way for consumers to navigate this industry, options for regulation, and how the industry itself can be incentivised to truly put consumer wellbeing first. 

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast at The Good Business Festival on 22 March, 2022.

Nearly two decades after the 2003 invasion, Iraq faces a constantly shifting political landscape. Protest movements pushing for civil and democratic rights persist in the wake of fragile state institutions and continued sectarian conflict. The recent election, with its low voter turnout, suggests a disillusionment with the politics and electoral prospects of Iraq. 

So what next in the country's efforts to rebuild? How can the international community better support the growth of the Iraqi economy? In the context of continued sectarian disputes, how might an Iraqi parliament look? And after years of turmoil, how can stability be obtained? 

Chloe Cornish,  Middle East Correspondent at the Financial Times, talks to Ali Al-Baroodi, photographer, writer and lecturer; Mark Bryson-Richardson MBE, UK Ambassador to Iraq; Dr Choman Hardi, poet and scholar of gender and education in Iraq; and Shayan Talabany, Analyst at the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change, Extremism Policy Unit.

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on 8 November 2021