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      • Rome
        • 8 November 2013
         
         

        Creating excellence. Strategic choices and indispensable resources for educating leaders

          The title of this 12th Annual Conference of the Aspen Junior Fellows group was conceived as embodying the Aspen Institute’s core mission, namely, that of promoting and instilling values-based leadership. The theme of this year’s session was chosen with a view to specifically focus on the growing international dimension of knowledge, and to examine whether a multidisciplinary knowledge model (of the European humanist tradition) or a specialized knowledge model is to be preferred.

        • Milan
          • 4 November 2013
           
           

          Does Italy’s important industrial sector still have a future?

            Participants at this roundtable session were of a consensus that Italy still has an effective industrial system, and may continue to do so as long as a major restructure is undertaken so as to provide a boost for a great swathe of firms that are currently wavering between the boon of opportunities offered by global growth and the risk of being marginalized.

          • Milan
            • 24 October 2013
             
             

            The future of capitalism in Italy: the role of youth in a more competitive world

              Opening discussions at this Aspen Junior Fellows event was the observation that the increase in the speed of progression of events and the shift towards a multipolar and networked world have led to a transformation in capitalism, with the advent of techno-finance representing one of the most obvious low points of this phenomenon.

            • Rome
              • 23 October 2013
               
               

              Charity and the global economy: in search of a new model

                Discussions at this national roundtable session got underway with the opening premise that the economic crisis and its social consequences have profoundly called into question the prevailing economic paradigm – a model based on competitive individualism, maximizing the profit of the individual, and an “invisible hand” regulating the market. The result is that the idea of the common interest merely being the sum of individual interests no longer seems sustainable in the current economic and social climate.

              • Geneva
                • 18 October 2013
                 
                 

                Science and innovation: research, infrastructure and international collaboration

                  The opening premise of discussions at this International Conference was that scientific research is crucial to innovation, understood as both the discovery of new facts, data, or laws of nature, as well as knowledge with a direct technological application. Indeed, technology provides an essential bridge between science and society. As a demonstration of this, the participants pointed to the limitless practical applications of the World Wide Web (which had its origins at CERN, based on the development of the internet), citing it as a case where the industrial spinoff has been enormous.

                • Milan
                  • 7 October 2013
                   
                   

                  Banks and the real economy: rethinking roles, responsibilities and rules

                    Attendees at this National Conference examining the Italian banking sector noted that, according to economic theory, the financial system has a fundamental role to play in intermediating savings, allowing an efficient allocation of capital with consequent gains in productivity and wellbeing for the entire economy. In the recent past, however, this primary function has been compounded by others that have contributed to a distortion of the financial sector’s role and its relationship with the real economy.

                  • Vicenza
                    • 29 September 2013
                     
                     

                    Family business as an engine for responsible growth

                      The resilience of family businesses, still accounting for over 60% of Italy’s medium-sized and large firms, has been reaffirmed throughout the crisis. However, the protracted recessionary environment and credit crunch, in conjunction with ongoing succession processes, is forcing many of them to fundamentally rethink their business models, financial and ownership structures in order to return to a growth path – or otherwise succumb to the fierce global competition.

                    • Rome
                      • 25 September 2013
                       
                       

                      Cross‐generation roundtable – Italy today and tomorrow

                        This roundtable saw the inception of a debate between various generations on issues of common interest to each of them. The event took its inspiration from Aspen Institute founder Walter Paepcke’s guiding notion that “only in such a fusion of talents, abilities, and philosophies can there be even a modest hope for the future, a partial alleviation of the chaos and misunderstandings of today”.

                      • Milan
                        • 23 September 2013
                         
                         

                        Of culture and networks: strategies to spur innovation and growth

                          The opening premise of this National Interest roundtable was that although Italy boasts a cultural heritage without equal, it is unfortunately not exploited to best advantage through a uniform and identifiable strategy actually capable of generating economic benefits comparable to those produced in other countries despite having a much poorer cultural offering.

                        • Rome
                          • 18 September 2013
                           
                           

                          Italy’s welfare system: living with risk

                            At this roundtable session dealing with the future of Italy’s welfare system, the participants observed that tackling the issue of risk management requires the resolution of an evident paradox, namely, that while the risks to which households and firms are exposed are becoming greater in number and increasingly serious, the public resources needed to address them are in ever more limited supply.

                          • Venice
                            • 12 July 2013
                             
                             

                            Building a responsible citizenship: values, ideas, participation

                              The opening premise of this ASL session was that any examination of the concept of responsible citizenship must first focus on the value system that underpins the relationship between citizens and their leaders. At the heart of this relationship (often perceived as dichotomous in nature) is a paradigm now challenged by growing grassroots demand for proof of legitimacy. Rising to such demands is a clear priority for leaders capable of steering and shaping the course of events.

                            • Venice
                              • 12 July 2013
                               
                               

                              Smart cities in a multipolar world: infrastructure, services, sustainable transport

                                Driving discussion at this ASL session on smart cities was the recognition that, in the midst of the polycentric globalization process unfolding, cities are becoming hubs of increasingly smarter networks capable of galvanizing and generating new momentum for innovation and growth. Any satellite photo will suffice to reveal a web of interconnected urban expanses, serving as crossroads and convergence points for tangible and intangible infrastructure.

                              • Venice
                                • 12 July 2013
                                 
                                 

                                (R)evolutions in the digital ecosystem: rethinking business, consumers and government

                                  The aphorism “The fast will eat the slow” was held up at this ASL seminar as the harsh law governing the digital ecosystem of today and tomorrow. To be “fast”, however, implies being able to rely on technologically-advanced infrastructure capable of sustaining competition at an international level. Indeed, major firms are continuing to invest in technology, even in the midst of the current crisis, precisely because of their acceptance that competitiveness drives economic growth, and that improving education and speeding up bureaucracy are not sufficient alone.

                                • Venice
                                  • 12 July 2013
                                   
                                   

                                  Challenges and opportunities for a changing society: older, wiser, healthier

                                    The point of departure for discussions at this ASL session was an acknowledgement that the gradual but inexorable process of population aging is having profound effects on the demographic and economic structure of societies. In this regard, the participants pointed to forecast trends that speak volumes: in all developed countries, and especially in Italy, Japan and Germany, the proportion of elderly people relative to the total population will continue to rise substantially.