Misplaced Pages

#904095

65-590: The Aspen Strategy Group (ASG) is a policy program of the Aspen Institute , based in Washington D.C. A membership-based forum composed of current and former policymakers, academics , journalists , and business leaders, its stated mission is to "drive change through dialogue, leadership, and action to help solve the most important challenges facing the United States and the world." ASG's main activities include

130-661: A 20-day international celebration for the 200th birthday of German poet and philosopher Johann Wolfgang von Goethe . The celebration attracted over 2,000 attendees, including Albert Schweitzer , José Ortega y Gasset , Thornton Wilder , and Arthur Rubinstein . In 1949, Paepcke founded the Aspen Institute; and later the Aspen Music Festival and eventually (with Bayer and Anderson) the International Design Conference at Aspen (IDCA). Paepcke sought

195-579: A Bauhaus-inspired minimalist home outside the decaying former mining town of Aspen, in the Roaring Fork Valley . Paepcke and Bayer envisioned a place where artists, leaders, thinkers, and musicians could gather. Shortly thereafter, while passing through Aspen on a hunting expedition, oil industry maverick Robert O. Anderson (soon to be founder and CEO of Atlantic Richfield ) met with Bayer and shared in Paepcke's and Bayer's vision. In 1949, Paepcke organized

260-537: A country from the second to the third stage he expected that once it reached maturity, it would have a large energized middle class that would establish democracy and civil liberties and institutionalize human rights. The result was a comprehensive theory that could be used to challenge Marxist ideologies, and thereby repel communist advances. The model provided the foundation for the Alliance for Progress in Latin America,

325-506: A crucial part in globalization. Former U.S. president Lyndon B. Johnson was a supporter of the modernization theory and believed that television had potential to provide educational tools in development. With the many apparent positive attributes to globalization there are also negative consequences. The dominant, neoliberal model of globalization often increases disparities between a society's rich and its poor. In major cities of developing countries there exist pockets where technologies of

390-472: A fellow at the institute, called it "contrary to the stated purpose of this institute", that "one of America’s most elite institutions thinks it is okay to take the money", going on to say "Those who purport to be values-based and public-spirited leaders cannot at the same time put self interest first, when there is so much human suffering and death". The day after Olojede and the Washington Post highlighted

455-460: A forum "where the human spirit can flourish", especially amid the whirlwind and chaos of modernization . He hoped that the institute could help business leaders recapture what he called "eternal verities": the values that guided them intellectually, ethically, and spiritually as they led their companies. Inspired by philosopher Mortimer Adler 's Great Books seminar at the University of Chicago , which

520-523: A link between economics and politics that is not conditional on institutions and culture and that presumes a definite endpoint—for example, an 'end of history'." Sirianne Dahlum and Carl Henrik Knutsen offer a test of the Ronald Inglehart and Christian Welzel revised version of modernization theory, which focuses on cultural traits triggered by economic development that are presummed to be conducive to democratization. They find "no empirical support" for

585-436: A more Westernized one. By one definition, modern simply refers to the present, and any society still in existence is therefore modern. Proponents of modernization typically view only Western society as being truly modern and argue that others are primitive or unevolved by comparison. That view sees unmodernized societies as inferior even if they have the same standard of living as western societies. Opponents argue that modernity

650-529: A positive effect on GDP per capita." Globalization can be defined as the integration of economic, political and social cultures. It is argued that globalization is related to the spreading of modernization across borders. Global trade has grown continuously since the European discovery of new continents in the early modern period ; it increased particularly as a result of the Industrial Revolution and

715-467: Is a non-residential program. During the fellowship year, fellows meet three times for one week sessions. There are no age limitations for fellows. All expenses for participation in the fellowship are covered by the program. At times the program will also cover the cost of "media-related activities and conferences." Community Colleges which succeed in attaining exceptional results for all students during their time in college and as post-graduates are awarded

SECTION 10

#1732852034905

780-406: Is a strong cross-country correlation between income and democracy, once one controls for country fixed effects and removes the association between income per capita and various measures of democracy, there is "no causal effect of income on democracy." In "Non-Modernization" (2022), they further argue that modernization theory cannot account for various paths of political development "because it posits

845-418: Is academic debate over the drivers of democracy because there are theories that support economic growth as both a cause and effect of the institution of democracy. "Lipset's observation that democracy is related to economic development, first advanced in 1959, has generated the largest body of research on any topic in comparative politics," Anderson explains the idea of an elongated diamond in order to describe

910-455: Is independent of culture and can be adapted to any society. Japan is cited as an example by both sides. Some see it as proof that a thoroughly modern way of life can exist in a non western society. Others argue that Japan has become distinctly more Western as a result of its modernization. As Tipps has argued, by conflating modernization with other processes, with which theorists use interchangeably (democratization, liberalization, development),

975-755: Is subject of much debate among scholars. Critics have highlighted cases where industrialization did not prompt stable democratization , such as Japan, Germany, and the Soviet Union, as well as cases of democratic backsliding in economically advanced parts of Latin America. Other critics argue the causal relationship is reverse (democracy is more likely to lead to economic modernization) or that economic modernization helps democracies survive but does not prompt democratization. Other scholars provide supporting evidence, showing that economic development significantly predicts democratization. The modernization theory of

1040-717: Is the issue of international health , energy and environmental policy. The assessments take into account US national interests of the US. The Aspen Strategy Group brings together representatives of different political groups. Aspen Institute The Institute is largely funded by foundations such as the Carnegie Corporation , the Rockefeller Brothers Fund , the Gates Foundation , the Lumina Foundation , and

1105-526: The Ford Foundation , by seminar fees, and by individual donations. Its board of trustees includes leaders from politics, government, business and academia who also contribute to its support. A report by the Center for International Policy 's Foreign Influence Transparency Initiative of the top 50 think tanks found that from 2014 to 2018 the Aspen Institute received more than US$ 8 million in funding from outside

1170-586: The Industrial Revolution , the French Revolution and the Revolutions of 1848 and has long been regarded as reaching its most advanced stage in Europe. Anthropologists typically make their criticism one step further and say that the view is ethnocentric and is specific to Western culture . One alternative model is dependency theory . It emerged in the 1950s and argues that the underdevelopment of poor nations in

1235-596: The Peace Corps , Food for Peace , and the Agency for International Development (AID). Kennedy proclaimed the 1960s the "Development Decade" and substantially increased the budget for foreign assistance. Modernization theory supplied the design, rationale, and justification for these programs. The goals proved much too ambitious, and the economists in a few years abandoned the European-based modernization model as inappropriate to

1300-509: The " Third World ", as it was called at the time. They promoted modernization models in order to reorient American aid to Asia, Africa and Latin America. In the Rostow version in his The Stages of Economic Growth (1960) progress must pass through five stages, and for underdeveloped world the critical stages were the second one, the transition, the third stage, the takeoff into self-sustaining growth. Rostow argued that American intervention could propel

1365-786: The 1950s and 1960s drew on classical evolutionary theory and a Parsonian reading of Weber's ideas about a transition from traditional to modern society. Parsons had translated Weber's works into English in the 1930s and provided his own interpretation. After 1945 the Parsonian version became widely used in sociology and other social sciences. Some of the thinkers associated with modernization theory are Marion J. Levy Jr. , Gabriel Almond , Seymour Martin Lipset , Walt Rostow , Daniel Lerner, Lucian Pye , David Apter , Alex Inkeles , Cyril Edwin Black , Bert F. Hoselitz , Myron Weiner , and Karl Deutsch . By

SECTION 20

#1732852034905

1430-466: The 1950s and 1960s, most influentially articulated by Seymour Lipset , drew on sociological analyses of Karl Marx , Emile Durkheim , Max Weber , and Talcott Parsons . Modernization theory was a dominant paradigm in the social sciences in the 1950s and 1960s, and saw a resurgence after 1991, when Francis Fukuyama wrote about the end of the Cold War as confirmation on modernization theory. The theory

1495-504: The 1960s and 1970s that authoritarian regimes yielded greater economic growth than democracies. However, this view had been challenged. In Democracy and Development: Political Institutions and Well-Being in the World, 1950–1990 (2000), Adam Przeworski argued that "democracies perform as well economically as do authoritarian regimes." A study by Daron Acemoglu , Suresh Naidu , Pascual Restrepo, and James A. Robinson shows that "democracy has

1560-582: The 1960s version of modernization theory in significant ways. Counter to Lipset, who associated industrial growth with democratization, Inglehart and Welzel did not see an association between industrialization and democratization. Rather, they held that only at a latter stage in the process of economic modernization, which various authors have characterized as post-industrial , did values conducive to democratization – which Inglehart and Welzel call "self-expression values" – emerge. Nonetheless, these efforts to revive modernization theory were criticized by many (see

1625-454: The 1960s, some critics argued that the link between modernization and democracy was based too much on the example of European history and neglected the Third World . One historical problem with that argument has always been Germany whose economic modernization in the 19th century came long before the democratization after 1918 . Berman , however, concludes that a process of democratization

1690-440: The Aspen Institute and Siemens Foundation , provides leading college staff with a benchmark standard of development and technical programs which foster equitable student success by highlighting exemplary practices of the winning programs. Recipients include: This annual award was created to honor an outstanding leader whose achievements reflect the high standards of honor, integrity, industry, and philanthropy that characterized

1755-466: The Aspen Institute together with U.S. magazine The Atlantic and Bloomberg Philanthropies has participated in organizing the annual CityLab event, a summit dedicated to develop strategies for the challenges of urbanization in today's cities. Walter Isaacson was the president and CEO of Aspen Institute from 2003 to June 2018. Isaacson announced in March 2017 that he would step down as president and CEO at

1820-585: The Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. Recipients to date include: The Financial Times called the Faculty Pioneers and Dissertation Proposal Awards the " Oscars of the business school world". These honor business school instructors with an outstanding track record of leadership and risk-taking in ensuring that the MBA curriculum incorporates social, environmental and ethical issues. Recipients in

1885-577: The Category "Lifetime Achievement" include: Community Colleges which demonstrate the provision of outstanding technical education and successfully link students, regardless of their race, ethnicity, family income or gender, with STEM careers as a gateway to economic mobility, are eligible to receive the Excellence and Equity in Community College STEM Award. The prize, awarded in co-operation of

1950-609: The Inglehart and Welzel thesis and conclude that "self-expression values do not enhance democracy levels or democratization chances, and neither do they stabilize existing democracies." A meta-analysis by Gerardo L. Munck of research on Lipset's argument shows that a majority of studies do not support the thesis that higher levels of economic development leads to more democracy. Modernization theorists often saw traditions as obstacles to economic development . According to Seymour Martin Lipset, economic conditions are heavily determined by

2015-481: The Third World derived from systematic imperial and neo-colonial exploitation of raw materials. Its proponents argue that resources typically flow from a "periphery" of poor and underdeveloped states to a "core" of wealthy states , enriching the latter at the expense of the former. It is a central contention of dependency theorists such as Andre Gunder Frank that poor states are impoverished and rich ones enriched by

Aspen Strategy Group - Misplaced Pages Continue

2080-804: The United States, the fifth-highest amount the think tanks. This funding originated primarily in Western democracies but also included "sizeable donations from undemocratic regimes in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates." The institute was largely the creation of Walter Paepcke , a Chicago businessman who had become inspired by the Great Books program of Mortimer Adler at the University of Chicago . In 1945, Paepcke visited Bauhaus artist and architect Herbert Bayer , AIA, who had designed and built

2145-598: The annual Summer Workshop meeting in Aspen, several Track II dialogues such as the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue, the U.S.-China Strategic Dialogue, and the Aspen Ministers Forum, led by Madeleine K. Albright . ASG's roots date back to the 1970s, when the Aspen Institute organized the annual conference for scientists that worked on projects for arms control , which developed the Aspen Strategy Group, which

2210-537: The book, Democracy in Developing Countries: Latin America , argue that economic performance affects the development of democracy in at least three ways. First, they argue that economic growth is more important for democracy than given levels of socioeconomic development. Second, socioeconomic development generates social changes that can potentially facilitate democratization. Third, socioeconomic development promotes other changes, like organization of

2275-542: The concentration of power in the hands of a few at the top during an authoritarian leadership. He develops this by giving an understanding of the shift in power from the elite class to the middle class that occurs when modernization is incorporated. Socioeconomic modernization allows for a democracy to further develop and influences the success of a democracy. Concluded from this, is the idea that as socioeconomic levels are leveled, democracy levels would further increase. Larry Diamond and Juan Linz , who worked with Lipset in

2340-409: The country by law. This led to a legal awakening for citizens as they were becoming more educated on the law, yet more understanding of their inequality in relation to the government. Looking down the line in the 2000s, Chinese citizens saw even more opportunities to liberalize and were able to be a part of urbanization and could access higher levels of education. This in turn resulted in the attitudes of

2405-503: The cultural, social values present in that given society. Furthermore, while modernization might deliver violent, radical change for traditional societies , it was thought worth the price. Critics insist that traditional societies were often destroyed without ever gaining the promised advantages. Others point to improvements in living standards, physical infrastructure, education and economic opportunity to refute such criticisms. Modernization theorists such as Samuel P. Huntington held in

2470-406: The cultures they were trying to impact. Kennedy and his top advisers were working from implicit ideological assumptions regarding modernization. They firmly believed modernity was not only good for the target populations, but was essential to avoid communism on the one hand or extreme control of traditional rural society by the very rich landowners on the other. They believed America had a duty, as

2535-585: The end of the year. On November 30, 2017, Daniel Porterfield was announced as his successor. Porterfield succeeded Isaacson on June 1, 2018. In April 2020, the company received approximately $ 8 million in federally backed small business loans as part of the Paycheck Protection Program . The company received scrutiny over this loan, which meant to protect small and private businesses. The Washington Post noted their large endowment and membership of billionaires made this problematic. Dele Olojede ,

2600-694: The environment, and international affairs . In 1979, through a donation by Corning Glass industrialist and philanthropist Arthur A. Houghton Jr ., the institute acquired a 1,000-acre (4 km ) campus on the eastern shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland , known today as the Wye River Conference Centers . In 1983, former United States Senator Dick Clark founded the Aspen Institute's Congressional program, which sought to educate members of Congress on foreign affairs issues. In 2005, it held

2665-599: The first Aspen Ideas Festival , featuring leading minds from around the world sharing and speaking on global issues . The institute, along with The Atlantic , hosts the festival annually. It has trained philanthropists such as Carrie Morgridge . It has since added additional events such as the Aspen Ideas Health and Aspen Ideas Climate. In 2023, the Aspen Ideas Climate event included Vice President Kamala Harris and famed singer Gloria Estefan . Since 2013,

Aspen Strategy Group - Misplaced Pages Continue

2730-501: The funding, Aspen Institute announced they would return it, stating "Upon listening to our communities and further reflection, we have made the decision to return the loan". In 2023, Simon Godwin was named Aspen Institute's Harman/Eisner artist in residence. Godwin is the artistic director for the Shakespeare Theatre Company and will serve in a one-year residency at the institute. In June 2023, CAA's Bruno del Granado

2795-443: The ideology was a non-coercive version of the modernization goals of the imperialistic of Britain, France and other European countries in the 19th century. From the 1970s, modernization theory has been criticized by numerous scholars, including Andre Gunder Frank (1929–2005) and Immanuel Wallerstein (1930–2019). In this model, the modernization of a society required the destruction of the indigenous culture and its replacement by

2860-584: The late 1960s opposition to modernization theory developed because the theory was too general and did not fit all societies in quite the same way. Yet, with the end of the Cold War, a few attempts to revive modernization theory were carried out. Francis Fukuyama argued for the use of modernization theory as universal history . A more academic effort to revise modernization theory was that of Ronald Inglehart and Christian Welzel in Modernization, Cultural Change, and Democracy (2005). Inglehart and Welzel amended

2925-459: The liberalization of the middle and lower classes. However, active human rights abuses and constant oppression of Chinese citizens by the government seem to contradict the theory strongly. Interestingly enough, the irony is that increasing restrictions on Chinese citizens are a result of modernization theory. In the 1990s, the Chinese government wanted to reform the legal system and emphasized governing

2990-550: The life and career of industrialist and philanthropist Henry Crown . Notable recipients include: The full list of laureates appears on the Award's web page. Modernization theory Modernization theory or modernisation theory ( Commonwealth English ; see spelling differences ) holds that as societies become more economically modernized, wealthier and more educated, their political institutions become increasingly liberal democratic . The "classical" theories of modernization of

3055-473: The lower and middle classes changing to more liberal ideas, which went against the CCP. Over time, this has led to their active participation in civil society activities and similar adjacent political groups in order to make their voices heard. Consequently, the Chinese government represses Chinese citizens at a more aggressive rate, all due to modernization theory. Ronald Inglehart and Christian Welzel contend that

3120-442: The mid-20th century adoption of the shipping container . Annual trans-border tourist arrivals rose to 456 million by 1990 and almost tripled since, reaching a total of over 1.2 billion in 2016. Communication is another major area that has grown due to modernization. Communication industries have enabled capitalism to spread throughout the world. Telephony, television broadcasts, news services and online service providers have played

3185-610: The middle class, which is conducive to democracy. As Seymour Martin Lipset put it, "All the various aspects of economic development—industrialization, urbanization, wealth and education—are so closely interrelated as to form one major factor which has the political correlate of democracy". The argument also appears in Walt W. Rostow , Politics and the Stages of Growth (1971); A. F. K. Organski, The Stages of Political Development (1965); and David Apter , The Politics of Modernization (1965). In

3250-519: The modernised world, computers , cell phones and satellite television, exist alongside stark poverty. Globalists are globalization modernization theorists and argue that globalization is positive for everyone, as its benefits must eventually extend to all members of society, including vulnerable groups such as women and children. President John F. Kennedy (1961–1963) relied on economists W.W. Rostow on his staff and outsider John Kenneth Galbraith for ideas on how to promote rapid economic development in

3315-441: The modernization hypothesis using new data, new techniques, and a three-way, rather than dichotomous, classification of regimes. Contrary to Przeworski, this study finds that the modernization hypothesis stands up well. Partial democracies emerge as among the most important and least understood regime types. Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson (2008) further weaken the case for Lipset's argument by showing that even though there

SECTION 50

#1732852034905

3380-622: The most modern country in the world, to promulgate this ideal to the poor nations of the Third World. They wanted programs that were altruistic, and benevolent—and also tough, energetic, and determined. It was benevolence with a foreign policy purpose. Michael Latham has identified how this ideology worked out in three major programs the Alliance for Progress, the Peace Corps, and the strategic hamlet program in South Vietnam. However, Latham argues that

3445-478: The past, and that, therefore, the task of helping the underdeveloped areas out of poverty is to accelerate them along this supposed common path of development, by various means such as investment, technology transfers, and closer integration into the world market. Dependency theory rejected this view, arguing that underdeveloped countries are not merely primitive versions of developed countries, but have unique features and structures of their own; and, importantly, are in

3510-698: The private sector to become leaders in community and global development projects. The Aspen Global Leadership Network inducts an annual class of 20-22 candidates between the ages of 30-46 for a two-year training program. Instruction takes place at the Aspen Institute's campus in Aspen , Colorado, and various sites abroad. The New Voices Fellowship is a year long program for applicants from Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Every year, nominations are accepted from August through October. Fellows are selected in December and announced publicly in early January. The New Voices Fellowship

3575-421: The realization of democracy is not based solely on an expressed desire for that form of government, but democracies are born as a result of the admixture of certain social and cultural factors. They argue the ideal social and cultural conditions for the foundation of a democracy are born of significant modernization and economic development that result in mass political participation. Randall Peerenboom explores

3640-837: The relationships among democracy, the rule of law and their relationship to wealth by pointing to examples of Asian countries, such as Taiwan and South Korea, which have successfully democratized only after economic growth reached relatively high levels and to examples of countries such as the Philippines , Bangladesh , Cambodia , Thailand , Indonesia and India , which sought to democratize at lower levels of wealth but have not done as well. Adam Przeworski and others have challenged Lipset's argument. They say political regimes do not transition to democracy as per capita incomes rise. Rather, democratic transitions occur randomly, but once there, countries with higher levels of gross domestic product per capita remain democratic. Epstein et al. (2006) retest

3705-417: The section on "Criticisms and alternatives" below), and the theory remained a controversial one. The relationship between modernization and democracy or democratization is one of the most researched studies in comparative politics . Many studies show that modernization has contributed to democracy in some countries. For example, Seymour Martin Lipset argued that modernization can turn into democracy. There

3770-400: The situation of being the weaker members in a world market economy . Another line of critique of modernization theory was due to sociologist Barrington Moore Jr. , in his Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy (1966). In this classic book, Moore argues there were at least "three routes to the modern world" - the liberal democratic, the fascist, and the communist - each deriving from

3835-448: The term becomes imprecise and therefore difficult to disprove. The theory has also been criticised empirically, as modernization theorists ignore external sources of change in societies. The binary between traditional and modern is unhelpful, as the two are linked and often interdependent, and "modernization" does not come as a whole. Modernization theory has also been accused of being Eurocentric , as modernization began in Europe, with

3900-753: The timing of industrialization and the social structure at the time of transition. Counter to modernization theory, Moore held that there was not one path to the modern world and that economic development did not always bring about democracy. Political scientist Guillermo O'Donnell , in his Modernization and Bureaucratic Authoritarianism (1973) challenged the thesis, advanced most notably by Seymour Martin Lipset, that industrialization produced democracy. In South America, O'Donnell argued, industrialization generated not democracy, but bureaucratic authoritarianism. Economists Daron Acemoglu and James A. Robinson (2022), argue that modernization theory cannot account for various paths of political development "because it posits

3965-445: The way poor states are integrated into the " world system ". Dependency models arose from a growing association of southern hemisphere nationalists (from Latin America and Africa) and Marxists. It was their reaction against modernization theory, which held that all societies progress through similar stages of development, that today's underdeveloped areas are thus in a similar situation to that of today's developed areas at some time in

SECTION 60

#1732852034905

4030-513: Was an official program of the Aspen Institute since 1984. It initially focused on strategic relations, arms control and the US-Soviet Union relationship. It members include government officials, industry representatives, and journalists. Since the end of the Cold War , the group analysis regional and global challenges and examines the economic, social and transnational consequences. The current focus

4095-788: Was later adopted by Encyclopædia Britannica's Great Books of the Western World , Paepcke worked with Anderson to create the Aspen Institute Executive Seminar. In 1951, the institute sponsored a national photography conference. During the 1960s and 1970s, the institute added organizations, programs, and conferences, including the Aspen Center for Physics , the Aspen Strategy Group , Communications and Society Program and other programs that concentrated on education, communications, justice, Asian thought, science, technology,

4160-738: Was named to be head of the Board of the Aspen Institute's Latinos Society Program. The Aspen Institute's community program includes lecturers from the Hurst Lecture Series, the McCloskey Speaker Series, and the Murdock Mind, Body, Spirit series. As of 2019 the Aspen Institute had net assets of $ 310,055,857. Revenue and support as of 2016: $ 160,402,073 Expenses as of 2019: $ 147,137,098 The Henry Crown Fellowship, established in 1997, educates accomplished entrepreneurs from

4225-609: Was underway in Imperial Germany, for "during these years Germans developed many of the habits and mores that are now thought by political scientists to augur healthy political development". One contemporary problem for modernization theory is the argument of whether modernization implies more human rights for citizens or not. China, one of the most rapidly growing economies in the world, can be observed as an example. The modernization theory implies that this should correlate to democratic growth in some regards, especially in relation to

#904095