Aspen UK

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. 

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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

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President Putin’s decision to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on 24 February 2022 has plunged Russia into international isolation. The Russian economy is being hammered by sanctions, increasing numbers of brands and business are halting their operations in the country, and the Russian government has cracked down on anti-war protests and independent media. 

In this episode, our panel of young Russian leaders discuss their hopes, fears and ambitions for the future of the country. Giles Whittell, of Tortoise Media, speaks to Anton Barbashin, Editorial Director at Riddle Russia; Ella Rossman, doctoral student at UCL in the school of Slavonic and Eastern European Studies; Tonia Samsonova, former Head of Yandex. Q and former journalist; and Dr Denis Stolyarov, art historian and curator at Pushkin House.  

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on  3rd May 2022.

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Since the swift takeover by the Taliban in August 2021, Afghanistan has faced a deteriorating humanitarian crisis. The economy and public services have collapsed, significant numbers have experienced severe food insecurity, millions have fled the country and millions more remain internally displaced. With the world’s eyes now trained on the war in Ukraine, what does the future hold for Afghanistan? 

In this episode, Sana Safi, Senior Presenter for BBC News, speaks to Shaharzad Akbar, Human Rights activist and former Chairperson of the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission; Sahar Fetrat, Assistant Researcher with the Women’s Rights Division at Human Rights Watch; Mark Logan MP, Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Afghanistan and Shelley Thakral, Afghanistan spokesperson for the World Food Programme. They discuss what the future may look like for minority groups and women under Taliban rule, and consider the ways in which the UK could offer support to Afghanistan. 

This episode was recorded as a live broadcast on the 25th April 2022.

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