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21. The Politics of Vulnerability: Can Muslims and Evangelicals Find Common Cause in Religious Freedom?

Author:
Inclusive America Project
Publication Date:
10-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
The Inclusive America Project (IAP) is pleased to publish our new report, “The Politics of Vulnerability: Can Muslims and Evangelicals Find Common Cause in Religious Freedom?” Across all of the fault lines that are polarizing Americans today, one of the thorniest is the relationship between conservative White Evangelical Christians and Muslims, a relationship that has become tied up with broader ideological and political divides facing the country. “The Politics of Vulnerability” explores this relationship and asks how religious freedom can be used as a paradigm to bring Muslims and White Evangelical Christians into conversation with each other over their shared concerns about religious freedom. IAP Fellow for Religious Freedom Asma Uddin argues that the fight over religious freedom is ultimately a fight over America​n identity, and who gets to claim this identity. “The Politics of Vulnerability” summarizes the major findings of two closed-door convenings held by the Inclusive America Project in March 2020 that brought together experts in religious theology, religious freedom, and interfaith work. These meetings were a part of the larger Politics of Vulnerability Project, which seeks to use religious freedom as a framework to bring Muslims and Evangelical Christians in the United States into conversation around their constitutional religious freedom rights, the prominent challenges to those rights, and the impacts that deprivation of those rights would have on both communities and on all other Americans. The First Amendment and its promise of religious freedom protects people of all faiths and none, and is one crucial piece of the puzzle of American religious pluralism.
Topic:
Religion, Minorities, Discrimination, Pluralism, and Freedom of Religion
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

22. A Procurement Path to Equity

Author:
Center for Urban Innovation
Publication Date:
11-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Local governments are big buyers. Here in the U.S., our state and city governments collectively spend 1.6 trillion dollars per year. But for too long, how and with whom our local governments spend their money has reinforced economic inequities in our country. Minority-owned small businesses have been historically locked out of opportunities to contract with governments, and the current crisis has disproportionately impacted these very enterprises.
Topic:
Governance, Inequality, Business, Local, Equality, and Equity
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

23. A National Cybersecurity Agenda for Resilient Digital Infrastructure

Author:
Aspen Cybersecurity Group
Publication Date:
12-2020
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
As the White House changes hands and Congress begins a new term, there is ample opportunity to find bipartisan consensus on key cybersecurity priorities. This document outlines achievable action steps for federal policymakers to make rapid progress toward a more resilient digital infrastructure. Some can be accomplished in weeks or months; others will take years. Fortunately, the federal government is not alone. Cyberspace is ultimately the domain of civil society and private enterprise, sectors teeming with experts who can guide the White House and Congress as they grapple with the difficult tradeoffs inherent to any cybersecurity policy decision. In crafting the National Cybersecurity Agenda, the Aspen Cybersecurity Group sought input from a diverse network of partners in academia and industry. Together, we stand ready and willing to assist policymakers in cultivating a secure, reliable, and productive cyberspace.
Topic:
Security, Infrastructure, Cybersecurity, Resilience, and Digitalization
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

24. Supply and Demand in a Time of Changing Geopolitics and a Changing Climate

Author:
Aspen Institute
Publication Date:
01-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
The Forum on Global Energy, Economy & Security is an annual conversation to discuss global energy markets, crude oil, petroleum products and natural gas supply and demand, midstream, shale development, geopolitics, energy security, and environmental topics. The forum features Aspen’s time-honored moderated roundtable discussion format which, while each session is introduced by brief presentations, stresses dialogue between participants rather than conference-style speaker presentations with question and answer only. The forum is enhanced by an informal atmosphere and a not-for-attribution rule that encourages new thinking, dissenting opinions, and frank discussion.
Topic:
Climate Change, Energy Policy, Environment, Natural Resources, and Renewable Energy
Political Geography:
Global Focus

25. NextGen Network Key Takeaways: Prague, Czech Republic

Author:
Aspen Institute
Publication Date:
03-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Aspen Central Europe hosted the Network in Prague in January 2019, with participants from Hungary, Poland, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Participants emphasized that there should be a focus on mapping where exactly AI can support existing professions, create new ones, but most importantly streamline the education system towards current trends and lifelong learning. It is essential to speed up the adoption of AI in Europe, as well as connect it with major challenges in society, such as tackling climate change or innovating healthcare, where, for example, AI can be explained by its promoters as a way of delivering better services rather than merely introducing a new technology.
Topic:
Climate Change, Science and Technology, Health Care Policy, and Artificial Intelligence
Political Geography:
Europe, Czech Republic, and Central Europe

26. Automation and a Changing Economy: Policies for Shared Prosperity

Author:
Alastair Fitzpayne, Conor Mckay, and Ethan Pollack
Publication Date:
04-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Part I of this report, Automation and a Changing Economy: The Case for Action, explores how automation has impacted and will continue to impact the economic security and opportunity of the American worker. But technology is not destiny. The impact of innovation on the American worker is mediated by policies and institutions. We can choose to create an economy that: promotes technological progress; prepares workers to take advantage of the opportunities technology presents; supports those who are negatively impacted by automation return to stable work; and shares technology’s gains more broadly. These goals are achievable with the right support, but the policy structures currently in place are inadequate. This part of the report, Automation and a Changing Economy: Policies for Shared Prosperity, outlines a policy agenda for addressing these challenges and opportunities. Doing so requires an all-of-the-above approach, from targeted, specialized interventions to those with systems-level impact; from place-based policies to national-level reforms to safety net programs. The paper identifies four objectives that guide its recommendations
Topic:
Science and Technology, Labor Issues, Automation, and Job Creation
Political Geography:
Global Focus

27. Automation and a Changing Economy: The Case for Action

Author:
Alastair Fitzpayne, Conor Mckay, and Ethan Pollack
Publication Date:
04-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Technology fuels our economy, captures our collective imaginations, and promises extraordinary possibilities. It permeates almost all aspects of our lives. From electrification and the internal combustion engine, to search engines and smartphones, technology has changed how we travel, access information, buy products, and communicate with each other. As technology changes our personal lives, it also changes work. For generations, economic change has replaced products, jobs, and industries with innovative new models. The American economy has transitioned from agrarian to industrial, service to digital, and with each evolution, America has prospered even as it grappled with the profound challenges of change. The American ideal embraces the promise that economic progress can create an inclusive society in which prosperity is broadly shared. Work is more than simply a way to earn a living. It gives structure, dignity, and purpose to our lives. For this reason, workers should not be treated as a cost of doing business but recognized for their productivity and creativity. For too many Americans, the promise of work is not being kept. New technologies are creating great wealth for some, but we are simultaneously experiencing historic income and wealth inequality. Without robust policies and strong institutions, new innovations risk exacerbating the economic insecurity and political and civil divides that we are experiencing today. Emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, and advanced robotics, have the potential to automate many tasks currently performed by workers. Historically, automation has been an important ingredient driving economic growth and progress. Automation has enabled us to feed a growing population while allowing workers to transition from subsistence farming to new forms of work. Automation helped move us from a craft system to mass production, from blue-collar to white-collar to “new-collar” work—with better work, higher wages, more jobs, and better living standards. Similar to past innovations, these new technologies offer the potential to help us meet human needs while supporting new jobs and industries never before imagined. However, automation can also have negative effects on individuals and communities. Those who lose their jobs suffer economic, social, and psychological hardship. Communities that relied on single industries that have been automated have struggled to recover. New jobs are being created, but their geographic distribution and skill requirements often make them inaccessible to the individuals and the communities where those whose jobs were lost. This dislocation has played a role in exacerbating America’s economic, political, geographic, and social divides. The answer to the dislocations that can result from automation should not be to stifle innovation. Policies and reforms should encourage both the development of new technologies and the promise of work. Workers need access to the opportunities technology creates. Policymakers and employers can help by providing access to skills training, ensuring the availability of good jobs, and improving the systems that are in place to help those who will transition from declining to growing occupations. While there are many unanswered questions about what the future holds, this report attempts to explain how automation impacts the labor market and how to better prepare American workers to benefit from the changes to come.
Topic:
Economics, Science and Technology, Labor Issues, Automation, and Job Creation
Political Geography:
Global Focus

28. Meaningfully Connecting with Communities in Advocacy and Policy Work

Author:
Susanna Dilliplane and David Devlin-Foltz
Publication Date:
04-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Commissioned by Fund for Shared Insight, this landscape scan explores whether and how US funders and nonprofits seek to meaningfully connect with the people and communities that their advocacy and policy work is intended to benefit. It employs an intentionally exploratory lens, without a predetermined definition of what “connecting” would look like in advocacy and policy contexts, nor presumptions about what might be needed to support connections. The research findings are intended to inform Shared Insight’s grantmaking strategy, and to contribute to the broader field’s understanding of what it means — and what it takes — to meaningfully connect with communities that are ultimately intended to benefit from advocacy and policy work. Shared Insight is a funder collaborative seeking to improve philanthropy by elevating the voices of those least heard.
Topic:
Advocacy, Community, Philanthropy, and Non-profits
Political Geography:
North America and United States of America

29. The Future of Work 2.0: Navigating the Transition to New Possibilities

Author:
Aspen Institute
Publication Date:
05-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Today’s leading businesses are dealing with a changing work environment that goes beyond artificial intelligence and robots. Instead, it encompasses the work machines and humans will do together. This report of the 2018 Roundtable, written by David Gibson, explores the Future of Work 2.0—focusing on how all stakeholders can realize the opportunities and possibilities of automation in the work landscape. It features a robust discussion on education, business structures, models of employment and leadership philosophies.
Topic:
Science and Technology, Communications, Employment, and Automation
Political Geography:
Global Focus

30. The Grand Opportunity: Creating Community, Equity and Innovation with Houston Public Libraries

Author:
Amy Garmer
Publication Date:
05-2019
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Aspen Institute
Abstract:
Thirty library, government, nonprofit, and business leaders convened at the historic Julia Ideson Library Building in Houston in November 2017 to explore opportunities for working more closely and more intentionally with Houston’s public libraries. The Houston Dialogue on Public Libraries highlighted the changing role of libraries in response to educational, economic, social, and technological changes in society and explored strategies for leveraging the resources and expertise of the Houston Public Library system to address critical needs for recovery and rebuilding in the wake of Hurricane Harvey.
Topic:
Education, Innovation, Community, and Libraries
Political Geography:
North America, Texas, United States of America, and Houston