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A newly established Center for Rising Generations at the Aspen Institute is expected to become a resource for youth, young adults, and those who support their development and leadership.
The center publicly launches in 2025 as a $185.7 million founding investment of The Aspen Institute and the Bezos Family Foundation; about $175 million of the investment will establish a permanent endowment and $10.7 million will support initial operational costs. It is expected to foster civil dialogue, civic engagement, and leadership development among its young participants.
“Supporting the leadership, passion, and creativity of young minds to enact change today has been at the heart of the Foundation, and for two decades, we’ve worked side-by-side with the Aspen Institute to support new programs and platforms for young people to put their education into action,” said Mike Bezos, co-founder of the Bezos Family Foundation and Aspen Institute trustee.
“With the Aspen Institute’s strong values-based leadership and expertise, and with renowned global education leader Kaya Henderson at the helm, we are confident the Center for Rising Generations will exponentially expand opportunities for our rising generations, bringing their voices to the forefront to shape our world for the better.”
Kaya Henderson — the former Chancellor of Washington, D.C.’s Public Schools and founder and CEO of the education technology company, Reconstruction — has been tapped to lead the center and serve as executive vice president of the Aspen Institute.
“This extraordinary investment from the Bezos Family Foundation will enable the Aspen Institute to use our many assets and relationships in service of this vision of including, engaging, equipping, and empowering the young,” said Henderson, “and I am delighted to lead this work, building on the Institute’s 75 years of promoting civil dialogue and leadership development.”