The Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program — Events and Interviews

Markets and our economy don’t just happen — they’re crafted. While we often hear about the “free market” as a natural force governed by the invisible hand, the reality is far more intentional. In the US, markets are shaped by the decisions of policymakers, business leaders, and advocates. These decisions determine who benefits, who bears the risk, and what goals we prioritize. Understanding market...

In this clip, ASU’s Dr. Christos Makridis speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/asus-dr-christos-makridis-speaks-at-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For other session videos, visit the Aspen In...

American workers have faced numerous setbacks in the 21st century, including the Great Recession, the COVID-19 pandemic, continued wage stagnation, and an escalated cost of living. While workers made some gains following the pandemic, thanks to a tight labor market and because of a spike in organizing, many still feel their needs are unmet, a major theme of the recent election. Too many workers st...

Lauren Starks, director of Good Companies/Good Jobs at the Aspen Institute, recently sat down with two Shared Success grantees — Andrea Levy, senior program manager at California Farmlink, and Janet Brugger, Business Navigator, Colorado Enterprise Fund — to discuss how they’ve worked with various public and private partners to recruit small businesses and provide technical assistance with an eye t...

Markets and our economy don’t just happen — they’re crafted. While we often hear about the “free market” as a natural force governed by the invisible hand, the reality is far more intentional. In the US, markets are shaped by the decisions of policymakers, business leaders, and advocates. These decisions determine who benefits, who bears the risk, and what goals we prioritize. Understanding market...

In this clip, UNI’s Leslie Wilson speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.  For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/unis-leslie-wilson-shares-her-big-idea-for-employee-ownership/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For other session videos, visit the Aspen Institute Economic Oppo...

In this clip, Reason Magazine’s Jesse Walker speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.  For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/reason-magazines-jesse-walker-shares-his-big-idea-for-employee-ownership/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For other session videos, visit the Aspen I...

In this clip, Apis and Heritage’s Phil Reeves speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.  For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/apis-and-heritages-phil-reeves-shares-his-big-idea-for-employee-ownership/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For other session videos, visit the Aspen...

In this clip, Tammy Miller, former lieutenant governor of North Dakota, speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum.  For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/tammy-miller-former-lieutenant-governor-of-north-dakota-speaks-at-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/p...

Maureen Conway, executive director of the Aspen Institute Economic Opportunities Program, recently sat down with two Shared Success grantees that are integrating job quality into their portfolios as investors: Viola Mai, development director at ICA Fund, and Robert Anderson, business navigation director at Colorado Enterprise Fund. As investors, ICA and Colorado Enterprise Fund have both incorpora...

In this clip, CUNY’s Jessica Gordon-Nembhard speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/jessica-gordon-nembhard-discusses-her-big-idea-for-employee-ownership/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For other session videos, visit the Aspen Insti...

In this session from the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum, we hear five thought leaders discuss their new ideas and fresh takes on the role of employee ownership in our economy and society and what we can do to help it grow. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/five-big-ideas-for-employee-ownership/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go...

In this clip, Rutgers University’s Joseph Blasi provides opening remarks on day two of the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/rutgers-joseph-blasi-opens-day-two-of-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For oth...

In this clip, Aspen Institute President and CEO Dan Porterfield speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/aspen-institute-president-dan-porterfield-speaks-at-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For ot...

In this clip, the Aspen Institute’s Maureen Conway provides opening remarks on day two of the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/aspen-institutes-maureen-conway-opens-day-two-of-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/asp...

Job quality is vital not only for workers, but also for small businesses and communities. Yet too many jobs today miss the mark on one of the key characteristics of a good job: providing enough pay to live on. Only 56% of full-time workers in the United States make enough money to cover their families basic needs. This problem is particularly acute at small businesses. Nearly 60% of low-wage worke...

Doing job quality work requires CDFI business advisors to broaden the conversations they have with business owners to include topics related to human resources (HR), employee management, and business operations and strategy. Lauren Starks, Director of Good Companies/Good Jobs at the Economic Opportunities Program, recently sat down with three Shared Success grantees—Tabin Tangila Mesu Kamba, Progr...

Job quality is vital not only for workers, but also for small businesses and communities. Yet too many jobs today miss the mark on one of the key characteristics of a good job: providing enough pay to live on. Only 56% of full-time workers in the United States make enough money to cover their families basic needs. This problem is particularly acute at small businesses. Nearly 60% of low-wage worke...

In this clip, Prudential Financial’s Sarah Keh speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/prudential-financials-sarah-keh-closes-day-one-of-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/profile/aspeneop/ For other session videos,...

In this clip, the Democracy at Work Institute’s Julian McKinley speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For a transcript and additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/the-democracy-at-work-institutes-julian-mckinley-speaks-at-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/...

In this clip, Tammy Miller, former lieutenant governor of North Dakota, speaks at the 2025 Employee Ownership Ideas Forum. For additional resources, visit our website: https://www.aspeninstitute.org/videos/tammy-miller-former-lieutenant-governor-of-north-dakota-speaks-at-the-2025-employee-ownership-ideas-forum/   Or subscribe to our podcast and listen on the go: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/pr...

UpSkill America’s new Upskilling Playbook is a strategic guide for organizations to build, scale, and integrate skills-based workforce development initiatives that drive business performance and career growth. In this conversation, UpSkill America Associate Director Chelsea Miller and Senior Advisor Chris Huyck Trout offer a preview of the Playbook, including its forthcoming content and value to l...

Lauren Starks, Director of Good Companies/Good Jobs at the Economic Opportunities Program, recently sat down with two Shared Success grantees—Felicia Ravelomanantsoa, Chief Operating Officer/Chief Financial Officer at African Development Center (ADC), and Elaine Neigel, Business Loan Officer at Four Bands Community Fund—to discuss how job quality work needs to be connected to the unique challenges...

Maureen Conway, Executive Director of the Economic Opportunities Program, recently sat down with two Shared Success grantees—Jataune Hall, Director of Special Projects and Partnerships at Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon, and Lamont Jackson, Director of Technical Assistance, Black Business Investment Fund—to learn more about the challenges of and opportunities for small business childcare provi...

In addition to their mission of providing financial services and products to people and businesses in low-income communities, many Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) consider themselves more broadly as vehicles for economic development in their communities. Beyond supporting business creation and growth, they support the creation of quality jobs for community members. Maureen Con...