The Aspen Ideas Festival is pleased to announce the 2022 Aspen Ideas Festival Fellows, a diverse group of over 200 leaders from all over the United States and 9 different countries that have been selected for their work, accomplishments, and ability to transform ideas into action.
They were nominated by senior members of the Aspen Institute’s staff, Festival advisors, previous Fellows, and many others within the Aspen Institute’s broad network. These Fellowships are made possible by a group whose purchase of special Patron passes directly contributes to this important program. The Aspen Institute is proud to host these distinguished leaders and grateful to the Patrons for their crucial support. Additional thanks to the Penner Family Foundation for its generous support in bringing a Fellows cohort to the 2022 Festival. The Fellows listed below will attend either Festival 1 or Festival 2.
2022 Aspen Ideas Festival Fellows
Taymullah Abdur-Rahman, Founder, SPENTEM
Oscar Abello, Senior Economics Correspondent, Next City
Mahmoud Abouelnaga, Solutions Fellow, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES)
Don Abram, Founder and Executive Director, Pride in the Pews
Nadia Aghaie, Director, Employee Communications, Comcast
Ana Aguayo, Associate Program Officer, Walton Family Foundation
Kofi Alorzuke, Senior Finance and Grants Manager, de Beaumont Foundation
Mohammad Alsaafin, Senior Producer, AJ+
Yoslin Amaya Hernandez, Student Advocacy Coordinator, Generation Hope
Sonia Anunciacion, Afghan Response Project Lead, Alight
Edmy Angélica Ayala Rosado, Community Projects Manager, Ciencia Puerto Rico
Donnell Bailey, Chief of Staff, Brothers Empowered to Teach
Twyla Baker, President, Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College
Heather Barmore, Digital Director, US Department of the Interior
Shelly Bell, CEO, Black Girl Ventures
Jabari Benjamin, Senior Articles Editor, Georgetown Law
Tamara Bobakova, Special Projects Lead, LEAF Academy
Anjali Boyd, PhD Student, Duke University
Clare Bresnahan, English President and CEO, New Leaders Council
Melanie R. Bridgeforth, President and CEO, Women's Foundation of Alabama
Michelle Brown, Founder and CEO, CommonLit
Afua Bruce, Faculty, Carnegie Mellon University
Katie Bunten-Wamaru, co-CEO, African Visionary Fund
Evelyn Burnett, Co-Founder and CEO, ThirdSpace Action Lab
Stacy Caldwell, CEO, Tahoe Truckee Community Foundation
Lindsey Cameron, Assistant Professor, University of Pennsylvania
Sixto Cancel, CEO and Founder, Think of Us
Aaron Carr, Executive Director, Housing Rights Initiative
Michael Charles, Postdoctoral Researcher, Newark Earthworks Center
Ruby Choonoo, Senior Product Manager, Civic Eagle
Georges Clement, Founder and Executive Director, JustFix
Samara Cohen, Director/Producer, Princess Lockerooo Productions
Martín Concha, CFO, Ainwater
Ben Cooper, Senior Strategy Learning and Evaluation Officer, Walton Family Foundation
Janett Cordoves, Director of Higher Education Partnerships, Interfaith America
Mariana Costa, Co-founder and CEO, Laboratoria
Bethany Criss, Chief External Relations Officer, Leading Educators
Megan Crook, Director of Advancement and External Affairs, AltCap
Gregg Croteau, Chief Executive Officer, UTEC, Inc.
Kaitlin Curtice, Author
Aarushi Das, Vice President, Clear Vision Impact Fund
Maacah Davis, Principal, MaacahMedia
David Desai-Ramirez, Market President, AltCap
Cristina Diez, Graduate Student in Mental Health Counseling, University of Florida
Robert Diggs, Associate, Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group
Paul Disselkoen, Senior Associate, Government Relations, PayPal
Rebecca Dixon, Executive Director, National Employment Law Project
Quang Do, Equity and Inclusion Program Officer, Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham
Quay Dorsey, Senior Program Director, WestEd
Cayenne Douglass, Playwright, Theater Masters
Tinker Duclo, Vice President and Campus Dean, Colorado Mountain College
Dapo (Oladapo) Durojaiye, Administrative Fellow, Mount Sinai Health System
Wendy Ellis, Director and Assistant Professor, Center for Community Resilience, The George Washington University
Natalie Engel, Senior Director, Development, PBS KIDS Content, PBS
Jason Estremera, Executive Director, Northwest Side CDC
Jessica Eting, COO and Co-Founder, Flourish FI
Ginny Fahs, Product Research and Development, Consumer Reports Digital Lab
Alison Flores, Latino Affairs Liaison, Prince George's County
Kenneth Ford, Regional Portfolio Director, Department of Defense
Kenrick Fraser, Global Lead, Employee Impact and Community Partnerships, PayPal
Barbara Freeman, CEO, LaMedichi Savings Clubs
Odeh Friday, Country Director, Accountability Lab, Nigeria
Eduardo Garcia, Senior Policy Manager, Latino Community Foundation
Stephanie Gee, Director of Operations and Communications, New Breath Foundation
Miguel Gonzalez, Senior Director Human Resources Space and Launch, The Boeing Company
Alejandro Gonzalez, Executive Director, The Idea Center at Miami Dade College
Heather Grumley, Superintendent, Garfield Re-2 School District
Natalia Gulick de Torres, Grant Writer and Research Associate, Archivos del Caribe
Jose Guzman, Founder, Guzman, Inc.
Desi Hall, Executive Director, The Frances Thompson Education Foundation
Simone Hardeman-Jones, Executive Director, GreenLight Fund Twin Cities
Joshua Hay, CEO, Indelible Business Solutions
Nidhi Hebbar, Co-Founder, The Edtech Equity Project, Product Lead, Google
Tameka Henry, Executive Director, The Obodo Collective
Shandiin Herrera, Director, Tsé Biiʼ Ndzisgaii Community Center, Yee Ha’ólníi Doo
Phylicia Hill, Counsel, Criminal Justice Project, Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
Joseph Hobot, President and CEO, American Indian OIC
Laura Huerta Migus, Deputy Director, Office of Museum Services, Institute of Museum and Library Services
Tracie Jackson, Footwear Designer, Nike
Drayton Jackson, Executive Director, The Foundation for Homeless and Poverty Management
Shawon Jackson, Founder and CEO, Vocal Justice
Madison Jacobs, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer | Cofounder, Public Rights Project | Edtech Equity
Stella Jemna, Chief of Staff in the Prime Minister's Office, Government of the Republic of Moldova
Dr. Melanie Johnson, President and CEO, Collaborative for Children
Menghun Kaing, Program Officer, Internews Network
Janine Kamwene, Senior Communications Manager, PayPal
Sarah Kanbar, Attorney, Beeson, Tayer and Bodine, APC
Amal Karim, Senior Impact Officer, The Constellation Fund
Peter Kazickas, CEO, Uncommon.org
Fatou Keita, Manager of Foundation Relations/Grant Writer, National Women's Law Center (NWLC)
Kani Keita, Vice President, TPG Rise Climate
Julie Knowles, Director of Curriculum and Assessment, Garfield Re-2 School District
Nicole Krishtul, Strategic Organizer on Housing, New York City Comptroller Brad Lander
Shohini Kundu, Assistant Professor, University of California, Los Angeles - Anderson School of Management
Jeremy Lampkin, Director of Indirect and Alternate Channel Sales, Comcast
Ivy Lau, Global Public Policy and Research Lead Manager, PayPal
Aaron Liu, Vice President, TPG
Maribel Lopez, Senior Director, Head of PBS Digital Studios, PBS
Katie Machen, Adjunct Lecturer in English, Queens College, CUNY
Adrian Alberto Madriz, Executive Director, Struggle for Miami's Affordable and Sustainable Housing, Inc.
Nikhil Mandalaparthy, Advocacy Director, Hindus for Human Rights
Miguelina Manriquez, Senior Manager, Corporate Engagement, Per Scholas
C. Nicole Mason, President and CEO, Institute for Women's Policy Research
Mahyn Mata, Development Coordinator and Bilingual Liaison, The Early Learning Center of Aspen
Ava Mateo, Executive Director, 18by Vote
Thaddeus McCants, Playwright and Television Writer, Theatre Masters
Keisha E. McKenzie, Senior Vice President of Programs, Auburn Seminary
Máté Mester, Managing Partner, MSpire
Keiran Miller, Director of College Prep Programs, Cooperman College Scholars
Juan Carlos Monterrey-Gómez, Executive Director, Climate Resilient
Vin Montes, CEO and Co-Founder, PROFIT Financial, Inc.
Kristen Morales, Associate Director, Digital Marketing, Mount Sinai Health System
Corbin Morris, Associate General Counsel, Walton Family Foundation
Zaira Nazario, Principal Research Scientist, IBM
Nicole Noblet, Apprentice Teacher, Cow Tipping Press
Lovelyn Nwadeyi, Inclusion Strategy Manager EMEA, Netflix
Precious Nwajei, MPH Administrative Fellow, Mount Sinai Health System
Stephanie Nadi Olson, Founder and CEO, We Are Rosie
Sara Ortega, Communications Officer, Walton Family Foundation
Ines Palacios, Co-founder, Chaka
Nitzan Pelman, Founder and CEO, Climb Hire
Chelsea Peters, Chief Strategy Officer, Walton Family Foundation
Lori Pfingst, Senior Director, Washington State Department of Social and Health Services
Kenia Pinela, FFN and Peer Support Manager, Valley Settlement
Micaela Poirette, Product Director Unified Communications, Comcast Business
Jasmin Ramirez, Founder and CEO, Ramirez and Company Consulting
Jimmy Ramirez, Host and Storyteller, Viva La Mota
Carol Ramos, Research Assistant, University at Buffalo-SUNY
Tiffany Reid-Collazo, Attorney, The Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia
Alice Rhee, Chief Communications and Partnerships Officer, Skoll Foundation
Michelle Rhone-Collins, CEO, LIFT
Paul Rink, Senior Fellow, Our Children's Trust
Josue Rivera, District Director, PR and USVI, U.S. Small Business Administration
Atlese Robinson, Founding Artistic Director, Ambiance Theatre
Chelsey Roebuck, Founder, Executive Director, Emerging Leaders in Technology and Engineering, Inc
Alex Sánchez, CEO, Voces Unidas
Parvathi Santhosh-Kumar, Vice President of Equitable Results, StriveTogether
Mateus Santos, Senior Director, Product ManagementComcast
Rinku Sen, Executive Director, Narrative Initiative
George Shardlow, Associate Director of US State Government Relations, Cargill
Karam Sheban, Director of Sustainable Forestry/Doctoral Student, Rural Action/Yale School of the Environment
Alejandro Silva Diaz, Operations Director, Integro Foundation
Sean Snyder, Owner, Stevens and Snyder
Saket Soni, Executive Director, Resilience Force
Beatriz Soto, Director Protegete, Conservation Colorado
Adrian Matthias Stevens, Two Spirit Ambassador, Stevens and Snyder
Sarah Stripp, Managing Director, Springboard To Opportunities
Adam Svejda, Director of Marketing and Communications, Prague Institute of Planning and Development
Adam Swartzbaugh, CEO and Founder, Almond Fintech
Jackson Swearer, Entrepreneur Navigator and Director, StartUp Hutch
Anthony Tamez, YAB Chairman, Center for Native American Youth | Chi-Nations Youth Council
Elizabeth Tang, Senior Counsel, National Women's Law Center
Maria Tarajano Rodman, Executive Director, Valley Settlement
Michal Tarnowski, Co-founder, Civic Knowledge Academy (Akademia Wiedzy Obywatelskiej)
Miah Ulysse, Community Equity Program Manager, Wilder Foundation
Ebony Underwood, Founder/CEO, WE GOT US NOW, INC
Ekemini Uwan, Public Theologian, Sistamatictheology, LLC
Kazua Melissa Vang, Filmmaker, In Progress and APIA MN Film Collective
Gabe Vasquez, Candidate for Congress, New Mexico-02
Elizabeth Velasco, CEO, Global Language Services
Angel Velez, Co-Founder and President, Velez Diversity Consulting
Marco Villegas, COO, Encima Neighborhood Development
Bendjhi Villiers, Senior Advisor of High School through College Programming, Cooperman College Scholars
Joe Waters, Co-Founder and CEO, Capita
Jordan Watkins, Teacher, Chicago Public Schools
Leah Watson, Senior Staff Attorney, American Civil Liberties Union
Kate Wharton, Head of Natural Capital, CrossBoundary
Michael White, President, Indelible
Kristopher White, Director of Development, Compass Working Capital
Daniel Williams, President and CEO, Steelcase Foundation
Kristina Williams, Founder and CEO, Unpacking
Daria Willis, President, Howard Community College
Landon Wilson, Educator, Pat Tillman Foundation
Atti Worku, Co-CEO, The African Visionary Fund
Will (Wei) Wu, Social Media Coordinator, Mount Sinai Health System
Mike Zhang, Senior Director, Comcast
IFILL Fellows, in memory of Gwen Ifill
Jessica Kutz, Gender, Climate and Sustainability Reporter, The 19th
Bushra Seddique, Editorial Fellow, The Atlantic
Sangeeta Singh-Kurtz, Senior Writer, New York Magazine
Talmon Smith, Economics Reporter, The New York Times
Talib Visram, Staff Writer, Fast Company
Dru Baker, Software Engineer, Freelance
Aizhaneya Carter, Student/Actor, Brown/Trinity Rep MFA Candidate in Acting and Directing
Ashley Copeland, Founder, Stacks and the City
Avonda Fogan, Cybersecurity Project Manager, Lafayette Group
Francina Genao, Privacy Analyst, New York City Housing Authority
Richard Harris, Senior Tax Associate, PwC
Kelby Hicks, Corporate Acquisitions Associate, Midtown Property Law
Simone Michelle Mariposa, Content Creator, Birth Doula, and Actress
Yasha Morgan, Diversity Equity and Inclusion Coordinator, KIPP Academy
Jamelfrey Pacheco, Director, National Alumni Network, KIPP Foundation
Andrea Richardson, Supply Chain Manager, Chevron
Nzali Scales, Chef, Zaza’s Kitchen
Mujaahida Shakur, Health Specialist, National Institutes of Health
Marcus Williams, HS Japanese Teacher, New Heights Academy
Matthew Zenteno, Real Estate Agent, Keller Williams