Aspen Policy Academy

01/29/2026

: Applications are open for the Aspen Policy Academy’s Getting Through To Governments: Communications Bootcamp! This free, part-time, virtual course will train community leaders from across the country how to effectively share their ideas with government officials.

🗓️ Dates: March 30-April 2, 2026
⌚ Schedule: Classes from 9-11am PT / 12-2pm ET daily
⏰ Application Deadline: February 22, 2026 at 11:59pm PT

This course is perfect for anyone with a strong idea of a local policy they’d like to change.

🔗 Learn more and apply here: https://aspenpolicyacademy.org/program/getting-through-to-governments-communications-bootcamp/

A free, part-time, virtual course helping people learn how to write and communicate more effectively to governments.

11/18/2025

Got phished? Don’t just change your password — change the policy. 🔐➡️🗳️
Here’s how to write a one-paragraph comment that actually impacts local cybersecurity.
Join our free CCE training on Nov 20! https://aspeninstitute.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_G8wLj9fcRMKdYEHQueK0Jg #/registration

11/06/2025

📢 Media Spotlight: AI Product Liability Could Be a Game-Changer for Safer Technology

Congratulations to Fellow Camille Carlton, policy director at the Center for Humane Technology, for her powerful new co-authored piece: “AI Product Liability: The Light-Touch Law With Heavyweight Impact.”

In the article, Camille and her co-authors break down a timely question: If AI products can emotionally manipulate users, cause harm, or mislead the public, who is responsible?

They explain how applying product liability, or a legal standard used for cars, food, and medicine, could:
✅ Incentivize companies to build safer AI from the start
✅ Create accountability when harms occur
✅ Protect consumers without slowing innovation

With bipartisan support building behind the (Durbin & Hawley, 2025) and new state-level efforts, product liability is emerging as a potential path to safer AI systems.

🔗 Read Camille’s full piece here: https://centerforhumanetechnology.substack.com/p/ai-product-liability

It’s inspiring to see our alumni leading national policy conversations on how we responsibly integrate AI into society. 👏 If you’re interested in joining the conversation about AI or other cyber issues, join us for our Cyber Civic Engagement training sessions. The next one is Nov. 20!

10/31/2025

📰 Last week, our Founding Director Betsy Cooper was quoted in NPR’s coverage of the outage that disrupted major websites and services across the internet.

As Betsy noted, there are real advantages to relying on large cloud providers, from strong cybersecurity protections to the convenience of centralized infrastructure. That being said, incidents like this highlight what can happen when so many critical systems depend on just a few major players.
When an update goes wrong, it’s not just one company that feels the impact: financial platforms, hospitals, schools, and public-facing services can all experience cascading disruptions.

It’s a reminder of why resilience, diverse vendors, and thoughtful policy frameworks matter when the infrastructure behind daily life is increasingly digital.

👏 We’re thrilled to see Betsy’s perspective featured on NPR.

🔗 Read or listen to the coverage here: https://www.npr.org/2025/10/20/nx-s1-5580312/aws-outage

07/16/2025

: The Aspen Institute’s Policy Academy is hosting a free virtual training on 7/30 from 9–10am PT / 12–1pm ET to help you solve policy problems in your community. “Scoping a Policy Problem” will teach you how to narrow a broad policy problem into an achievable goal.

⚖️ Register here to expand your civic engagement toolkit: https://aspeninstitute.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_zpIMcC6KQmSkz4l4xT34hg #/registration

Join us to learn the basics of defining a policy problem. This program will teach you how to narrow a broad issue into a specific achievable goal to help you have impact on the issue you care about. (1 hour)

05/27/2025

🎯 From groundbreaking AI regulations to innovations in environmental tech and a renewed push for digital privacy, we’re living in a pivotal era of policy-making that will define the next decade. If you’re passionate about impact-oriented work, now is the time to learn and engage.

📣 Register now for our free summer webinars: https://aspenpolicyacademy.org/webinars/

05/23/2025

📰 In the press! Aspen Policy Academy was featured in Government Technology News, Cyber Experts & The Daily Upside for our work on AI governance, cybersecurity, & tech policy.

🔗 Read more:
1️⃣https://www.govtech.com/artificial-intelligence/aspen-institute-unveils-ai-transparency-suggestions-for-utah
2️⃣https://cyberexperts.com/ais-invisible-threat-rethinking-cybersecurity-in-the-digital-age/
3️⃣https://www.thedailyupside.com/cio/enterprise-ai/battlefield-ai-grapples-with-risk-tolerance-minefield/

04/08/2025

It’s not too late to register for our interactive Policy 101 training session tomorrow at 9am PT/12pm ET! Come learn how to transform your insights into informed policy.

Register here: https://aspeninstitute.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_wN6HWwA0RDiUMOGZ_6v7kg #/registration