Program Application

What does it look like to govern amid contested sovereignty, cultural erasure, and competing legal systems — for centuries?

The Leadership In Conflict series brings together Aspen Fellows who are living and leading in divided societies, contested institutions, and entrenched conflict. Through immersive, place-based experiences, Fellows learn from and alongside the leaders, histories, and communities at each gathering’s center; examining the hardest questions of leadership not in the abstract, but in context.

Explore the remarkable and complicated leadership landscape of the Southwestern United States through the Aspen method.

Building on previous gatherings in Colombia and Rwanda, the Leadership In Conflict series heads to Santa Fe this September to explore what it means to lead through contested authority, competing systems, and the long work of cultural survival. 

Crafted in partnership with Dawson Her Many Horses (Finance Leaders Fellowship) and the Aspen Center for Native American Youth, and supported by the McNulty Foundation, this experience invites Fellows to engage with governance as it's actually practiced: across competing values systems, legal systems, and time horizons.

For centuries, New Mexico's Pueblo nations have taken on this difficult work. And their wisdom on resilience, continuity, and leading through conflict that never fully resolves offers something rare: a tested alternative to leadership approaches that are struggling to meet this moment.

Through curated dialogues, immersive site visits, and encounters with local leaders, you'll examine critical questions:

• How do you lead when your authority is recognized but contested?
• How do you hold deep time horizons when systems demand immediate results?
• How do you preserve what's sacred while engaging the systems that threaten it?
• How do you maintain integrity under pressure to compromise?

Apply now to share more about your background, why you're drawn to this particular experience, and how you plan to apply these learnings in your community or to your leadership journey.

Acceptances are limited to 22 participants to ensure intimate dialogue and meaningful connection.

Apply by May 2 for priority scholarship consideration. Final application deadline is June 7, 2026.