Nine Trustees Elected to Aspen Institute Board

4/7/2003

From: James M. Spiegelman of The Aspen Institute, 202-736-3849

WASHINGTON, April 7 -- The Aspen Institute today announced the election of nine new members to its board of trustees. They are L. John Doerr, Sylvia Earle, Michael Eisner, Henry Louis Gates Jr., Bonnie Palmer McCloskey, Peter Reiling, Roderick K. von Lipsey, Vin Weber and Mortimer Zuckerman. Each member will serve a three-year term that begins immediately. Longtime Institute trustee Raymond Barre, the former French Prime Minister, was elected as an honorary trustee. Retiring from the board are Roy Roberts and Johnathan Rodgers. William H. Donaldson resigned from the board once he was nominated by President Bush in January 2003 to serve as chairman of the US Securities and Exchange Commission. Trustee Philip Merrill was granted a "leave of absence" during the period of his Presidential appointment as head of the Export-Import Bank of the US.

"We are delighted to be welcoming nine exceptional individuals to serve on our board," said William E. Mayer, chairman of the board of trustees of the Aspen Institute. He added: "Each has made estimable contributions to society, and we are especially fortunate to benefit from their vision and experience." We extend our sincere thanks to Roy Roberts and Jonathan Rodgers for their valuable contributions to the Institute over the last few years, and hope to continue to draw the counsel of Raymond Barre in his new honorary capacity. We are especially proud that our colleagues, Bill Donaldson and Phil Merrill, have assumed leadership positions in the current Administration. We wish them both great success as they serve the interests of our nation."

L. John Doerr is general partner in the Silicon Valley venture capital firm of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. Doerr backed the founders of some of the most important firms in the computer business, including among others: Lotus, Netscape, Compaq, Sun Microsystems, Amazon.com, Handspring, Inc. and drugstore.com. Such companies have revolutionized the personal computer and Internet industries.

Sylvia Earle, the world-renowned marine biologist, has been an explorer-in-residence at the National Geographic Society since 1998. Named Time magazine's first "hero for the planet" in 1998, Earle has pioneered research on marine ecosystems and has led more than 50 expeditions totaling more than 6,000 hours underwater. She holds numerous diving records, including setting the women's depth record for solo diving at a thousand meters (3,300 feet).

Michael Eisner has served as chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company since 1984. Eisner is credited with transforming the company into a powerful entertainment conglomerate. He had previously been president of Paramount Pictures. He serves on various boards and has established and funded the Eisner Foundation, a philanthropic organization headed by his wife, Jane.

Henry Louis Gates Jr. serves as the W.E.B. Du Bois Professor of the Humanities at Harvard University and director of the W.E.B. Du Bois Institute for Afro-American Research. He is general editor of The Norton Anthology of African American Literature, co-editor of Transition magazine, a staff writer for The New Yorker and the author of several books and articles.

Bonnie Palmer McCloskey is a director and vice president of the Aspen Center for New Medicine; a director of the Women's Foundation of Colorado; and a member of the Society of Fellows of the Aspen Institute.

Peter A. Reiling is president and CEO of TechnoServe, Inc., a nonprofit international economic development agency helping economically-depressed rural communities in Africa, Latin America and Central Europe to build profitable businesses. Reiling was an Aspen Institute Henry Crown Fellow (Class of 1998).

Roderick K. von Lipsey is vice president at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Private Wealth Management, Investment Management Division. A former Marine Fighter Pilot and combat veteran, von Lipsey served 20 years on active duty in the US Marine Corps. He was a director on the National Security Council staff in the Clinton White House. Prior to that, he served as a senior aide to General Colin Powell, then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Vin Weber is a partner with Clark & Weinstock, a management consulting firm. Weber is a former US Congressman, serving Minnesota's Second Congressional District from 1980 to 1992. He is a co-founder of Empower America and a senior fellow at the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota.

Mortimer Zuckerman is chairman and editor-in-chief of US News & World Report and publisher of the New York Daily News. He is also founder of Boston Properties, Inc. Zuckerman serves as chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations.

The Aspen Institute is an international non-profit organization dedicated to informed dialogue and inquiry on issues of global concern. Founded in 1950, it has pursued its mission of fostering enlightened leadership through seminars, policy studies and fellowship programs. The Institute is headquartered in Washington, DC, and has campuses in Aspen, Colorado, and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Its international network includes partner Aspen Institutes in Berlin, Rome, Lyon and Tokyo, and leadership programs in Africa.