Sesión Aspen Ideas: “The West: The History of an Idea”

Aspen Institute España hosted a new debate session within the Aspen Ideas Program, with Georgios Varouxakis, Professor of the History of Political Thought at Queen Mary University of London. The session took place on Thursday, June 9th at 2pm in Uría Menéndez (Principe de Vergara 187, Madrid). The session was moderated by José M. de Areilza, Secretary General of Aspen Institute España.

Drawing on his new publication The West: The History of an Idea (Princeton University Press, 2025), the speaker reflected on the concept of “the West”. What does belonging to the West mean? Where are the West’s borders? What place does Ukraine take, and where is the concept evolving towards within the transforming world order?

The session was held in English under the Chatham House rule.

Aspen Institute España

The Aspen Institute España Foundation was established in 2010 to promote leadership inspired by civic values and to address critical issues for the future of society. Every year it organizes more than seventy debates, seminars and conferences on leadership and values, the digital future, sustainability, democracy, geopolitics and the economy.

The Secretary General of Aspen España is José M. de Areilza. The project is supported by fifteen Spanish companies and a large network of alumni. It is part of the international network of Aspen Institutes, present in more than twelve countries, and collaborates in a special way with The Aspen Institute in the United States. This philanthropic institution was founded in 1950, among others by José Ortega y Gasset, to train leaders in all sectors of society with a humanistic vision and a connection to civic and democratic values. Today it is recognised as one of the most influential think tanks in the world, with more than fifty ongoing programmes in the fields of public policy and leadership.