TheAEI World Forum is an annual meeting of business and financial executives,heads of government, government officials, and intellectuals. Held every spring inSea Island, Georgia, it is sponsored by theAmerican Enterprise Institute (AEI) and the Vail Valley Foundation, and it features a number of AEI scholars and fellows.[1]
In 1976, U.S. presidentGerald Ford hosted thesecond G7 summit inSan Juan, Puerto Rico. During his presidency, Ford became close friends with three of the other heads of government present at the summit: British prime ministerJames Callaghan, French presidentValéry Giscard d'Estaing, and German chancellorHelmut Schmidt. After his presidency, Ford joined the American Enterprise Institute as its "Distinguished Fellow" and in 1982, he and his wife,Betty Ford, hosted the first AEI World Forum near their home in Beaver Creek. Along with Callaghan, Giscard d'Estaing, and Schmidt, he hoped to enrich discourse among world leaders and explore crucial public policy issues in an intimate setting.[2]
Ford hosted the World Forum until his death in 2006. At the twenty-sixth World Forum in 2007, Vice PresidentRichard Cheney unveiled Gerald R. Ford Hall in the Beaver Creek ParkHyatt Hotel, where the World Forum's sessions are held.[3]
The AEI World Forum is private andoff the record. The World Forum consists of plenary sessions, topical small-group discussion sessions, informal conversational time, and recreational activities. According to the Vail Valley Foundation, "Senior U.S. cabinet officers and legislators provide candid briefings on important policy initiatives. Heads of major international corporations discuss business and financial developments. Government officials from Europe, Asia and the Americas debate international strategic and economic issues in a private, informal atmosphere, far removed from the distractions of day-to-day business."[1]
Journalists are not able to officially report on discussions taking place, leading to claims that the event is “secretive”.[4] However, this does not prevent journalists from obtaining discussion topics, or from speaking at the events off the record.[5]
The Forum attracts right-leaning politicians, and has included members of thefirst Trump administration[6] and UK Conservative party government ministers.[7][8] It has also been reported that its members shaped discussions ahead of the2016 Republican Party presidential primaries.[9]
