The Aspen Institute

At the Aspen Institute Science & Society Program, Hassan Farah, Ph.D., is manager of the Science & Community pillar, with a particular focus on the youth initiative, Our Future Is Science (OFIS), connecting science and local communities. Hassan is an alumnus mentor of OFIS and completed his doctorate at Virginia Tech researching the biomechanics of balance and walking for children with hemiplegia cerebral palsy. Since his time as an undergraduate at the University of Arizona, Hassan has developed and directed leadership training programs, organized large-scale demonstrations and negotiations as a student activist, and has always been committed to mentorship within and outside of university settings. He seeks to pull from his experiences to foster stronger relationships between Mentors, Mentees, and Ambassadors in OFIS. In 2024 in Berlin, Germany, Hassan presented OFIS to become science breakthrough of the year in the category Science Engagement and was named a Winner in this competition by the Falling Walls Foundation. Later that year, Hassan was recognized by the Aspen Institute as an Achievement Award Winner for going significantly above and beyond his position requirements in support of the OFIS program and its student participants.