Come March, Aspen will be abuzz with high profile environmental discussions when the Aspen Institute and National Geographic magazine host the first ever Aspen Environment Forum.

“There are a few other environment forums out there with this caliber of world-renowned speakers,” David Monsma, vice president of the Aspen Institute and executive director of the Aspen Institute’s Energy and Environment Program, said in a prepared statement. But “this forum, unlike those others, is open to the public — so it presents, for the first time, an opportunity for lay people to get in on the kind of conversation that high-level leaders and scientists in the field are used to having behind closed doors.”

From March 26-30, about 50 international environmental leaders, including local luminaries such as — the Rocky Mountain Institute’s Amory Lovins and the Aspen Skiing Co.’s Auden Schendler, as well as folks like biology heavyweight and author E.O. Wilson of Harvard University, Natural Resources Defense Council president Frances Beinecke, Earth Policy Institute President Lester R. Brown, and author and thinker James Kunstler — will put their heads together to discuss climate change, energy, human rights and numerous other environmental topics.

The first day will focus primarily on science, natural history and current research, Monsma said, while the second will deal mostly with policy and public discourse, and the third will focus on sustainable solutions.

“We wanted to present a broad spectrum and not just get into the weeds of climate change or energy security,” Monsma said. “There will be a nice blend of policy and science, a little bit of business, and a little speculation around the edges — maybe some poetry.”

For more information, visit www.energyandenvironmentawards.com. Full forum passes range in price from $1,700 to $3,000, but reduced prices and financial assistance are available to government and non-profit employees, international guests and university faculty and students.

sarah@aspendailynews.com