As Civil Society Fellows, Elizabeth Neumann and the Rev. Adam Taylor bring distinct yet complementary experiences to a shared question: what does it take to lead with moral responsibility in a moment of deep civic strain?

Elizabeth has spent her career working to protect the public from violence and extremism, serving in national security roles across three presidential administrations, including as Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism at the Department of Homeland Security. Today, as Chief Strategy Officer at Moonshot, she focuses on preventing violent extremism, particularly in online spaces where harm can take root quickly and quietly. Adam, as president of Sojourners, leads a Christian nonprofit grounded in the belief that faith calls people to pursue justice, dignity, and care for one another – working in partnership with communities in the United States and around the world.

In this episode of Fellows on Fellows, they reflect on what it means to bring faith-informed values into public life without turning belief into a weapon. They speak candidly about faith’s capacity to heal and to divide, and about the responsibility leaders carry to choose language and actions that widen the circle of belonging rather than narrow it. Their insights are shaped not by theory, but by years of confronting extremism, injustice, and moments when progress feels uncertain or slow.

This conversation is not about offering a single model for leadership. Instead, it is an honest exchange about the realities of showing up – again and again – when the work is difficult and the outcomes are unclear.

Fellows on Fellows

Fellows on Fellows is a five-episode dialogue series from the Aspen Global Leadership Network (AGLN). Spanning business, government, and the nonprofit sector, AGLN Fellows share a commitment to enlightened leadership and the drive to tackle the most pressing challenges of our times. Through transformative Fellowship programs and gatherings like the Resnick Aspen Action Forum, AGLN Fellows have the unique opportunity to connect, collaborate, and challenge each other to grow and commit to a lifelong journey of impact.

Fellows in Fellows puts two AGLN Fellows together in honest, heartfelt conversation as they share the real moments that shaped them as leaders: breakthroughs, setbacks, tough decisions, and the lessons that come from being fully “in the arena”. These conversations are a reminder of Fellowship in action. Watch the trailer and look out for weekly releases in January here on aspeninstitute.org and on the Aspen Institute’s YouTube channel.