7 October 2026

With a memorial evening at Malostranská beseda on 17 September, the Aspen Institute Central Europe paid tribute to its founder, Ivan Hodáč. A native of Prague, he died this summer at the age of 79. For decades he was regarded as one of the most influential Czechs in Brussels – and as a mentor to an entire generation of young leaders in Central Europe.

An Evening of Remembrance in Malá Strana

At 5.45 pm, friends, companions, family and many members of the Aspen community gathered in the historic rooms of Malostranská beseda on Malostranské náměstí. Speakers included long-time companions, Hodáč’s wife and his sons, as well as Tomáš Klvaňa, Director of the Aspen Institute Central Europe.

Together, their memories formed a portrait of the whole man: the influential European in Brussels, the founder and mentor who opened doors for countless young people – and the husband, father and grandfather whom his family bid farewell with deeply personal words that evening.

The choice of venue suited a man who remained attached to Prague all his life, even as his career took him to Copenhagen, Bruges and Brussels.

From Prague to Brussels

Ivan Hodáč was born in Prague in 1946, where he first studied mechanical engineering. He went on to study economics and political science at the University of Copenhagen and at the College of Europe in Bruges, where he belonged to the 1975–76 class and later taught as an assistant professor.

He then served as Senior Economist at Didier & Associates, as Secretary-General of the trade association IFMA/IMACE, and as Senior Vice-President and Head of Time Warner’s corporate office for Europe. From 2001 to 2013 he led the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) as its Secretary-General. During that time, the Financial Times counted him among the most influential personalities in Brussels politics.

His expertise remained in demand: he sat on an expert group advising the European Commission on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), advised the Czech government on European affairs, and was a senior advisor at the EU consultancy Teneo CabinetDN.

The Heart and Engine of the Aspen Institute

Perhaps his most lasting mark, however, was left in Prague. In 2012 he was among the founders of the Aspen Institute Prague, the Central European partner of the global Aspen network. In 2016 he succeeded Michael Žantovský as President and drove its development into today’s Aspen Institute Central Europe, which also covers Poland, Slovakia and Hungary. At the end of 2021 he stepped down from the Board of Directors and became Chairman of the Supervisory Board.

Under his leadership, the institute became one of the region’s most respected platforms for democratic dialogue and values-based leadership. Hodáč personally took part in almost every programme for young leaders; according to the institute, he directly shaped the lives of more than 600 young people from across Central Europe.

“No one can imagine Aspen Institute in Central Europe without Ivan,” said Executive Director Tomáš Klvaňa after his death. President Pavel Řehák remembered him as an energetic man full of love for life, with a rare gift for bringing people together. Vice President Dita Charanzová called him one of the Czech Republic’s best-known faces in Brussels, saying few had done as much for the country. Moving words also came from Poland, where Hodáč had helped build the Warsaw office: co-founder Tomasz Wardyński recalled a true European for whom building civil society was a matter of the heart.

A Legacy That Lives On

His commitment to educating young Europeans continues. In agreement with the family, the College of Europe in Bruges – to which Hodáč remained closely connected, and where he helped launch the Czech national scholarship scheme – invites those who wish to honour his memory to donate to the newly established Ivan Hodáč Scholarship Fund. It is intended to help talented students in financial need to pursue their studies.

Those who met Ivan Hodáč remember his warmth, his curiosity and his readiness to give young people his time and advice. The evening at Malostranská beseda showed just how large the community he leaves behind truly is.