The American Austrian Foundation

Founded in 1984, the American Austrian Foundation’s mission is to foster exchanges between the United States and Austria in medicine, science, media, and the arts. Over the past three decades, the Open Medical Institute, AAF’s signature medical program has trained over 27,000 physicians from over 130 countries in the Foundation’s conference center at Schloss Arenberg in Salzburg, and more recently, also in Mexico and Vietnam.

For many years the Foundation has annually supported cultural and educational initiatives including:

The AAF Young Conductors Program: Selected by the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, two young U.S. conductors spend four weeks at the Salzburg Music Festival, observing the world’s leading conductors at work.

The AAF Young Artists Program: Four young U.S.-trained artists attend the Salzburg Summer Academy, founded by Oskar Kokoschka, for four to six weeks.

The Arenberg Opera Camps for Children and Young Adults: Up to thirty children and teenagers spend one week at Schloss Arenberg with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra members and a team of music educators who coach them. At the end of the week, they perform their own version of the opera they have studied. More than 2000 children from 30 countries have participated to date. 

The AAF Cultural Exchange Program: Sponsors exchanges between the United States and Austria in various fields of professional accomplishment including art, architecture, design, film, and music.

In addition, the AAF produces the annual Milton Wolf Seminar in Vienna. Launched in 2001, the Milton Wolf Seminar Series addresses developing issues in diplomacy and journalism – both broadly defined. Guests include those working for state and multi-lateral organizations, journalists, representatives from media and internet companies, academics, and a select group of highly engaged graduate students whose studies relate to the seminar themes. The Milton Wolf Seminar Series particularly emphasizes the potential contribution of young and mid-career scholars, including a select group of outstanding graduate students selected each year to attend the seminar, held at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, as Emerging Scholar fellows.