Fourth Freedom Forum Information

The Forum was founded in 1982 by midwestern entrepreneur Howard S. Brembeck (1910-2010) who was not only a successful businessman but a committed philanthropist with a mission to create a more prosperous and secure world through global cooperation, not military force. Brembeck was born in 1910 and raised in the small Indiana town of Urbana, where his father owned a hardware store and was a state representative in the Indiana legislature. After briefly attending the University of Chicago, Brembeck returned home to help the family during the Great Depression. He was married in 1933, began working for an agricultural manufacturing company in his hometown, and pursued a profession in agricultural sales. By the 1950s, Brembeck had gained the confidence to form his own agricultural manufacturing company, which was ultimately located in northern Indiana. His company quickly grew into a worldwide establishment that revolutionized food production and extended sales to more than 100 countries and manufacturing plants in Europe and Latin America. He actively managed the business for more than 40 years until he retired in 1995 at the age of 85. Brembeck displayed that same ambition to change the world in his philanthropic endeavors. He devoted his personal wealth to a variety of charitable organizations, but founding the Forum remained his proudest achievement. He first conceived of the idea of the Forum while traveling in England in the fall of 1979. He wrote about that experience:Half asleep on a bus, I was aroused by a thought that I couldn't get out of my mind. It was at the height of the Cold War. Having seen the ruins of World War II, and realizing the potential devastation of nuclear power, I thought it would be just a matter of time until the Cold War would get hot and we would all be incinerated. When I awakened from that dream, I felt compelled to act. From his international business experience, Brembeck saw that the United States was building new relationships of cooperation with former enemies in Germany and Japan through the power of trade. He believed that economic interdependence and the use of sanctions and incentives could bring about a more prosperous and secure world, and that we could avoid nuclear war by learning to work together through commerce and diplomacy to uphold international law. Using his own capital, Brembeck created an endowment to fund the establishment of an organization that could advance the ideals of global cooperation instead of violent conflict. Drawing his inspiration from Franklin D. Roosevelt's 1941 Annual Message to Congress, in which the president outlined his vision for four essential freedoms that all people deserve-freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from want, and freedom from fear of war-Brembeck named this new organization the Fourth Freedom Forum. From the beginning, the purpose of the Forum was to promote freedom from fear of violent conflict through the development of economic power, not military power, as the force that rules the world. In 1988, Brembeck began hosting gatherings of influential U.S. military and nuclear policy experts, each of whom played a key role in guiding the Forum's early work. He also began recruiting staff members on the cutting edge of the current issues most pressing to international security. Over time, the Forum became involved in other national security issues, including the evaluation of the use of sanctions and international counterterrorism cooperation efforts, as well as research and education projects across the globe designed to encourage cooperation among those who would not otherwise come together. As a result of the legacy that Brembeck left behind, the Forum continues to be one of the primary organizations that governments, international bodies, and policy thought leaders turn to as they are addressing these issues. Howard Brembeck passed away on December 5, 2010, at the age of 100. He never stopped working toward his goal of creating a world free from the fear of war and terrorism. What began as a simple idea from one man has grown into significant international programs supported by a global network of thousands of independent experts and government officials all focused on the achievement of his goal. Howard Brembeck's legacy endures through the work of the Forum, and we are grateful for the contributions from all of our donors who share his global vision.