Workforce shortages, geographic isolation, and limited access to specialty and behavioral health services are longstanding challenges of providing care in the Roaring Fork Valley. But our rural communities are resilient and creative solutions to the barriers of travel, affordability, and physician scarcity are emerging. Providers are placing more emphasis on proactive wellness and prevention, investing in technology and virtual medicine, and partnering with larger medical systems to provide networks of care to our mountain residents.

Living at high elevations seems to pay off. The communities surrounding Aspen have the highest life expectancies in the nation, averaging about 86 years. And recent research has found an association between life at high altitudes and lower risk of dying from heart disease, stroke, and some cancers. But that advantage isn’t a guarantee, and there are plenty of things we can do to improve the odds of maintaining lifelong wellness at any altitude. Here is a look at the lifestyle and healthcare tools that can help keep us in peak form.

Featuring Dr. Emily Jacobs, neuroscientist and professor at UC Santa Barbara, whose groundbreaking research examines how hormonal changes across the female lifespan influence brain function and structure.

Featuring Dr. Roberta Brinton, neuroscientist and director of the Center for Innovation in Brain Science at the University of Arizona, in conversation with Soledad Hurst, philanthropist and former on-air reporter/anchor for Bloomberg TV.

Featuring Dr. Vonda Wright, board-certified orthopedic surgeon, author, and internationally recognized expert on women’s musculoskeletal health and active aging, in conversation with Melony Lewis, co-founder and general partner of Canyon Echo Capital and Aspen Institute Trustee. Dr. Wright explores how women’s bodies change with age and how science-backed strategies around movement, strength, and mindset can help us thrive in our 40s, 50s, and beyond.

Featuring Jason Furman, Aetna Professor of the Practice of Economic Policy at Harvard University, and Paul Ryan, Partner at Solamere Capital and 54th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, in conversation with Melissa S. Kearney, Director of the Aspen Economic Strategy Group.

Featuring Dr. Richard Haass, president emeritus of the Council on Foreign Relations and author of “The Bill of Obligations: The Ten Habits of Good Citizens,” in conversation with Wendell L. Willkie II, adjunct professor of law at New York University and adjunct fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.

Featuring Meredith Kopit Levien, president and chief executive officer, The New York Times Company, in conversation with Vivian Schiller, vice president and executive director of Aspen Digital, the Aspen Institute.

Featuring Scott Galloway, best-selling author, professor of marketing at NYU Stern School of Business, and host of “The Prof G Pod” and “Pivot” podcasts, in conversation with Gillian Tett, columnist and member of the editorial board at the Financial Times.

Featuring Jeh Johnson, former US secretary of Homeland Security and general counsel of the Department of Defense, in conversation with Peter Baker, chief white house correspondent for The New York Times and political analyst for MSNBC.