Jackson Hole Economic Symposium

After years of disappointing turnout for the Federal Reserve annual conference, in 1982 organizers decided to play on then chairman Paul Volcker’s passion: fly fishing. And with a re-location to Wyoming, every year the gathering focuses the world’s economic attention on Jackson Hole, reports The Washington Post.

From a traditional Friday barbeque to guest speakers including Fed chairman Ben Bernanke, “Jackson Hole provides a nice opportunity for central bankers to let down their hair a bit — only figuratively speaking, of course — and mingle with other members of their tribe and a few academics in an informal setting,” says Eswar Prasad, Cornell University professor and a speaker at this year’s summit.