You can help bring art supplies to rural Uruguay school children

We are delighted to report that Minnesota-based emerging artist Sarah Trembley will be leaving June 9 on a two-week project in the interior of Uruguay. She will be teaching rural school students and training educators in a range of media in the small town of Migues. While her travel is supported by a Partners of the Americas culture and education grant, she is seeking funds to bring art supplies so that this important work can be carried on well after she leaves. Please consider making a donation to support this meaningful project by visiting the link below. http://www.razoo.com/story/Mup-Art-Projects We're excited about Sarah's trip and look forward to sharing photos and updates on our blog when she returns.

Uruguay Well Represented at Minnesota Trade Forum

The nation of Uruguay was well represented at a Minnesota trade forum April 17 at the global headquarters of medical device products leader Medtronic in the Twin Cities.

Dr. Nury Bauzan, the country's general consul representing the upper midwest, spoke on trade trends and diversification of Uruguay's economy. She was joined by trade and diplomatic officials from Argentina, Ecuador and Brazil.

Erik Brand, the president of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, moderated the panel of trade officials. Rob Scarlett, vice president of the chapter, moderated a panel of Minnesota businesses exporting to South America, which featured chapter member and Uruguay native Graciela Cuadrado-Vielguth as an expert commentator.

Medtronic CEO Omar Ishrak offered comments on the region, stressing the importance of South America to the company's future and noting that access to medical services remains a challenge for many countries of the Americas that we must work together to address.

Many thanks to Medtronic for hosting the event. And congratulations to the inspiring Silvia Ontaneda Andrade, Ecuador's general consul in Minnesota, and to the Minnesota Trade Office's Rachel Limon, a longtime Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member and leader, for planning such an ambitious and successful endeavor. An estimated 150 businesspeople attended the half-day conference.

Legislative Fellows arriving in Minnesota

A wave of Legislative Fellows selected from across the Americas have been arriving in Minnesota in recent weeks. Mid-career professionals from Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic and Haiti will be hosted by groups in Minnesota such as the Chicano-Latin Affairs Council, led by Hector Garcia, a Minnesota-Uruguay Partners board director, the National Youth Leadership Council and the highly regarded Latino Community United in Service group (CLUES). Rob Scarlett, vice president of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, has been establishing these connections and has been rolling out the red carpet for the visitors. Stay tuned for opportunities to meet the fellows in the coming weeks.

Save the date: April 17 event on Uruguay and South America trade ties

Please save the date of April 17 in your schedules for a timely and useful exchange of views and information on South American trade ties. The event will feature Dr. Nury Bauzan, consul general of Uruguay in Chicago, a highly regarded diplomat and advocate for closer international ties, as well as other experts on South American trade and investment. The event has been organized by Consul General Silvia Ontaneda-Andrade of Ecuador and Rachel Limon at the Minnesota Trade Office.

Details appear below...

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First South American Trade Forum 2012

April 17, 2012

Consul General Silvia Ontaneda-Andrade of the Consulate of Ecuador in Minneapolis, and the Minnesota Trade Office cordially invite you to the First South American Trade Forum. This initiative is designed to strengthen the cultural, political and economic ties between South America and Minnesota promoting bilateral export/import products, tourism, mining, technology and investment. The Forum features a discussion with panelists from Minnesota companies and a Q&A session.

When: Tuesday, April 17, 2012, from 8:30 a.m. to noon; registration begins at 8 a.m.

Where: Medtronic's World Headquarters, 710 Medtronic Parkway, Fridley, MN 55432

Fees: $25, pre-registered, $35 walk-ins; includes handouts, light breakfast & refreshments

*To register and pay online, click here.

Mail registrations to: Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development, MTO-Education, 1st National Bank Bldg., 332 Minnesota St., Ste E200, St. Paul, MN 55101-1351.

E-mail registrations to: mto.edu@state.mn.us

Fax registrations to: 651-297-4265

If mailing, e-mailing or faxing your registration, make check payable to the Minnesota Trade Office and mail the same to our office no later than Monday, April 9, to ensure receipt at our office prior to the event.

The passing of Jack Mills, Minnesota-Uruguay supporter

Patrick Moore in Montevideo, Minnesota, writes today with the following news...

Dear Minnesota-Uruguay Partners,

Norma Mills, widow of Jack Mills has asked me to let the MUP network know about the recent death of her husband Jack.

Although I did not know Jack, I do know that he was a champion of Montevideo MN's special relationship with Uruguay, that he was a vice president of MUP for several years and that he traveled to Uruguay twice and received many Uruguayan visitors to his home here in Montevideo, Minnesota.

Norma called me to ask me to let our friends in Uruguay know -- she did not know if they were still alive, but she particularly mentioned the names of Oscar Rochetti and Hilda Slovak as people that Jack had a strong connection with back in the 1970s and 80s when he was the Mayor of Montevideo.

Please pass the news along to the network and say a prayer for Norma as she misses Jack terribly.

It is but another reminder of how relationships form the core of our work and that we all must endeavor, as Jack did, to be welcoming and gracious in the amazing global village in which we live.

Ambassador-designate highlights Minnesota-Uruguay ties in testimony

Dr. Nury Bauzan, the general counsel of Uruguay in Chicago, made us aware of an article in El Observador today which references Minnesota. The new US ambassador-designate, Julissa Reynoso, listed Minnesota as the first place in the US she'd look to for collaboration with Uruguay in her written testimony on Capitol Hill. The newspaper article covers a question from Sen. Lugar about international collaboration (see text below). Reynoso also mentions sustainable housing in her testimony--some of our readers may recall that John Carmody, the University of Minnesota's Center for Sustainable Building, traveled through Partners in 2010 on a very successful project grant on that very topic...

"I wish to highlight that I would look first to the state of Minnesota as a possible partner for Uruguayan institutions, given the existing connections with numerous academic and research institutions and the high interest in sustainable urban development in Minneapolis. Additionally, the University of Minnesota with its strong agricultural base would be a natural fit for cooperation with Uruguay's leading universities."

Youth Ambassador Oppty to Travel to Belize This Summer

A quick note to follow up about the latest opportunity to travel abroad with the Youth Ambassador program this summer. The February 12 application deadline is coming soon, so please review the details below and fill out the application soon.

Here's a recap:

Partners of the Americas, through a program funded by the United States Department of State, has created new opportunities for youth to promote mutual understanding between the people of the Caribbean region and the United States, develop a sense of civic responsibility and commitment to community development among youth, build leadership capacity, and foster relationships among youth from different ethnic, religious and national groups.

Selected youth will travel to Washington, DC and Belize for four weeks from July 10th – August 7th, 2012. While in Belize, youth will learn about local educational systems, participate in community service activities, attend workshops and plan a project to be implemented upon your return to the U.S.

Partners of the Americas will pay all expenses related to travel and participation in the program including fees for passports, domestic and international travel, food and expenses, health insurance, lodging and transportation.

Youth Ambassadors will be accompanied by adult mentors.

As a Youth Ambassador, you will have the opportunity to:

• Gain greater understanding and appreciation of the similarities and differences between the U.S. and Belize, as well as the Caribbean in general.
• Gain a greater understanding and appreciation of the country’s history, values, and beliefs.
• Explore both local and national issues and become involved with or contribute to those causes.
• Develop the skills needed to be a leader in your community.
• Connect to a network of volunteers working throughout the hemisphere.

Applicants must meet the following requirements in order to participate:

1. Be between 15-18 years old at date of travel (July 10th – August 7th)
2. Currently enrolled in a public high school. We strongly encourage Juniors and below to apply.
3. Good academic standing
4. Display leadership qualities
5. Volunteer experience
6. U.S. Citizen or Resident Alien (one parent is a green card holder)

* Strong consideration will be given to youth that have been involved with or volunteered with programs through the Partners chapter in Minnesota.

Applications of eligible candidates will be reviewed and finalists will be contacted by Partners staff for a phone interview. In addition to the above criteria, candidates will be judged on their dedication to service and community, ability to adapt to new situations and environments, and maturity and responsibility. Applications must be submitted by February 12th, 2012. Finalists will be notified by April 4, 2012.

To submit an application, please fill out the following application and submit TWO copies – one hard copy and one electronic – along with the required documentation listed below. Please note: required documentation only needs to be submitted with the hard copy.

 Two copies of your completed application form (one electronic, one hard copy);
 Form of identification that verifies U.S. citizenship;
 A copy of your school registration and school record for 2011-2012;
 A letter of recommendation from one of your teachers or the school principal (It is recommended that you also include a letter of recommendation from the Partners Chapter in your state);
 A letter of permission from your parents or legal guardian.

Please send electronic applications by February 12, 2012 to Erik Brand, volunteer and president, Minnesota chapter, at erikbrand10@gmail.com or call 612-242-1863 with questions.

The electronic copy to erikbrand10@gmail.com is most important for the deadline.

Hard copies can be mailed to:

Partners of the Americas
Youth Ambassador Program
1424 K Street, NW, Suite 700
Washington, DC 20005

Television Show in Uruguay Interviews Member

A local television show in Uruguay interviewed Anna Moore, a volunteer with Minnesota Uruguay Partners, this week. You did great, Anna!

Prominent Minnesota Couple Off to Uruguay

An excellent article ran in the Star Tribune yesterday about Doug Johnson, the highly respected head of the St. Paul-based Center for Victims of Torture (CVT), who is off to Uruguay next month to teach this year (hat tip to Connie Roehrich for pointing it out). His spouse, Kathryn Sikkink, a member of our group, is also teaching in Uruguay this semester under a university exchange program. She is the author of the newly published book Justice Cascade, which has received high praise in reviews in the Washington Post and other media outlets. You can order the book on Amazon and many other retailers. Congratulations!

A Tale of Two Cities

The "feels like" temperature (counting the wind) in Minneapolis this morning is 30 degrees below zero Fahrenheit; the temperature in Montevideo, Uruguay, counting humidity, is 87 degrees F (about -34 Celsius and +30 Celsius, respectively).

That's 117 degrees Fahrenheit difference between the two places.

[Interesting fact: The two temperature scales converge at about -40 degrees briefly, something that would be fun to see--Uruguayans and Minnesotans could then more easily relate to just how cold it is.]