Thank you for joining us!

We were delighted to see so many volunteers and members at the annual member meeting on Monday.

The responses to the presentations were overwhelmingly positive, and we wish to express our gratitude to all of the speakers and guests.

With the help of energetic volunteers and the continued support of members, Minnesota-Uruguay Partners has been able to continue its strong history of excellence in programs and service to its mission.

You can stay abreast of our work in the coming months through our newsletter, website and a host of other ways. You can renew your membership at any time during the year online, as well.

We look forward with enthusiasm to a successful 2012, and wish you all very happy holidays.

You Should Meet: Patrick Moore

Patrick Moore, current board director and longtime friend of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, has been profiled in an excellent "News Cut" piece by Minnesota Public Radio.

"It's about developing relationships to the point where they become transformational..." Patrick tells an interviewer. Anyone who has been involved with Minnesota-Uruguay Partners and has seen Patrick in action can certainly attest to this. Congrats Patrick, you make our organization proud.

Come to the annual meeting on Dec. 12

The Minnesota-Uruguay Partners annual member meeting convenes on Monday, Dec. 12, 2011 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at the Regis Center for Art West, InFlux Gallery, at 405 21st Avenue South on the Univ. of Minnesota's West Bank in Minneapolis.

Parking is available in the ramp across the street.

You will enjoy food from Minnesota with an international flavor and wines from Uruguay (goodwill donations appreciated), and see presentations from members old and new about their travels and activities this year.

Click on the program (above) for more details on the agenda.

Importantly, we will also be nominating and electing new board directors.

RSVP by December 5 to erikbrand10@gmail.com or call 612-242-1863 .

The November Newsletter is Here!

Gary Kuhn and Roger Moon have released the November 2011 edition of the Minnesota-Uruguay Partners newsletter (pdf).

The latest issue chronicles the organization's travelers and projects in recent months, and includes some interesting history as Uruguay wraps up its bicentennial year, as well.

Lyndel King, member of our board, profiled in today's MinnPost

We were delighted to read the inspiring profile of Lyndel King, a longtime Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member and an active board director, in MinnPost today. An excerpt...

Through the Great Recession, through debilitating staff cuts and other obstacles that might have stopped a different project with a different leader, King drove to fulfillment her longstanding vision of an art museum that would be pushy about pulling in students."We are not a whatever building, and we didn't want to be a whatever place," she said. "We wanted to be a place that thrust itself into the middle of students' lives and made them pay attention to art."

Uruguay's economy still growing well

Uruguay’s economy continues to grow strongly, up 6.8% in the first quarter of 2011. This growth follows economic growth of 8.5% in 2010 (hat tip to former Minnesota-Uruguay Partners president Bright Dornblaser for sharing the chart above, which was featured in The Daily Reckoning).

The article reports that manufacturing (pulp paper and dairy), construction, and commerce (car sales and restaurant services) were the most dynamic sectors of the economy. Exports of goods and services expanded 14.7% in the first quarter of 2011, mainly auto parts and tourism, according to the article. Analysts forecast growth for 2011 to reach 6.3%, up from their prediction of 5.9% in May, based on quarter one’s strong performance. Interestingly, domestic demand in the first quarter rose by 8.3%.

Of course, with apartment prices rising 22 percent in the capital of Montevideo in 2010, and house prices increasing there by 17%, according to the article, it's hard to dismiss suggestions in other media outlets that a bubble may be building, not to mention the strain inflation places on pensioners and the poor.

But for those who invested a decade ago, during the dire economic crisis, in Uruguay's resort areas, the happy days may be here again. In Punta del Este alone, real estate transactions reached $2.25 billion in the 12 months to April 2011.

Anna Moore's blog post from Uruguay

Editor's note: We received this email from Patrick Moore in Montevideo, Minn., today. We share Patrick's sentiments entirely!

Dear Friends --

In case you haven't seen it yet, our daughter Anna has written a fun blog post about her recent visit to Montevideo, Uruguay.

click here to read it: http://anna-vinadelmar.blogspot.com/2011/10/montevideo-del-sur.html

We feel so blessed by the Partners network that made Anna's visit so memorable. We have had two daughters now who have visited the country. Our 15 year old son is currently studying Spanish hard so he can make the trip someday. Mary and I can't wait to go back and connect with all our new and old friends. Our love for the country grows with each new encounter -- it is such a rich relationship.

Thank you,

Patrick J. Moore

Six Youth Ambassadors from Uruguay Help Clean Up Minnesota

Six high school students from Uruguay were in Minnesota in September and October as the latest Youth Ambassadors to visit the state. They spent a lot of time enjoying our glorious fall outdoors and even helped clean up some of our mess (see press coverage and more photos). Many thanks are due to Kirsten "KC" Carter for again putting together such a fabulous experience for the students, as well as hosts like Patrick Moore, Duane Ninneman, Arne Kildegaard, Rob Scarlett, Hector Garcia and Sue von Bank, to name a few, and not least the generous families who took these talented students into their homes so warmly. "The family stays were the highlight of the trip," KC reports.

Building your dreams in Uruguay

The New York Times ran an inspiring story this week about a couple who built their own home in Uruguay. Dream big!

Minnesota art students return from Uruguay trip

Nine students from the University of Minnesota art department spent most of the month of May in Uruguay, the third year of the "May-Term" art trip to Montevideo.

The students have been supported with scholarship money raised by Minnesota Uruguay Partners.

Mark Knierim, the Minnesota artist and professor who led this year's trip to Uruguay, shared these pictures (top photo of students with the Engelman Ost Collection and second in the studio of Wilfredo Diaz Valdez.)