A video describing the history of the Uruguay-Minnesota prison reform project

Partners of the Americas in Washington posted this interview recently with Erik Brand, the immediate past president of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, talking about the history of a successful prison reform project that has resulted in an innovative community supervision program in Uruguay.

Lynn Baskfield Leads Equine Coaching Exercise for Minnesota-Uruguay Partners Board Members

Left-to-right: Gerard Lagos, Treasurer; Mandy Mattke, President-Elect; David C. Kremer, Chair, Fiscal Development; Lynn Baskfield, Host and Trainer; Equine Assistant; Rob Scarlett, President; Tom Olson, Chair, Business and Economic Development; Lynn's Human Assistant.

Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member Lynn Baskfield, a certified personal professional coach who operates Wisdom Horse Coaching, kindly invited board directors of our group to participate in an equine-assisted board team-building session on a warm summer afternoon in Delano, Minnesota, on Thursday, August 1.

In the fall of 2012, Lynn had hosted Uruguayan equine-assisted therapist and horse trainer Captain Gustavo Dos Santos during his visit to Minnesota. As a result, other board members involved in escorting Capt. Dos Santos became fascinated with all the different kinds of coaching and personal development activities that can be accomplished through the use of horses.

In just 2-1/2 hours, Lynn paired board members with a selection of horses and guided us through a series of individual and group exercises that produced very useful insights that the participating board members are using to figure out how to work together to maximize the group's potential for creating meaningful and impactful "people-to-people" experiences for Minnesotans, Uruguayans and others interested in exchanges of the kind fostered by Partners of the Americas.

Incidentally, the horses Lynn selected for these coaching exercises were all Gypsy Vanners, a unique breed of horse related to those that gypsies (Roma) used to pull their Gypsy vans (see example, below):

There are several videos posted that describe Wisdom Horse Coaching's approach at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbGuKCpYlHU and at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PenWmlnzmeE

For more information on the use of horses in coaching, training and therapy, visit the EAGALA web-site: http://www.eagala.org/.

This was an "mind-opening" experience for all of those who participated; and one that will continue to yield benefits as we plan for the future of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners.

-- Rob

Robert H. Scarlett, President
Board of Directors
Minnesota-Uruguay Partners of the Americas

Tara Gupta Presents on Social Inclusion Efforts

Tara Gupta, a Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member who won a scholarship to participate in Partners' Colombia Youth Leadership Summit in 2011 as a high school student, on Sunday shared observations from her recent trip to Uruguay

Tara was invited to speak at the U.S. Embassy in Montevideo last month and traveled to Migues to learn about efforts underway there with Gladys Ferrero, the phenomenal rural school director who reaches out to youth for job training and other projects.

Tara is now a first-year student at Wellesley College.

Our group was hosted so warmly by Melissa and Uri Camarena in their beautiful home, the former Pillsbury Mansion in Minneapolis, for the presentation and discussion. It was a very special day.

Thank you all!

Partners is hiring new staff

Partners of the Americas is hiring part-time consultants in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, Minnesota native and Partners senior staffer in Washington Theresa McMenomy tells us.

Spread the word!

- In the Dominican Republic: http://bit.ly/14sPd1M
- In Haiti: http://bit.ly/17Cjt0q

The birthday of Artigas

Today, June 19, is a national holiday in Uruguay celebrating the birthday of José Gervasio Artigas, the country's greatest hero.

The holiday follows by less than a week this year the annual "fiesta days" in Montevideo, Minnesota (pop. 5,331) marking that city's century-long relationship with Uruguay.

Members and friends of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners (a selection of whom are pictured below) gathered last weekend for the festivities, which included good food and drink, fine company and not least song (flags were raised and both national anthems were sung to mark the special day).

On behalf of the many, many Minnesotans who have been so thoughtfully hosted in Uruguay over the nearly half century since the founding of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners, we want to extend our warm wishes for a wonderful "Natalicio de Artigas" holiday to our friends in Uruguay today.

Dr. Nury Bauzán, Uruguay's Consul General in Chicago,
and Montevideo Mayor Debra Lee (fifth and sixth from left, respectively)
at the June 15 "Fiesta Days" celebration in Montevideo, MN.

Thank you Big Blue!

Minnesota-Uruguay Partners of the Americas is delighted to acknowledge a generous donation from IBM in support of our mission for 2013. The company has been a steadfast supporter of our work across the state and abroad for years. Its financial contributions have helped expand our capacity to ensure high-quality programs can continue well into the future. Thank you Big Blue for your significant and continued support!

Minnesotans Welcomed in Uruguay by Partners Volunteers

Last month marked the arrival in Uruguay of the University of Minnesota's annual "May Term" Art Department trip. Emerging artists from Minnesota spent the month meeting with renowned Uruguayan artists across a range of disciplines and media.

It also marked the first visit of Minnesota-Uruguay Partners member Tara Gupta to Montevideo, who was invited by the United States embassy to speak at an event on youth leadership. Tara was Minnesota's delegate to the annual Partners convention in Colombia in 2011, where she was invited to speak on her nonprofit work as an Edina High School student with Seva Football, a group she founded to engage and advance young girls through sports. 

The Minnesotans were welcomed warmly and with much generosity by the Uruguay-Minnesota chapter of Partners throughout their stay. The chapter's regular meeting, which included the art students and Tara, is pictured below.