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AGM 2011

AGM 2011

September 16-18. 2011
Minneapolis, MN

AGM Minneapolis/St. Paul site

Welcome to Minnesota, the Land of Lakes, where there is more shoreline than in California! Minneapolis, the site of the conference, has a city park system that consistently is ranked number one nationally with much of the bike and walking trails located along the city lakes or the Mississippi River.

For those interested in learning about the possible activities that one could have while in the area, I would like to share with you some of the cultural features.

The latest census figures demonstrate how much the seven-county metro area has grown in the last two decades, primarily because of the influx of immigrants and refugees. People from Somalia, Ethiopia, and other African countries, Russians, Middle Easterners, Southeast Asians, Hispanics and Mexicans are in great numbers. With the help of the City of Minneapolis, a Global Marketplace has been established that is a wonderful multi-cultural bazaar, in addition to all of the individual shops and restaurants that have sprung up in abundance. Minneapolis has also attracted large numbers of American Indians from the Upper Midwest to this urban center and their shops add to the cultural mix. Churches offering multiple languages – some still in Swedish or Norwegian, the language of the earlier immigrants –  and the 58 mosques in the metro area flourish.

The conference is taking place at the University Hotel Minneapolis (formerly the University Radisson Hotel) located on the Minneapolis campus of the University of Minnesota. Nearby, on the banks of the Mississippi River, is the University’s Weisman Art Museum, a prototype of Frank Gehry’s famous Bilboa Guggenheim Museum. Not far away is the Walker Art Institute housing a treasure trove of modern art, and one of the largest outdoor sculpture parks in the world. The Minneapolis Institute of Art is one of the finest in the nation and houses more than 80,000 objects from diverse cultural traditions with special emphasis on China and Japan.

For those interested in fine theater, the Twin Cities is the home of the most theaters outside of Broadway, with the star being that of the Guthrie Theatre. The Guthrie building is an architectural marvel that merits a tour in itself. A cantilevered section of the building juts out over the Mississippi River providing beautiful photo opportunities. “Much Ado About Nothing” will be the production while you are here. Next door, is the Mill City Museum that is housed in an old General Mills flourmill that demonstrates how Minneapolis became a city by taking the Dakota wheat and turning it into flour for the world.

St. Paul is the home of the Science Museum of Minnesota, a favorite for kids with its Omni Theater and children’s exploratory centers. The Minnesota History Center is nearby. James J. Hill, the builder of the Great Northern Railroad built a house on famous Summit Avenue and today tours are offered that help you imagine family and servant life in the Gilded Age. The Mansion also houses the most comprehensive business library in the country.

If you bring a spouse or friend not attending the conference, they might want to take in a Twins vs. Cleveland baseball game at the highly acclaimed “green-built” Target Field on Saturday or Sunday. The Vikings will also be playing on Saturday against Tampa Bay in the newly repaired Mall of America Dome Stadium that collapsed during last winter’s snowstorms. Yes, there are many courses to golf if one would rather do a sport than watch one!

For those interested in taking more time and discovering the beauty of the fall season in northern Minnesota or Wisconsin by driving or hiking along the shores of Lake Superior, the trail goes from Duluth on North for more than 200 miles and to the east for another 200 miles. The 10,000 inland lakes offer both great fishing and quiet solitude.

You may contact me at klaurila@mac.com for further information about any opportunity you would like to know more about while in Minnesota.

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Kathleen Laurila
Conference Organizer