Center for Nonprofit Management to host Chinese NGO leaders

A delegation of three leaders of Chinese nongovernmental organizations this week will visit St. Thomas’ Center for Nonprofit Management in the Opus College of Business.

The visitors will discuss the history of NGOs with center director Ann Johnson on Wednesday, July 22. They were invited to the United States as guests of the Minnesota International Center’s International Visitor Leadership Program.

The visitors’ objectives are:

• To learn the role, or lack thereof, of government at federal, state and local levels in labor/business relations and problems.
• To better understand international standards of labor rights and how China’s unique labor environment compares.
• To learn about the social safety net provided to workers in the U.S. and whether similar concepts are relevant in China.
• To observe the situation of migrant workers in the U.S.
• To build networks with other scholars, lawyers and NGO professionals
• To learn practical skills in dispute resolution and mediation
• To gain a better understanding of the global economic downturn and how that affects the U.S. labor force.
• To learn about U.S. labor regulations that protects workers in economically difficult times.

The International Visitor Leadership Program is a national initiative facilitated in Minnesota by the Minnesota International Center.  Visitors are invited by the U.S. Department of State to come to this country for approximately three weeks to meet with their professional counterparts and experience American culture without publicity or protocol.  They typically travel to five different cities and will spend three days in Minnesota, meeting with a variety of organizations and individuals.

The Center for Nonprofit Management has hosted previous delegations of international visitors, most recently a group of NGO leaders from Turkey in April 2009.

For more information, contact the Center for Nonprofit Management, (651) 962-4300.