Dow AgroSciences Receives Mexican Import Approval

Mexico has given Indianapolis-based Dow AgroSciences LLC import regulatory approval for corn grain produced from the seed company's technology SmartStax, reports Inside INdiana Business. The status means SmartStax can be produced and planted in the United States and Canada and grain produced from SmartStax corn can now be imported by Mexico, Japan, Taiwan and other countries.

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International Water Ski Competitions Come to Central Indiana

Central Indiana has won a bid to host the 2010 Disabled Water Ski National Championships and 2nd Pan Am Championships next summer, reports Inside INdiana Business. The competition will take place 25-28 August 2010 at Hawthorn Lake, near Danville. Organizers say they expect a record number of water skiers from the United States, Brazil, Mexico and Canada to perform tricks and tackle the courses.

Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana Sports Program, the Indiana Water Ski Association and Hawthorn Lake Ski Club prepared the winning bid. The Water Skiers with Disabilities Association is one of nine sport disciplines of USA Water Ski, the national governing body of organized water skiing in the United States. Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana Sports Program is an independent, self-funded, 501(c)(3) non-profit organization of the Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana Foundation. Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana is a community collaboration between Clarian Health and St. Vincent Health.

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Indy Art Center Celebrates Day of the Dead

The Indianapolis Art Center, 820 East 67th Street, Indianapolis, plans a full afternoon of activities on 1 November around their 10th anniversary celebration of the traditional Mexican holiday, Day of the Dead. Admission is free.

First up, at 12:15 p.m., is the Mexican Consul in Indianapolis, Juan Solana. Other highlights are Ensamble Folklorico at 1:30 p.m., the Indiana Chamber Orchestra performing "Corn in the Rock", an interactive Mayan Folktale, at 2:30 p.m., and a musical performance by Son de Madera, a Mexican band, at 4 p.m.

There'll be a display of altars, Mexican food, figurines on loan from the Children's Museum of Indianapolis, and more. The altar exhibit itself is open now through 7 November. Outdoor shrines are on display in the Artspark 26 October through 7 November.

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Lotus Festival: World Music & Arts

The Lotus World Music & Arts Festival, set for 24-27 September in Bloomington, has so much going on it's hard to settle on just one aspect.

For example, here are just some of the performers scheduled to appear:

# Rahim AlHaj / Friday
Virtuoso Iraqi oud

# Bajofondo / Saturday
Electrotango from Argentina

# BLK JKS / Saturday
Psychedelic, Afro-futuristic rock from South Africa

# Cara Dillon / Friday, Saturday
Irish traditional song

# Forro in the Dark / Saturday
Northeastern Brazilian party music

# Hanggai / Saturday, Sunday
Folk music from Inner Mongolia & China

# Huun Huur-Tu & Carmen Rizzo / Friday
Electronica meets throat-singing from Tuva

# Kinobe & Soul Beat Africa / Friday, Saturday
Ugandan song, dance, & drumming

# Srinivas Krishnan & Madras Broadcast / Saturday, Sunday
Indian fusion

# Little Cow / Thursday, Friday
Ska/rock/funk/Gypsy fusion from Hungary

# Los de Abajo / Friday, Saturday
Salsa, punk, and rock from Mexico

# The Megitza Quartet / Friday
Roma and East European world fusion

# Occidental Brothers Dance Band International / Friday
Central & West African dance music

# Orchestra of Tetouan / Friday, Saturday
Traditional vocal & instrumental music of Andalusia & North Africa

# Parno Graszt / Thursday, Friday, Saturday
Hungarian Gypsy music

# Salaam / Saturday
Middle Eastern & North African traditional music

# Väsen / Thursday
Contemporary instrumental folk music from Sweden

# Vishtén / Saturday, Sunday
Acadian traditional music, song, and dance

# Watcha Clan/ Friday, Saturday
Global fusion from France

# The Zolfonoon Ensemble of Iran / Saturday
Classical Persian

Did you know that the festival honors Lotus Dickey (1911-1989)? The folk singer, songwriter, and musician from rural Orange County, Indiana, wrote tunes and songs that drew from his family and community, as well as from country singers and fiddlers he heard on the radio. Each year, the Lotus World Music and Arts Festival honors Lotus Dickey's memory with a set of music or an interactive workshop that introduces new audiences to his music and the old-time traditions of the United States.

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"Our Agenda is Now on the World's Agenda"

A conference on "World Poverty, World Trade" subtitled "A Critical Phenomenology of World Trade Regulation: Our Agenda is Now on the World's Agenda", will be held 18 and 19 September in the Ballroom of the Walb Student Union at Indiana University-Purdue University in Fort Wayne.

The conference schedule includes presentations on Bolivia, Algeria, China, Mexico, Sudanas and India as well as examinations of the role of the World Trade Organization. In addition to faculty from the IPFW campus, speakers are coming from as diverse places as Saudi Arabia, Switzerland and the AFL-CIO.

The international conference is being organized by the IPFW Institute for Human Rights and is co-sponsored by the IPFW Philosophy Department, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Office of Research and External Support, the Doemer School of Business and Management, IPFW Student Government, and the City of Fort Wayne. For information contact Professor Clark Butler, Department of Philosophy, 260:481-6364.

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Indiana Links with Hidalgo

The Indianapolis Star reports, "On July 20, Hidalgo Gov. Miguel A. Osorio Chong and other officials visited Indiana to sign agreements that would boost agricultural trade, establish an educational exchange program and formalize a language and cultural exchange program for public safety officers."

However, The Ethnic Hoosier is unable to confirm those agreements with Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels office. When asked, his press officer, Jane Jankowski, told the Ethnic Hoosier on Wednesday (29 July 2009): "I'm not familiar with what you are asking about."

She did point to Lt. Gov. Becky Skillman's office, which issued this release on 20 July:

"Lt. Governor Becky Skillman welcomed Hidalgo Governor Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong of Mexico and his delegation to Indiana's Statehouse today, and the two signed an Agricultural Memo of Understanding between the states.

"The agricultural agreement is meant to support, promote and propel activities of cooperation in the area of agriculture. The two states agreed to promote technology transfer, promote international trade and pursue the exchange of academic and research information among the states' universities."

Whoever signed the other two agreements, the "educational exchange program" and "language and cultural exchange program for public safety officers" remains unknown.

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Grote Industries Moves from Spain to Germany

Grote Industries, a producer of LED lighting technology, has announced the relocation of its European headquarters from Spain to Niederwinkling, near Straubing, Germany. In addition to its world headquarters in Madison, Indiana, Grote maintains facilities in Canada, Mexico and Asia and had conducted its European operations from Spain since 2005.

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Valpo Celebrates International Connections

Valparaiso University, which set a record for international student enrollment during the fall semester, will celebrate the culture and traditional foods of its diverse student body during the 29th annual World Banquet on 7 February.

The banquet (formerly known as the International Dinner) begins at 5 p.m. in Harre Union. Tickets are $20 and must be purchased in advance from the University’s Office of International Programs. For details, go online or call 219:464-5333.

This year’s buffet-style dinner includes hummus; Baba Ghannouji; tabouleh; Greek Orzo salad; Thai iced coffee; Maraq Al-Bamiya; Chinese “Beggar’s Chicken”; baklava; “Noah’s Pudding,” and chocolate-dipped apricots. Recipes were submitted and selected by international students and will be prepared by Valparaiso’s Dining Services staff.

Following dinner, there's a talent show featuring some of the 245 international students from 55 countries attending Valparaiso, along with students from Valparaiso’s language clubs. Entertainment will include a fashion show displaying the ethnic dress of students’ homelands, musical performances, skits and dances.

The World Banquet is sponsored by the Office of International Programs and the Valparaiso International Student Association.

In 2008, Valparaiso was one of five institutions in the United States to win the Senator Paul Simon Award for Campus Internationalization and be cited as a model for other institutions of higher education is preparing students for a global economy and an interconnected world.

International students now make up more than seven percent of Valparaiso’s student body, and the University maintains Study Centers in China, England, Germany and Mexico and participates in 10 other study abroad programs which host approximately 200 students annually.

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"35 Years of Photography"

An exhibition of "35 Years of Photography" by Antonio Turok continues through 9 January in the Galería América of the Institute for Latino Studies in McKenna Hall at the University of Notre Dame, South Bend.

Hours are 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m. each day, and admission is free. (Pictured is his 1994 photo, "La Hormiga landscape".)

Turok is an internationally known documentary photographer who has worked in Central America, Mexico, and the United States covering the human condition of the people of Mexico.

For more information, contact Tom Davis, 574:631-3326.

Three Women "On a Mission"

Jayne During, Donna Thomas and Molly Lawton were profiled in December's issue of Indianapolis Woman by managing editor Rebecca R. Bibbs.

During, a native of Ghana, has created Kuaba Humanitarian Foundation to benefit the people of Zimbabwe. Thomas has helped build churches through Christian Vision Ministries of Carmel in Mexico, China and India, and has visited 75 countries. Lawton works with Carmel-based Mission to Ukraine Crisis Pregnancy Ministry.

International Education Leaders in Indy

Delegations from six South American countries and Mexico are visiting Indiana as part of the U.S. Department of State International Visitors Leadership Program this month, reports the Indiana Department of Education.

Indiana is one of five stops for the delegates to learn more about K-12 education in the United States. Starting 17 November, they also visited Iowa, Georgia, Utah and Washington, D.C.They'll be in the U.S. through 5 December.

The visitors from Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Honduras, Venezuela, Peru and Mexico are meeting with DOE officials in Indianapolis to learn more about the state’s role in education policy, curriculum development, testing and accountability and funding of public education.

The International Visitors Leadership Program annually brings to the U.S. approximately 5,000 foreign nationals from all over the world to meet and confer with their professional counterparts. The visitors, who are selected by American Foreign Service Officers overseas, are current or potential leaders in government, politics, the media, education, the arts, business and other fields.

To learn more about Indiana’s international education initiatives, click here.

IUPUI Partnered with International Festival

A community partnership with the 2008 International Festival fits with many growing international programs at Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis.

IUPUI is home to the new Confucius Institute in Indianapolis, which serves local business, government and education by providing information and instruction on Chinese language and culture. The Institute is the hub of IUPUI's partnership with Sun Yat Sen University in Guangzhou, China.

Additionally, IUPUI has a comprehensive, strategic partnership with Moi University in Eldoret, Kenya.

The university's Binational/Cross Cultural Health Enhancement Center is the driving force of IUPUI's partnership with the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo in Pachuca, Mexico.

Last year, IUPUI ran 36 study-abroad programs with nearly 400 students participating which represented a significant increase from previous years.

IUPUI head basketball coach Ron Hunter made world news through his efforts to raise public awareness and over 100,000 pairs of shoes by coaching a game barefoot for Samaritans Feet. Coach Hunter and team members traveled to Peru with ESPN this summer to distribute the shoes.

2008 marks the second consecutive year that IUPUI has stepped up its involvement with the International Festival as a full community partner.

Ricardo Laranja, 35, formerly of Brazil, is one of the immigrants set to become a naturalized citizen at the International Festival ceremony. Laranja is a professor at IUPUI, music composer and a professional pianist. As a pianist he has performed for two U.S. Presidents. He has lived in the U.S. for 22 years. Larnaja will perform the National Anthem at the ceremony with singer, Lynda Sayyah. She is the daughter of a Palestinian father and German mother.

Laranja says, "...at the age of 35, being naturalized is the final stamp for me. It gives me a true sense of belonging and pride. Usually when asked about what I think of naturalized citizens, I respond that unlike naturally born citizens, everyone who is being naturalized made the choice to become a citizen of this country and that counts as a lot."

Fall Forum on the Social Consequences of Immigration

The Fall Forum on the Social Consequences of Immigration will be held from 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. tomorrow (13 October) in CE450, Campus Center, Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis.

Sponsored by the IUPUI Mexico Interest Group and the Office of International Affairs, the forum will explore the impact of Mexico-Indiana immigration on both Indianapolis and the sending communities in Mexico. It includes a session on Spanish immigration exploring the similarities and differences of immigration to Spain and immigration to the U.S.A.

Cine Latino Debuts at IMA in September

"Cine Latino: films from Latin America" includes four Thursday evening screenings in the DeBoest Lecture Hall of the Indianapolis Museum of Art featuring films from Latin America. All are in Spanish or Portuguese with English subtitles.

Here's the lineup for the 6:30 p.m. showings, for which tickets are $5 each:

4 September: "Golope de Estadio / Time Out"
(Colombia, 1999, 120 mins., dir. Sergio Cabrera)
As the nation teeters on the brink of civil war, most citizens are mesmerized by a championship soccer match. This includes a pilot whose excitement about Columbia scoring a goal causes him to crash into an American-owned oil tower at the center of a standoff between Colombian military guards and insurgent guerrilla forces. Golpe de Estadio is a scathing political and social satire of all the parties involved in one nation’s seemingly insurmountable problems. Shown in collaboration with Sociedad Amigos de Colombia.

11 September: "Eu Tu Eles / Me You Them"
(Brazil, 2000, 104 mins., dir. Andrucha Waddington (pictured))
Waddington’s gently ironic and seductively picturesque tale of female empowerment centers on an impoverished mother of four children by four different fathers. Based on a true story, Waddington explores how her heroine navigates an intensely patriarchal environment, as three of the fathers end up sharing a house with the mother and children. Shown in collaboration with the Association of International Women.

18 September: "La Zona / The Zone"
(Mexico, 2007, 97 mins., dir. Rodrigo Plá)
When an electrical storm disables security for a wealthy private community, three teenage boys from the slums sneak in with a plan to rob the homes and make a quick getaway. A bungled robbery results in the death of two of the teens, a security guard and a woman. While the third teen hides, the community declares martial law to prevent losing its privacy and protection. At once a taut thriller and a portrait of a society willing to give up its own humanity in the name of security, La Zona won the De Laurentis Award at the Venice International Film Festival and the International Critics’ Award at the Toronto International Film Festival.

25 September: "Encarnación / Erni"
(Argentina, 2007, 93 mins., dir. Anahí Berneri)
Encarnación (Erni) is a fiercely independent woman. The former pin-up model and showgirl, now in her fifties and happily single, still has enough sex appeal and determination to keep her career going despite the passage of time. But when she receives an invitation to her favorite niece’s 15th birthday party, Erni puts herself to a harder test: returning to the small town she left behind. Encarnación won the Innovation Award at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival. Shown in collaboration with the Association of International Women.

Phoenix Schedules Performances in Spanish

Our Dad is in Atlantis/Papá está en la Atlántida plays at the Phoenix Theatre, 749 North Park Avenue, Indianapolis, 8 May through 8 June -- but the best news is that some of the performances are in Spanish! (If you'd like to see the Spanish language performances, check for available tickets on 22, 23, 29, 30 May, 1, 5, 6 June.)

The show, which will enjoy its Midwest premiere, stars Julio Chavez and Mark Presto. Others involved are Composer/Accordionist David Wierhake, Direction & Light Design by Bryan Fonseca, Set Design by James Gross, Technical Direction by Justin Kidwell, and Stage Managed by Dani Norberg.

Summary: Papa crossed the border for a better life...but what happens to the sons he left behind? Told through the eyes of the two sons, Our Dad is in Atlantis is a touching coming-of-age story. After being left behind to live with their grandmother in Mexico, the two brothers decide to go on a quest to find their father who has left for Atlanta (or Atlantis, perhaps, according to the younger brother). Follow their journey as they discover lessons in life, live, loss, death, and maturity in this immigration story about the people left behind.

Tickets for all Spanish language performances are $15 apiece. They range up to $25 for English-language performances. To order, call 317:635-7529.

Former Mexican President Comes to Indiana

Former Mexican President Vicente Fox (left) comes to Indiana for a two-city event on 10 April. First up, an 11:30 a.m. luncheon at the Conrad Hotel in Indianapolis. Then, he'll be in Evansville for two presentations.

Fox leads off the 2008 International Speaker Series sponsored by the Institute for Global Enterprise in Indiana at the University of Evansville. His keynote address begins at 7 p.m. in the Victory Theatre in Evansville.

In between the Indianapolis lunch and the 7 p.m. speech, he'll talk to U of Evansville students at 4 p.m. in the Shanklin Theatre, followed by a media presentation there at 4:45 p.m.

For information and tickets for the Victory Theatre presentation, contact Institute for Global Enterprise in Indiana, 812:488-2455.

Indiana Agribusiness Leaders Head to Mexico

A 26-member delegation of Indiana's top-level food and agribusiness leaders week will begin a trade mission to Mexico tomorrow, according to Inside INdiana Business. The group, which departs tomorrow and returns on Friday, will meet with officials from Mexico’s Department of Agriculture and tour sites in Mexico City, Hidalgo and Veracruz.

Skillman Sets Off for Mexico Next Month

Indiana Lieutenant Governor Becky Skillman will lead a trade delegation to Mexico in February, according to Inside Indiana Business. Indiana food and agribusiness leaders will accompany her on this agricultural economic development mission. Mexico is the number two export destination for both Indiana and U.S. agricultural products.

Across the Border and Back Again

"Across the Border and Back Again: the History of Emigration and Return Migration in Jalisco, Mexico," is the title of a presentation by Michael Snodgrass (right), associate professor of history, Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis. The free program, from 4:30-5:30 p.m. Friday (14 September) in Cavanaugh Hall 508, Indiana University-Purdue University in Indianapolis, 425 University Boulevard, Indianapolis, is part of the IUPUI 2007-2008 Sabbatical Speaker Series.

The western state of Jalisco is the birthplace of such quintessential and iconic Mexican traditions as mariachi music, tequila, and rodeo cowboys (charros). It also one of the greatest producers of a more controversial and consequential phenomenon: emigrants to the United States. Indeed, since the first great wave of emigrants left in the l920s, Jalisco and its neighboring states in central-western Mexico have sent the majority of migrants north. Learn more about the historical roots of emigration and its contemporary consequences for rural and urban Jalisco.

IU Prof Writes about Wal-Mart's Success in Mexico

Wal-Mart's first international venture was in Mexico in 1991, and in economic terms it has been an outstanding success. The company is now Mexico's most important retailer and largest private employer, with almost 150,000 workers.

However, Wal-Mart's success has transformed Mexican business practices, consumption patterns and supply chains, according to Indiana University Professor James Biles (left), a specialist in economic geography.

Biles is a guest editor and contributor for a special iissue of the Journal of Latin American Geography (vol. 6, no. 2) subtitled "Globalization, Linking Scales of Analysis."

The articles demonstrate the varied nature of globalization and its political, economic and cultural consequences, according to a report from the I.U. News Bureau.