You're Invited | CAAL PowerTalk: What's Culture Got to Do With Power?

The Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL) invites members of the diverse ethnic groups in the Asian Minnesotan population to explore issues of culture and power. The second in the series of CAAL PowerTalks, What's Culture Got to Do With Power? will feature the stories and insights of Yvonne Cheung Ho and David Mura. Register today or spread the word about this exciting series that is connecting emerging and experienced leaders!

Culture is an important aspect of leadership. As Asian Americans, we count culture among one of our inherited assets; but, culture is also created within our cities, companies, and neighborhoods. So,what's culture got to do with power? And, how does culture help create equity?

Join the Coalition of Asian American Leaders (CAAL) for our second CAAL PowerTalk on Thursday, August 28 from 8AM - 10AM where we feature Yvonne Cheung Ho and David Mura. They will share their stories and thoughts about what culture has to do with power and equity.

CAAL PowerTalks is a series that connects emerging and experienced leaders, and begins to explore how we can build unity to advance our collective well-being. 

RSVP by August 22, 2014. Breakfast included in event.

David Mura Writer, Performer, Teacher

David Mura is a poet, creative nonfiction writer, fiction writer, critic, playwright and performance artist.  A Sansei or third generation Japanese American, Mura has written two memoirs: Turning Japanese: Memoirs of a Sansei, which won a 1991 Josephine Miles Book Award from the Oakland PEN and was listed in the New York Times Notable Books of Year, and Where the Body Meets Memory: An Odyssey of Race, Sexuality and Identity.  His other works include the novel, Famous Suicides of the Japanese Empire, and four books of poetry, including most recently The Last Incantations.   He has received the Carl Sandburg Literary Award, won the National Poetry contest, and received fellowships from the NEA, the Bush Foundation, the McKnight Foundation, and the Lila Wallace Reader’s Digest Writers’ Award.  Mura has been featured on the Bill Moyers PBS series, The Language of Life and the PBS series Alive TV.  He helped co-found the Asian American Renaissance, a Minnesota based community arts organization.  He has taught at the Stonecoast MFA program, the U. of Minnesota, the U. of Oregon, Macalester, Hamline, St. Olaf and VONA, a conference for writers of color.

Yvonne Cheung Ho President & CEO-retired, Metropolitan Economic Development Association (MEDA)

Yvonne Cheung Ho is the immediate past President and CEO of the Metropolitan Economic Development Association (MEDA), where she served for 21 years. Through her leadership, MEDA increased its programming and financial capacity by becoming: the host of the federally funded Procurement Technical Assistance Center in Minnesota, the operator of the Department of Commerce-Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) Business Center, the operator of the MBDA Federal Procurement Center in Washington D.C., and a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). Yvonne has served on numerous boards, including the Minneapolis Foundation, GREATER MSP, North Memorial Healthcare, the University of Minnesota Alumni Association, the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits, The Children’s Theatre, Junior Achievement Upper Midwest, and the GREAT Neighborhood! Development Corporation. Governor Dayton also appointed Yvonne to the Task Force on Small Business Capital Access. Yvonne now serves on the Commission on Judicial Selection, and is a member of the Minnesota Women’s Economic Roundtable. Yvonne has received numerous recognitions, including the Outstanding Achievement Award from the University of Minnesota, the 2012 Hendrickson Medal for Ethical Leadership from St. Mary’s University, and the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal’s Career Achievement Award. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Yvonne immigrated to the United States in 1972 where she received her B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Minnesota.

About CAAL PowerTalks 

From July through October, CAAL will host monthly PowerTalks with leaders to facilitate networking, and to create space for emerging and experienced leaders from across sectors, generations, and diverse ethnic groups in the Asian Minnesotan population to explore what it means to build unity and cohesion to advance the shared priorities of the population. On November 15, 2014 CAAL will host the Asian American Leaders Forum, where all leaders will be invited back to help us shape the future.

Future Events:

• Late September: 3rd CAAL PowerTalk,
• October 27: 4th CAAL PowerTalk,
• November 15, 8AM - 1PM: Asian American Leaders Forum