Chinese delegates cross Reservation border

By Lailani Upham

Chinese delegates met with Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes to better understand the government and culture of Native Americans. They were interested in the Tribe's efforts to prevent and deal with pollution as well as the protection of natural resources. (courtesy photo)

PABLO — Chinese delegates of the All China Youth Federation (ACYF) visited the Flathead Indian Reservation on November 18 in hopes to gain an understanding of political and cultural ways of the Salish, Kootenai and Pend d’Oreille people,

The group of delegates are a part of the University of Montana’s Confucius Institute at the Maureen and Mike Mansfield Center.

The Chinese delegation learned much during their visit and were inspired by the tribes natural resource protection efforts. (courtesy photo)

The ACYF group had been on a 10-day visit in Montana that made stops in Helena, Yellow Stone National Park, the University of Montana and the Flathead Reservation.

The Institute is a non-profit public institute that aims to promote Chinese language and culture and support local Chinese teaching internationally. It is under the Office of Chinese Language Council International and headquartered in Beijing.

“I think the visit provides a great opportunity for the Chinese delegates to encounter Native American people and their cultures from a closer perspectives,” stated Suhan Chen, Confucius Institute Public Education Coordinator at the University of Montana.

As part of the training program hosted by University of Montana’s Mansfield Center, the delegates made a visit to both Salish Kootenai College and the People’s Center.

The delegation were interested in the tribes' efforts to ebb, stem and prevent pollution on the reservation, something that the Chinese are very concerned about in their own country. (courtesy photo)

“The main purpose for us was to visit the Reservation because we want the delegates to see and meet real Native American people and the culture. They are very curious about how Native Americans live and preserve their culture in American society,” Chen stated. “We also were aware that the Reservation did a lot on protecting the environment, a topic the delegates are very interested in,” she added.

As of April 2009, there are 328 Confucius Institutes in 82 countries and regions. The Office of Chinese Language Council International estimates that there are more than 40 million people learning Chinese. The Republic of China’s Ministry of Education estimates that by the year 2010, there will be approximately 100 million non-Chinese worldwide learning Chinese as a foreign language. The Institute plans to set up 500 Confucius Institutes worldwide and aims to establish 1,000 Confucius Institutes by 2020, according to Confucius Institute officials.

Rich Janssen gives a presentation to the the Chinese delegates on environmental preservation. (Courtesy photo)

Chen led a group to Salish and Kootenai College with a brief overview on the Salish and Kootenai history and culture by Dr. Joe McDonald. “We also went to the People’s Center to view exhibits and speak with the education staff regarding traditional lifestyles and histories of the Salish, Pend d’Oreille and Kootenai people. Later afternoon, we visited Tribal Department of Natural Resources. Mr. Rich Janssen gave us a wonderful presentation on Environmental Preservation and Remediation Efforts on the Reservation,” Chen said.

The delegates were inspired by a 15-minute power point presentation from the CSKT Division of Environmental Protection on environmental protection policies that turned into a one-hour presentation due to translation.

Janssen said the tribal environmental department went over preservation efforts that are in place with the Tribes such as water rights and protection of air quality and ended in a Q and A session.

Dr. Joe McDonald spoke with the delegation about the history of the tribes at the Salish Kootenai College. (courtesy photo)

“Many of them mentioned that the environmental protection efforts through Rich’s presentation inspired them a lot to face their own pollution problems in regions of China. They never expected that the environmental preservation system on the Reservation was so complete before the visit,” she added.

“It’s first time for me to visit a real Native American reservation, and it was just amazing,” said Chen Lily, a delegate from Guangdong province in China. “I hope I can visit here again in the future.”

“They were a fun group,” Janssen stated.

The ACYF program’s goal is to acquaint young Chinese leaders with a broad introduction to and a “feel” for American society and systems, with a specific attention to education, youth affairs and management issues, according to Terry Weidner, University of Montana Maureen and Mike Mansfield Center Director.

According to Weidner, the program is not meant to offer “lessons” to China, but rather to offer as much information as possible about the way America operates and how localities in particular, address problems. “We really hope our visitors leave with some new perspectives and some useful approaches,” he said. “We see this as a two way street,” he added.
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