Griffin Lecture Series
Building a legacy for their children and for Minnesota, Bob and Kim Griffin donated $500,000 to the China Center to create an endowment fund to establish the Bob and Kim Griffin Building U.S.-China Bridges Lecture. The Griffin’s gift reflects their commitment to promoting mutual respect between the two cultures and their passion to connect people with China.
Bob Griffin is president of Griffin International Companies, which he founded in 1997. Under Griffin’s leadership as president, Griffin International Companies has become one of the Twin Cities’ leading import firms, focusing on custom products developed in the U.S. and sourced from Asia.
Past Lectures
The Bob and Kim Griffin Building U.S.-China Bridges Lectures have featured many outstanding speakers and China experts including:
- 2011-12 Amy Chua, Professor at Yale Law School and author of best seller "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother," Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother: Increasing Mutual Understanding Between U.S. and China Download audio file of lecture (76.5 MB)
- 2010-11 Professor of urban and environmental policy and planning at Tufts University, Weiping Wu, Migration and China's Urban Transformation Download audio file of lecture (84.3 MB)
- 2009-10 Former Ambassador to Burma and Consul General in Hong Kong Burton Levin, The U.S. and China: A relationship marred by misperceptions Download audio file of lecture (24.5 MB)
- 2008-09 Former China Correspondent and current London Bureau Chief for NPR, Rob Gifford, China Road: A Journey into the Future of a Rising Power Download audio file of lecture (22.3 MB)
- 2007 Ambassador Jeffrey Bader, John L. Thornton China Center, Brookings Institution, China and the Middle East: From revolution to stability…to challenge? Download audio file of lecture (22.8 MB)
- 2006 Pieter Bottelier, economist and professor, India’s Growth from the Perspective of China’s Experience Download audio file of lecture (18.3 MB)
- 2005 Dr. Arthur Rolnick, a senior vice president of the Federal Reserve Bank, Minneapolis: Dollars vs. RMB: What Does Devaluation of the Chinese Currency Mean for the U.S. Economy? Download audio file of lecture (12.5 MB)
- 2004 Panel discussion with Mr. Michael Jemal, president of Haier America; Mr. Charles Lee, author of the book, Cowboys and Dragons: Shattering the Cultural Myths to advance Chinese/American Business; and Counselor Tian Jun of the Economic Affairs Office at the Chinese Embassy, chief negotiator of the China’s Accession to WTO
- 2003 Professor Jiang Zhenghua, vice chairman, Standing Commmitte of the National People’s Congress of China: China’s New Leadership: China’s Perspectives on U.S.-China Relations
- 2002 Dr. David Aikman, a senior fellow at Washington’s Ethics and Public Policy Center and a former senior correspondent of Time Magazine: U.S.-Chinese Relations in the Global Context
- 2001 Mr. John Holden, president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations; Professor Qi Xiyu, People’s University, Beijing, China; and Regents Professor Leonid Hurwicz, Department of Economics, University of Minnesota: China’s Western Development
Griffin系列講座
為了給自己的孩子和明尼蘇達留下一份寶貴財富，Bob和Kim Griffin夫婦向中國中心捐贈了五十萬美金，用以開設Bob and Kim Griffin美中友誼橋講座。 Griffin夫婦的這份禮物表達了他們致力於深化中美文化交流互信、增進兩國人民友好關系的熱情與心願。
Bob Griffin是Griffin國際集團董事長。他於1997年創建Griffin國際集團，並將其領導成為雙城最主要的進口公司之一，公司主要致力於在亞洲採購、美國開發的定制產品的開發。
歷年講座
Bob and Kim Griffin美中友誼橋講座歷年講座不乏傑出的演講嘉賓和中國專家，包括：
- 2010-11：吳維平，塔夫斯大學城市及環境政策與規劃系教授 中國人口遷徙與城市發展的相互關聯和影響 下載該講座音頻文件(84.3 MB)
- 2009-10：Burton Levin，前美國駐緬甸大使、前美國駐香港總領事 美中關系：毀壞於誤解 下載該講座音頻文件(24.5 MB)
- 2008-09： 前美國國家廣播電台駐中國通訊員、現美國國家廣播電台倫敦分部首席代表Rob Gifford 中國之路：一條大國崛起的未來之旅 下載該講座音頻文件(22.3 MB)
- 2007：布魯金斯研究所布魯金斯學會約翰•桑頓中國中心主任、 前美國駐納米比亞大使Jeffrey Bader 中國與中東：從變革到穩定… 再到挑戰？ 下載該講座音頻文件(22.8 MB)
- 2006：Pieter Bottelier，經濟學家、教授 以中國的經驗來觀察印度的增長 下載該講座音頻文件(18.3 MB)
- 2005：明尼阿波利斯聯邦儲備銀行高級副主席兼研究主管Arthur Rolnick博士
人民幣貶值對美國經濟究竟意味著什麼？ 下載該講座音頻文件(12.5 MB)
- 2004：討論會：中國大使館參贊、中國入世主要談判人田軍，海爾公司美國總裁Michael Jemal，《牛仔與龍》的作者Charles Lee博士
- 2003：全國人大常委會副委員長蔣正華教授 中國新一屆領導人：中國對美中關係的觀點
- 2002：華盛頓倫理與公共政策中心高級研究員、前時代雜誌資深記者David Aikman博士：全球背景下的美中關係
- 2001：美中關系協會主席John Holden先生，中國人民大學教授齊希余，明尼蘇達大學經濟學院校董會講座教授 Leonid Hurwicz： 中國西部大開發討論會
