Minnesota Pandemic Summit

MPR hosted a meeting of government officials, corporate and community leaders to discuss an overall approach should a pandemic or catastrophic event hit Minnesota. The partners who convened this event were the State of Minnesota, the Businesses Continuity Planners Association (BCPA) and Briggs and Morgan.

Summit participants

There are multiple threats to business continuity, from avian flu to terrorism. Many businesses and organizations have already taken steps to create continuity plans. Businesses are interested in learning more about the government's role in the event of an avian flu pandemic and how business can help the government prepare. This summit provided a forum for such a discussion. In addition, this summit served as a springboard to forthcoming educational seminars and workshops the State of Minnesota is planning to offer through a grant from the federal government.

Rundown of speakers and presentations:
• 00:00:00 David Gaither, Tim Pawlenty's chief of staff - Historical overview, why and when Minnesota put its plan in place
  
  
• 00:15:00 Cyndi Lesher, President and CEO of NSP (an Xcel Energy company) - impact and opportunity for businesses
  
  
• 00:30:00 Lauren Segal, President and CEO, United Way - the role of nonprofits, schools, and social service can play
  
  
• 00:45:00 Minnesota's Plan: Michael Campion, MN Commissioner, Department of Public Safety
  
  
• 01:00:00 Minnesota's Plan: Dianne Mandernach, MN Commissioner, Department of Health
  
  
• 01:15:00 Briggs and Morgan's Greg Stenmoe - Legal issues that can accompany catastrophic events
  
  
• 01:30:00 Marie Johnson, BCPA President - How businesses are planning
  
  
• 01:45:00 Kris Eide, MN Director of Homeland Security and Emergency Management Aggie Leitheiser, Director of Emergency Preparedness for MN Department of Health - Family Preparedness and Employee Communications
  
  
• 02:00:00 Panel Discussion - Building Partnerships Toward Good Communication During a Catastrophic Event
  
  
• 03:15:00 Additional Audience Questions
  
  

The Minnesota Agenda Series: The UBS Forum is hosting a series of events that address issues crucial to Minnesota's competitive future. These retreats will bring together elected officials, business leaders, related organizations, interest groups, members of the PIJ network, the general public, and MPR journalists to dig into an issue, deeply explore its implications, and generate ideas regarding future action.