Help arranging working visit to Minsk

[George Fowler]

Greetings all!
     Here's a request that's fairly peripheral to the mission of this list.
However, perhaps one of the list subscribers could forward it to someone
who can help, or could supply a useful name/number/address or two, or
suggestions as to other appropriate forums to post a similar appeal.
     A friend of mine, Ben Kelley (chair of the Dept. of Biomedical and
Environmental Engineering at Mercer University), has some funding to go on
a fact-finding trip to several FSU states in August. His central interests
are environmental problems involving industry. He's planning to visit
Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and Belorussia. He was in Kazakhstan last summer, and
arrangements for the trip to Kiev are moving along. However, he has thus
far been unable to locate anyone in Minsk to help arrange that portion of
the trip (close to one week). Does any SEELanger know anyone there who
might be able to help?
     Ben needs help in any or all of the following areas: 1) meeting
environmental scholars and business people in industry; 2) finding and
arranging housing in advance; 3) hiring an interpreter and/or transport;
and 4) arranging a visa invitation. He will travel with either one or two
colleagues. Dates are not yet settled, but it looks like the second half of
August.
     I post this to SEELangs because Ben does have a budget for paying an
interpreter, renting an apartment or rooms, hiring a car, etc., and while
these things can certainly be done officially (there must be a Belarusian
throw-off from Intourist, right?), if someone has a good friend there who
could use a little ad hoc income in August, perhaps this could be worked
out to mutual benefit.
     Replies can be sent to me at the address below, or directly to Ben
Kelley at kelley_bs at mercer.peachnet.edu. He doesn't speak Russian; for that
reason, he will probably need a fax number and/or email address in Belarus
to work out details.
     Feel free to forward this message around.
     Thanks!
     George Fowler

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George Fowler                       GFowler at Indiana.Edu [Email]
Dept. of Slavic Languages         **1-317-726-1482 [home] ** [Try here first!]
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Indiana University                  1-812-855-2829 [office]
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