Tacoma Sister Cities in the News

Lately we’ve been hearing more than usual about the Tacoma Sister Cities program.

This week is your last chance to catch a movie Tacoma Sister Cities International Film Festival 2012. This week’s featured film, Formosa Mambo, comes to us this Thursday at the Blue Mouse from Tacoma’s Sister City, Taichung, Taiwan. The 2012 season of the festival has lasted 11 weeks, featuring one of Tacoma’s sister cities each week, but it sounds like the 2013 season may have one more city to feature.

According to a draft of this week’s City Council meeting agenda, Tacoma’s Sister Cities program has requested a resolution declaring Biot, France as Tacoma’s newest Sister City. The French equivalent of a City Council in Biot already passed their required legislation, so now it’s Tacoma’s turn. Although far smaller than Tacoma, Biot shares with our city an emphasis on the arts, particularly glass-working, and culture as an important part of the city’s development plans.

Last week’s City Manager’s report also included two items of interest related to the Sister City Program. We learned that Tacoma’s program has been chosen by Sister Cities International’s Japan Exchange Funding program to receive a grant under the category of “creative economy.” Tacoma’s program, which was one of seven nationwide to receive the grants, will use the funds “to train local landscape architects and gardeners in the art of Japanese garden design.” That training will lead to a redesign of the Japanese Garden at Point Defiance in the next few years in partnership with Metro Parks.

Also in last week’s City Manager’s report we noticed a note that Tacoma’s program was successful in its bid to host the 2013 Sister Cities International Regional Conference, beating out other contenders, including Portland, Oregon. This means that some time next year Tacoma will host officials, leaders, youth, and others from other Sister Cities programs around the region, and according to the award letter, “… extend hospitality … in a way that highlights the local community …”

Well, they’ve certainly been busy. What comes to mind for you when you think of hospitality that “highlights the local community?” Any suggestions for creative welcome wagons Tacoma’s Sister Cities program could wheel out for its peers?

For more on Tacoma’s Sister Cities International program, visit www.tacomaculture.org/international/sistercities.asp.