Kristine Nellenbach, Author at Baltimore Sister Cities

November 11, 2022 | Application Deadline for Global Gateway Program

September 2022 – November 2022

Applications Being Accepted from Overseas Companies to Maryland’s Global Gateway Program

Applications for the new Maryland Global Gateway program are now available. This program will provide incentives for the first 50 eligible companies, including:

Funding towards rent costs for six months for more than 20 business incubators and accelerators across the state
Assistance with business registration costs for foreign companies who choose to stay in Maryland
Training, mentoring, matchmaking, and networking through both state government and local incubator programs

Applications are due by November 11, 2022.

See Press Release here.

November 12, 2022 | Discover Egypt’s Treasures

Celebrate King Tut, the Rosetta Stone and today’s Egypt. Why do we still get so excited by mummies and pyramids? Anthony T Browder, the first African American to coordinate an archaeological dig in Egypt, has some answers. He will also host a live Zoom conversation from Luxor, Egypt, with the son of the young boy who first found King Tut’s tomb.

Try your hand at deciphering codes like the Rosetta Stone, write your name in hieroglyphics AND Arabic, and make a royal necklace. See what’s happening in Egypt today and savor Egyptian street food with the Koshery Corner Food Truck.

Date: Saturday, November 12, 2022
Time: 1:00-4:00pm
Location: Enoch Pratt Central Library, 400 Cathedral Street Baltimore, MD 21201
More information can be found here.

Supported by Baltimore Luxor-Alexandria Sister City Committee.

November 16, 2022 | 16th Annual CHINA Town Hall

The 16th annual CHINA Town Hall will be hosted nationwide by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUSCR) and in Baltimore by the Baltimore-Xiamen Sister City Committee. The 2022 event will feature former (2009-2011) Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman Jr. in a national conversation on how the U.S.-China relationship affects our cities, towns, and communities.

Date: Wednesday, November 16, 2022
Time: 7:00pm – 8:00pm
Location: Virtual
Cost: Free

December 7, 2022 | 13th Annual State of the Ports

Want to hear the latest on transportation and trade in the Mid-Atlantic? Leaders of the Port of Baltimore and Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport will headline this event, where they will talk about challenges they are grappling with and innovative solutions they are putting in place. Joining them will be other transportation and trade experts, all who will lead sessions on a variety of issues related to the engines that power global business in the Mid-Atlantic. The annual event is hosted by the World Trade Center Institute, Ports America Chesapeake, and the Maryland Department of Transportation. This year’s event will be in person, with the option to attend virtually. The event includes a reception with international drink tastings provided by embassies.

Date: Wednesday, December 7, 2022
Time: 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm EST
Location: World Trade Center Baltimore, 401 E. Pratt St. Baltimore, MD 21202
Register and learn more here.

October 2, 2022 | Japan Day (Fall Festival)

Interested in Japanese traditional or pop culture? You are at the right place! Did you know that Maryland and Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan have been in a sister state relationship for more than 40 years? Celebrating the relationship, Maryland and Kanagawa Sister State committee along with Misako Ballet, Matcha Time Café, and UMBC welcome you to this cultural exploration event!

Our Japan Day/Fall Festival has many performances and hands-on activities for you to experience Japanese culture free of charge!

Date: Sunday, October 2, 2022
Time: 3:00-6:00pm
Location: The Meeting House, Oakland Mills Interfaith, Inc. 5885 Robert Oliver Place, Columbia, MD 21045
For more information and registration click here.

Co-organized by Baltimore-Kawasaki Sister City Committee.

October 13, 2022 | Night Market Untapped: A Social with Calligrapher Setshui Shiraishi

Uppu & OTS productions team up with Waverly Main Street to provide a space for Baltimore’s creatives, professionals and community to come together for this special cultural performance. This is an official event of the Night Market Untapped Series and Free Fall Baltimore.

The main performance is a collaboration between calligrapher Setsushi Shiraishi from Chiba, Japan and Shakuhachi player Hideo from Tokyo, Japan. After the performance, the artworks created by Setsuhi Shiraishi will be for purchase. We will also feature local food vendors, makers and additional performances. The event will be capped to 300 attendees.

Date: Thursday, October 13
Time: 5:00pm – 10:00pm
Location: Peabody Heights Brewery, 401 E. 30th St. Baltimore, MD 21218
Tickets: Free, reservations encouraged

For tickets and updates, visit here.

Sep. 8-11, 2022 | Xiamen China International Fair for Investment & Trade (CFIT)

The BXSCC and our partners return to China International Fair for Investment & Trade (CIFIT) this year!

Baltimore and Maryland will be represented in-person at the China International Fair for Investment & Trade (CIFIT), the largest investment and trade promotion activity in China, which takes place annually in Xiamen.

Our booth at this year’s fair is presented in partnership with the Maryland Department of Commerce and Maryland Center China, with the assistance of Baltimore Development Corp. and Visit Baltimore.

All flyers from Maryland and Baltimore will be accessible to attendees via a QR code that leads to this landing page.

Supported by Baltimore-Xiamen Sister City Committee (BXSCC).

Sep. 24, 27 & Oct. 1, 6 | NALI Sessions

The New American Leadership Institute (NALI) is an annual four-session civics academy for emerging immigrant and refugee leaders to learn about the structure of local government, hone leadership skills, network with peers, and identify opportunities for civic participation. These sessions prepare NALI participants to act as ambassadors for their communities!

Conversational English is required to apply. To apply, please complete the N ALI application by Friday, September 9, 2022.

NALI Sessions

Session I: Leadership 101
When: Saturday September 24th, 10:00am to 2:00pm
This session will focus on training and honing the leadership skills of our emerging immigrant and refugee leaders! Our participants will have the opportunity to get familiar with different leadership styles, and how to effectively facilitate group decision making in their communities!

Session II: Navigating Local Government
When: Tuesday, September 27, 5:30pm to 8:00pm
This session will focus on educating our emerging immigrant and refugee leaders about local government and city structure. Our participants will have the opportunity to meet their elected officials and learn more about who represents them in their respective districts!

Session III: Government Entities & Community Resources
When: Saturday, October 1, 10:00am to 2:00pm
This session will focus on educating our emerging leaders about the role of government entities (agencies) and their role in providing community resources. Our participants will become familiar with the work of city agencies working to improve the lives of individuals, children, and families in Baltimore City.

Session IV: In My Neighborhood
When: Thursday, October 6, 5:30pm- 8:00pm
This session will focus on connecting our leaders with resources in their neighborhoods. Our participants will become familiar with neighborhood planning, and how to effectively apply skillsets gained from previous conference sessions. This final session will also end with a closing ceremony from the Mayor of Baltimore!

For more information, visit this website.

Special Announcements

A list of programs, projects, and contributions organized or supported by Baltimore Sister Cities and our sister city committees (Changwon, South Korea; Gbarnga, Liberia; Kawasaki, Japan; Luxor & Alexandria, Egypt; Odesa, Ukraine; Piraeus, Greece; Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Xiamen, China) and our affiliates.

Immigrant Heritage Month Recognition

Contributions by Baltimore Xiamen Sister City Committee (BXSCC)

The BXSCC and its efforts in support of Baltimore’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic were featured by the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MIMA) during their social media celebration of immigrants’ contribution to the City of Baltimore. See the post via Instagram.

Blooming Rainbow Project

Organized by Baltimore Changwon Sister City Committee (BCSCC)

During 2021-2022, artists conducted “Blooming Rainbow” — a collaborative class with children, 5-15 years old, in Baltimore and South Korea to create abstract painting jointly together. In this program, children paint scribbles — they can express their feelings, impulsion or their favorite figures. The scribbles are then exchanged with the artists in Baltimore and Korea, who overlap color onto the scribbles. The children learn about the sister cities of Baltimore, Maryland USA and Changwon, South Korea, and learn about abstract art concepts and artists.

The program is coordinated by artists Ara Ko, Jack Koppert, and Huaqi Liu (graduate students in MICA’s LeRoy E. Hoffberger Painting MFA Program in Baltimore) and Chaeyeon Hong, Yongeun Kwon and Jaeeun Kim from Ewha University in Seoul, South Korea (who travel to Changwon to teach their group of students).

Learn more about the project here.

Baltimore Kawasaki Sister City Updates

Read about the recent events organized or sponsored by the Baltimore Kawasaki Sister City Committee. Their updates can be found here.

August 9, 2022 | Life During COVID-19: A Youth Perspective

Date: Tuesday, August 9
Time: Doors open at 5:30pm; Event begins at 6:00pm
Location: The Arena Players, 801 McCulloh Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
Cost: This event is free, but donations are welcomed and encouraged.

Please join us for an impactful evening at The Arena Players. The Arena Players is the oldest continuously operating African American community theatre in the United States, bringing quality theater to Baltimore since 1953. Show support for this Baltimore cultural icon and the youth.