Baltimore Sister Cities

baltimoresistercities.org

Blooming Rainbow Project

Blooming Rainbow class – making art
Blooming Rainbow class – making art
Blooming Rainbow class – writing names in English and Korean characters

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).

Baltimore-Changwon Sister City Committee (BCSCC) is a project partner.

Video about the Blooming Rainbow project

Exhibition – Summer 2022

The work is shown online on Instagram, and in an exhibition in summer 2022 in Baltimore, Maryland USA and Changwon, South Korea.

The opening was on June 10 at 7:00pm ET Baltimore time and on June 11 at 8:00 AM Changwon time and was livestreamed online. Dami S. Schlobohm was the MC at the opening show and performed music. Dami is a cellist and music teacher born in Seoul, South Korea and raised in Maryland.

Watch highlights from the exhibition opening event

The full-length recording of the event can be viewed on YouTube.

The artists who are leading this program

Artist Ara Ko with examples of her artwork
Artist Ara Ko
Artist Chae Yeon Hong
Artist Chae Yeon Hong
Blooming Rainbow hand-drawn logo with hand prints

2021 Year in Review: Baltimore Sister Cities

Annual Report & Plan

Baltimore Sister Cities Annual Accomplishments Report for 2021 (PDF, 3mb)

Baltimore Sister Cities Annual Plan for 2022 (PDF, 1.3mb)

Some of our 2021 highlights:

Photo collage of Baltimore Sister Cities 2021 activities - the activities are described in the report.

2nd photo collage of Baltimore Sister Cities 2021 activities - the activities are described in the report.

Help support Odesa, our sister city in Ukraine!

Baltimore-Odesa Sister Cities Fundraiser: Help support Baltimore's Sister City in Ukraine in its time of need! (photos of Mt Vernon Square in Baltimore; the statue of Odesa's founders in Odesa)

Donate via credit card or PayPal: Donate here

The Baltimore-Odesa Sister City Committee will use the full amount of your donation for humanitarian aid to citizens of Odesa (a.k.a. Odessa).

If you prefer to pay by check (in US dollars): Make your check out to: BSC. Put “Odesa” in the memo line. Mail it to Baltimore Sister Cities, 4701 East Lane, Baltimore MD 21210 USA.

Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc. is a qualified 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law. No goods or services are provided to you for this gift. Please consult your tax advisor regarding specific questions about your deductions.

Come join us at our fundraiser event in Baltimore’s Patterson Park on July 23!

Join the Baltimore-Odesa Sister City Committee for the first annual BMore for Ukraine, a celebration of communities coming together to support Ukraine in its time of need. The event will feature live music, cultural dance, raffles, and more!

All proceeds will benefit World Central Kitchen & United Help Ukraine.

For more info and to purchase tickets: Eventbrite page

About the Baltimore-Odesa sister city relationship

The Sister Cities International program was established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1956 to create a force for international cooperation and understanding through community involvement by promoting peace through people-to-people relationships. The Baltimore Sister Cities (BSC) Program was established in the early 1970’s by then-Mayor William Donald Schaefer. The Baltimore-Odesa Sister City Committee (BOSCC) was established in 1974 and is the second oldest relationship managed by Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc, a non-profit 501c3 corporation.
Visit www.baltimoreodesa.org for more information, more ways to support Odesa and Ukraine, and to volunteer for the committee.

A Tale of Two Cities: Baltimore and Odesa — The Role of Sister Cities in International Relations

Recording of a recent webinar hosted by Baltimore-Odesa Sister City Committee, where panelists discussed the connection between Baltimore and Odesa in light of current events at the intersection of public, private and government partnerships across the world which help promote international diplomacy.
youtu.be/QxAFORH3MDg

Interview on Baltimore radio

Listen to recent interview on Baltimore’s WYPR radio station with Karina Mandell, Chair, Baltimore-Odesa Sister City Committee, talking about current events in Baltimore’s sister city of Odesa, Ukraine:
www.wypr.org/2022-02-25/baltmores-sister-odesa-ukraine

Upcoming Sister City Events

A list of upcoming events 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. Events include:


July 6, 2022

Baltimore Sister Cities Meet & Greet!

Come mingle with our volunteers and friends!

Date: Wednesday, July 6
Time: 5:30-8pm
Location: R.House, 301 West 29th Street, Baltimore MD 21211
Has outdoors and indoors seating.
Rain date: July 13

No RSVP needed — just show up!

For more information: Meet & Greet


July 23, 2022

Bmore for Ukraine! Fundraiser event

Time: 12-6pm ET
Location: Pulaski monument in Patterson Park, Baltimore
For more info and to purchase tickets: Eventbrite page

Join the Baltimore-Odesa Sister City Committee for the first annual BMore for Ukraine, a celebration of communities coming together to support Ukraine in its time of need. The event will feature live music, cultural dance, raffles, and more!

All proceeds will benefit World Central Kitchen & United Help Ukraine.


September 2022

Xiamen China International Fair for Investment & Trade (CIFIT)

Annual event. Details to come.

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


September 19-24, 2022

Greentech|Bluetech: Maryland business delegation trip to the Netherlands

Maryland Department of Commerce plans to send a delegation of Maryland environmental technology firms to the European Water Technology Week 2022 conference and trade expo in the city of Leewarden in the Netherlands, followed by side trips to Rotterdam & The Hague for the delegation. If your firm is located in Maryland and you are involved with water technology, climate tech, or environmental engineering, then this will be of interest to you. Maryland Commerce has grants available to help firms cover a portion of their travel costs.

More information and to participate

Organized by Maryland Department of Commerce with help from Baltimore-Rotterdam Sister City Committee (BRSCC).


September 18, 2022

Japan Day (Aki Matsuri – Fall Festival)

Annual event in Columbia, Maryland. Details to come.

Co-organized by Baltimore-Kawasaki Sister City Committee.


October

Today is Tomorrow: The Retreat of Globalization

World Trade Center Institute’s 2022 AGILE program continues with Today is Tomorrow: The Retreat of Globalization at the historic Parkway Theater in Baltimore, MD (event will also be live-streamed).

More info: AGILE event series

Baltimore Sister Cities is a member of World Trade Center Institute.


November

Today is Tomorrow: Climate Change and Sustainability

World Trade Center Institute’s 2022 AGILE program continues with Today is Tomorrow: Climate Change and Sustainability at the historic Parkway Theater in Baltimore, MD (event will also be live-streamed).

More info: AGILE event series

Baltimore Sister Cities is a member of World Trade Center Institute.


Note: due to the evolving worldwide COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, we advise you to check each event’s page or event organizers for the latest updates about the event, before you go to attend an event.

Baltimore Sister Cities is seeking a new treasurer

The Treasurer of Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc. (BSC) is stepping down in early 2022 after 3 years of service, so BSC is looking for a new treasurer.

Key responsibilities are: bookkeeping for the accounts of the corporation and its 8 sister city committees; processing payments and deposits for the corporation and its committees; managing the corporation’s checking account at a local bank; preparing and filing state and federal tax returns; working with the corporation’s executive committee to prepare an annual budget; and attending board meetings (approximately every 6 weeks). Some accounting background and experience with QuickBooks, Excel and Google Workplace (formerly called ‘G Suite’) is a plus.

Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc. (BSC) is a non-profit 501c3 corporation and all of its members and officers, including the Treasurer, are unpaid volunteers. The position offers great international management experience and personal satisfaction in line with the mission of Sister Cities International: ‘To promote peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation – one individual, one community at a time.’ For more information about BSC, see our home page.

Several other Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc. executive officer positions will also be opening up in January 2022.

Persons who are interested in the Treasurer position or other positions at BSC should contact  for more information. Please reply on or before December 31, 2021.

Ballot topics for January 27, 2022 BSC Annual Membership Meeting

In the January 27, 2022 annual membership meeting of Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc., (BSC), the following items (A, B, and C) will be submitted for approval by the BSC membership (voting members of BSC board and the constituent sister city committees). The information has been posted on this webpage so that members have a chance to review it before the meeting.

A. 2021 ACCOMPLISHMENTS REPORT

(for BSC-level activities and activities for the constituent sister city committees)

View proposed 2021 Accomplishments Report (PDF, 5.8mb)

PDF posted on: 2022-01-23 4pm ET

B. 2022 PLAN

(for BSC-level activities and activities for the constituent sister city committees)

View proposed 2022 Plan (PDF, 2mb)

PDF posted on: 2022-01-23 4pm ET

C. Board Elections

Below is the list of board directors that represent sister city committees and other organizations on our board, as defined in our bylaws.

Persons in bold font with an asterisk (*) are nominees, up for election this year. These nominations were made by the sister city committees and other organizations represented on our BSC, Inc. board. Opposing nominations, if desired, can be made at the January 27, 2022 annual meeting.

Persons WITHOUT an asterisk are in the middle of their board term and therefore NOT up for reelection this year.

OrganizationRepresentativeTerm
BSC:Changwon (BCSCC) Representative:
Michelle Lee
2021-2022
Gbarnga (BGSCC) Representative:
William Hug *
2022-2023
Kawasaki (BKSCC) Representative:
Jay Gordon
2021-2022
Luxor-Alexandria (BLASCC) Representative to :
Karen Leggett Abouraya
2021-2022
Odesa (BOSCC) Representative:
Karina Mandell *
2022-2023
Piraeus (BPSCC) Representative:
Diane Homberg *
2022-2023
Rotterdam (BRSCC) Representative:
Gary Davison *
2022-2023
Xiamen (BXSCC) Representative:
Kerry Holahan *
2022-2023
BDC:Baltimore Development Corporation Representative:
William Cawthern * (Director of Baltimore Foreign Trade Zone #74)
2022-2023
BOPA:Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts Representative:
Lauren Green (Director of Marketing)
2021-2022
Mayor’s Office:Baltimore Mayor’s Office Representative:
Nina Themelis * (Deputy Director, Mayor’s Office of Government Relations)
2022-2023
MIMA:Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs Representative:
Catalina Rodriguez-Lima (Director of MIMA)
2021-2022

Note: Non-voting board members (currently Geri Byrd, Hosea Chew, Teresa Leslie, Nancy Taylor) are not approved at the Annual Membership Meeting but at the 1st regular board meeting of the year following the annual meeting. This year that board meeting is scheduled for February 23, 2022. BSC officers are also elected at the February 23 meeting. The officer positions to be elected this year are: President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Assistant Secretary.

D. Sister City Committee Chairs

The following list informational only. The chairs are elected by their committee members. The chairs are not elected in the BSC annual membership meeting.

CommitteeChairTerm
Changwon (BCSCC)Michelle LeeUntil 2022-12-31
Gbarnga (BGSCC)Pending
Kawasaki (BKSCC)Jay Gordon2021-2022
Luxor-Alexandria (BLASCC) Karen Leggett Abouraya & Tharwat Abouraya (co-chairs)2022-2023
Odesa (BOSCC)Karina MandellUntil 2022-06-01
Piraeus (BPSCC)Diane Homberg2021-2022
Rotterdam (BRSCC)Rachel Sengers2022-2023
Xiamen (BXSCC)Xin (Cindy) Wang2022-2023

Maryland state representatives visit to the Netherlands

Map showing USA and the Netherlands; logos of MDEM, NWP, and BRSCC. Text: November visit to the Netherlands | Amsterdam Water Week | Climate Resilience | Flood Management

Representatives of Maryland Department of Emergency Management (MDEM, formerly known as MEMA), travel to the Netherlands for a flood-resilience themed trip in early November. JaLeesa Tate, Maryland State Hazard Mitigation Officer; Kyle Overly, Director of the Disaster Risk Reduction Directorate; and Allegra Tartaglia, Non-Governmental Services Branch Manager, will participate in Amsterdam International Water Week and share about resilience efforts in Maryland at this AIWW panel on Nov 1: aiww2021.com/event/risk-and-resilience-in-the-americas

AIWW is a hybrid conference, and the online events are FREE, including the panel in which MDEM is participating. To register: aiww2021.com/register

The MDEM representatives will also visit integrated climate resilience and flood prevention infrastructure sites in Rotterdam and The Hague and hold meetings on the topics of resilience and disaster risk reduction during their visit to Netherlands.

In addition, Kyle Overly will be joining a government panel exchanging flood resilience initiatives at the Dubai World Expo Urban and Rural Development Day in the Dutch Biotope Pavilion in the Sustainability District (Dutch Dubai), sharing the milestones and initiatives in cities in the State of Maryland and the city of Baltimore.

We thank Janett Tapia, Arjan Braamskamp, and their colleagues at Netherlands Water Partnership (NWP) for their work in planning this trip. The Baltimore-Rotterdam Sister City Committee (BRSCC) is honored to help with the planning.

This is part of ongoing collaboration between Maryland and the Netherlands on climate adaption and resilience.

Kawasaki and Baltimore explore steel mill closures and redevelopment

Photo of Kawasaki at sunset with Mount Fuji in background; photo of Baltimore Inner Harbor waterfront at twilight with skyline, water, and boat.

Background

During a delegation visit from Kawasaki to Baltimore in 2019 to celebrate the 40th year anniversary of the sister city relationship, several delegates spoke informally to Baltimore-Kawasaki Sister City Committee (BKSCC) about JFE, a Kawasaki corporation and the second largest steel manufacturer in Japan, closing down its steel mill on a reclaimed island in Tokyo Bay, part of Kawasaki. Koji Hirao, the Chairman of the Kawasaki International Association and a member of the 2019 delegation, reached out to BKSCC in 2020, to find out if Baltimore would be interested in providing background information for a Kawasaki municipal project following the removal of the JFE steel mill facility. Kawasaki wanted to talk to groups in Baltimore who had been involved in the Tradepoint Atlantic redevelopment project at the Bethlehem Steel site at Sparrows Point, Baltimore County, for insights into planning and execution.

Meeting in October 2021 about steel mill site redevelopment

In response to Kawasaki’s inquiry, BKSCC is helping to organize a virtual meeting on Tuesday, October 19 with about 20 invited participants. The meeting will include Baltimore county officials and members of TradePoint Atlantic’s development team along with members of Kawasaki City’s coastal area development team. The purpose of the meeting is to share the invaluable experiences by those Baltimore parties who were involved in the redevelopment of the Bethlehem Steel site. 

Attendees will include: the members of the City of Kawasaki Coastal Area International Strategy Headquarters; its advisors from the Mitsubishi Research Institute; the Tradepoint Atlantic management team; development officers from Baltimore County; the Baltimore Development Corporation; and the Commerce Department of the State of Maryland; several BKSCC members; and Geri Byrd, president of Baltimore Sister Cities.

Carbon-free power generation

BKSCC is also asking Kawasaki City to provide Baltimore with new research and information about their initiatives on carbon-free power generation. Kawasaki City is a leader in Japan, committing itself to the pursuit of a carbon-free circular economy. One of the city’s initiatives is to generate carbon-free power (ie, hydrogen) by using plastic waste and food waste. This initiative is managed by the City of Kawasaki Coastal Area International Strategy Headquarters. This article is an example of this trend: globetrender.com/2021/06/19/tokyu-hotels-first-hydrogen-hotel-japan

Our Message to the Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities

Map of world showing the locations of Baltimore's sister cities. Text says: In solidarity with AAPI communities

— April 2021 —

Baltimore Sister Cities (BSC) stands united and in solidarity with members of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities in Baltimore and in all parts of the United States. Especially as home to three Sister City relationships in Asia (Changwon, Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; and Xiamen, China), BSC deplores the events of the past year targeting members of AAPI communities. We are outraged at this senseless violence and abhor the pain and hurt inflicted on our AAPI colleagues and friends.

BSC makes this statement with awareness that anti-Asian violence is woven into the very history of our country. The Chinese massacre of 1871, the attacks on Filipino American farmworkers in the 1930’s, the angry incarceration in prison camps of Japanese Americans during WWII, and the violent arson by the Ku Klux Clan of Vietnamese American fishing boats in the 1970’s, were all emboldened by dehumanizing stereotypes and prejudice perpetuated towards Asians who immigrated into the American landscape. This normalizing of racism has continued in language like “Kung Flu” and “China Plague” in recent months.

BSC is committed to fighting prejudice and to creating dialogues on all forms of discrimination. It leads with a purpose of promoting cultural interchanges that can foster new and more culturally aware engagement. It is not what we say in the short term, but what we remain dedicated to that has lasting effects. BSC has vowed to send a strong message by providing an opportunity for an open dialogue of discussion with a distinguished group of panelists that will shed light on violence against AAPI communities. Within the next few weeks we will be announcing a live event and webinar discussion to educate and create awareness of AAPI issues and their long-term effects.

Zoom backgrounds

These city photos can be used by Baltimore Sister Cities members as backgrounds in meeting platforms such as Zoom.

City photos are listed alphabetically below the instructions.

A. Instructions

Note you will need the latest version of Zoom (client software) installed on your hard drive in order to do this.

To use a photo background in Zoom:

1. See cities further below. Click on link to a city’s photo, to go to its full-size photo. After that, right-click on the city’s full-size photo to get a context menu. Save the image to your hard drive.

2. When you are in a zoom meeting, hover over the bottom of the screen to see bar with video icon, chat icon, etc. Click the arrow icon next to the Video icon:

3. Select “Choose Virtual Background” from the menu:

4. On the Background & Filters screen, Choose the Add button > Add image. Find the city photo on your hard drive and upload it.

Questions? Visit the Zoom help center.

B. City photos

Alexandria, Egypt

Alexandria, Egypt

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/AlexandriaLibrary-Background.jpg

Baltimore, USA

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Baltimore-Background.jpg

Changwon, South Korea

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Changwon-Background.jpg

Gbarnga, Liberia

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Gbarnga-Background.jpg

Kawasaki, Japan

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Kawasaki-Background.jpg

Luxor, Egypt

Luxor, Egypt

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Luxor-Background.jpg

Odessa, Ukraine

Ukrainian Independence Day Celebration in Baltimore (Photo: W. F. Bell)

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Ukraine-Background.jpg

Piraeus, Greece

Piraeus, Greece

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Piraeus-Background.jpg

Rotterdam, the Netherlands

Rotterdam, the Netherlands

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Rotterdam-Background.jpg

Xiamen, China

Xiamen, China

https://baltimoresistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Xiamen-Background.jpg

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Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc. is a qualified 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization and donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law. No goods or services were provided for this gift. Please consult your tax advisor regarding specific questions about your deductions.

 

Web site copyright © 2022 Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc.

logo-baltimoreBaltimore sister city committees operate under the auspices of the City of Baltimore’s Office of the Mayor.

 

Brandon M. Scott, Mayor

 

Previous mayor’s Dec 2015 press release about Baltimore Sister Cities.

 

Baltimore Sister Cities, Inc. is a 501c3 organization incorporated in the State of Maryland.
Member of  Sister Cities International, Maryland Nonprofits, World Trade Center Institute, Visit Baltimore, & affiliate of Maryland International Education Consortium.
Recipient of 2016 Innovation Award from Sister Cities International.