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; Piraeus, Greece; Rotterdam, the Netherlands; Xiamen, China) and our affiliates. Events include:
Census: Outreach to Baltimore’s immigrant communities
MIMA (Baltimore Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs) has released a website for Census 2020, with information available in multiple languages.
The site contains Census outreach materials in multiple languages as well as opportunities to get involved. You can help promote the census in your community by requesting MIMA to share Census info at an upcoming event or let MIMA know if you are interested in volunteering as a Census Ambassador to help Baltimore’s immigrant communities fill out the census.
MIMA is looking to our community partners (YOU!) to help ensure that every Baltimore resident is counted this year.
Ongoing events
Baltimore Sister Cities food drive for Maryland Food Bank
Baltimore Sister Cities is proud to partner with the Maryland Food Bank to host a Virtual Food Drive this year to support our hungry neighbors. Every dollar you give will provide not only the gift of food, but the gift of hope for food-insecure children and families during this difficult and uncertain time. Visit mdfoodbank.fenly.org/drive/baltimoresistercities-fooddrive to make a donation to our food drive today!
More information about our drive
Asia North 2020
Asia North–a celebration of art, culture, and the Asian heritage of Greater Baltimore, especially the Korean history of the Charles North community (a.k.a. Station North). Asia North was inaugurated in 2019 and is co-presented by Towson University’s Asian Arts & Culture Center, Central Baltimore Partnership, Charm City Night Market, and multiple community partners. In 2020, there are periodic online events throughout the year.
- Asia North website
- Online introduction to Baltimore’s first Koreatown and the Korean community in Greater Baltimore
Online exhibition: Twenty-five Asian and Asian American artists from the Baltimore-Washington, DC region express, illustrate, and address the fusion of cultures, drawing from traditional art forms, memories of homeland, and more. Exhibition entry page
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities and its Asian sister city committees (Changwon, South Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; and Xiamen, China).
Phaan Howng: A Bag of Rocks for a Bag of Rice
Exhibition September 17 – December 12 at Towson University’s Asian Arts & Culture Center
Exquisitely disposed rocks and trees and vegetation. The promise of an inspired space of meditation and detachment. Such has been of the Westernized image of the Chinese and Japanese garden. Yet, such enchanted “natural” spaces camouflage the histories of empire, wealth, privilege, exploitation, ecological extraction, and displacement behind their creation. Phaan Howng’s site-specific installation engages East Asian gardens as a case study of the dynamics embedded within these private spaces.
To attend the September 17 Gallery Talk & Opening Reception:
- Register at: bit.ly/aacc-MeetPhaanHowng-register
To visit the exhibit:
- Virtual: www.towson.edu/campus/artsculture/centers/asianarts/events/
- In person: By appointment for Towson University students, faculty and staff.
Hosted by Towson University’s Asian Arts & Culture Center.
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities and its Asian sister city committees (Changwon, South Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; and Xiamen, China).
Saturday, September 26, 2020
Forest Bathing: Nature’s Therapy
Time: 10am ET
Location: Online
Admission: $20 regular price; $15 AA&CC members
Reconnect with nature and your mind, body, and spirit from your own yard, nearby park, or even your house! Naturalist and ANFT Certified Forest Therapy Guide, Ana Ka’ahanui, guides you through the experience of shinrin-yoku (“forest bathing”), a recent Japanese practice invented in the 1980s and based on Shinto and Buddhist reverence for nature. Adapted for our new world of social-distancing, this session will help you decompress and prepare you to adapt to and even thrive in an ambiguous and ever-changing world.
More info & to register: bit.ly/aacc-forest-bathing
Hosted by Towson University’s Asian Arts & Culture Center.
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities and its Asian sister city committees (Changwon, South Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; and Xiamen, China).
September 28 – October 1, 2020
National Virtual Hermes Expo International
Time: 10am – 5pm daily
Location: Online
Admission: Free. Advance registration required.
Hermes Expo International organizes business events on the US coast each year, promoting commerce, communications, and culture since 1992. The Hermes Expo brings together thousands of business owners and attendees from around the world, looking to expand their business connections and establish new economic ties. They attract companies from North America, Europe, and the Eastern Mediterranean regions of the world, with a focus on Greek and American businesses.
This year for the first time the Hermes Expo will be virtual: virtual business-to-business networking, educational webinars, and trade show.
Baltimore-Piraeus Sister City Committee (BPSCC) will be an exhibitor at this event
The event is an incredible opportunity to participate in business-growth educational webinars, network and establish new business relationships, shop from diverse vendors, and learn from leading industry experts. The event includes, but is not limited to, business owners, entrepreneurs, decision-makers, and those who work for a business and are interested in starting a small business.
More info: hermesexpo.com
To register: hermesexpo.com/attend
Promoted by Baltimore-Piraeus Sister City Committee (BPSCC).
Tuesday, September 29, 2020
Women Spanning the Globe Conference
Time: 9am – 5pm
Location: Online
Admission: Ticketed event. Advance registration required.
For 14 years, the Women Spanning the Globe Leadership conference has been the premier destination for curious, talented, and ambitious female professionals from the Mid-Atlantic region and beyond. The World Trade Center Institute curates unique and inspiring conferences where female leaders and innovators share ideas, stories, and lessons with the goal of connecting and educating rising female leaders.
This year, the event will be virtual.
More info & to register: www.wtci.org/wsglc
Organized by World Trade Center Institute (WTCI).
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities.
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
2020 Maryland International Business Leadership Awards
World Trade Center Institute (WTCI) hosts this annual event with Maryland Governor Hogan and 70+ presidents and CEOs to honor 2020′s award winners that have guided their companies and the state of Maryland to new global heights.
More info: www.wtci.org/leadershipawards
Organized by World Trade Center Institute (WTCI).
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities.
October 2020
23rd annual meeting of the International Friends of the Bibliotheca Alexandrina (IFBA)
Members of Baltimore-Luxor-Alexandria Sister City Committee plan to attend this meeting in Alexandria, Egypt.
Supported by Baltimore-Luxor-Alexandria Sister City Committee (BLASCC).
Storytelling Festival | Our Stories Virtual Festival
Date/time: Thursdays beginning October 1 at 7 p.m.
Location: Online
Celebrate our common humanity and the unique beauty of diverse experiences on a global scale. Explore and enjoy personal and cultural stories in narrative, animation, music, art, and more.
More info: Events list of the Asian Arts & Culture Center.
Organized by Towson University Asian Arts & Culture Center. Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities and its Asian sister city committees (Changwon, South Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; and Xiamen, China).
Annual Baltimore Japan Arts Festival
Festival may happen sometime in October. Date to be announced later. Stay tuned for more information.
Organized by Baltimore-Kawasaki Sister City Committee (BKSCC) in conjunction with other partners.
Friday, October 16, 2020
Art & Music Exchange: Asia North 2020
Join DMV artists and musicians to celebrate the art, culture, and the Asian heritage of Greater Baltimore!
Time: 7pm ET
Location: Online
Admission: Free. Advance registration required.
Register here: bit.ly/aacc-AsiaNorth2020-register
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities and its Asian sister city committees (Changwon, South Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; and Xiamen, China).
November 2020
China Town Hall
National annual event organized by National Committee on U.S.-China Relations (NCUSCR) China Town Hall. Local companion programming organized by Baltimore-Xiamen Sister City Committee (BXSCC).
Date to be announced later. Stay tuned for more information.
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
WTCI’s Maryland State of the Ports
Get the latest developments at Maryland’s ports directly from Maryland’s Secretary of Transportation at this annual event while networking with and learning from the companies who support and drive business through our ports. Organized by World Trade Center Institute (WTCI).
More info: www.wtci.org/stateoftheports
December 3–6, 2020
Baltimore Black International Film Festival
The annual Baltimore International Black Film Festival (BIBFF) provides a venue for independent films for, by and about African Americans, the African Diaspora, and members of the SGL-LGBT community locally, nationally and globally.
Baltimore Sister Cities encourages filmmakers from its sister cities to submit their films to the festival organizers for consideration to include in this festival.
More info: Call for submissions | About the festival
Promoted by Baltimore Sister Cities.
April 2021
Hanami community picnic
Annual Japanese-style “flower viewing” spring celebration. Join us in celebrating the arrival of spring beneath a canopy of pink blossoms along on of Baltimore’s finest waterfronts in Middle Branch Park! Bring your blanket, a picnic, and your cultural curiosity.
Date to be announced later. Stay tuned for more information.
Organized by Baltimore-Kawasaki Sister City Committee (BKSCC).
Friday, April 12, 2021
Enoch Pratt Free Library’s Imagination Celebration
This event was originally scheduled for March 28 but will likely be rescheduled to April 12.
Location: Enoch Pratt Central Library, 400 Cathedral Street, Baltimore, MD 21201
Admission: Free
Pratt Library hosts Imagination Celebration (formerly known as the Fairy Tale festival. This signature event celebrates creativity and honors diverse voices and experiences within children’s literature and our communities.
Baltimore Sister Cities will have a table at this event with fun activities for kids from some of the countries around the world where we have sister cities.
Supported by Baltimore-Changwon Sister City Committee (BCSCC), Baltimore-Rotterdam Sister City Committee (BRSCC), and Baltimore-Xiamen Sister City Committee (BXSCC).
May 2021
Asian Pacific American Heritage Month Celebration
Annual celebration in Baltimore featuring music and dance performances, calligraphy, Asian food, and talks by leaders from the community.
Date and details to be announced later.
Organized by Baltimore Sister Cities’ Asian committees (Changwon, South Korea; Kawasaki, Japan; Xiamen, China).
Fall 2021
Seagull Mamma — A Performance Piece about Trash and Recycling
Rotterdam-based, American-born theatre artist and educator Kathie diStefano visits Baltimore each year to do workshops.
Ms. Kathie is part of the artist roster at Young Audiences Arts for Learning, Maryland and she performs “Seagull Mamma” at several schools in our region each semester. Public schools can sign up on the Young Audiences website to schedule the “Seagull Mamma” performance for this spring or in the future, for kids in kindergarten through grade 2. Young Audiences can provide subsidies to public schools to significantly reduce the cost of the performance by up to 80%; schools can inquire with Young Audiences for details.
This interactive show takes young audience members on a journey through the eyes of a seagull mamma who mistakes trash for fish while hunting for food for her young. The term ‘plastic soup’ is introduced; lakes, rivers, and seas that have so much plastic trash that no fish can live there.
Supported by Baltimore-Rotterdam Sister City Committee (BRSCC).
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.
