N E W S L E T T E R
March 2021

Sister Cities New Zealand 2021 40th Anniversary Annual Conference
LOCATION: Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington
DATE: 15 -16 Aprilthth

THEME: Celebrating 40 years of Global
Connection and Diversity

Read the current programme HERE!

Join us to celebrate
Sister Cities New Zealand’s
40th Anniversary!
Click here to REGISTER NOW

From the SCNZ Board
Introducing:
New National Administrator

New Member: Priority One – Tauranga Moana

The Board wishes to advise you that Jess Skinner wasappointed as the new National Administrator at theBoard meeting in February.
Jean Chua will resign at the 2021 Annual Conference in April
to pursue her career as an artist and we wish her all thevery best. We thank Jean sincerely for her commitment,
hard work and support to SCNZ over the last three years.
The transition period is for the months of February
and March and Jess will be in the position solely from
1st April. The contact email address remains the same:admin@sistercities.org.nz

Te pai me te whai rawa o Tauranga Moana kit e ao - The
prosperity and splendour of Tauranga Moana to the world

Jess Skinner (Wellington)
Jess is a British expat who has been living in
New Zealand for more than five years. An avid
traveller, she brings experience from all over
Asia and a shared passion for human and culturalconnection and understanding. In addition to Sister cities
New Zealand, she also works part time as a yoga teacher forchildren in primary school and is involved in coordinating
locally-grown community dinners.
She loves surfing in summer, sewing in winter and also
has some training in Non-Violent Communication. She
hopes that through working with Sister Cities she is able
to expand her world view, contribute to global connection
and shared values.

By Greg Simmons, Chief Operating Officer

Priority One is an economic development enabler focusedon creating a prosperous and sustainable city and region.
Our most effective contribution to the community is tofocus on the creation of highly skilled jobs and the abilityof our own people to fill them. Our direct connection
to over 300 local business members ensures oureffectiveness in delivering intelligent economic growththat delivers social, cultural and environmental benefits.
We place significant value on international partnershipsas a means to enhance regional prosperity. The Western
Bay of Plenty International Strategy, led by Priority One,is a collaborative multi-agency place-based approach topromote tourism and trade, and help attract international
skills and investment to the region. The purpose of ourplace-based approach is to leverage the interlinkages
between migration categories, tourism activities,
investment activities, trade and international education
across the areas of attraction, transition and settlement.
The inherent principle of our international efforts is thatof mutual benefit, and in particular that they benefitboth those that arrive and those who already live here.
Tauranga City has two sister cities – Yantai, China (35years) and Hitachi, Japan (33 years); as well as a friendly
city agreement with Ansan, South Korea (8 years).

Are you looking for a new Sister City or Sister School in New Zealand? We may be able to help!
Created by our Director, Jan Fitz-Gerald, we now have quick
and easy forms on our website for you to fill out, so that we
can assist you on your road to establishing a new Sister Cityor Sister School relationship.
Sister City relationships foster the growth of a mutual
understanding and long-term friendship between countries
and regions, as well as the communities within them. Thisbond allows for a continuous exchange of ideas and culture,and even facilitates development within the areas of tradeand tourism.

Head over to the "Sister Cities" tab on our website
sistercities.org.nz for more information, as wellas the links to our online forms!

N E W S L E T T E R
March 2021

Wellington and Beijing Celebrate 15 Years of Sister
City Relationship
Jennifer Zhou, International Relations, Wellington City Council
On 1st February, a gala evening was held in Te Marae ofMuseum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa as partof the 15th anniversary celebrations of the sister city
relationship between Wellington and Beijing“The Beijing Wellington sister city relationship forms avital link in the network that unites tens of thousands ofcitizen diplomats and volunteers who work tirelessly topromote peace and understanding.

Wellington City Mayor Andy Foster and guests with
Beijing connections attended the event. Beijing Mayor
CHEN Jining, New Zealand Ambassador to China ClareFearnley and Chinese Ambassador to New ZealandWU Xi addressed the special occasion and sent theircongratulatory messages over the video.

Given the need of co-operation and shared understanding
the world will increasingly need to fight the COVID
pandemic, Sister Cities will undoubtedly be called upon
to energise the global rebuild in post-COVID.”

Regular friendly visits between Wellington and Beijingcommenced in 2000. The cities agreed to become sistercities in 2006. The relationship was formalised during
the Sister Cities New Zealand Conference that year.
Mayoral exchanges have actively pursed on a wide rangeof subjects, including governance, cultural and sports
exchanges, education and tourism, and bilateral trade.
Mayor Foster spoke about the significant role of the sistercity relationship in enhancing the economic, social andcultural prosperity of Wellington. He pledged to advancethe understanding and co-operation across multiple
sectors with Beijing to rejuvenate the economy amid theCOVID-19 pandemic.

Chinese lion dance, the Wellington Chinese
Sports and Cultural Centre

In a video message, Mayor of Beijing CHEN Jining
spoke highly of the sister city relationship Beijing had
with Wellington in support of the national bonds; andexpressed sincere gratitude for the long-standing support
from the people who have promoted this relationship.
The progress in technology has allowed opportunities
to develop and maintain international relationships
regardless of current international travel restrictions.
The gala evening featured spectacular performances fromBeijing based artists by making use of the technology.
Several joint activities will be organised throughout theyear to further strengthen co-operation and exchange
between the two cities.

Andy Foster, Mayor ofWellington City

Haka Powhiri, Nga Marere Maori Club

N E W S L E T T E R
March 2021

Dunedin City - Updates of Sister City Related Events
By Hui Zhang, China Project Coordinator, Economic Development, Dunedin City
1. Mayoral meeting with Dunedin local Chinese agentsOn 8 October 2020, Mayor Hawkins hosted a meetingwith seven Dunedin local tourism and education agents.
Enterprise Dunedin director John Christie, Project China
Coordinator Hui Zhang attended the meeting.
Mayor Hawkins introduced what we have done with China
during the last couple of months, including interactionwith the Mayors of our China sister cities to support eachother; Video conference between SDHB and Shanghai
Health Commission shared knowledge and experiencefighting with COVID-19.
Mayor Hawkins admitted this year is a difficult year for
all agents and really appreciated their hard work to keep
close connections and continued interaction with China
business partners. All the agents appreciated the timeand opportunity to meet with Mayor Hawkins. Agents andMayor Hawkins had very productive discussions of theareas of potential co-operation and work. The strength
and warmth of the relationships was evident with agentsand Mayor Hawkins all having photos together at the endof the meeting.

2. Enterprise Dunedin meeting with New Zealand–China Non-Communicable Diseases Research
Collaboration Centre (NCD CRCC)
On 29 October 2020, Enterprise Dunedin had a meetingwith NCD team. Enterprise Dunedin director JohnChristie, Economic Development Programme Manager
Fraser Liggett, and Project China Coordinator Hui Zhang
attended the meeting. For NCD team, Professor Jim Mann,Dr Hu Zhang, and Fia Jephson Sandstrom attended.
Dr Hu Zhang, on behalf of NCD, did a presentation
showing what NCD had achieved with the support fromEnterprise Dunedin last three years. MBIE decided
to continue to fund $1.6M over the next four years forresearch collaboration with China in Non-Communicable
Diseases areas. NCD is keen to work with EnterpriseDunedin for future cooperative projects in China,
mainly in Shanghai and Chengdu through existing local
government connections and relationships.

3. Video Conference between Dunedin Mayor andDeputy Chairman of Shanghai Standing Committee
On 23 November 2020,
Dunedin Mayor – Aaron
Hawkins and Shanghai
StandingCommittee
Vice Chairman – SHA
Hailin lead the meetingfrom both two cities.
Dunedin City Council CEO Sandy Graham; EnterpriseDunedin director John Christie; Economic Development
Programme Manager Fraser Liggett, and Project China
Coordinator Hui Zhang attended the zoom meeting.
The meeting went for one hour. Mr. Sha updated everyone
on Shanghai's epidemic prevention and control, therunning of the 3rd China International Import Expo (CIIE)in Shanghai in October. He re-iterated Shanghai values thedeep friendship with Dunedin and would like to continue
and deepen the cooperation through fields of economy,
trade, education, scientific research, health, horticulture,culture, justice, and talent training. Mayor Hawkins totallyagrees Mr. Sha’s comments and discussed Dunedin’slong history and strong relationship with China. Mayor
Hawkins introduced our plan to work with Shanghai
next year which includes four MoUs which need to beupdated and resigned, continued research collaborationin areas like health and non-communicable disease, tolook at exploring gaming industry opportunities, and tocontinue to work together on not only facing COVID-19
challenges but also those of climate change.

4. Mayor Hawkins recorded a video greeting message
for 2021 New Zealand Chinese New Year Online Gala –2 December 2020TheGalacreatedanatmosphere
andenvironment for overseas
Chinese living in New
Zealand to celebrate theChinese New Year, provide
New Zealand audienceswith a good opportunity to understand Chinese culture,strengthen mutual understanding and cultural exchanges
between China and New Zealand, and share the joy andhappiness of the Spring Festival of the Year of the Ox withwider communities. Mayor Hawkins sent them a video
with greeting messages.

5. Mayor Hawkins hosted an event for the localChinese community and various stakeholders tocelebrate the Chinese New Year – 11 February 2021
On Chinese New Year Eve, Mayor Hawkins hosted acelebration dinner with representatives of Dunedin
Chinese Community, Dunedin City council, Otago
University and Otago Polytechnic. This event
demonstrated DCC’s ongoing support for Chinese
community and businesses, especially during suchdifficult times. It was also a good opportunity for various
stakeholder to reconnect and network with each other.
Dunedin CEO Sandy Graham said it was the first time we
had tried something like this, and it was such a success.
She suspects it may become a regular civic function inthe future.

N E W S L E T T E R
March 2021

The 2021APCS Special Edition Invites NZ Mayors,
Deputy Mayors and City Officials
By Diana Lee, International Project Officer, Brisbane City Council
The 2021 Asia Pacific Cities Summitand Mayors’ Forum Special Edition(2021APCS Special Edition) will beheld in Brisbane, Australia from 8– 12 September 2021.
Conceived and managed by Brisbane
City Council, the Asia Pacific Cities
Summit and Mayors’ Forum (APCS)
is an internationally acclaimed,award-winning gathering of cityand business leaders from acrossthe Asia Pacific and beyond. For 25years, APCS has provided immense
opportunities
forconnection,
learning and relationship-building between civic andbusiness sectors.
The coronavirus pandemic in 2020 has forever changed
cities and the definition of normal. As local governments
have been at the forefront of the challenges of thispandemic, more than ever, APCS is an opportunity not
to be missed.

Under the overarching themeof ‘Redefining Cities throughOpportunities and Challenges’,
APCS will be presented as a Special
Edition this year, utilising latestgeneration technology to provide
physical participation for those whocan attend in person and immersive
virtual participation options for
those who cannot.
The 2021APCS Special Edition willplay an important role in helping
our regions adapt, get back on ourfeet and transform the way ourcities operate so that together, we are more resilient in thefuture. The inspiring speakers, high-calibre networking
opportunities and unique insights will equip attendees tomeet the challenges and opportunities of the new world.
To find out how your city could involve and to register,visit www.apcsummit.org #2021APCSSpecialEdition

Wellington Sakai Association (WSA) 27thAnniversary Picnic 2021
By Raewyn MacGregor, Vice-President, Wellington Sakai Association
Wellington Sakai Association is looking forward to abusy year of events to engage the local community inthe relationship while New Zealand’s borders remainclosed due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.
On 13 February the annual anniversary celebration picnic
was held at the Katherine Mansfield Memorial Park. Morethan 40 people including the Deputy
Mayor Sarah Free and H.E Ito Koichi,
Ambassador of Japan celebrated the27th
anniversary of the establishment ofWellington Sakai Sister City relationship.
Attendees enjoyed Japanese modern andtraditional music performed in Japaneseand English by Nanami, alocal music group, shared theSakai themed birthday cakeand finding information about
WSA’s next special project“Yuru-chara mascot designcompetition at the Japan
Festival in March.
Deputy Mayor Free noted theimportance of the sister city
relationship to Wellington. She
noted that there are friends

in Sakai who cannot be and thanked the Associationfor fostering the relationship by actively holding events
especially in this challenging time due to the pandemic.
It was the first WSA event for the Ambassador Ito. He isfrom Osaka prefecture, where Sakai City is, and shared
his thoughts about Osaka. WSA is looking forward
to continuing engaging with theAmbassador Ito and the Embassy on
upcoming projects and events.
Esther Harrison, the president of WSA,
spoke of the friendships she made as aresult of the first picnic she attended a
few years prior and of the importanceof local sister cities events tobring the community together.
The WSA committee worked
hard to make this event specialand looks forward to creating
opportunities for members
and local citizens to embrace
the strong friendship withSakai.

Photos: Hanna McCallum