US-NIS Sister Cities: Building Community Partnerships That Last

by David Potter & photo by Sister Cities International

Ultimately, sustainability needs to grow from healthy bio-regions and healthy human communities. The root of such growth lies in love of place, a love people-to-people programs can help rekindle.

-Dr. Dan Ihara, Humboldt State University

Sister Cities International (SCI) has worked since 1956 to foster international cooperation at the community level by linking US cities with their counterparts all over the world. Nowhere, however, has the impact of sister cities programs been more pronounced than between US cities and those of the former Soviet Union. During the last 10 years, the number of partnerships in the former Soviet Union has grown from six to 163 (Chicago and Moscow became the most recent affiliation this April.) By matching cities that have common economic bases, sister cities programs have increased trade and fostered business ties, but the partnerships have also been vital to the process of grassroots development. From thematic youth exchanges and school-to-school links to exchanges of newspaper managers and municipal professionals, sister city programs are involving people at all levels.

Economic Ties at the Grassroots

Increasingly, professionals in the US and NIS view sister city affiliations as a way to develop business, trade and economic cooperation. One of the best ways to lower the risks of doing business internationally is to know overseas business partners well. Sister city affiliations have created an ideal environment in which to build trust.

"In international business you need to formulate personal relationships first; it's not all just the bottom line as it is in the US. Sister cities establish business ties by opening the door to the business community," says Jane Fleetwood, past president of the Jacksonville, Florida/Murmansk, Russia Sister Cities program.

Attorney Charles Hanson, founder of the sister city link between La Crosse, Wisconsin and Dubna, Russia explains: "Business is business, there are always risks. But here you have a city that has very close ties and numerous successful programs with La Crosse. It is less likely that somebody there will turn on La Crosse and jeopardize so many other programs."

Besides providing for the possibility of starting new businesses, sister city programs develop a business infrastructure and promote a business-friendly environment. The cities of La Crosse and Dubna were full partners in the establishment of the University of Dubna-an educational institution officially recognized by the Russian federal government. Business education is an important part of the University's academic program, providing Russian entrepreneurs with courses in international business, management and business ethics.

The opening of the Business Center in Dubna allowed many young entrepreneurs to receive free consultations from US and Russian professionals on how to start new businesses and enhance existing ones. The opening of the Rotary Club gave municipal professionals, business people and other members of the community access to their counterparts in 13 countries, which led to several new projects beneficial to the city of Dubna.

A participant in the USIA-funded Business for Russia program, Charlotte, NC and its sister city, Voronezh, organized an exchange of 29 business interns. The interns worked in local businesses that matched their interests and lived with Charlotte families for five weeks. Upon completion of the program, Charlotte conducted an evaluation in which 90 percent of the former interns stated that their businesses in Voronezh had directly improved as a result of the knowledge they gained in Charlotte. All of the interns maintain contact with each other, and most maintain contact with their Charlotte host and business placements. They plan to remain active in sister city activities, in keeping with SCI's belief that such links provide an ongoing base for exchange, development and training projects.

Linking "Secret Cities"

One of SCI's most exciting programs links cities that were once top-secret scientific communities with laboratories and manufacturing facilities for nuclear weapons. SCI currently is managing a USIA-funded Municipal and Community Problem-Solving program, designed to support the efforts of these "secret cities" to develop closer ties.

The Russian city of Sarov (formerly Arzamas-16) and Los Alamos, New Mexico have been paired since 1994. The agreement grew out of an existing program of cooperation between nuclear scientists, as laboratories in the two cities began conducting joint peace-time experiments after the breakup of the Soviet Union.

The two cities have branched out to exchanges of representatives of local government, business, media and educational institutions. In 1996, SCI awarded the two cities a USIA-funded Thematic Youth Exchange grant [see Surviving Together, Winter 1996] to exchange 10 youth for a jointly-designed environmental program that involved analyzing water samples from each other's rivers. Sarov business people have expressed interest in the health care field, as well as disabilities issues. Sarov city administrators are also eager to learn about local government structure and procedures in the US and have agreed to participate on exchanges and training in this area.

Oak Ridge, Tennessee and Obninsk, Russia have been paired since 1992, with Oak Ridge National Labs sending many scientific delegations to Obninsk over the last several years and hosting scientists from Obninsk in Oak Ridge. The partnership has expanded to include medicine. Recently, a group of physicians visited Oak Ridge for one month. They were sponsored by a USIA grant through Technology 2020 (a local high tech communications business) and observed medical practices in Oak Ridge. Participants engaged in discussions regarding possible telemedicine projects with Technology 2020.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California and Snezhinsk, Russia (formerly Chelyabinsk-70) have been actively engaged in scientific exchanges and cooperative research projects for nearly four years. During early 1996, scientists from Livermore and Snezhinsk began expanding their scientific and educational exchanges. There is now interest in a more official sister city relationship. In Livermore, the city is very supportive of establishing a formal partnership and the local Rotary club has expressed an interest in establishing a "sister" Rotary Club.

Empowering the Community through Grassroots Diplomacy

At the foundation of every successful US-NIS sister city partnership lies a strong local program with volunteers who are willing to commit time, talent and resources to develop a long-term relationship with their counterparts abroad. Because the program's basic premise is reciprocity, there is continuous contact between the cities, bringing together both government and volunteer resources in the community, and offering a mechanism for anyone or any group to become involved. Sister city type initiatives are adaptable to a variety of cultures and locations, not just cities: the Buryat people of Lake Baikal have formed a sister lake relationship with Lake Tahoe, California.

US-NIS sister city partnerships show that long-term community partnerships provide a solid foundation for effective and responsible development cooperation. US-NIS sister cities programs may not "save the world." They do show us, however, how natural and advantageous it is to link villages, cities, schools, universities, libraries, hospitals, service clubs, businesses, media organizations, lakes, rivers-even top secret research labs. The sister cities phenomenon proves how proud people in every country are of where they live and work, how much they want to reach out, to meet one another, and to share their love of place.

David Potter is the program officer for development at Sister Cities International.

Sister Cities International, 120 South Payne Street, Alexandria, VA 22314; phone: (970) 963-8855; fax: (970) 963-8866; e-mail: dpotter@sister-cities.org.