In this issue
Dated: 31
March
2011
Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers Young Ambassador visit
Wanganui is pleased to be hosting 2 young ambassadors from Toowoomba in Australia to both visit the city and join us at conference where they will be warmly welcomed as part of the youth contingent. We look forward to meeting them there.
1000 Cranes for Japan and other initiatives
David Hancock (Hutt City) is preparing for a fundraising event for Japan on the weekend 8-10 April. For information about this exciting initiative click here:
Kumiko Duxfield from the NZ Japan Society of Auckland Inc www.nzjapan.net/cms/index.php
reports that "There are three projects we will be conducting.
1. Tsuru (Crane) project
Outline of the project: Schools, organisations and community groups fold origami cranes to make Sembazuru (1000 tsuru). You see them at Hiroshima and Nagasaki peace parks with messages of hope.
NZJS will have Tsuru project stations at various local events to have people donate money for a tsuru. they can fold them or get a volunteer to fold a crane to add to Sembazuru. If people want to take a tsuru home, they can. This can be a nationwide project.
2. Charity Concert
Top class artist (musicians) to take part in a concert to raise funds for the Earthquake/Tsunami Appeal for Japan. We are talking to Auckland city to assist/support us. We will be approaching businesses to donate money and goods to cover the costs.
3. We will be in touch with Vodafone to set up Earthquake/Tsunami Appeal where people can txt to donate. Please contact Kumiko through the website link above if you think that you can assist with any of these projects.
Air New Zealand Special fares
Staff at Air New Zealand have been particularly supportive of the "Time Out in New Zealand" initiative, and were able to support Jon Doherty (brains beind the campaign) in getting young schoolgirl Haruka Higo to NZ for some immediate relief. Haruka's family were traumatised by the earthquake and Tsunami . Jon was particularly impressed with the prompt and personal service offered at the Japan end and again at the New Zealand end. (he says that it was very special for Haruka to have the CEO of AIRNZ personally escort her into the country) If Haruka is still in the country, we hope to meet her in Masterton at the end of April
Special Air New Zealand fares for those affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, are available for travel from Tokyo and Osaka to New Zealand either on a one way or on an open return basis. These are available through the Air New Zealand Contact Centre.
Contact
Air New Zealand Contact Centre (Auckland)
Tel: 006633 864 164 or +64 (0)9 357 3000
Open: 24 hours
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Greetings valued member, welcome to the latest edtion
of the Sister Cities Newsletter - we trust that you will find it both entertaining and informative.
From the National Office
Our work this month has been coloured by the terrible tragedy and fallout from the Japan earthquake , the tsunami and then the radiation leaks.
It has been important to be able to do something practical amidst this scene of devastation, hence your note from me requesting that Sister Cities offer to help their counterparts in Japan. This has gone more than a step further with the help of Jon Doherty from Terrace Downs in Christchurh/Auckland - a private individual with a passion for Japan, Mia Evans from the Japan/NZ Business Council with a remit for Sister Cities in Japan, and from MFAT here in Wellington strongly supported by Ian Kennedy our ambassador in Tokyo. We have become closely associated with the "TimeoutinNZ " campaign so please follow links below for the website and facebook. (More below)
On a lighter note we are delighted to showcase our very exciting programme for conference which encompasses new learnings and a fun social programme culminatin in the royal wedding. www.sistercities.org.nz/Editable/news/conferences.shtml
Some of the highlights are outlined below in the message from Mayer Garry Daniell. I will also be advising you of the remits for the AGM in the next few days.
Conference 2011 - poised to inform and entertain
We invite you to register online: www.mstn.govt.nz/events/sistercities2011/index.php for the 2011 Sister Cities conference, coming up in Masterton 27-29 April. Mayor Daniells looks forward to welcoming you to his region for an enjoyable and constructive conference.
The latest news from Mayor Garry Daniells can be seen at www.sistercities.org.nz/Editable/news/conferences.shtml and highlights a programme which takes a searching look at sister city relationships, now and especially as we attempt to look into the future to ensure value. Highlights include:
• US Ambassador David Huebner
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs CEO John Allen with views from NZ embassies around the world
• A series of Sister Cities in Action vignettes showing varied activities in practice
• Hutt City and Tauranga share their approaches to measuring the value and success of sister city relationships
• Senior NZTE staff facilitating sessions around using Sister City networks to build trade relationships, and to leverage major events
• Sister Cities New Zealand strategic planning session, followed by the AGM
• Air New Zealand Awards Dinner and Royal Wedding Feast
Mayor Daniells says that "The distress of the Christchurch and now the Japanese tragic natural disasters affect us all. New Zealand’s response to assist our Japanese colleagues has been prompt and practical in their time of need, and from all accounts much appreciated. We have added a special vignette highlighting one such local initiative."
We are particularly pleased to thank our sponsors for their invaluable support:
CLAIR (Council of Local Authorities for International Relations- Sydney); ANZ Bank; New Zealand Trade & Enterprise (NZTE), Trusthouse Charitable Trust; , and EDANZ.
Time Out in New Zealand
We are pleased to advise you of Sister CitiesNZ involvement in this initiative which has been endorsed by our Embassy in Tokyo and AirNZ. This initiative will be showcased at conference so Click here to link to the media release.
A number of you have already initiated host families and the timeout in NZ website timeoutinnz.org.nz/ will allow you to identify initiatives that may support your families, and may encourage you to work towards widening your efforts. For those of you that have already had families arrive the following information may be useful:
Foreign nationals are allowed to study on any temporary visa for up to 3 months, but if their study is to extend beyond 3 months, they should apply for a student visa. Japan is a visa free country so they can obtain an individual visitor visa on landing and they should enrol with a signatory school of the Code of Practice of Pastoral Care of International Students (the Code). The school will assist you to contact the Code Office at the Ministry for info and assistance if you are still unsure:
If schools agree to host them for free and for a duration of under 2 weeks, they can be hosted as “visitors” (as opposed to “students”) and “visitors” don’t need to be enrolled.
This means they could be hosted by any school, including those that are not signatories to the Code.For those enrolled at Code signatory schools, the Code requires schools to ensure that they comply with the Code in providing pastoral care to their international students, including setting standards/procedures for homestay such as police vetting. You can find Japanese and English versions of the Code here
: but the Time out website will also be able to offer you information and assistance.
If you know of families willing to assist would you please put them in touch with the Time Out in NZ website.
Cultural Exchange - Rayal Centre, Kurdistan
Sister CitiesNZ has received an invitation from the Rayal Centre, Kurdistan, IRAQ for a member to establish a Friendship and Cultural relationship. Rayal is a non-governmental center in Kurdistan Region in Iraq. It is a center for cultural exchange and cultural activities. The center is working to develop cultural exchanges among different nations and to create friendship among them.
I quote below and invite anyone interested to make further contact:
"The main purpose of the center is respecting human rights and developing democracy.The signs of the center are (friendship, peace, dialogue). The center has a legal permission to work from the
Ministry of Interior by the order number (28994) in 12th of December 2010. The main aims of the center arecreating relationships among different nations and cultures to know different cultures, exchanging cultures amongthem, knowing each other better, accepting each other with the respect of all the varieties, and visiting each other so as to make use of the experiences of each other.
We have a good experiences in this aspect , for instance creating a culture relationship and culture exchange between the two cities , ( Rania) in Kurdistan Region of Iraq and (Duluth) in Minnesota State in United State ofAmerica ."
On behalf of Rayal Center
Khaled Qader Muhammed
Address of place:– Kurdistan- Iraq
Contact number: 0964 770 155 3044
Email address: rayal_center@yahoo.com
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