Salt Lake City's involvement in the Sister Cities program began nearly 50 years ago with the establishment of a partnership with Matsumoto, Japan. Today, Salt Lake City enjoys seven Sister City and two Friendship City relationships. Though there is a vast range of diversity in these relationships, all share the common goal to promote peace through mutual respect, understanding, and cooperation. Each relationship Salt Lake City established was created for a different reason, under different circumstances. The measure of success for one relationship may not be the best measure for another, yet all have the ultimate goal of promoting peace. The reasons behind the creation of each of our partnerships include cultural exchange programs, humanitarian aid, dignitary visits, economic development and student, teacher and employee exchange programs.

Throughout the life of a Sister City relationship the goals may change or evolve, and the level of connectivity and involvement may vary greatly due to shifting political priorities, constantly changing city administrations, or even governmental instability. These constant changes create an ever evolving and fluctuating environment in which Sister City relationships must survive.

In an effort to protect and strengthen our Sister Cities program, given the continuous administrative changes, our Staff drafted a city ordinance to govern the sister cities program and create an official Board to oversee the program. This ordinance was supported by the Mayor and formally adopted by the City Council.

The adoption of the ordinance ensures the future protection of the program as well as its Board. It also demonstrates the strong commitment and support of the current Mayor and City Council.

Our Sister Cities Board is made up of community representatives with strong ties and interests in the sister cities program. In addition to our Board, a group of local representatives work behind the scenes to accomplish the tasks that make these relationships work. Without the dedication and commitment of our community volunteers we would not experience the level of success we have with our program.

Salt Lake City receives a steady stream of requests for Sister City partnership. In an effort to address these requests and ensure the success of any new relationship, our Board adopted a policy to first establish friendship city relationships. Before a Friendship City can be promoted to a Sister City, the benefits to both cities and strong community support for the relationship must be demonstrated during a two to three year assessment period. This assessment period will provide the opportunity for relationships to be evaluated to ensure the partnership is a good fit for both cities.

An active and equally beneficial relationship requires a great deal of time, effort and dedication from many participants. The rewards, however, far exceed the efforts expended and offer opportunities for life-long friendships that would not otherwise exist. One of the most rewarding benefits of being involved with the sister cities program is witnessing culturally diverse people joining together to celebrate their similarities while honoring their differences.

For information on Salt Lake City’s Sister City Program, please contact: