Wunderbar Together: Showcasing U.S.-German Sister Cities Partnerships

To view all Wunderbar Together blog posts, click here. To view all upcoming Sister Cities International events, click here.

Although the formal SCI Wunderbar Together partnership has concluded as of December 2019, numerous engagement ideas, models, and resources are available to continue strengthening community resilience and citizen diplomacy between the U.S. and Germany.

Through December 2019, Sister Cities International partnered with Wunderbar Together to showcase the shared heritage, values, and interests between the U.S. and Germany and how these have been strengthened by Sister Cities partnerships over the last 60 years. Germany has the fourth most U.S. sister cities in the world (100), including many of the oldest partnerships in the network, spanning 31 states. Through an integrated #SCIWunderbarTogether communications campaign, community engagement, and guiding our U.S.-German sister city members, we both highlighted and strengthened the person-to-person connections between the U.S. and Germany. We were especially interested in strengthening U.S.-German collaboration in community and climate resilience, showcasing the lasting impacts of citizen diplomacy through exchange, and featuring the diverse range of sister cities programming across the entire United States.

Videos Showcasing the Impact of the SCI Wunderbar Together Partnership

In 2019, four videos were produced to recap the impact of the SCI Wunderbar Together partnership. The videos, available in a playlist below, include an interview with SCI President and CEO Roger-Mark de Souza, a recap video on the importance of U.S.-German relationships, a video summary of the SCI BMW Spartanburg event, and a video summary of the St. Charles panel discussion.

Ways for Members and Partners to Stay Involved

View SCI Engagement Ideas, Language Templates, and Further Resources for U.S.-German Partnerships
U.S.-German Members: Join the “U.S.-German Member Community” Facebook group
Member submissions for our blog: We highly encourage members to submit text+image or video testimonials, upcoming events, previous event summaries, and summaries of your U.S.-German partnerships through our Member Submission Form
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Promotion on social media/blogs: We would appreciate if you share our Wunderbar Together content through retweets/reposts/features on your blogs! For any content posted about U.S.-German sister cities, we also appreciate the use of our #SCIWunderbarTogether hashtag

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We also welcome new collaboration and cross-promotion avenues! If you have any further ideas or questions, you are welcome to email Sister Cities.

Recent Events

“The Path to Freedom and German Unity: The Peaceful Revolution and the Fall of the Berlin Wall 30 Years On” | Event by the American Council on Germany, Sister Cities of Nashville, and Wunderbar Together | November 18

The event was held at Lipscomb University in Nashville. Approximately 70 guests attended the reception and listened to remarks from NY Consul General David Gill about his experience growing up in the former East Germany and the defining events that led to the fall of the Berlin Wall and witnessing (literally) the Wall coming down on November 9, 1989. There was opportunity for Q&A after his remarks. Attendees included a Metro Council member, a former Nashville Mayor, and a former Consul General to Leipzig, among other notables.

“America and Germany: Friends in Business and Community” | SCI Regional Event at the BMW Zentrum in Spartanburg | November 2

On Saturday, November 2, 2019, Sister Cities International hosted a regional gathering to highlight and celebrate Sister Cities across the Carolinas and Virginia with a special focus on German- American programs and relationships.

Location: BMW Zentrum (Hall)
Spartanburg, South Carolina

[button url=”https://sistercities.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/SCI-BMW-Spartanburg-Event-Press-Release_RM.pdf” target=”_blank|_self” style=”xsmall|small|normal”]Press Release[/button]

[button url=”https://sistercities.org/posts/bmw-spartanburg-summary” style=”xsmall|small|normal”]Summary Blog Post[/button]

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Wunderbar Together is a comprehensive and collaborative initiative funded by the German Federal Foreign Office, implemented by the Goethe-Institut, and supported by the Federation of German Industries (BDI). Working with over 200 partners, it is showcasing the close bonds between the U.S. and Germany in over 2,500 events in all 50 states. For more information, please visit the Wunderbar Together website here.