SCI: Sustainable Development

BUFFALO SISTER CITY PROGRAM HOSTS OPEN WORLD PROGRAM RUSSIAN DELEGATES
Delegates from Russia to learn about women's leadership in the United States

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                             December 1, 2006

Local Contact Information: Sean M. Shinners, 716.881.3938, shinners39@aol.com

Sister Cities International Contact Information:
Ami Neiberger-Miller, 202.347.8630 ext. 8251, amiller@sister-cities.org

BUFFALO, NY- It may seem like a long journey, but for five Russian delegates wanting to learn more about women in leadership - a trip to their sister city in Buffalo is the trip of a lifetime.

The delegates from Russia will arrive in Buffalo on December 9, 2006 to participate in the Open World Program. They will spend the majority of their 8-day visit in Buffalo experiencing the city's culture and learning about local organizations that help women with career development.

The Buffalo-Tver Sister Cities Organization and the International Institute of Buffalo are hosting the delegates during their stay. The five delegates are Tatina Kulikova, Natalia Mochalova, Zhanna Shushmanova, Andrey Solin, and facilitator Tatiana Shilina.

The Russian delegates will visit the Everywoman Opportunity Center, Cornell University's School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Canisius College Women's Business Center, and the Buffalo City Hall. They will experience some of Buffalo's more unique sights including Niagara Falls and the Fairgrounds Holiday Lights Festival. In addition, the delegates will meet notable woman leaders, including Congresswoman Louise Slaughter.

Sixteen years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the Russian Federation is well into the post-Soviet Russia transition. The delegates hope their visit to Buffalo will provide them with valuable tools to learn about women and leadership roles that they can apply after returning home.

It's a hope shared by their colleagues in the United States too. Sean Shinners of the Buffalo-Tver Sister City organization has visited Russia numerous times. He has observed the "increasing recognition of women as leaders in Russia." "Our guests will learn from numerous meetings with women leaders and be able to apply their experience in the U.S. to their work and home environments."

The Buffalo-Tver sister city relationship began in 1985. Tver is an ancient city located in western Russia where the Volga and Tvertsa rivers meet. It is an industrial city mainly based in textiles and other light industries.

The Open World Program focuses on bringing young political and civic leaders from Russia and Ukraine to the United States for a hands-on introduction to American democracy and free enterprise. It is sponsored by the Open World Leadership Center, an independent agency established and funded by the U.S. Congress and housed at Library of Congress. Sister Cities International and the Academy for Educational Development (AED) are partners in supporting the Open World Program. Themes for visits may encompass a wide range of issues, including health care, education, environment, women as leaders, and youth issues.

Each Open World community in the United States hosts a ten day visit for four delegates and one facilitator. Before the trip to their host city, the delegates attend a pre--departure program in Moscow or Kiev and then an orientation in Washington, D. C. to learn about basic United States government relationships, the balance of power and the rule of law.

About Sister Cities International
Representing more than 2,500 communities in 137 countries, Sister Cities International (www.sister-cities.org) is a citizen diplomacy network creating and strengthening partnerships between the U.S. and communities abroad. Begun in 1956 after a White House summit where U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower called for people-to-people exchanges, sister city partnerships are tailored to local interests and increase global cooperation at the grassroots level. Sister Cities International promotes peace through mutual respect, understanding and cooperation by focusing on sustainable development, youth and education, arts and culture, humanitarian assistance and economic growth programs.

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