COMMUNITY IOWA SISTER STATES Connecting with our world community is something that all Iowans have an opportunity to do! Over the next several months we will be featuring Iowa Sister States to talk about what partners the state of Iowa has around the world. Here is an overview of the organization to begin this journey. Iowa Sister States (ISS) is a non-profit that was founded in 1985 to manage the official relationships established by the Governor of Iowa with foreign states. There are nine of these including: Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan (1960), Yucatan, Mexico (1965), Hebei Province, China (1983), Terengganu, Malaysia (1987), Stavropol Krai, Russia (1988), Taiwan (1989), Cherkasy Oblast, Ukraine (1996), Veneto Region, Italy (1997) and the Republic of Kosovo (2013). ISS is a volunteer-driven organization dedicated to connecting Iowans with the world community. Our mission is to develop and implement international partnerships and programs that promote cultural, economic, and other interests of the State of Iowa and its citizens through volunteer, public, and private action. We do this by facilitating and hosting exchange programs between Iowa and our various sister states. We also foster conferences and summits in Iowa that relate directly to our mission statement. ISS is committed to exposing Iowans to people, ideas, and experiences that are of an international flair. We bring the world to Iowa by providing opportunities statewide for Iowans to communicate with people from different cultures. This helps to bring Iowans a cultural experience and openness that they might not otherwise have access to. We also facilitate exchanges that send Iowans to our sister states. April 2019 The URBAN EXPERIENCE 27 Overall, we strive to be a leader in integrating Iowans with the world community. Stay tuned for our first partner feature – Yamanashi Prefecture in Japan! Connect with Iowa Sister States in the meantime on Facebook and Twitter at @IASisterStates, on Instagram at @IowaSisterStates or visit their website at www.iowasisterstates.org.
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