"Business follows relationships in Asia, yet we keep asking sister cities to deliver trade and business successes before the friendships have time to grow."
Dr. Scott Harrison
Connecting Histories, Shaping Futures
"Business follows relationships in Asia, yet we keep asking sister cities to deliver trade and business successes before the friendships have time to grow."
Dr. Scott Harrison
Connecting Histories, Shaping Futures
This report examines Japan-Canada twinning (sister city) relationships as a mechanism for fostering trans-Pacific people-to-people connections and non-central government diplomacy. At the time of writing, Japan had signed nearly 1,700 twinning agreements worldwide, with Canada representing its fifth largest partner. These relationships facilitate educational, cultural, and administrative exchanges, though their economic impact remains difficult to document, and many agreements face pressure to justify their value.
This report examines Japan-Canada twinning (sister city) relationships as a mechanism for fostering trans-Pacific people-to-people connections and non-central government diplomacy. At the time of writing, Japan had signed nearly 1,700 twinning agreements worldwide, with Canada representing its fifth largest partner. These relationships facilitate educational, cultural, and administrative exchanges, though their economic impact remains difficult to document, and many agreements face pressure to justify their value.
Key Insights
Japan’s Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR), established in 1988, provides national coordination and support for sister city relations through 67 domestic and seven international offices. In contrast, Canada lacks a central organization, relying instead on scattered municipal associations and volunteers, with knowledge and documentation dispersed across personal files and government and institutional archives. This fragmentation of data makes it challenging to conduct evidence-based analysis of the long-term impact of twinning relationships, leaving policy decisions vulnerable to anecdotal critique rather than being informed by systematic evaluation.
Japan-Canada twinning agreements have generated notable success in Indigenous cultural exchanges, such as the Kamui MIntara sculpture in Burnaby and Ainu-First Nations partnerships, as well as sustained educational programs like Alberta’s Japanese language curriculum supported by Hokkaido through the REX program since 1988. However, business exchanges constitute only 2% of North American twinning content, and directly attributing trade deals or economic development to specific agreements remains elusive- ironically, the very metric critics most frequently demand to justify these relationships’ existence and expense.
Key Insights
Japan’s Council of Local Authorities for International Relations (CLAIR), established in 1988, provides national coordination and support for sister city relations through 67 domestic and seven international offices. In contrast, Canada lacks a central organization, relying instead on scattered municipal associations and volunteers, with knowledge and documentation dispersed across personal files and government and institutional archives. This fragmentation of data makes it challenging to conduct evidence-based analysis of the long-term impact of twinning relationships, leaving policy decisions vulnerable to anecdotal critique rather than being informed by systematic evaluation.
Japan-Canada twinning agreements have generated notable success in Indigenous cultural exchanges, such as the Kamui MIntara sculpture in Burnaby and Ainu-First Nations partnerships, as well as sustained educational programs like Alberta’s Japanese language curriculum supported by Hokkaido through the REX program since 1988. However, business exchanges constitute only 2% of North American twinning content, and directly attributing trade deals or economic development to specific agreements remains elusive- ironically, the very metric critics most frequently demand to justify these relationships’ existence and expense.
View Article
This research began with a simple question that had no clear answer: What actually happens in Canada’s sister city relationships with Japan? Without a central database or coordinating body, I traced stories scattered across municipal archives, personal files, and the memories of volunteers and government officials - uncovering everything from an Ainu master carver’s impromptu proposal on Burnaby Mountain to decades-long Japanese language programs that started in a small Alberta town. What emerged was a portrait of grassroots international engagement that’s simultaneously more impactful and more fragile than anyone realizes, revealing why Japan maintains around 1,700 of these relationships while Canada struggles to keep a fraction of that number alive.
Scott Harrison, "Enhancing Trans-Pacific People-to-People Ties: Japan-Canada Twinning (Sister) Relationships.” Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. November 7, 2018
View Article
This research began with a simple question that had no clear answer: What actually happens in Canada’s sister city relationships with Japan? Without a central database or coordinating body, I traced stories scattered across municipal archives, personal files, and the memories of volunteers and government officials - uncovering everything from an Ainu master carver’s impromptu proposal on Burnaby Mountain to decades-long Japanese language programs that started in a small Alberta town. What emerged was a portrait of grassroots international engagement that’s simultaneously more impactful and more fragile than anyone realizes, revealing why Japan maintains around 1,700 of these relationships while Canada struggles to keep a fraction of that number alive.
Scott Harrison, "Enhancing Trans-Pacific People-to-People Ties: Japan-Canada Twinning (Sister) Relationships.” Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. November 7, 2018
Latest projects
Asia/Indo-Pacific
Japan-Canada Research and Policy Network
Exploring new horizons in trade, diplomacy, media and innovation
Asia/Indo-Pacific
Japan-Canada Research and Policy Network
Exploring new horizons in trade, diplomacy, media and innovation
Indigenous Internationalism
Indigenous Reconciliation in Canada, Taiwan, and Japan
Cross-Pacific Indigenous connections, cultural revitalization, policy reform, and pathways to justice
Indigenous Internationalism
Indigenous Reconciliation in Canada, Taiwan, and Japan
Cross-Pacific Indigenous connections, cultural revitalization, policy reform, and pathways to justice
Latest projects
Asia/Indo-Pacific
Japan-Canada Research and Policy Network
Exploring new horizons in trade, diplomacy, media and innovation
Indigenous Internationalism
Indigenous Reconciliation in Canada, Taiwan, and Japan
Cross-Pacific Indigenous connections, cultural revitalization, policy reform, and pathways to justice
