The Global Affairs Team in the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development held a 60th Sister City Anniversary Kickoff with the city of Kyoto, Japan on Tuesday in City Hall to start a year of public programing to celebrate the anniversary.
Midori Morikawa, the director of business strategy for Mayor Martin Walsh’s office, explained at the event the anniversary holds special significance because of the importance of the number 60 in Japanese culture.
“Sixty is a significant number in Japan, it means Kanreki, which means, basically, rebirth,” Morikawa said. “So when you turn 60, when the Japanese turned 60, they have a whole ceremony where they’re going back as a baby, and they’re starting their life over again, and starting a second life.”
Morikawa said Boston and Kyoto have many similarities, such as their rich histories, cultures and commerce.
“Kyoto is also a hub of innovation, science and technology, and hosts many many universities that are competitive,” Morikawa said at the event.
Rokuichiro Michii, the consul general of Japan in New England, read aloud at the event a letter written by Kyoto Mayor Daisaku Kadokawa. In the letter, Kadokawa wrote he looks forward to visiting Boston later this year.
“I am planning to visit your city to see Walsh and, of course, the citizens of Boston, and I am looking forward to that opportunity,” Michii read from Kadokawa’s letter. “I would like to send my best wishes for the success of this event and the good health and the happiness for the people who are celebrating today.”
Sarah Delude, the international business strategy manager for the Mayor’s Office of Economic Development, said the kickoff and the rest of the anniversary celebrations are meant to unite the community of Boston.
“We wanted to bring together the Boston community, not just the Japanese community, and that was our philosophy from the beginning,” Delude said. “This is a celebration for everyone, not only the Japanese community, and an opportunity to celebrate Japanese culture and history and also the future.”
The two cities will continue to learn from one another and work to make both cities better, Delude said after the celebrations.
“We’re going to include some language around economic development since we both are really strong healthcare hubs in our respective countries,” Delude said. “As well as sustainability, and resilience and climate change, those are really important issues for us in Boston, and they’re doing some really wonderful work in Kyoto as well, particularly on recycling.”
John Michael Kennedy, the public relations representative for the Society of Arts and Crafts in Boston, said the society will be participating in the celebratory events by hosting an exhibition of art from Kyoto.
“The Society of Arts and Crafts is a free space for people to come and see the exhibition,” Kennedy said. “And then throughout the run of that, we will be doing demonstrations of a tea ceremony, and kibana, incense mastery, so all sorts of things to enhance people’s experience.”
Molly Nelson Regan, the marketing and communications manager at the Society of Arts and Crafts, said she is excited the anniversary celebrations are bringing different community organizations together.
“We’re really excited to begin new partnerships with other organizations in the City within in our new gallery space for about two and a half years now,” Regan said.
Sam Aldrich, the exhibition associate and emerging curator of the Society, said his goal for the anniversary celebration is to do justice to the art from Kyoto.
“I think [the goal is] to build a really strong relationship,” Aldrich said, “and be able to celebrate the event by pooling our resources and really doing it justice.”
