Gisborne District Sister Cities Inc. has the following relationships:
Sister city
Established 23 April 1981
- McCallum Aesthetic Education Programme – teacher exchange.
- Artist in Residence – Gisborne / Palm Desert biennial exchange.
- Palm Desert garden and cacti house within Gisborne's Botanical Gardens.
Established 30 March 1990
- Student exchanges between – Lytton High School, Gisborne NZ / Nonoichi and Fusui JHS Japan.
- Taiko drums purchased by GDSC / housed at Lytton High School for tutorials and general appreciation.
- Japanese garden with water feature within Gisborne's Botanical Gardens.
Established 3 August 1996
- Exchanges and reciprocal visits of interest include education, cultural, economic, agriculture, horticulture, forestry and food producing.
Established 2006.
- Interests in common include relative Polynesian and Pacific cultures.
Historical associations such as Captain James Cook’s observation of the “Transit of Venus” at Mahina, then (accompanied by “Tupaea” the high priest navigator and interpreter from Mahina), his 1769 “Voyage of Discovery”, first siting and land fall being “Young Nick’s Head and Poverty Bay on (9 Oct 1769) now known as the “City of Gisborne”, (first city to see the sun).
Sister port
- Photographic competition – annual event with Gisborne and Gamagori entries exchanged.
Friendly city
- Relationship via Maori Battalion.
- Relationship via Jose Manuel family.
- Relationship to promote a range of products including our Gisborne wines.
- Relationship – navigational traditions link – Captain James Cook, Whitby North Yorkshire UK.
Gisborne Town est.1994 as sister city.
- The Australian garden within our Botanical Gardens, features Australian trees and a sculpture - 'rain catcher'.
If you would like more information about the Sister Cities programme, please email the the Sister Cities Secretary