Sister Cities International Conference - Cities Mean Business

Marriott Marquis Houston 1777 Walker Street Houston, TX, 77010 United States (map)

Houston is host of the Sister Cities International (SCI) Annual Conference celebrating peace through people-to-people relationships.

The theme of the 63rd annual gathering, “Cities Mean Business,” correlates with SCI Mission: to be the Global Resource for International Cities.

This conference will:

Help SCI relationships spark business opportunities
Provide practical networking and collaboration tools
Integrate Global Citizenship with NxtGen and Young Professionals Model success in Africa, China, Germany, Japan and Mexico

WEDNESDAY, JULY 17

THURSDAY, JULY 18

7:30am | Registration and Continental Breakfast
9:15am | Opening Flag Ceremony
11:00am | Board Candidates Forum
12:00pm | Lunch (Keynote: Marie Royce)
1:30pm | Conference Break-out Tracks(T1) Business and Diplomacy; (T2) Culture is Business; and (T3) Unique Cities
- 1:30pm | (T1) Online Gaming; (T2) Music Diplomacy; (T3) Port/Coastal Cities
- 2:30pm | (T1) Diplomacy Through Sports; (T2) The Business of Art (Dance/Folk/Digital); (T3) Innovation Through Adversity/Resilience
- 3:30pm | Annual Board Meeting and Election of Officers
5:30pm | Mayor’s City Welcome Reception (offsite)

FRIDAY, JULY 19

7:30am | Registration and Breakfast
8:00am | Diplomatic Briefings (Plenary)
9:00am | Global Awareness Tea Regional Presentations
10:45am | Conference Break-out Tracks: (T1) Sister Cities How-To’s; (T2) Mayors How-To’s; and (T3) Partnership How-To’s
11:30am Lunch (Keynote TBD)
1:00pm | Conference Break-out Tracks: (T1) Human Trafficking in MY Town?; (T2) New NLC Partnerships; and (T3) Partnering with Rotary
2:00pm | (T1) The ABC’s of SCI
- 2:30pm | US-Mexico Mini Summit (to 5:30pm)
- 2:30pm |US-Germany Mini Summit (to 5:30pm)
3:00pm | (T1) Working with Your Consulate
4:00pm | Youth Leadership Summit Final Simulation
6:00pm | Conference Cocktail Reception
7:00pm | Annual Awards Dinner and Gala