Belfast's Lord Mayor Brian Kingston led a delegation of elected officials and city leaders to Nashville for a series of meetings to further enhance our partnership.  Best practices were shared on both sides.  The group met with Mayor Barry; economic and development officials; the Convention & Visitors Corp.; Chamber of Commerce; Casa Azafran; the Metro Police Department; and the Oasis Center, among many others.  Lord Mayor Kingston addressed Metro Council members during their regular meeting.  He also managed to run the Titans 5K prior to his departure.  Their trip culminated in a final evening enjoying the Grand Ole Opry. 

A delegation traveled to Chengdu, China to participate in the Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship Conference and to Taiyuan, China to meet with city leaders and commemorate the tenth anniversary of our twinning.  Metro Council Member Sheri Weiner shared an overview of Nashville's economy during presentations in both cities.  Delegates also had the opportunity to visit Yuying High School in Taiyuan, where we have been implementing reciprocal student exchanges since 2013.

This spring, Sister Cities welcomed high school and college students from three different continents.  High school delegations from Taiyuan, China; Mendoza, Argentina; Belfast, Northern Ireland and Magdeburg, Germany all enjoyed staying with local host families, attending school with their host, touring local attractions and meeting elected officials during their stay in Music City. A university group from Mendoza also participated in a two-week exchange at Belmont University where they studied business and entrepreneurship. Students from Belfast's Ulster University came on a first-time exchange to study our Civil Rights history.  More than 50 Nashville families were involved in hosting and volunteering during these exchanges.