12 Coloradans Are Headed to Palestine This Month for Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project
Press Release February 22, 2017: Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project
Boulder, CO – Recently designated official sister-city status between Boulder and Nablus adds greater purpose to a delegation of at least 12 Coloradans planning to travel to the Palestinian city of Nablus next month. Delegates will act as person-to-person cultural ambassadors representing the people of Boulder as they learn about Nablusi culture and build bridges of understanding between the two sister cities. As part of this mission, the delegation is planning a unique fundraiser designed to introduce Boulder to Middle-eastern culture.
Delegation Focused on Relationships and Exchange Projects
The delegation will establish frameworks for collaboration between the two cities as well as attend the 2nd Annual Nablus Cultural Festival, an international event that brings hundreds of artists from around the world to Nablus. The delegation hopes to accomplish two specific goals: learning more about the people and culture of Nablus, and meeting potential partners with whom to pursue future collaboration and to strengthen existing ones.
Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project (BNSCP) board chair Essrea Cherin serves as the delegation leader. Other delegates include four other board members, two local schoolteachers, a yoga expert (who will offer yoga workshops for teachers and students during the delegation), dancers (who attended the first Nablus Cultural Festival in 2016), a UN polio eradicator, an Israeli-American Boulder journalist, a high-school student, and a medical professional, all of whom are interested in pursuing artistic, professional, and educational exchange with people in Nablus. Delegates represent Coloradans of all ages (from 17-70), many faiths, and diverse backgrounds.
“What they all have in common,” says Cherin, “is the desire to serve as citizen diplomats in the spirit of sister cities, and a commitment to pursue cultural exchange between Boulder and Nablus. We plan to go with an emphasis on service and collaboration and to network with professional counterparts so we can host Nablusis in Boulder, produce Palestinian cultural events, and share expertise between people of both cities.” The Boulder2Nablus March/April 2017 delegation has been meeting and planning a focused and productive visit to Nablus for the past six months.
Essrea Cherin, president of the Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project, center.Boulder Event Both an Introduction to Middle-eastern Culture and Delegation Fundraiser
As the delegates represents many artistic fields and communities, Cherin explains, “we decided to create a fundraising event to introduce Boulder to the Middle-eastern culture we are so passionate about while also raising funds to support the delegation.” The event is dubbed the “Delegation Illumination Celebration.”
“This event will be more than a fundraiser,” says Anastacia Dadashpour, one of the Celebration’s organizers. “We are intending for it to be a celebration of Middle-eastern culture, music, and art. We envision introducing Coloradans to a culture we love and believe this event is particularly relevant at a time when we need to appreciate the cultural heritage of all our fellow Americans as well as people from around the globe.”
The Delegation Illumination Celebration will feature Middle-eastern themed performers and food, belly dancing, short films produced by a Palestinian film-maker, drumming, storytelling, a silent auction, jewelry for sale, billiards, and presentations by past and current delegates as well as (via video) several project partners in Nablus.
Event Features Successful Local Bands and a DJ Dance Party
Musical headliner Sherefe is a well-known and widely-admired local Middle-eastern-inspired band and for the first time ever on a Boulder stage, Palestinian hip hop artist Hajj MC. To wind things up, DJ Orpheus will spin dance music saturated with Middle-eastern beats. After showcasing Nabulsi culture here in Boulder, the delegation is committed to doing the same in Nablus: Introducing its people to the people and culture of Boulder.
The Delegation Illumination Celebration takes place at Oddfellows Hall, a beautiful space on Pearl Street (at the corner of 16th, above Crossroads). Tickets can be purchased or donations made at bit.do/boulder2nablus. Admission is $20 (VIP levels also available). The event also has a Facebook page at: bit.do/b2nfacebook
About the Boulder-Nablus Sister City Project
The BNSCP is a non-profit organization responsible for the sister-city relationship between Nabulsis and Boulderites, a project that invites direct contact and a platform for deeper understanding of each other. As part of Sister Cities International, BNSCP’s mission is to foster relationships through cultural, educational, information, and trade exchanges, inspiring lifelong friendships that support prosperity and peace through person-to-person ‘citizen diplomacy’ as envisioned by the program’s founder, President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The project’s website is: bouldernablus.org
More information about sister cities is available here: sister-cities.org
About Nablus
Nablus is the third oldest continuously inhabited city in the world, a rich cultural gem located in the West Bank and accessible via Jordan and Israel. Located just 3km from the Biblical city of Shechem, the city has a highly educated population, the West Bank’s largest university, and a location similar to Boulder’s, nestled within the hills. In addition to a rich cultural history, Nablus features ancient architecture, an olive-oil soap factory, olive oil production, among others.
