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Gladstone Saiki Sister City Advisory Committee
As part of the Sister City program Gladstone Regional Council support the Gladstone Saiki Sister City Advisory Committee as a recognised advisory committee to Council. The committee was first established in 1997 with the purpose to provide Council with strategic advice and support on ways to enhance the sister city program and relationship. The Committee undertakes the facilitation and organisation of arts, cultural, social and recreational exchanges and activities with the objective of nurturing and fostering the sister city relationship, celebrating diversity within the Gladstone Region and creating a more connected community. The committee meet once a month from February – November inclusive and welcome guests to their meetings.
To register your interest in being involved with the committee or if you have any questions or suggestions for the committee, you can contact them via email.
Meet your committee:
Yukiko (Yuki) is originally from Japan and moved to Australia in 2013. She has lived in Gladstone since 2014 and was first appointed a committee member in November 2019.
Born and brought up in Japan she has good understanding of Japanese people and their culture. Also being a native speaker of Japanese, she would love to contribute to and promote the relationships between Gladstone and Saiki. In Japan she was a senior high school teacher (teaching English as a second language), whose roles included but not limited to planning and organising school trips to other countries.
Yuki has been proud of the outcomes of the Committee’s involvement in the Schools Exchange Program, installation of Shorebird Artwork on Goondoon Street, Children’s Day at GRAGAM and Intercity Images (photographic exchange).
Yuki has been involved in several translation projects with the committee and enjoys volunteering her language skills for the benefit of the Gladstone-Saiki relationship.
Chris has lived in quite a few places in his time, growing up in Canberra and moving to Queensland when he was 12 years old. Following completion of University in Brisbane, he spent time in Japan before returning to Australia about ten years ago for work. Chris has lived in Gladstone since 2014 and became a member of the committee in 2015.
Chris works at a local high school as a teacher of Science and Japanese language. Through his work, he has been heavily involved with the planning and running of the student cultural exchange program between high schools in Gladstone and Junior High Schools in Saiki. Chris has travelled to Saiki twice on these exchanges and found it to be a fantastic experience both times. Chris also has a strong interest in Japan and Japanese culture through work, family and hobbies. Chris aims to assist the residents of the Gladstone Region to better understand and experience the rich culture of Japan.
Chris has been proud of the great experiences that our local high school students have had when visiting Saiki as part of the cultural exchange program. He also enjoys regular communication with the schools in Saiki and the Japanese teachers he has met on his visits to Saiki. When Chris lived in Japan, he loved walking through the countryside and experiencing the amazing blend of traditional architecture mixed with picturesque forests and plains. Saiki is a beautiful city and Chris would very much like to visit again when given the chance.
Robbie first started to attend meetings at the start of 2021 as she was interested in the relationship between the two cities and how to promote an awareness of the relationship with Japan and especially the connection with Saiki in her Japanese classes. Robbie enjoys teaching Japanese at St Francis Catholic School in Tannum Sands every Tuesday, where she promotes the love of the Japanese language and Culture to all the students from Prep to year 6.
Before moving to Gladstone at the beginning of 2016 with her young family, you could find her sailing around the Whitsundays, when she wasn’t in the classroom. Robbie has a passion of travel and education and has taught English in Japan, Maths and Girls Physical Education in the Maldives and STEM and sailing experiences in the United States of America.
Robbie loves how the Gladstone Regional Art Gallery and Museum supports the cultural link between the two cities, particularly the Children’s Day festivals and exhibitions. It is her hope to add to these art works with her students. Robbie looks forward to knowing more about the connection of the two cities and hopes she can contribute to making the bond stronger. She is excited for the works being completed in the Japanese Garden at Tondoon Botanical Gardens with the installation of the water fountain and the Bonsai House. Even though her thumbs are far from green she hopes that she will be able to keep her bonsai alive.
Bev grew up in the countryside of Monto and in 1969 she moved to Gladstone with her husband, where she raised her three children. A true community champion, you will see Bev out and about in the region volunteering on many committees and events such as Scouts, Rotary Sunrise, Friends of the Theatre (an amazing 38 years’ service!), GAPDL, Foodbank, Harbour Festival and she has been on the Saiki Committee for around 20 years.
In 1999, Bev’s youngest son participated in the first high school exchange program between Gladstone and Saiki, sparking her interest in Japan and the Japanese Culture. This inspired Bev to later join the Saiki Committee and visit Japan herself. Bev has made life long Japanese friends who have also visited Australia for special occasions such as her son’s wedding and has hosted multiple exchange students over the years. Bev loves the generous nature of the Japanese residents, the hospitality they have shown her, their beautiful plants, temples and picturesque mountains.
Bev has loved being able to share the Australian culture with her Japanese guests, touring them around the region and spending days with them on the beautiful Gladstone Harbour. Bev is especially proud of the Saiki Shorebird Artwork and how it symbolises the friendship between Saiki City and the Gladstone Region, feeling this connection deeply herself.
Maureen has lived in the Gladstone region all her life; in fact, both her parents were born in the Boyne Valley. She has been a member of the Sister City Committee for many years, most of that time dealing with it first-hand while an employee of Gladstone Regional Council.
Although she has been a local all her life, it doesn’t mean that she hasn’t ventured to many other parts of our amazing world. She loves Japan, its culture and its people and has travelled to many parts of that beautiful country. Her 3 visits include 2 to Sister City Saiki.
Maureen has enjoyed organising the itineraries for the visitors as they “Get to know Gladstone”. The shorebirds project has also been a very interesting representation of our relationship.
Maureen has plans to visit Japan again and see more areas of this fascinating country but also drop in on Saiki and continue friendships made over the years.
Originally from Brisbane, Jaclyn moved to Gladstone in 2022 and became a member of the committee in 2023. Jaclyn became interested in the committee when she first moved from Brisbane and noticed the welcome sign on the drive into Gladstone. Having lived on the southern island of Japan, Kyushu, for 5 years, she instantly recognized the name “Saiki” and wanted to learn more about the relationship between Saiki and Gladstone.
During her time in Japan, Jaclyn travelled to every corner of the country, visiting 44 of the 47 prefectures. She loves sampling the regional cuisines and discovering new favourite spots. Her all-time favourite will always be the first place that she lived in, Miyazaki, but Oita (where Saiki is located) is very nice also.
Jaclyn hopes to contribute to the goals of the committee by sharing her knowledge, time, and passion for Australia-Japan relations.
Carolina Bocos, a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, is a product of the lively and bustling atmosphere of the vibrant port city. Raised in a middle-class family, she held a steadfast belief in the power of dedication and hard work to unlock opportunities. Carolina's academic journey culminated in the completion of a Business Degree with honours, leading her to a successful corporate career with two technology corporations having subsidiaries in Buenos Aires. It was within this professional trajectory that she encountered her Australian husband, a meeting that prompted her to take a leap of faith and migrate to a new continent, marking a challenging yet transformative period in her life.
During the transition, Carolina tapped into the strength of community connections to establish a sense of identity and belonging in her new environment. Actively engaging with various community groups, she discovered a passion for Community Events Sponsorship & Relations. As a recent addition to the Committee, Carolina is enthusiastic about collaborating with a diverse and knowledgeable team. Her commitment lies in fostering cultural diversity and building connections within the community through the arts, exemplifying her dedication to both connecting with and giving back to the community. Carolina's personal aspirations include a dream of traveling to Japan with her family, where she envisions exploring the majestic Mt. Fuji, immersing herself in the beauty of cherry blossoms, and savouring the diverse and delectable Japanese cuisine.
Peter is a Gladstone Region local, having attended Calliope State School, Star of the Sea, Channel College and Gladstone State High. A carpenter and cabinetmaker by trade, Peter has worked for many international companies and has a keen interest in learning about diverse cultures, especially their customs and cuisine.
Peter has spent a lot of time travelling abroad and dedicated several years as Vice President and President of the Gladstone Multicultural Society. You may see Peter’s familiar face as a volunteer of Rotary Club of Gladstone Midday, where he recently received the Paul Harris Fellow Award for his outstanding voluntary work in the region. Peter has also previously been awarded the Australia Day Community Volunteer Award by the Gladstone Regional Council. A previous member of the Saiki Sister City Committee, Peter has returned to share his knowledge with the group and strengthen cultural bonds between the Gladstone Region and Saiki City.
Sister City Initiatives
The Gladstone region and Saiki City each have commemorative gardens that honour the sister city friendship, developed through a cultural exchange. The Japanese Tea House is located at Tondoon Botanic Gardens, likewise a Kangaroo Garden can be seen in Saiki City.
Japanese Tea House
Also known as "The Garden of Stillness and Movement", the importance of nature in Japanese culture is displayed in this traditional ornamental landscaped garden and tea house. The structure was built in 2000 by Shiggeru Shimatzu, using traditional Japanese methods.
The Japanese Tea house is also a popular wedding location that produces stunning photographs and leaves a memorable impression on guests.
Kangaroo Garden
The Kangaroo Garden (Kangaroo Hiroba) in Saiki City represents the friendship with the Gladstone Region, with kangaroo sculptures, Indigenous Australian artwork and native Australian trees planted in a ceremony with the mayor of each city in 2004.
On 4 September 2021, the Gladstone Region and Saiki City celebrated the 25th anniversary of the signing of the declaration of friendship between the two cities.
To commemorate this milestone, three stainless steel shorebird artworks have been installed at the entrance of the Gladstone Regional Council Civic Centre.
The three stainless-steel bird shapes created by Margaret Worthington and Clive Rouse, represent three shorebird species that are seen in the Gladstone Harbour. A Bar-tailed Godwit, Far Eastern Curlew and Grey-tailed Tattler are identified by their beak shape in this contemporary work. Shorebirds are used to symbolise how people of Australia and Japan are connected by this amazing migration.
These birds can travel over 13,000km during migration and are known to travel via Japan on their trip South.
A number of Shorebird monitoring programs exist.
For more information on Shorebirds please visit:
- Queensland Wader Study Group: https://waders.org.au/
- Birdlife Capricornia: https://birdlife.org.au/locations/birdlife-capricornia
The designer Margaret Worthington is a keen member of both Birdlife Capricornia and the Queensland Wader Study Group and participates in bird counts in this region.
Further examples of her work visit www.margaretworthington.com.
Shorebirds are used to symbolise how people of the Gladstone Region and Saiki City are connected through their amazing migration story. To deepen this understanding, the Sister City Committee, in partnership with Birdlife Capricornia, were pleased to present a copy of the Art and Science of Shorebirds Book with accompanying curriculum to each of the region’s high schools. The gift packs to high schools include:
- The Art and Science of Shorebirds by Science Writer Allan Briggs and illustrated by Artists Margaret Worthington, Veronika Zeil, and Sarah Harald
- A biology-based science lesson on shorebird migration developed by Birdlife Capricornia in line with the Australian National Curriculum
- School activity booklet on the sister city
- Calendar of events for the Saiki Sister City Committee
- Jigsaw Puzzle of the Japanese Tea House Gardens at Tondoon Botanic Gardens
The committee hope to continue celebrating the sister city relationship with the community, promoting dialogue, and enhancing awareness of the meaningful relationship for years to come. For Further information on accessing the curriculum document and support on how to deliver the lesson, please contact Allan Briggs by email at abriggs@irock.com.au
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