ACT Government Chief Minister's Department: Canberra Nara Sister Cities

The official relationship | Canberra_Nara Park | Candle Festival

The Canberra Nara Sister City Relationship

Canberra, Australia ’s youngest city and its national capital and Nara, Japan’s first permanent capital are sister cities. Canberra celebrates its centenary in 2013, while Nara’s marks 1300 years of continuing history in 2010. As cities of significance, Canberra and Nara are rich in heritage, culture and tradition.

The Sister City Proclamation was signed in 1993. The following year, to mark the important connection between the two cities, Mayor of Nara, Mr Yasunori Ohkawa, led a delegation of 140 Nara officials and citizens to Canberra, beginning a tradition of citizen exchanges.

In the ensuing years the Canberra - Nara friendship has been further strengthened through community activities, sporting, educational and cultural exchanges.

The Canberra Nara Sister City Committee plays an important role in initiating projects and facilitating contact between the two communities. The ACT and Nara city governments also foster the city-to-city friendship.

Canberra Nara Park

A milestone in the history of the relationship has been the creation of Canberra-Nara Park in Lennox Gardens. The citizens of Nara raised $100,000 for the development of the park, as well as constructing and shipping to Canberra two of the largest stone lanterns ever made in Japan. These lanterns, together with a large wooden gate and gazebo, feature prominently in the park.

Canberra Nara Park

Canberra Nara Candle Festival

Another notable development has been the establishment of an annual candle festival. Based on a much larger festival in Nara, the Canberra Candle Festival is held in Canberra-Nara Park. Around 2000 candles transform the dry creek-bed in the centre of the park into a glowing river of fire. The festival, like its counterpart in Nara, is aimed at promoting peace and goodwill.

Canberra Nara Candle Festival

Contact Details

Contact details for the Canberra Nara Sister City secretariat:

Mail Address:
Chief Minister's Department
Canberra Nara Sister City secretariat
GPO Box 158
Canberra ACT 2601

Location:
Canberra Nara Centre
Cnr Constitution Ave & London Circuit
Canberra City ACT 2601

Telephone: +61 2 6205 0887 (International)
Fax: +61 2 6207 0025

To contact the Canberra Nara Sister City secretariat via email, please contact CanberraNara.SisterCity@act.gov.au