2011
April

Focus: Education
Education Sub-Committee Chair, Dr. Nesreen Akhtarkhavari, visited Amman and met with the Minister of Education, Greater Amman Municipality staff, Jordanian American Chamber of Commerce in Jordan and educators to discuss Sister City programming.

July

Focus: Humanitarian
The Amman committee hosted a dinner for H.E. Dr. Mohammad Al-Hadid, thePresident of the Jordanian Red Crescent and the Chair of the Commission of the Red Cross and Red Crescent International. The Committee discussed future opportunities to work with the Jordanian Red Crescent, including areas in women’s health, book drives and education.

2010
April

Focus: Government
His Majesty King Abdullah visited Chicago and gave a presentation at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.  He met with members of the Amman Committee afterwards.

Focus: Government
HE Mayor Maani participated in the 2010 Richard J. Daley Global Cities Forum, which  assembled the leaders of more than 100 cities and local governments, along with prominent business, civic, academic and foundation leaders for discussions on key urban issues. This year’s forum will addressed the theme, New Partnerships for a New Economy: Driving Innovation in Cities, and fostered a dialogue on the role of public-private partnerships as a key tool to help cities continue to deliver innovative programs and services in these challenging economic times.

Focus: Humanitarian
Mayor Richard M. Daley, members of the Amman Committee and Todd Murray, President of Beltone Electronics Corporation, welcomed Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan to Chicago on Friday, April 23. Beltone partnered Chicago Sister Cities International (CSCI) to donate 100 Beltone hearing instruments, worth more than $200,000, to the Holy Land Institute for the Deaf in Jordan. The hearing aids will benefit children with hearing impairment, some with additional disabilities such as cerebral palsy, low vision or intellectual impairment.

July

Focus: Education
Four students (two from Francis Parker High School and two from Lindblom High School) traveled to Amman, Jordan to participate in Queen Noor’s Arab Children’s Congress summer camp.  Chicago was the first American city represented at the camp and was chosen because of the active sister cities relationship. 

September

Focus: Cultural
The Chicago Sister Cities International Program hosted its 5th Annual Chicago Sister Cities International Festival at Millennium Park on August 23-27, 2010. This year marked the 50th Anniversary of Chicago Sister Cities International, and in celebration, the festival will transform Millennium Park’s South Promenade into an international village of food, music, dance and merchants. With all 28 of Chicago’s Sister Cities represented, this festival truly represents the diversity and international spirit that exists in Chicago.  Amman was represented by Ziyad Brother Importing, who had a photography display of prominent Arabs in Chicago.

November

Focus: Cultural
The Amman Committee of Chicago Sister Cities International with the Chicago Commission on Human Relations celebrated Arab Heritage Month with the Al Rabi Ensemble. The celebration featured classical and modern Middle Eastern music performed by internationally acclaimed master violinist Anton Shamoun at the beautiful Alhambra Palace Restaurant.

 

2009
March

"The Arab-Israeli Cookbook" performance was at the storefront theater.

June

Focus: Fundraiser
During the Chicago Sister Cities 4th Annual International Festival on Daley Plaza, the committee sold Garden hummus as a fundraiser for the Amman committee.

Focus: Government
Mayor Richard M. Daley traveled to Amman, Jordan to co-host the 2nd U.S. Arab Mayor's Forum with. Mayor Maani, Mrs. Daley and Amman committee members accompanied him and visited the King Hussein Cancer Center. The committee met to discuss upcoming collaborations.

Focus: Education
Six students (two from Francis Parker High School, two from Lindblom High School and two from the Jordanian community) participated in Queen Noor's Arab Children's Congress in Amman, Jordan. This prestegious event gives youth aged 14-16 the same opportunity as nations leaders to express their needs and aspirations and to be heard by decision makers in the Arab world. This is the 3rd year that Chicago was invited to attend the Congress because of the Sister City Relationship.

June 21

Focus: Government
The Jordanian Civil Defense held a ceremony honoring the U.S Embassy in Amman and the City of Chicago for items given as part of the State Department's Anti-Terrorism Assistance Program, including ambulances from the City of Chicago. In attendances was Price Faisal Bin Al-Hussein, Mayor Richard M. Daley, Mayor Omar Maani and Directorate Maj. Gen. Abdullah Hamadneh.

July

Focus: Educations
Four students from Peck Elementary School participated in the Greater Amman Municipality Summer Camp, for the third consecutive year. The students learned about the traditions of Jordan through different cultural visits, language classes, games and handcraft lessons. The students camped in tents for the week and visited historical sites in Amman and Petra and at Wadi Rum.

October

Focus: Education
Dr. Kayed Akkawi, Vice-Chair of the Amman Committee, was Principal for a Day at Pershing West Middle School.

October 1-4

Focus: Medical
Dr. Lina Marei from the King Hussein Cancer Center participated in the Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Symposium – Sister Cities Medical Initiative.

October 9

Focus: Parade
Greater Amman Municipality celebrated the 10th anniversary of His Majesty Kind Abdullah the 2nd accession to the throne and the Centennial anniversary of Greater Amman Municipalities. GAMs Centennial Parade was the first of its kind in the Middle East and was on sire to witness the historical event.

The organizers of the parade visited Chicago for the Thanksgiving Day Parade to gain mroe ideas for their next celebration.

November 5

Focus: Media
Dr. Kayed Akkawi was interviwed on Comcast's Public Perspective and spoke about the Jordanian community in Chicago and the activities of the Amman sister city committee.

November 18

Focus: Culture
The Amman committee helped celebrate Arab Heritage Month with a performance by Doris, a Middle Eastern singing sensation.




2008
January

Focus: Education
The CSCIP Education Team met with Dr. Akawi the Education Sub-Committee Chair for Amman and the principals from the Chicago schools interested in forming a partnership with schools in Amman late November. The Chicago schools are: Lindblom Math and Science Academy, Peck Elementary School, Roosevelt High School and Volta Elementary School. The contact persons at each of the Chicago schools will communicate with their counterparts in Amman hoping to get the program underway in the new year. Dr. Akawi also presented information on the Arab Children’s Conference and the Amman Summer Camp.

February 6

Focus: Art
The Committee and the Arabesque Foundation for Arab Culture cosponsored the Arabesque Music Ensemble performance of "The Music of the Three Musketeers"/"Al-Fursan at-Talatha" (music by three composers for the legendary Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum) in Preston Bradley Hall at the Chicago Cultural Center. Over 200 guests attended the concert.

April

Focus: Education
Robert Morris College donated several one-year old computers to Amman’s not-for-profit IT Centers, a need that was identified during the October education mission.

Focus: Government
Mayor Omar Maani meets with officials at the Department of Aviation to gift the Petra Mosaic to Chicago's O'hare International Airport.

Focus: Government
Mayor Richard M. Daley and Chicago Sister Cities convened municipal leaders from throughout the United States, Canada and the Arab world for the first-ever U.S. – Arab Cities Forum. The three-day conference provided a unique opportunity for mayors and local leaders to engage in a high-level dialogue about the challenges municipalities face and strategies to ensure cities remain competitive in a global society. Building on the strong sister city ties Chicago has forged with Amman, Jordan and Casablanca, Morocco, Mayor Daley co-hosted the event with Mayor Omar Maani of Amman and Mayor Mohamed Sajid of Casablanca. the Forum featured sessions focused on education and youth, economic development and improved quality of life, and environment and sustainability.

May

Focus: Art
The Chicago Children’s Museum donated an original work of art to the Amman Children’s Museum in celebration of their ongoing collaboration.

June

Focus: Education
Six students participated in Queen Noor's Arab Children's Congress in Amman, Jordan. This prestigious event gave youth 14 through 16 the same opportunity as national leaders to express their needs and aspirations and to be heard by decision makers in the Arab world. Chicago was the first American city represented at the Congress because of the Chicago Amman sister city relationship.

June 30

Focus: Art
The Amman and Petach Tikva committees of CSCIP co-hosted a reception and concert performed by pianist Mark Damisch.  The event was a send-off to Mr. Damisch's Middle East tour, which included visits to Amman and Petach Tikva.

July 14-20

Focus: Education
Chicago students participated in the 28th International Arab Children Congress under the patronage of Her Majesty Queen Noor Al-Hussein.

The Amman committee hosted a traditional musical performance on Daley Plaza during Chicago Sister Cities International Festival.

October

Kumaz was featured at the World Fashion Show during Fashion Focus Week.

October 5

Focus: Fashion
The Amman Committee hosted a "Night of Jordanian Style and Fashion", a fundraiser at Alhambra Restaurant to benefit the King Hussein Cancer Foundation in Amman. Their Royal Highnesses Princess Ghida Talal and Princess Dina Mired were in attendance.

November 18

Focus: Film
The Amman Committee hosted a screening of "Captain Abu Raed", the first independent film to come out of Jordan, and a discussion with its director, Amin Matalqa.




2007
January 27- February 2

Focus: Education
Amman Global Voices of Pegasus Program participants Lina Attel and Samia Doany visited Chicago for an orientation and planning meetings. The participants observed and worked in the classrooms along side their counterparts to develop an understanding of the structure and operational dynamics of the participating schools and cultural institutions. In addition, they visited a few high schools and met with both Amman and Casablanca committee members.

May 2

Focus: Best Practices
Mayor Maani participated in the Richard J. Daley forum at UIC. He met with Mayor Daley and the committee, and made extensive plans for future activities and also visited the 911 center.

May 10

Focus: Fundraising
The Amman Committee held a reception in honor of his Excellency Senator Akel Biltaji, Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan at Maxim’s: The Nancy Goldberg International Center. Mayor and Mrs. Daley, as well as Nora Daley were in attendance at the reception.

June

Focus: Education
Four students (two from Francis Parker High School and two from Lindblom High School) to Amman, Jordan to participate in Queen Noor’s Arab Children’s Congress summer camp. This was the first American city represented at the camp.

Focus: Education
A group of Chicago elementary students were hosted by the Greater Amman Municipality to participate in the “With Jordan We Grow” summer camp, where they had the opportunity to meet many Jordanian and Middle Eastern children.

June 4-8

Focus: Culture/Tourism
The Second Annual Chicago Sister Cities International Festival was held 6/4-6/8 on Daley Plaza. The Chicago -Amman committee ran a Vote for Petra booth fashioned as a Bedouin tent and shared tourism information and encouraged people to vote for Petra as a Natural Wonder of the World.

Focus: Art/Education
The Zaha Cultural Center in Amman and the Greater Amman Municipality donated a mural entitled Childhood of Jordan to the Chicago Children’s Museum.

October 4

Focus: Social Welfare
The Amman Committee presented Her Royal Highnesses Princess Ghida Tala and HRH Princess Dina Mired of the King Hussein Cancer Foundation with $200,000 worth of hearing aides to benefit those in Jordan who have lost their hearing due to chemotherapy, as well flew an audiologist from Amman to Chicago to train in the use of the aides,

October 10

Focus: Fashion
Abla Majali and Fatina Asfour of Kumbaz (designers for Queen Noor( represented Amman, Jordan in our World of Fashion Runway show. They received a great deal of press coverage in Chicago, including the Chicago Tribune and several TV spots.

October 14-21

Focus: Trade and Education
The Amman Committee, in partnership with the State of Illinois, participated in a trade and education mission to Amman. The University of Illinois at Chicago, the Illinois Institute of Technology, Roosevelt University, and Robert Morris College participated in this mission. The group met with the US Embassy, the Mayor of Amman, the King Hussein Cancer Center, and had several one-on-one meetings with Sister Schools, IT Centers, youth development centers, universities, tech parks, urban planners, and the business sector. Several plans were made for future exchanges and collaborations.

November 12

Focus: Culture
The Amman Committee hosted a night of American memorable music, "The Trio Chicago and Friends" featuring Gershwin, Ellington and Bernstein at the Al-Hussein Cultural Center Theater.

December

Focus: Humanitarian
The ambulances that Mayor Daley donated arrived in Amman. The committees will work with the Department of State to outfit them with equipment, and will plan for an unveiling in Amman in Spring of 2008.

Focus: Culture
The City of Amman donated a large mosaic, Petra, by renowned artist Sonia Twal to the City of Chicago that has been installed in the international terminal at O'Hare International Airport.

Focus: Culture
Chicago-Amman committee member Khaled Akawi represented Chicago Sister Cities on ABC 7’s news at 11:00 in a segment featuring holiday traditions (through food, merchandise and performances) from Chicago’s Sister Cities (Africa/Middle East region).




2006
April/May

Focus: General
A delegation consisting of Mayor & Mrs. Daley and five members of the Chicago-Amman
Committee traveled to Amman, Jordan for a 10-day visit. They met with Mayor Omar Maani, members of the Amman sister city committee, U.S. Ambassador David Hale, members of the Ministry of Trade, Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Education and members of the Amman Chamber of Commerce. They successfully launched the sister schools initiative, toured the historical sites, museums and art galleries. At a press conference held on the grounds of the U.S. embassy in Jordan, Mayor Daley announced the City of Chicago’s donation of five fully equipped ambulances to the city of Amman.

June 5-9

Focus: Culture
The culture committee arranged for the Jordanian dance troupe, Church of the Virgin Mary Debke Group, to perform at the Sister Cities 50th Anniversary Celebration Fest held at the Daley Center. Petra Café sold Arab cuisine at the weeklong fest. Travel brochures were distributed through the information booth.

Focus: Education
The education committee organized and implemented the Sister Schools Projects with the following schools: Peck Elementary School matched with Al-Ahliyah School (Amman, Jordan) and Lindblom High School matched with the Jubilee School (Amman, Jordan).

September 21

Focus: General
The Amman Committee hosted a successful fundraiser dinner at Maxim’s: The Nancy Goldberg International Center.

September 26

Focus: Culture
Jordanian jewelry designer, Lubna Hourani, was showcased during World Fashion Chicago Runway Show.

October 2-7

Focus: General
The Committee hosted Mayor Maani and his delegation. Visit highlights include:
City Council Reception
Meeting with City of Chicago officials (Department of Environment, Department of Planning & Development, Department of Streets and Sanitation, Chicago Park District) on public policy, economic development, urban planning, environmental and green space initiatives.
Meeting with Chicago Metropolis 2020
Tour of Gallery 37 and a community reception at Gallery 37
Chicago Business Leaders Presentation
Visit to Chicago Office of Emergency Management and Communications
Visit to Lindblom Math and Science Academy (met with teachers and students in Arabic language program; presented robotics program
Tour of parks showcasing “Sport Play Mat” concept (flooring from recycled materials)
Taped television show for Public Access Television
Visit to Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Millennium Park
Met with Barbara Gaines, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre

December

Focus: Culture
A three-person delegation from Amman was in Chicago for a one-week training program with the Chicago Children's Museum in preparation for the opening of the Amman Children's Museum. They plan ongoing exchanges and dialogue.




2005
November

Focus: Culture
The Amman Committee co-hosted the Fashion of Arabia fashion show. The show featured more than 60 traditional costumes representing 22 Middle Eastern Countries, modeled by local high school and college students. Four Jordanian-American students modeled the Jordanian costumes.




2004
June 11

Focus: Sister Cities Signing Agreement
Mayor Richard M. Daley of Chicago and Mayor Nidal Al-Hadid of Amman signed a sister city agreement between Chicago and Amman, solidifying an already existing relationship between the two cities. His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan attended the ceremony.