To celebrate the 40th anniversary, Karlsruhe's Oberbürgermeister (Mayor) will visit Nottingham during a "Karlsruhe Week" next week from 14^th to 17^th October with a large delegation of councillors, young people and teachers, businesses and general citizens from Karlsruhe. "Karlsruhe Week" will include three public events in Nottingham. These are:

• Saturday 10 October – Wednesday 21 October: "Opening Eyes" Women's Picture of Art, GEDOK. Thirteen female artists from the Association of the Federation of Women Artists and Art Friends in Karlsruhe, display their work in Nottingham's Angel Row Gallery.
• Thursday 15 October 9.30am: The Lord Mayor of Nottingham, Councillor Jeannie Packer, introduces an event in the Karlsruhe Marquee in the Old Market Square. Musicians and theatre groups from both cities will perform.
• Saturday 17 October 11am: There will be an opportunity to discuss and debate the merits of international links at Speakers Corner in the Old Market Square.

Over the years, the Nottingham/Karlsruhe partnership has gone from strength to strength and the two cities work together on many projects and initiatives. These include the Nottingham Karlsruhe Friendship Club and the Karlsruhe Nottingham (KANG) Staff Exchange Scheme, both of which have helped sustain the strength of the relationship over the years.

The councils of Nottingham and Karlsruhe work closely to promote the exchange of opportunities for their residents and young people. They regularly share examples of best practice in many areas, including economic development. Nottingham's tram system was designed and built with support from businesses in Karlsruhe.

Nottingham and Karlsruhe also have a long tradition of cultural partnership including sporting, musical and theatre exchanges over many years. More recently, the cities have been working towards a more strategic cultural cooperation agreement to build on the extensive work already underway. An agreement will be signed during Karlsruhe's Oberbürgermeister's (Mayor) visit to Nottingham next week. This agreement has the potential to accelerate Nottingham's international work on culture, and to bring about some exciting new opportunities for the city's sport, music, theatre, contemporary arts, and much more.

In its recently developed International Strategy 2008-2011, Nottingham City Council identified its work with Karlsruhe as a key priority. The links with Karlsruhe will become even stronger in the future.

Councillor Alan Clark, Portfolio Holder for Regeneration and responsible for international links said: "We are delighted to host our friends from Karlsruhe in Nottingham later this month. We are proud of our partnership and of the achievements that we have seen over the past forty years. Our link with Karlsruhe has brought Nottingham people so much opportunity over the years, broadening the horizons of our young people and developing and supporting the globalisation of our economy.

"We are looking forward to the future of our relationship with Karlsruhe – exciting new initiatives like our new Cultural Cooperation Agreement will bring about exchanges of artists and opportunities for cultural interaction that will reinforce Nottingham's position as an international city of culture."