Objectives and Overview
The Global Shapers Twin Cities Programme is inspired by the sister city concept and enables broad-based, long-term partnerships between two city-based hubs.
Upon the completion of a successful pilot in 2023, which saw the participation of 53 paired cities from different geographies, the programme is being deployed across all 500 Global Shapers hubs. As of 1 July 2023 every hub will be paired with a hub from a different walk of life and region. Review this guide to establish a meaningful partnership with your twin city hub.
The main goal of the Twin Cities Programme is to strengthen collaboration within the Global Shapers Community through the exchange of insights, ideas and best practices related to the four key areas and activities of our community's impact model, as illustrated below.
Our Twin Cities Programme enables participating hubs to:
- Gain insights into different cities worldwide through regular contact with twin hubs
- Exchange and replicate best practices for hub recruitment, engagement and impact
- Build new skills through peer-led trainings and mentorship provided by twin hubs
- Access peer support for hub leaders (Curators, Vice-Curators and Impact Officers)
- Explore joint challenges and develop various approaches for place-based solutions
- Join forces to launch new global initiatives and share changemaking methodologies
- Influence global affairs through long-term cooperation, collaboration and partnership
Activities and Engagement
We encourage all participating hubs to appoint a Twin Cities Lead who will be responsible for designing meaningful interactions with twin cities over a 12 month period. Your Twin Cities Lead should set-up regular calls that bring hub members together to exchange ideas. We propose the following structure and topics for your upcoming calls:
- Step 1: Where do we come from? Get to know more about your twin hub’s city, community and country. What challenges and opportunities does their community face?
- Step 2: How do we get things done? Get to know how your twin hub is organized. How do they recruit, distribute roles, what do they put in their local charter, and more?
- Step 3: What are we working on now? Get to know what projects your twin hub delivers. How do they enable positive and lasting impact in their local community?
- Step 4: Where do we want to go? Get to know about your twin hub’s aspirations and plans. What issues will they will work on next? What space exists for collaboration?
- Step 5: What have we learnt? Share with each other your key learnings and what you take away from this experience. Take a moment to share your gratitude and appreciation.
There is no set time commitment for the Twin Cities Programme. Varying opportunities for engagement allow participants to adjust involvement based on their capacity. Additional activities that participating hubs can consider include but are not limited to:
- Development of a buddy system for new hub members from different city-based hubs
- Joint onboarding sessions with new hub members and Community Champions
- Creation of a repository of ideas, best practices or solutions for creating lasting change
- Working sessions between similar positions (for example, Curators or Wellbeing Officers)
- Brainstorming sessions to exchange tactics for recruitment, engagement or elections
- Guest speakers, facilitators or Firestarter remarks for hub meetings from twin hubs
- Joint projects, cross-hub collaborations or global initiatives to make a difference
- In-person Twin Cities visits to see first-hand hub members and the local community
The Twin Cities Programme will begin on 1 July and end on 30 June. At the end of the year, every hub will be invited to share feedback on their experience through our Annual Review.
The Twin Cities Programme is not intended as a fundraising mechanism for paired hubs. Hubs should not exchange donations or ask for financial contributions from one another. Contact your Community Manager or Global Shapers Headquarters for more information.
Twin Cities Hub Pairs
Operational from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024, review the list of Twin Cities Pairs below.
- Abuja Hub, Nigeria – Cuernavaca Hub, Mexico
- Accra Hub, Ghana – Charlotte Hub, USA
- Aden Hub, Yemen – Orlando Hub, USA
- Aguascalientes Hub, Mexico – Cebu Hub, Philippines
- Ahmedabad Hub, India – Lima Hub, Peru
- Ajmer Hub, India – Quebec City Hub, Canada
- Albuquerque Hub, USA – Ankara Hub, Türkiye
- Alexandria Hub, Egypt – Phoenix Hub, USA
- Antananarivo Hub, Madagascar – Nicosia Hub, Cyprus
- Antwerp Hub, Belgium– Abu Dhabi Hub, UAE
- Apia Hub, Samoa – Chandigarh Hub, India
- Asuncion Hub, Paraguay – Stellenbosch Hub, South Africa
- Auckland Hub, New Zealand – Dhaka Hub, Bangladesh
- Austin Hub, USA – Las Palmas Hub, Spain
- Bandung Hub, Indonesia – Panaji Hub, India
- Bangkok Hub, Thailand – Riga Hub, Latvia
- Barcelona Hub, Spain – Palo Alto Hub, USA
- Bari Hub, Italy – Thimphu Hub, Bhutan
- Beau Bassin Hub, Mauritius – Nice Hub, France
- Beijing Hub, People's Republic of China – Warsaw Hub, Poland
- Belgrade Hub, Serbia – Winnipeg Hub, Canada
- Bengaluru II Hub, India – Ibadan Hub, Nigeria
- Benghazi Hub, Libya – Phnom Penh Hub, Cambodia
- Benin City Hub, Nigeria – Cleveland Hub, USA
- Bethlehem Hub, Palestinian Territories – Cambridge Hub, UK
- Bilbao Hub, Spain – Shenyang Hub, People's Republic of China
- Birmingham Hub, UK – Goma Hub, Democratic Republic of Congo
- Birzeit Hub, Palestinian Territories – Pereira Hub, Colombia
- Bogota Hub, Colombia – Khobar Hub, Saudi Arabia
- Boulder Hub, USA – Laayoune Hub, Morocco
- Bratislava Hub, Slovakia – Singapore Hub, Singapore
- Bridgetown Hub, Barbados – Lucknow Hub, India
- Brisbane Hub, Australia – Athens Hub, Greece
- Brussels Hub, Belgium – Florianopolis Hub, Brazil
- Bucharest Hub, Romania – Quito Hub, Ecuador
- Budaiya Hub, Bahrain – Hanoi Hub, Viet Nam
- Buenos Aires Hub, Argentina – Doha Hub, Qatar
- Bursa Hub, Türkiye – Kohima Hub, India
- Calgary Hub, Canada – Kolkata Hub, India
- Cambridge-MA Hub, USA – Brasilia Hub, Brazil
- Campinas Hub, Brazil – Varanasi Hub, India
- Cape Girardeau Hub, USA – Kumasi Hub, Ghana
- Caracas Hub, Venezuela – Turin Hub, Italy
- Cartagena Hub, Spain – Kaduna Hub, Nigeria
- Castries Hub, Saint Lucia – Patna Hub, India
- Chattogram Hub, Bangladesh – Amsterdam Hub, Netherlands
- Chengdu, People's Republic of China – Zagreb Hub, Croatia
- Chicago Hub, USA – Manizales Hub, Colombia
- Chitungwiza Hub, Zimbabwe – Atlanta Hub, USA
- Cincinnati Hub, USA – Salé Hub, Morocco
- Coimbatore Hub, India – Fukuoka Hub, Japan
- Colombo Hub, Sri Lanka – Port Harcourt Hub, Nigeria
- Copenhagen Hub, Denmark – Manama Hub, Bahrain
- Corrientes Hub, Argentina – Bandar Seri Begawan Hub, Brunei Darussalam
- Cotonou Hub, Benin – Sacramento Hub, USA
- Daejeon Hub, South Korea – Guwahati Hub, India
- Dakar Hub, Senegal – Cordoba Hub, Argentina
- Dalat Hub, Viet Nam – Rome Hub, Italy
- Dallas Hub, USA – Yaoundé Hub, Cameroon
- Daugavpils Hub, Latvia – Baramati Hub, India
- Davos Hub, Switzerland– Cusco Hub, Peru
- Dilijan Hub, Armenia – Mogadishu Hub, Somalia
- Dresden Hub, Germany – Bishkek Hub, Kyrgyzstan
- Dushanbe Hub, Tajikistan – Osaka Hub, Japan
- Dusseldorf Hub, Germany – Uyo Hub, Nigeria
- East Jerusalem, Palestinian Territories – Kingston Hub, Jamaica
- Edmonton Hub, Canada – Cartagena Hub, Colombia
- El Jadida Hub, Morocco – Surat Hub, India
- Ensenada Hub, Mexico – Gaza Hub, Palestine
- Enugu Hub, Nigeria – Ljubljana Hub, Slovenia
- Fairbanks Hub, USA – Armenia Hub, Colombia
- Faisalabad Hub, Pakistan – Bulawayo Hub, Zimbabwe
- Fez Hub, Morocco – Joinville Hub, Brazil
- Frankfurt Hub, Germany – Srinagar Hub, India
- Freetown Hub, Sierra Leone – Xi'an Hub, People's Republic of China
- Fribourg Hub, Germany – Victoria Hub, Seychelles
- Gainesville Hub, USA – Imphal Hub, India
- Galway Hub, Ireland – Wah Hub, Pakistan
- Gatineau Hub, Canada – Banja Luka Hub, Bosnia & Herzegovina
- Gaya Hub, India – Taipei Hub, Taiwan
- Gilgit Hub, Pakistan – Valletta Hub, Malta
- Giza Hubb, Egypt – Washington D.C. II Hub, USA
- Gold Coast Hub, Australia – Khartoum Hub, Sudan
- Guangzhou Hub, People's Republic of China – Sofia Hub, Bulgaria
- Guayaquil Hub, Ecuador – Oxford Hub, UK
- Gurugram Hub, India – Rabat Hub, Morocco
- Harare Hub, Zimbabwe – Dubai Hub, UAE
- Heidelberg Hub, Germany – Kochi Hub, India
- Herat Hub, Afghanistan – Santo Domingo Hub, Dominican Republic
- Hermosillo Hub, Mexico – Okinawa Hub, Japan
- Ho Chi Minh City Hub, Vietnam – Sydney Hub, Australia
- Huambo Hub, Angola– Cancun Hub, Mexico
- Ilorin Hub, Nigeria – Minneapolis Hub, USA
- Islamabad Hub, Pakistan – Paramaribo Hub, Suriname
- Istanbul Hub, Turkey – Melbourne Hub, Australia
- Ithaca Hub, USA – Trento Hub, Italy
- Izmir Hub, Türkiye – Washington D.C Hub, USA
- Jacksonville Hub, USA – Naples Hub, Italy
- Jaipur Hub, India – Boston Hub, USA
- Jalapa Hub, Guatemala – Lancaster Hub, USA
- Jalingo Hub, Nigeria – Puebla Hub, Mexico
- Jammu Hub, India – Santa Cruz de la Sierra Hub, Bolivia
- Jeddah Hub, Saudi Arabia – Odesa Hub, Ukraine
- João Pessoa Hub, Brazil – Thessaloniki Hub, Greece
- Kakuma Hub, Kenya – Medellin Hub, Colombia
- Kampala Hub, Uganda – Erbil Hub, Iraq
- Kandy Hub, Sri Lanka – Bujumbura Hub, Burundi
- Kano Hub, Nigeria – La Paz Hub, Bolivia
- Karachi Hub, Pakistan – Montreal Hub, Canada
- Kasama Hub, Zambia – Riyadh Hub, Saudi Arabia
- Katsina Hub, Nigeria – Santiago Hub, Chile
- Khuzdar Hub, Pakistan – Merida Hub, Mexico
- Kolhapur Hub, India – Vienna Hub, Austria
- Kozhikode Hub, India – Denver Hub, USA
- Krakow Hub, Poland – Banjul Hub, Gambia
- Kutaisi Hub, Georgia – Montevideo Hub, Uruguay
- Lagos Hub, Nigeria – Des Moines Hub, USA
- Lahore Hub, Pakistan – Port of Spain Hub, Trinidad and Tobago
- Lausanne Hub, Switzerland – Kuala Lumpur Hub, Malaysia
- Libreville Hub, Gabon – Stuttgart Hub, Germany
- Lilongwe Hub, Malawi – Puducherry Hub, India
- Lisbon Hub, Portugal – Queretaro Hub, Mexico
- Liverpool Hub, UK – Porto Alegre Hub, Brazil
- Lomé Hub, Togo – Wellington Hub, New Zealand
- London II Hub, UK – Ulaanbaatar Hub, Mongolia
- London III Hub, UK – Tanta Hub, Egypt
- Los Angeles, USA – Tshwane Hub, South Africa
- Luanda Hub, Angola – Baltimore Hub, USA
- Ludhiana Hub, India – Praia Hub, Cape Verde
- Machakos Hub, Kenya – Hamburg Hub, Germany
- Malabo Hub, Equatorial Guinea – Beijing II Hub, People's Republic of China
- Malé Hub, Maldives – Tashkent Hub, Uzbekistan
- Malmo Hub, Sweden – Nagpur Hub, India
- Manaus Hub, Brazil – Luxembourg City Hub, Luxembourg
- Manchester Hub, UK – Culiacan Hub, Mexico
- Mar del Plata Hub, Argentina – Rawalpindi Hub, Pakistan
- Marondera Hub, Zimbabwe – Kuching Hub, Malaysia
- Marrakech Hub, Morocco – Koper Hub, Solvenia
- Maseru Hub, Lesotho – Seoul Hub, Republic of Korea
- Matola Hub, Mozambique – Indore Hub, India
- Mbabane Hub, Eswatini – Muscat Hub, Oman
- Meknes Hub, Morocco – Florence Hub, Italy
- Mexicali Hub, Mexico – Cape Town, South Africa
- Mexico City Hub, Mexico– Gaborone Hub, Botswana
- Milan Hub, Italy – Curitiba Hub, Brazil
- Mohammedia Hub, Morocco – Barranquilla Hub, Colombia
- Mombasa Hub, Kenya – Seattle Hub, USA
- Monrovia Hub, Liberia – Cochabamba Hub, Bolivia
- Monterrey Hub, Mexico – London I Hub, UK
- Morelia Hub, Mexico – Kabul Hub, Afghanistan
- Mumbai Hub, India – Vilnius Hub, Lithuania
- Munich Hub, Germany – Sao Paulo Hub, Brazil
- Mutare Hub, Zimbabwe – Raleigh Hub, USA
- Mvurwi Hub, Zimbabwe – Shanghai II Hub, People's Republic of China
- Mzuzu Hub, Malawi – Adelaide Hub, Australia
- Nagar Hub, Pakistan – Newark Hub, USA
- Nairobi Hub, Kenya – Guatemala City Hub, Guatemala
- Nancy Hub, France – NYC-Queens Hub, USA
- Navi Mumbai Hub, India – Maputo Hub, Mozambique
- Ndola Hub, Zambia – Dharamsala Hub, India
- Neom Hub, Saudi Arabia – Manila Hub, Philippines
- New Delhi Hub, India – Kyiv Hub, Ukraine
- New Haven Hub, USA – Kinshasa Hub, Democratic Republic of Congo
- Newcastle Hub, UK – São Luis Hub, Brazil
- Niamey Hub, Niger – Dehradun Hub, India
- Noida Hub, India – Port-Au-Prince Hub, Haiti
- NYC - Brooklyn Hub, USA – Addis Ababa Hub, Ethiopia
- NYC-Manhattan Hub, USA – Durban Hub, South Africa
- Oakland Hub, USA – Hong Kong Hub, Hong Kong SAR
- Oran Hub, Algeria – Arequipa Hub, Peru
- Oruro Hub, Bolivia – Miami Hub, USA
- Osasco Hub, Brazil – Kuwait City Hub, Kuwait
- Oslo Hub, Norway – Amman Hub, Jordan
- Ota Hub, Nigeria – Danang Hub, Vietnam
- Ottawa Hub, Canada – Dalian Hub, People's Republic of China
- Owerri Hub, Nigeria – Rio de Janeiro Hub, Brazil
- Palermo Hub, Italy – Kathmandu Hub, Nepal
- Panama City Hub, Panama – Calabar Hub, Nigeria
- Paris Hub, France – Almaty Hub, Kazakhstan
- Perth Hub, Australia – Bengaluru Hub, India
- Peshawar Hub, Pakistan – Salvador da Bahia Hub, Brazil
- Philadelphia Hub, USA – Cali Hub, Colombia
- Pimpri-Chinchwad Hub, India – Lyon Hub, France
- Playa del Carmen Hub, Mexico – Dublin Hub, Ireland
- Port Louis Hub, Mauritius – Genoa Hub, Italy
- Port Moresby Hub, Papua New Guinea – Nablus Hub, Palestine
- Porto Hub, Portugal – Arusha Hub, Tanzania
- Posadas Hub, Argentina – San Francisco Hub, USA
- Prague Hub, Czechia – Shanghai I Hub, People's Republic of China
- Prishtina Hub, Kosovo – Davao Hub, Philippines
- Providence Hub, USA – Budapest Hub, Hungary
- Quetta Hub, Pakistan – Madrid Hub, Spain
- Recife Hub, Brazil – Belfast Hub, UK
- Reynosa Hub, Mexico – Bamako Hub, Mali
- Ribeirao Preto Hub, Brazil – Baku Hub, Azerbaijan
- Riohacha Hub, Colombia – Tunis Hub, Tunisia
- Rosario Hub, Argentina – Venice Hub, Italy
- Salzburg Hub, Austria – Managua Hub, Nicaragua
- San Jose Hub, USA – Belo Horizonte Hub, Brazil
- San Juan Hub, Puerto Rico – Casablanca Hub, Morocco
- San Luis Potosi Hub, Mexico – Hargeisa Hub, Somalia
- San Salvador Hub, El Salvador – Lusaka Hub, Zambia
- Santa Marta Hub, Colombia – Ramallah Hub, Palestine
- Santander Hub, Spain – Kigali Hub, Rwanda
- São Paulo II Hub, Brazil – Valencia Hub, Spain
- Semarang Hub, Indonesia – Beirut Hub, Lebanon
- Seville Hub, Spain – Georgetown Hub, Guyana
- Shamakhi Hub, Azerbaijan – Dar es Salaam Hub, Tanzania
- Shanghai Zizhu Hub, People's Republic of China – Helsinki Hub, Finland
- Sharjah Hub, UAE – Cape Coast Hub, Ghana
- Skopje Hub, North Macedonia – Pune Hub, India
- Soweto Hub, South Africa – Berlin Hub, Germany
- Surabaya Hub, Indonesia – Lugano Hub, Switzerland
- Surakarta Hub, Indonesia – Bern Hub, Switzerland
- Taiyuan Hub, People's Republic of China – Tijuana Hub, Mexico
- Tampa Hub, USA – Algiers Hub, Algeria
- Tangier Hub, Morocco – Lucerne Hub, Switzerland
- Tbilisi Hub, Georgia – Jujuy Hub, Argentina
- Tegucigalpa Hub, Honduras – Johannesburg Hub, South Africa
- Tel Aviv Hub, Israel – Stockholm Hub, Sweden
- Thane Hub, India – Astana Hub, Kazakhstan
- The Hague Hub, Netherlands – Chennai Hub, India
- Thiruvananthapuram Hub, India – Kyoto Hub, Japan
- Tirana Hub, Albania – Bhopal Hub, India
- Tokyo Hub, Japan – Lviv Hub, Ukraine
- Toluca Hub, Mexico – Freiburg Hub, Germany
- Toronto Hub, Canada – Cairo Hub, Egypt
- Toulouse Hub, France – Shenzhen Hub, People's Republic of China
- Tripoli Hub, Libya – Halifax Hub, Canada
- Tucuman Hub, Argentina – Tripoli-LB Hub, Lebanon
- Turbat Hub, Pakistan – Abidjan Hub, Cote d'Ivoire
- Udupi Hub, India – Dodowa Hub, Ghana
- Umerkot Hub, Pakistan – Kisumu Hub, Kenya
- Utrecht Hub, Netherlands – Rodrigues Hub, Mauritius
- Vancouver Hub, Canada – Denpasar Hub, Indonesia
- Vientiane Hub, Lao PDR – Edinburgh Hub, UK
- Warri Hub, Nigeria – Canberra Hub, Australia
- West Jerusalem Hub, Israel – Leon Hub, Mexico
- Windhoek Hub, Namibia – New York Hub, USA
- Yangon Hub, Myanmar – Fortaleza Hub, Brazil
- Yefren Hub, Libya – Tucson Hub, USA
- Yerevan Hub, Armenia – Iloilo Hub, Philippines
- Yokohama Hub, Japan – Geneva Hub, Switzerland
- Yola Hub, Nigeria – Hyderabad Hub, India
- Zanzibar Hub, Tanzania – Guadalajara Hub, Mexico
- Zurich Hub, Switzerland – Jakarta Hub, Indonesia
- Hangzhou Hub, People's Republic of China – Jodhpur Hub, India
- Ho Hub, Ghana – Houston Hub, USA
- Hulunbuir Hub, People's Republic of China – Bhubaneswar Hub, India
- Portland Hub, USA – Suzhou Hub, People's Republic of China
- Santa Fe Hub, Argentina – Kanpur Hub, India
- Tianjin Hub, People's Republic of China – New Orleans Hub, USA
- Yinchuan Hub, People's Republic of China – Pittsburgh Hub, USA
- Turbat Hub, Pakistan – Christchurch Hub, New Zealand