Secretariat, Taipei City Government

On October 14, 2022, Tom Chou, the Commissioner of Taipei City Mayor’s Office for External Affairs, welcomed Mary B. Pointer, member of Oklahoma Sister Cities Association. Pointer helped arrange a video meeting between Mayor David Holt of Oklahoma City and Mayor Ko of Taipei City in December of last year (2021) to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the sistership between the cities and another video meeting between the mayors this year in June to deepen the collaboration between the cities’ sports industries.

This was the first time Pointer visited Taiwan. During this visit, she attended Taiwan’s National Day events and explored Taipei City, and Taipei Zoo left the strongest impression on her. She was amazed by the efforts Taipei Zoo has made to build a suitable environment and create sufficient space for the animals to live comfortably and considered the zoo a role model for Oklahoma City Zoo in terms of its attentiveness to conservation and design.

During her trip to Taipei Zoo, Pointer took several photos with our colleagues from the Taipei City Government as well as staff members of the zoo. At the end of the trip, we presented her a stuffed panda bear, one of the most popular animals at Taipei Zoo, and a dinosaur hat as gifts to demonstrate our gratitude for her visit and to commemorate the exchange between our cities.