The Collaboration Award was for its outstanding sister cities program with Obninsk, Russia.

The program, funded in part by a Municipal and Community Problem Solving Grant from the U.S. Information Agency and administered by Sister Cities International, involved linking the Oak Ridge Chamber of Commerce and the Obninsk Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

It was designed to assist the Obninsk Chamber of Commerce and Industry in establishing a chamber model based on the experience of the Oak Ridge Chamber.

The program also introduced Obninsk community leaders to economic development programs in Oak Ridge.

The Collaboration Award recognizes the best 1999 sister city program in the United States that involved a collaboration between non-governmental organizations in each city.

Oak Ridge also received the first Sister Cities International Special Achievement Award for the Best Web Site. Competition for this award was among all U.S. sister city programs with a Web site.

Oak Ridge's Web site, www.korrnet.org/ortnscso, contains information about current projects, a review of the past years' activities and archival information about sister city activities since the organization was established in 1991.

Selected pages are in Russian and Japanese.

The Oak Ridge Sister City Support Organization will receive the Sister Cities International commendations during a special ceremony at SCI's 43rd Annual Conference July 24 in Little Rock, Ark.

The awards program has been in existence for 37 years.

"The Oak Ridge Sister City Support Organization has placed the highest priority on strengthening our community's interest and commitment to understanding cultures of different nations," a press release from the organization quotes its president, Edmund Nephew, as saying.

"Winning these coveted international awards is a tribute to the volunteers who have invested their time and dedication over the past year."

The Sister Cities International annual awards program recognizes the work of the very best sister cities' programs in the nation. These programs demonstrate to other cities how to create exciting and innovative new ideas and exchanges into their own sister city program, according to the release.

Sister Cities International is a nonprofit organization that works closely with U.S. communities to develop lasting relationships with counterpart communities in other nations.

Today, Sister Cities International is driven by citizen diplomats and city officials in more than 1,200 U.S. cities and their 2,000 partners in 125 countries.

The Oak Ridge Sister City Support Organization was established in 1991 to assist the Oak Ridge City Council with activities with our sister cities Obninsk, Russia, and Naka-machi Japan.

The Oak Ridge Sister City Support Organization, a nonprofit, all-volunteer-run organization, meets the second Thursday each month in the Oak Ridge Public Library meeting room.

For more information about the Oak Ridge Sister City Support Organization, call Edmund Nephew at 482-4259 or visit its Web site at www.korrnet.org/ortnscso.