About the Sakai Berkeley Association

About the Sakai Berkeley Association

On November 3, 1967, Sakai City and Berkeley City signed a sister city relationship upon which the citizens of both cities actively exchanged with each other, promoting mutual understanding and friendship. On the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the sister city relationship, the Sakai Berkeley Association was founded on September 18, 1976 to further friendship between the two cities and citizen-level diplomacy.
The aim of the Association is to continue to deepen the friendship and mutual understanding between our two cities through educational, cultural, and business exchanges in accordance with the sister city spirit.

Membership

Honorable President Kenzo Yamaji
President Yozo Shimano
Vice-presidents Murako Omachi
Yoshiyasu Morii
Executives 30
Auditors 2
Private Members 140
Group Members 13
Corporate Members 12
Student Members 10
Annual Fees
Private Membership
¥3,000/person
Group Membership
¥5,000/group
Corporate Membership
¥10,000/company
Date of Establishment September 18, 1976
Contact c/o Sakai International Plaza
5F 1-4-24 Nakakawara-machi
Sakai-ku, Sakai-shi,Osaka 590-0077,Japan
TEL：＋81-(0)72-340-1090
FAX：＋81-(0)72-340-1091
E-mail:sba@sakai-sfc-council.com

（Current as of January 18, 2012）

Association Committees

General Affairs Committee

Committee Chairperson Hisahiko Masaki
Committee Members 1
Activities This committee oversees the financial affairs and general meetings. Because the Association is financed through membership fees and securing the financial foundation is essential to expand the Association’s activities, this committee is charged with a vitally important role.

Project Committee

Committee Chairperson Yoshiyasu Morii
Committee Members 9
Activities This committee is involved in all the Association’s projects. The committee works hard to plan and carry out enjoyable and helpful events for the members.

Public Relations Committee

Committee Chairperson Junji Kagawa
Committee Members 2
Activities This committee takes care of the management of the website and the publication of the annual report to publicize the Association’s activities. We sometimes wonder how many people actually know about our Association, but we will continue to work harder to draw wider attention to the Association.

Yearly Events

In order to promote mutual exchange and understanding between Sakai and Berkeley Cities, the Association will hold the following events

  • English Conversation Classes
  • “Back to Junior High School!” English Lessons
  • Sakai City Junior High School English Speech Contest
  • Japanese Cultural Experiences (In the past these have included “Making Japanese Confectionery” and “Noh Theatre”)
  • Sending and receiving “Friendship Delegations”

etc.

Sakai-Berkeley Association Constitution

Article 1.(NAME)

The name of the Association will be Sakai Berkeley Association.

Article 2.(GOALS)

The aim of the Association will be to deepen mutual understanding and friendship between the two cities and among the members of the association and to contribute to the advancement of international goodwill, based on the sister city relationship that Sakai and Berkeley share.

Article 3.(PROJECTS)

To achieve the above goals, the Association shall organise projects related to the things below.

  1. Promotion of exchanges between the citizens of both cities
  2. Facilitating other organizations to participate in exchange activities
  3. Exchanging information and data and publicizing it to the citizens
  4. Other projects deemed necessary to achieve the Association’s goals

Article 4.(MEMBERSHIP）

  1. Membership of the Association will consist of private, group, corporate and special members who agree to the goals of the Association.
  2. The special members listed above shall be appointed by the President after receiving approval by the Executive Board. They shall provide their opinions on the operation of the Association upon request of the President.

Article 5.(EXECUTIVE MEMBERS)

The Association shall include the following positions.

1. President 1
2. Vice-Presidents 2
3. Executives a few
4. Auditors a few

Article 6. (EXECUTIVE APPOINTMENT)

  1. The Association President and Vice-Presidents shall be appointed from among the Executive Board members.
  2. The Executives shall be appointed from within the Association’s own membership at a general meeting.

Article 7.(EXECUTIVE TERMS OF OFFICE)

  1. The term of office for all Executives will be 2 years, though reappointment is possible.
  2. Should an Executive member be appointed to fill a vacancy on the board, that Executive member’s term will be the same as the rest of the term of their predecessor.

Article 8. (EXECUTIVE DUTIES)

  1. The President shall be in charge of running the Association, and act as the Association’s representative.
  2. The Vice-Presidents shall assist the President, and should the President be absent or unable to fill their duties, the Vice-Presidents shall fulfil these duties
  3. The Executive members shall comprise the Executive Board, and determine the execution of the Association’s affairs
  4. The Auditors shall inspect the Association’s finances

Article 9.(MEETINGS)

The Association shall hold the General Meeting, Executive Board Meetings and Sub-committee Meetings.

Article 10. (GENERAL MEETING)

  1. The President shall call one Annual General Meeting each year. Special General Meetings may also be called, as the President deems necessary.
  2. The following matters will be placed on the agenda at General Meetings.
    1. Matters relating to the appointment of Executives and Auditors
    2. Matters relating to annual budget and account statements
    3. Matters relating to project planning and reporting
    4. Matters relating to changes to the Constitution
    5. Other matters as the President deems necessary
  3. The Chairperson of the General Meeting shall be appointed from among the attending members.
  4. General Meeting resolutions will be reached through a majority-vote. In the case of a tie, the casting vote will lie with the Chair

Article 11.(EXECUTIVE BOARD)

  1. The Executive Board shall meet when the President deems it necessary and deliberate matters that will be placed on agenda at the General Meeting and other important matters.
  2. Executive Meeting resolutions will be reached through a majority-vote. In the case of a tie, the casting vote will lie with the President.

Article 12.(SUBCOMMITTEES)

  1. The Subcommittees will be set up for planning and implementation of the projects that are referred to it by the Executive Board.
  2. Subcommittee members shall be appointed by the President from among the Association members.

Article 13.(SECRETARIAT OFFICE)

  1. The Secretariat will be set up to facilitate the clerical work of the Association.
  2. The Secretariat officials shall be appointed by the President.

Article 14.(EXPENSES)

Association expenses will be met through membership fees, subsidies and donations.

Article 15.(MEMBERSHIP FEE)

  1. Members shall pay a membership fee as set down below.
    1. Corporate membership ¥10,000 /company
    2. Group membership ¥5,000 /group
    3. Private membership ¥3,000 /person
    Student membership ¥1,000/person
  2. Once paid, the membership fee is non-refundable.

Article 16.(WITHDRAWAL OF MEMBERSHIP)

  1. Should a member express their will to withdraw, their membership will be ended.
  2. Should a member fail to pay membership fee for three years, that member’s name will be deleted from the member list without demonstration of their will to withdraw.

Article 17.(FISCAL YEAR)

The Association’s financial year begins on April 1 each year, and concludes on March 31 the following year.

Article 18.(AUDIT)

Account statements and all other related financial reports must be inspected by the Auditors before receiving approval at the General Meeting.

Article 19.(SPECIFIED ITEMS)

Specified items that are necessary in implementing this Constitution will be finalized by the President.

(SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS)

This constitution is effective as of September 18, 1976.

(SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS)

This constitution is effective as of June 13, 1988.

(SUPPLEMENTARY PROVISIONS)

This constitution is effective as of April 1, 1996.