Everybody can use an older sibling. And if they are thousands of miles away, speak a different language and fly a different flag – well, then things get really interesting. Yatagan, Turkey a small town in southwest Turkey is North Lauderdale’s Sister City.

President Dwight D. Eisenhower established Sister City International, a non-profit organization for citizen diplomacy in the United States. Sister City pairs participating American cities with a similar-sized, similar-in-values counterpart worldwide.

North Lauderdale’s Sister City was named in 2002, and since then Hasmet Isik, the Mayor of Yatagan has visited North Lauderdale numerous times. In 2005 Mayor Jack Brady and City Manager Richard D. Sala visited Yatagan to discuss mutual economic development. North Lauderdale has been involved with Yatagan’s 3,500-seat sports arena, a community swimming pool, an assisted living facility, and a low-income housing development. And North Lauderdale had particular input in the design of Yatagan’s pedestrian overpasses.

“We suggested they take advantage of their thousands of years of history and design the overpasses with that in mind,” Sala said. “These overpasses are very prominent in their city and now they lend the city distinction, which is the path to attracting tourists and investment.”

Yatagan, meanwhile, is planning to help North Lauderdale with its international economic development, exporting hand-crafted marble tile, textiles and honey to be distributed from North Lauderdale. One of the reasons the Sister City program has survived for 50 years is the program’s unique ability to facilitate trade. Another reason it has survived is the enthusiasm of city leaders all over the world.