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The coat of arms of Omaha shows a settler and a native American with a scroll that is supposed to represent the Kansas-Nebraska Act, with which the Indian tribes ceded the land to the American state. In the background are the rising sun, mountains, a ferry seen on the Missouri River as well as a steam locomotive. The inscription "Fortiter in Re" is the first part of a Latin proverb: “Fortiter in re, suaviter in modo = strong in the matter, mild in the method”© Stadt Omaha

Omaha, USA – City in the Heartland

Braunschweig's American sister city Omaha lies in the heartland of the United States, directly on the Interstate 80, the only coast-to-coast highway from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
Omaha was founded by settlers from the neighbouring state of Iowa, when in 1854 they were at last allowed by treaties with the Omaha Tribe to cross the Missouri and settle on the west bank of the river.

According to a native-American legend, the name Omaha means “higher than all other places along a river”. After President Abraham Lincoln had declared Omaha to be the terminus of the first transcontinental railroad, immigrants from Europe, among them a high number of Germans, streamed into the rapidly growing town.

Its favourable site, the fertile soil and the waters of the Missouri still form the foundation of Nebraska's modern agriculture and industry, characterising life in the city of Omaha, with its population of some 470,000.

Relations with Braunschweig go back to a 1985 initiative by the German-American Society in Omaha. In the following years, both cities launched youth and adult exchange programmes. School partnerships and contacts between Braunschweig's Technische Universität and the University of Nebraska in Omaha developed and intensified.

On 22 May 1992, half a year after the visit of the first official delegation from Omaha, a friendship agreement was signed in Braunschweig.

Regular youth and school exchange programmes, study excursions and cultural events followed. The youth exchange program organised by the Braunschweig youth department and Omaha Sister City Association (OSCA) as well as the school partnerships between Gymnasium Raabeschule and Burke High School and between Hoffmann-von-Fallersleben-Schule and North High Magnet School have become close contacts. Students of the TU Braunschweig and the University of Nebraska Omaha can profit from a regular exchange program and obtain a degree at the partner university.

There are regular official contacts between the city administrations and political bodies.

Activities 

  • Youth exchange in cooperation with Gymnasiums Raabeschule in Braunschweig and Burke High School in Omaha
  • Student exchange between Hoffmann-von-Fallersleben-Schule and North High Magnet School
  • Exchange program between TU Braunschweig and University of Nebraska in Omaha

To learn more about the current activities with Braunschweig’s twin city, please click here: 

When planning activities between the two cities, Braunschweig cooperates closely with the Omaha Sister Cities Association (OSCA).

Please click here for more information about the OSCA:

Contact

City of Omaha

Office of the Mayor

Address

1819 Farnam Street
USA
68183 Omaha

Explanations and hints

Picture credits

  • Stadt Omaha