The China Garden is a place for:

• Celebration
• Recreation
• Education
• Meditation
• Poetry
• Photography
• Cultural Performances
• Aesthetic Enjoyment
• Painting
• Relaxation in Nature
• Healing

The St. Paul-Changsha China Friendship Garden:

• Is a symbol of Minnesota’s longstanding friendship with China and a recognition of its sister-city relationships
• Promotes Minnesota’s understanding of China and of China’s rich cultural heritage
• Promotes Minnesota’s understanding of the cultural and ancestral connection between the Minnesota Hmong and the Hmong in Changsha, Hunan Province
• Serves as a recognition of the contributions of the Chinese American community to the Twin Cities
• Serves to enhance peoples’ connection to and appreciation of nature
• Builds a cultural bridge that will boost international trade and tourism between China and Minnesota

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Importance of China Gardens in Minnesota

Important Voice of Asian Minnesotans.  The China Friendship Garden will engender a greater appreciation by the entire Saint Paul community of the ancient art form of the classical Chinese Garden, in which each garden element is imbued with deep, symbolic cultural meaning.  For the local community, the Garden will broaden horizons, deepen mutual understanding and strengthen friendships among all community members, in a rare space in which Asian American voices, plus visual and intangible cultures of Minnesota’s Chinese and Hmong communities, are centered and foregrounded.

Important Cultural Bridge. The China Friendship Garden is an important cultural bridges to China, which is Minnesota’s second largest trading partner. This Garden will further enhance the partnership between China and Minnesota, as such Gardens have done in many cities in the U.S. and Canada. This Garden will not only add beauty to the neighborhood, but would show the world that Minnesota welcomes international investors and visitors to our global metropolis.

Recognize Chinese Contributions to MN. The Chinese have a long history in Minnesota, having been here since 1870s. They have contributed to Minnesota in many important ways. In the early days to mining, railroad building, restaurants, and laundry businesses, and then to the fields of science, medicine, technology, finance, education, and international trade. Today they are contributing research to many fields, including nanotechnology, bio-fuel, solar energy, Alzheimer disease, etc. The China Garden recognizes their many contributions to the City of Minneapolis, the City of St. Paul, and the State of Minnesota.

Celebrate MN’s Diversity. Minnesota has many diverse communities. For example, Former Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak pointed out, in connection with his organizing of the Minneapolis Mosaic Arts Festival, that the City of Minneapolis has 85 languages spoken. Having gardens related to various ethnicities in Minnesota will help to build better understanding and collaboration among communities, and enhance the partnerships between citizens and their government.

Land Acknowledgement.  The Minnesota China Friendship Garden Society acknowledges and respects the Dakota who are the traditional and ancestral inhabitants of the land on which sits the St. Paul-Changsha China Friendship Garden of Whispering Willows & Flowing Waters at Phalen Regional Park.