Markham, Ontario: FRIENDSHIP TREE

City Councillors Alan Ho (left), Alex Chiu (right) and Mayor Frank Scarpitti show o2 the engraved stone placed in front of a tree planted in Huadu, a district in Guangzhou, China, for that city's new friendship pact with Markham. Scarpitti and 34 businesspeople returned in December from their city's biggest China trade and investment mission to China. The trip, organized by the Confederation of Greater Toronto Chinese Business Association, yielded four agreements between Markham and Chinese entities to strengthen economic and cultural ties. PROVIDED BY CHINA DAILY