MSNBC story and article feature volunteerAKITA and other JET volunteers
Earthquake Tsunami, Interview/Profile, Japan Local, JETs in the News, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Video, Volunteer 
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Just saw this MSNBC video and article by NBC News correspondent Ian Williams that mentions JET and volunteerAKITA founder Paul Yoo as well as several other volunteers who seem to be JETs along with the good work being done by All Hands Volunteers. The article was posted to the Pacific Northwest JETAA Facebook group today.
“Young Americans take center stage in Japan tsunami cleanup”
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43637669/
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
JET Prefecture Round-Up 07.05.11
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Emily Lemmon, (Hyogo-ken, Shiso-shi, 2009-present), PSG volunteer, organizer of Hyogo-ken’s PEPY Ride, student of Shorinji Kempo, and editor of the Hyogo Times, gives a little taste of what JETs are doing around Japan. To submit items for future JET Prefecture Round-up posts, e-mail Emily at jetinfogather [at] gmail.com.
Events by Region
- Iwamizawa International Mini Festival was June 18th at Higashiyama Park, and included international food and drink, as well as face painting, Smores, 3 craft tables, board games from around the world, an obstacle course, salsa dancing, national anthems, Ebingo and many more great activities for everyone to enjoy.
- Leavers’ Party (“Towada Renaissance”) will be Saturday July 9th, from 1pm until everyone falls asleep.
- 2011 Tohoku Summer Retreat – JET Christian Fellowship retreat will be held from July 16th to 18th at the Aomori Christian Center in Moya Hills, Aomori City (registration required).
- Annual Cabin Sayonara Party will be July 16th at the Yakehashiri cabins.
- Iwate JETs were invited to attend the earthquake debate session on June 16th, to share stories of the March 11 disaster and how they got news or information.
- Akita JETs are lending traditional costumes from their home countries to students of the Akita University Network for their July 10th International Festival.
Chubu Region
- The Giant Jumping Monkey – a charity bash held in Myoko on July 2nd, rain or shine, features guest DJs, a monkey bounce-house, camping, and BBQ. All proceeds to Tohoku
- ZAZA Arts Festival and Charity Event presented by AJET Nagano and Arriba Arriba Cafewill be at Ikirou near Kamishiro Stationn in Hakuba on July 9-10th: an arts, music, and performance event featuring the great people of Nagano!
- Shimosuwa was one of the first towns in the prefecture to introduce a comprehensive English curriculum into elementary schools. July 18th is the 4th annual Kid’s Expo at Shimosuwa Cultural Center; This years theme is “Japan, connections to the world” . JET volunteers may showcase their countries or a cultural activity in a mini Expo style booth and give the kids a chance to interact in English.
- KoiKoi Matsumotos, a big international festival, was held on June 26th at M-Wing, Matsumoto’s chuo kominkan. About 20 countries were represented with various shows, games, presentations, kids’ activities, an international food court, and more. Entry was free, food was cheap, and profits went to help the relief effort in Tohoku area.
- Bai Bai Beach Party to be held July 24th at Uchinada Beach.
Kansai Region
- Path of Prayer continues on July 3rd; participants will walk from Nakahechi Michi-no-eki to Kobiro oji on the Kumano Kado, invoking a speedy recovery for Tohoku while experiencing this historic trail.
- Kozagawa Kayaking and Camping will take place from July 9th to the 10th on the Koza River, Wakayama.
- Nara’s farewell to leaving JETs, the Bye Bye Bash,complete with awards, was held at the Tousembou Kidaku on June 17th.
- Ultimate Frisbee practice and BBQ in the Goon on June 18th.
- Taj Ultimate, the Ultimate Frisbee Tournament, will be held July 9th and 10th.
- “There is Hope Through Music” for Tohoku – On July 9th, Ehime JET Dan will gather fellow JETs to the Asakura Kominkan in Imabari to record videos with the fireman brass band. The videos will be combined with videos from the Kurosawa Piano Music Foundation of California and broadcast both online and to the victims in refugee camps in Japan.
- Sayonara Party will be July 9th at Kashima Island.
- July 10th, Ehime JETs are invited to a tea ceremony in Imabari.
- Students now have until July 15th to apply for the Genki Scholarship for International Exchange, 2011. The Genki Scholarship hopes to assist Kochi-based students fulfil their ambitions of going on international exchange, to expand their horizons and improve their communication skills. This year’s Genki Tosaben Musical generated enough funds to provide for a scholarship of approximately 200,000 yen (exact amount depends on number of applicants, where and for how long they’re going), plus a donation of up to 100,000 yen for Tohoku’s Disaster Relief.
- The JET Farewell party and beer garden was held June 17th.
- Organic Rice Planting volunteers have been pushed back to July 2nd for lack of rain! Preparing to get muddy, JETs will assist in the labor intensive work of organic farming.
- Sayonara Party – Oita JETs say farewell on July 9th in Oita City.
- Oita JETs make a camping trip to Miyazaki Prefecture on July 23rd-24th.
- An Oita JET is organizing volunteers to help a family maintain their farm and orchard. Activities include but are not limited to: raking leaves, pruning trees, cutting grass, weeding, and setting up a wire fence.
- June 18th, the Oita International Plaza held the monthly Japanese Conversation Circle, pairing native and non-native speakers for 15 minutes and then switching partners. Participants talk freely or use materials provided based on a topic. June’s topic was talking about your hometown.
- The ‘Japan-British Society of Kumamoto’ is holding their annual ‘Tanabata “Star Festival” Party’ at 6:30PM on Friday, July 1st. This event was a huge success last year with scores of Japanese and foreigners eating, drinking and socialising in celebration of this traditional Japanese festival.
- Former Nagasaki ALT shares video from Golden Week in Tohoku here.
- This year’s international exchange party by Miyazaki City International Association (MCIA) was June 17th at the Miyazaki Shimin Plaza.
- Kagoshima’s Bon Voyage Bash will be July 9th at the Sun Royal Hotel.
WIT Life #174: Saga Setting the Nuclear Standard
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Yesterday’s NYT had an interesting article about Japan’s nuclear policy going forward. Increasingly local governments are being depended on to determine this, though they believe these are decisions the central government should be making. Currently the debate is taking place in the rural prefecture of Saga located in Kyushu, where battle lines are drawn between nuclear power plant operators who insist their facilities are safe and wary citizens. In the middle is Saga governor Yasushi Furukawa who is being looked to for approval or rejection of restarting two of the four reactors at the plant. After being shut down for routine maintenance, the question is whether Read More
JET alums involved in yoga benefit for Japan quake victims (NY)
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The below article mentions JETAA U.S.A. Country Rep and former JETAANY President Megan Miller-Yoo (Hyogo-ken). And the reporter, Seana Magee (Okayama-ken, Niimi-shi, 1988-90) also happens to be a JET alum.
FEATURE: New Yorkers turn on heat, use yoga to benefit Japan quake victims
By Seana K. Magee
NEW YORK, June 28, Kyodo
Drenched in sweat, Megan Miller Yoo and about a dozen other students were pushing themselves to new limits during a special Sunday yoga session held at a Manhattan studio.
Stretching their muscles and testing their flexibility, they intently followed the instructor moving through 26 prescribed poses at Bikram Yoga Grand Central in a humid, 40 C room.
From the outside it looked like an ordinary 90-minute Bikram class, but it was not.
The hot yoga devotees were part of a so-called donation class specifically designed to raise money to help victims of the earthquake and tsunami that hit northeastern Japan on March 11.
Yoo explained to Kyodo News how taking part in the special class took her practice to a new level, particularly because of her close ties to the country, where she lived for two years.
”One instructor always says, ‘If you breathe through Bikram, you can breathe through anything,’ so I often think of that when I am in a tough situation, and it makes me realize I can get through anything if I just hang in there and don’t give up,” said the 33-year-old former Japan Exchange and Teaching Program participant who taught English in Hyogo Prefecture.
”I think that is the perfect message for the people in the affected regions of Japan.”
Before the March disaster wreaked havoc in her country, Kyoko Katsura, one of the two studio owners, and her business partner were mulling over ways to motivate students. So they hit upon the idea of offering the weekly donation class to highlight various charities. Read More
Ambassador Roos visits Monty Dickson’s school in Rikuzentakata, Iwate
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From this morning’s Frontline Daily newsfeed:
Loose translation:
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Roos visited southern Iwate and Rikuzentakata on June 28 and dropped by Monty Dickson’s school, Yonezaki Elementary, to talk to the fifth grade class and the principal there. He was much beloved by everyone and loved the community much in return. Roos told the kids to come visit America when they grow up. He also met with the mayor and emphasized the strength of US-Japan relations, promising ongoing support for the rebuilding effort. He then observed the American NPO, All Hands Volunteers, who are helping build housing in and around Oofunato.
★ 犠牲米国人ゆかりの学校へ～ルース大使が被災地訪問
ルース駐日大使は28日、東日本大震災で大きな被害を受けた岩手県南部を訪問した。震災の犠牲になった米国人モンティー・ディクソンさん＝当時（26）＝が英語を教えていた陸前高田市の米崎小学校では、ディクソンさんの生前の思い出話に耳を傾け、子どもたちの歓迎を受けるなど、日米の絆を再確認した。米崎小の佐藤圭子校長は、ディクソンさんが震災当日まで授業をしていたことを紹介。「子どもたちに慕われ、教職員も（彼のことを）大好きでした」と昔の写真を見せながら語った。大使は、ディクソンさんの家族が「彼にとって特別な学校、地域社会だった」と話していたと述べ、佐藤校長に謝意を表明。その後、５年生のクラスに立ち寄り「大きくなったら米国に来てほしい」と語りかけ、握手攻めにあった。陸前高田市の戸羽太市長への表敬訪問では「日米の友好関係は非常に深い。力になりたい」と述べ、米国が今後も被災地支援に全力を挙げる考えを伝えた。大使は、被災地家屋の復旧などに当たっている米国のNPO、オールハンズボランティアが活動拠点とする大船渡市も視察。午後には大槌町で小学生とのキャッチボールに応じるなど、１日かけて被災地を巡り、草の根交流に奔走した。（共同）
WIT Life #173: Homeless by mandate
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Almost four months have passed since the earthquake/tsunami hit Japan, and one might think that after this amount of time things have gotten back to some semblance of normal. That seems to be the case for the most part in Tokyo, where except for limited electricity usage and the omnipresent uncertainty regarding radation levels, it is back to business as usual. However, for those who lived in the disaster area, it is a different story. I recently spoke to a close friend over Skype, who told me about her brother who had lived with his family in Tohoku.
They, like many others from the disaster zone, cannot be cleared to return home due to restrictions on entering areas that exceed a certain level of radiation. Instead, they have spent the last few Read More
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I saw the below on the Pacific Northwest JETAA yahoo group, and apparently the Chicago Consulate has sent this out as well. MoFA and JNTO are willing to fly Tohoku JET alums back to Japan for a week for any JET alums willing to play a role in helping out their former communities and then help spread word of what they saw and experienced after their trip.
This sounds like a great opportunity for any Tohoku JET alums who can make time to do this. And a great opportunity for the JET alumni community to really help out Japan in a very concrete way.
Details are below. And you may get (or have already received) an email from your JETAA chapter or local consulate. There were also two attachments–guidelines and an application form–that I wasn’t able to access for some reason. If interested, hopefully you can get the documents from your consulate.
Minasan ganbatte kudasai.
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This message is being posted on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Japan Tourism Agency
DEADLINE for applications to be received by the Consulate-General of Japan: July 11, 2011
INVITATION PROGRAM OF JET ALUMNI TO DISASTER STRICKEN AREAS IN TOHOKU:
- One week stay to take place within the period of July – September 2011
- Transportation to Japan & per diem provided.
Conditions for application:
2. CONDITIONS FOR PARTICIPATION
(1) No limit of ages and sexes.
(2) To have a work experience for two years or more either as a Coordinator for International Relations (CIR) or as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) in local governments in Iwate Prefecture, Miyagi Prefecture, Fukushima Prefecture or Sendai City.
(3) To be able to contact directly by themselves with a school and a local government where they were assigned.
(4) To be accepted by the organization for which the participants worked as a JET, and to be able to arrange with the organization some exchange activities.
(5) To be able to travel without an escort from their arrival to their departure from Japan.
(6) To send out the information such as their experiences of the stay in Japan this time and their impressions from foreign visitors’ viewpoints by various measures including contributions of articles to the mass media, blogs, homepages, facebooks.
(7) To consent interviews by Japanese and foreign medias, in case they are arranged during their stay
For full details & required form, see attached documents.
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Additional eligibility stipulation for Fukushima-ken applicants:
For any former Fukushima JETs, who are considering applying for the previously posted “Special Invitation Program” for JETAA to re-visit their CO’s to report on the post-disaster situation, special consideration is being taken regarding personal safety.
In respect for the official US guidelines of an 80 km radius from the Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, applications for former Fukushima JETs will only be accepted for areas beyond the US recommended safety zone.
Iwate International Association calls for ideas for events to help kids in disaster hit areas
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Recently posted to the Grassroots Aid for Iwate Facebook group by Hazuki Hiraga:
The Iwate International Association (IAA) is calling for ideas for events geared toward the kids in the disaster hit areas. Many of the teachers in those areas have noted that the kids are (understandably) more reserved than before, and still require a lot of care and support. But, they have also commented that ALTs have been playing an important role in making the kids smile when they stop by the schools to visit and chat.
One idea that the IAA has is organizing an English camp for kids (middle school to high school) from these areas this August, during the kids’ summer holidays. The tentative date proposed is August 5-11, 2011.
If you would be willing to help organize and/or travel to Iwate this summer to take part in the English camp, please post your thoughts on this page or send me an e-mail. The sooner the better as August is only two months away. It would be nice if some former Iwate JETs and other former non-JET Iwateans could gather to help out. I didn’t have the opportunity to participate in those summer English camps organized by some of the schools, so would love to hear what kind of sessions were held. Of course the IAA is open to hearing other event proposals as well.
The IAA has also mentioned that they are considering setting up a fund (including a paypal account) where people can donate money that would go toward organizing and running programs such as English camps for kids from the disaster hit areas, so if you are unable to travel to Iwate this time, you can make a contribution in other ways.
WIT Life #172: Global Justice
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WITLife is a periodic series written by professional Writer/Interpreter/Translator Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03). She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and here she shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations.
Last week New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman profiled the Harvard University political philosopher Michael J. Sandel. This professor’s classes were picked up by PBS and made into a television program that has attracted worldwide attention. Last year, Japan’s NHK TV broadcast a translated version of the series, which sparked a philosophy craze in Japan and prompted the University of Tokyo to create a course based on Sandel’s.
As Friedman details, the PBS series is now available at http://www.justiceharvard.org, and here you can find a thought-provoking discussion of the ethical and global implications of the 2011 Japanese earthquake and nuclear disaster among students in Tokyo, Shanghai, and at Harvard.
It is interesting to see Japanese students voicing their opinions in a proactive way, and I am curious to see what kind of feedback the university course has received since being introduced.
Auckland JETAA’s Ganbare Japan event raises over $2,500
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Via Emily Duncan’s Japan Earthquake Disaster Relief Idea Exchange via the Auckland JETAA GanbareJapan site:
The Auckland JET Alumni Association (Auckland JETAA) would like to thank everyone who attended the Ganbare Japan Charity Dinner held on 11 June, 2011, exactly three months after Japan was hit by one of the worst disasters in recent history. Thanks to your support, the evening was a complete sell-out and we were able to raise $2550.70 for the Japan Red Cross!
We’d like to say a special thank you to all those who made the evening a night to remember – our guest speaker from Sendai, Kaleb Urike, our talented violinist, Nick Jones, our MC, Linton Rathgen, AV extraordinaire, Dima Ivanov, organiser Krystal Lynes, Consul General Mr Ishida, and Mr Kawakami from CLAIR, Sydney. We’d also like to thank Limon Restaurant and Lion Nathan Breweries for their support.
The Auckland JETAA endeavors to do as much as possible to help our friends in Japan. If you are able to assist us in some way, or if you are interested in attending future charity events, we would love to hear from you.
Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, we look forward to seeing you at future fundraisers,
Auckland JETAA
MEF Bruce Rutledge article on CNN: Japan’s post-quake kawaii cute movement
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MEF Bruce Rutledge, founder of Seattle-based independent book publisher Chin Music Press and editor of Ibuki magazine, has an article on CNN GO titled:
“Japan’s post-quake kawaii cute movement: Harajuku’s colorful street-styles used to combat the quake crisis.”
Japan Times article on Iwate CIR Amanda Krips
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Thanks to Fukui JET Mike Maher-King for forwarding on this Japan Times article about Iwate CIR Amanda Krips.
JET coordinator finds Iwate spirit contagious
MORIOKA, Iwate Pref. — Iwate Prefecture’s coast suffered some of the most severe damage in the March 11 quake and towering tsunami, where more than 4,500 people have been confirmed killed and 2,700 are still missing.
But only about two hours by car inland, Morioka, the prefecture’s capital, was barely damaged by the 9-magnitude temblor. Residents only had to deal with a two-day power outage and a gas and supply shortage that lasted a few weeks, according to Amanda Krips, 24, an American who works for the prefectural government.
“Sometimes it makes it difficult to believe there is a total destruction only two hours away,” said Krips, who is on the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program and serves as coordinator of international relations for the prefecture.
Iwate has one of the fewest numbers of JETs. In addition to three coordinators, including Krips, there were 21 assistant language teachers this year. But the tsunami took the life of one of them, Monty Dickson. The 26-year-old from Alaska perished in Rikuzentakata where he taught English to elementary and junior high school students.
As the prefectural advisor for JETs in Iwate, Krips contacted her colleagues soon after the earthquake. Although she had phone numbers and email addresses, checking updates on Facebook was the fastest way to confirm their condition, she said. “Even if they didn’t have access (to the Internet) they could call their parents who would post on the wall.”
In about four days, a worried Krips was able to confirm the safety of all the JETs except Dickson. “He became the only person who we haven’t heard from. So after about a week I figured that it’s probably not going to be good news,” she said. Dickson’s body was found about a month later.
“It was difficult to know that someone I had known in person had died,” Krips said.
She went with her supervisor to Rikuzentakata for the first time when Dickson was found. “That was the first time I saw what happened, the extent of the tragedy. About 6 km from the coast I started to see debris on the riverside. You get into Rikuzentakata and nothing’s there. Basically destroyed. That was really hard to see,” she said.
Dealing with what happened and the radiation scare has been difficult and stressful to many, but Krips said the JETs didn’t panic and reacted in a reasonable manner. A few returned to their home countries for spring break but are back and teaching at their assigned schools, she said.
Many will finish their contract in August and new replacements will arrive. “The situation is fine here; there’s nothing to worry about. We’ll try our best to assure them that they are safe,” said Krips, who has another year in Iwate.
Having spent a year in Kyoto as a college student, Krips, originally from New Jersey, said that although Kyoto was a magical time, she likes Morioka much better, even after the quake.
“People here take a little bit longer to get past their shyness (than people in the Kansai region), but they are nice and genuine, and they’re pretty strong people. That’s what made living here so wonderful.”
Krips observed that people have been stoic about the tragedy. “I haven’t seen anyone curse nature. It happened, so we have to deal with it. I haven’t talked with very many people, but I think a lot of them have the purpose of rebuilding now.
“Everybody is working hard. They have smiles and they don’t complain or anything,” she said.
Krips has done a lot of translation of incoming letters of condolence from other countries sent directly to the prefecture. “I don’t think I can do very much for the reconstruction, but anything I can do to help relations between Iwate and people from other countries that might want to help, I’ll do my best with that,” she said.
Essay: JET alum volunteers for Tsunami Relief in Northeastern Japan
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Posted by JET alum Mark Flanigan to the JETwit Facebook wall:
Hello from Tokyo! I wrote this article (see pages 14-15) for the Japan Commerce Association of Washington, DC. I focused on my recent volunteer experiences as a former JET (Nagasaki 2000-04) working on Tsunami Relief in Northeastern Japan. Please consider sharing this article with your JET friends and colleagues!
http://jcaw.org/main/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/NewsLetter_0611_secured_revised.pdf
Monkey Majik JET alum rocker and Ambassador Fried deliver Canadian beef to Tagajo, Miyagi
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Thanks to JETAA Ottawa President Lisa Malin for sharing this:
Brief English summary of Japanese article below:
Canada’s Ambassador to Japan Jonathan T. Fried delivered a load of Canadian beef to Tagajo City, Miyagi Prefecture along with Maynard Plant (Aomori-ken, 1997-2000) and one other member of Monkey Majik (a four-person Canadian-Japanese band based in Sendai and Tagajo). The beef was served atop locally grown Hitomebore rice to make steeki-don for 1,000 people living in shelters in Tagajo. The Ambassador’s aim was to help residents get their strength back after everything they’ve been through, and it appears to have been the first meat many had enjoyed for quite awhile.
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(Japanese article)
宮城〕
| カナダ牛でステーキ丼 駐日大使ら炊き出し 多賀城
カナダ牛のステーキで元気になってもらおうと、駐日カナダ大使と音楽グループ「ＭＯＮＫＥＹ ＭＡＪＩＫ」のメンバーらが２日、多賀城市内２か所の避難所でステーキ丼の炊き出しを行った。 同グループはカナダ人と日本人の４人組。仙台市を拠点に活動しているが、デビュー前は多賀城市が活動の中心だった。 震災後は各地でボランティア活動を続けながら、カナダ大使館に支援を呼びかけると、４月にはジョナサン・フリード大使が多賀城市に避難物資を届け、今回の支援を約束した。 大使館は「力のつく温かいものを食べてもらいたい」と、県産米「ひとめぼれ」の上にカナダ牛を豪快に盛りつけた １０００食分のステーキ丼を用意。避難所が置かれた市文化センターと市総合体育館では、フリード大使が「お元気ですか」と声をかけながら、被災者にステー キ丼を手渡した。 ２歳の長男とステーキをほおばった同市桜木、無職佐藤深雪さん（３３）は「肉を食べたのは本当に久しぶり。柔らかくておいしかった」と顔をほころばせた。 （2011年6月3日 読売新聞） |
AJET June 2011 Newsletter Highlights
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Message from the Out-going Chair
Hi Everyone,
My term as AJET Chair is coming to an end on June 15th. This year National AJET has made great strides in improving the JET Programme. In December 2010 a report was given about the Tokyo Orientations, and in light of the discussions, some Tokyo Orientation workshops will be revamped to meet the ongoing needs of JETs. On May 23rd and 24th we had an opinion exchange meeting with CLAIR, MOFA, MEXT and MIC, where we presented reports about Mental Health in the JET Programme and The 2012 Teaching English in English in SHS policy. Both of the conversations were very fruitful and we are looking forward to what will come out of the conversations.
I am confident that the 2011-2012 council will do a great job and will fairly represent all of the JETs. If you have any questions or comments you can always contact the 2011-2012 Chair, Matt Cook, at chair@….
Regards,
Caroline Ideus
2010-2011 National AJET Chair
Message from the In-Coming Chair
Hello, JETs!
I’m Matthew Cook and I’m very happy to introduce myself as the Chair of AJET for the new year!
This year, we plan on helping you improve your JET experience by offering you brand new resources, such as lesson plans, more opportunities for events and networking, and promoting what JET is to Japanese communities. This year, I want to show the entire country who we are, what we do, and the differences JETs can make. How can we do this? By putting a face on JET. Let’s show them who we are. Who you are.
Looking forward to this great year with all of you!
Matthew Cook
National AJET Chair 2011-2012
What’s AJET been up to?
Wondering what National AJET’s been up to recently? We’ve been…
Having a productive dialogue with CLAIR, the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications about the 2013 MEXT English Policy, the mental health resources available to JETs and AJET’s goals for the future. Watch ajet.net for more the full reports and a summary of the Opinion Exchange Meeting.
Getting ready for the new 2011-2012 National AJET Council to take over.
Taylor Anderson and Monty Dickson JET Community Tribute
AJET are collecting letters/postcards from the community for an online tribute to two devoted and sorely missed JETs – Taylor Anderson and Monty Dickson. Please visithttp://najettribute.blogspot.com/ to read the current post cards received.
Letters/cards can be anonymous or signed, and messages will be uploaded without editing. If you would be interested in sending messages, hopes, thoughts or wishes to either Taylor or Monty, their friends, family or the JET community at large, please send your cards or letters to Apt. 111, Haitsu Poronia, Katase 44-28-1, Katsuyama-shi, Fukui-ken, 911-0811.
Tohoku Disaster Relief
How Have You Contributed to the Earthquake/Tsunami Relief Efforts?
Send pictures with English descriptions/stories to webmaster@… and it will be published on AJET Press. Pictures can be submitted anonymously or be attributed, according to the author’s preference.
Hope Letters: Sharing hope from overseas to Japan
Hope Letters has received more than 3,000 letters of hope and support from people around the world since March 11th, 2011.
Hope Letters invites you to be a spokesperson of hope by bringing these letters, written by students for students, into your classrooms, staff rooms or common areas. You can also organize a language lesson or activity around the letters. Visit http://www.hopeletters.org
Event Page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=119256111482369
The Crane Campaign
The Crane Campaign was created immediately following the Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan on 11 March 2011 by two British ex-ALTs from the JET Programme (1993-1995 Shizuoka-ken) and a web designer who wanted to involve local school children in the UK in raising awareness for the plight of the Japanese victims.
All the details about what to do and how to join The Crane Campaign are provided on the website, www.theCraneCampaign.com. There is also a Facebook site for providing feedback and photos and we invite you all to come and follow us on twitter (@cranecampaign).
PEPY (Protect the Earth, Protect Yourself) Tours: Adventurous Living, Responsible Giving
Want the challenge and excitement of crossing a country using your own power? The annual PEPY Ride is entering its 7th year and it promises to be as exciting as ever! This cycling adventure offers participants the opportunity to traverse Cambodia on two wheels, all the while learning about and supporting community development projects and locally run non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Each year the ride provides unparalleled opportunities to build a mobile community that will inspire its participants to learn about themselves and the role they play in the world, while raising funds and awareness to fight global poverty.
