Volunteer Translators
Earthquake Tsunami, Translating/Interpreting, Volunteer 
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[via JET alum and Brooklyn-based translator Philip Schnell via Charles Aschmann]
The Japan Association of Translators (JAT) is compiling a list of interpreters willing to volunteer their services to help rescue crews and other people providing help to victims of the earthquake and tsunamis. We are starting by compiling the list, publishing it on the website and trying to contact organizations that are responding. If you are willing to volunteer, either travel or perhaps (if the location allows) electronically, please send your information to webmaster@jat.org.
Please include the following information.
1. Full name
2. Address
3. Language pairs
4. Phone number
5. Mobile phone number
6. Skype name (if you have one)
7. Other means of communication, Facebook, Twitter, etc.
8. Extent to which you can help. (travel, tele-interpreting, etc.)
9. Any other information you feel would be useful.
Also, this Facebook group has been started for translators to provide free translations of disaster-related information:
via Noriko Hino, founder of NY de Volunteer. Posted by Dipika Soni (Ishikawa-ken, 2003-06). Dipika currently works as an in-house translator for PFU (a Fujitsu company) in Kahoku-shi, Ishikawa-ken. She is also the vocalist for the Japanese hardcore punk band DEGRADE.
*Note: If you apply for this position, please let them know you learned of it from JetWit. Thanks.
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Job Position: Research Assistant Volunteer NEEDED (NYC)
Job Details:
Conduct research and prepare grant applications for a Japanese volunteer organization whose mission is to enhance cultural exchange and understanding for the citizens of NYC. Improve research skills by conducting online and in-person research for prospective foundations requests. Draft written grant applications for submission to foundations.
Required Skills:
Benefits:
Gain professional research and writing experience while providing a valuable service to a NYC service volunteer organization. Enhance and improve oral communication and interpersonal skills.
Time/Location Requirements:
Approximately 4 hours per week, with a minimum 3 month commitment requested.
Periodic staff meeting usually once every two to three weeks.
If you are interested in this position, please contact Noriko at noriko@nydevolunteer.org.
JETs in the News: JET alum to run Tokyo Marathon, raise money for Nepales students
JETs in the News, Volunteer Comments Off on JETs in the News: JET alum to run Tokyo Marathon, raise money for Nepales students
Thanks to JETAANY President Megan Miller (Hyogo-ken, 2000-02) for sharing this article with JetWit:
There’s a nice article in one of the Chicago Tribune’s local sections on Aomori-ken JET alum Mark Scott who will be running in the upcoming Tokyo Marathon on February 28 while raising money for a Nepalese charity that helps students go to school who might not otherwise be able to do so.
The charity, fyi, is Everest of Apples, the official Aomori-ken AJET charity. Here’s a little more about the charity:
“As the official charity of Aomori AJET, EofA is mostly funded by JETs in Aomori. As such, we are not explicitly looking for donations from JETs from other prefectures (although they are always welcome!). Rather, we very much hope that Everest of Apples will prove to be a model, or at least food for thought, for other prefectural AJETs, or any similar groups of JETs, interested in setting up their own charity.”
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Are you running in this year’s Tokyo Marathon? If so, let us know by posting in the comment field below or emailing jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
Info courtesy of Diana Lee, President of AsianInNY.com. Diana is handling performances for the 32nd Asian/Pacific American Heritage Festival in New York.
The Asian/Pacific American Heritage Festival is a free, day-long celebration of Asian/Pacific Americans. On May 8th, 2011, from noon-6pm, performing groups from the New York tri-state area will take the stage in front of an audience of over 8,000 in Union Square, Manhattan.
We are currently seeking submissions for:
- Performances from artists and companies working in music and/or dance including folk, traditional, and contemporary expressions.
- Must be appropriate for a family oriented 20-30 minutes performance on an outdoor stage.
The event has a history of high media coverage featured in the New York Times, Newsday, the Village Voice, Time Out magazine, NY1 News, and many ethnic papers.
We will have a merchandizing table for performers who participate in this festival to sell their items or place their promotional materials (flyers/posters).
To submit registration or auditions for performances, please visit our registration site at: http://bit.ly/etkYAP
Deadlines:
Performances Submissions: Friday, February 18, 2011
For more information regarding the festival: www.capaonline.org
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me here or at info [at] ASIANinNY.com.
Thank you,
Diana Lee
VP of Performance of APA Heritage Festival
JetWit Writing Opportunities: 12/27/10
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Starting in 2011, JetWit will be teaming up with JETAA New York’s JQ magazine to feature JET alum and Japan-related feature stories! Much like JQ’s Brainstorm Crew postings featuring story ideas, we would like to present the below JetWit Writing Opportunities for real-time instant story posting. This means no more waiting for the publication of seasonal issues! Below are story ideas grouped by JET participants and alumni (JET World) and those more on Japanese culture (Japan World). If you’re a JET or JetWit contributor, we welcome your interest or additional story ideas! Contact JQ editor Justin Tedaldi at justintedaldi [at] jetwit.com to sign up and for more info.
Also, we are now looking for a volunteer who’s skilled in graphic design to help us create a modified JetWit logo! Anyone who wants to get in touch on this can also do so at the e-mail above.
***JET WORLD***
JET ALUM IN UPCOMING DOCUMENTARY ON JAPANESE VIDEO ARCADES
Casey Novotny (Kochi-ken, CIR and Prefectural Advisor) now works at Asia University, and was interviewed as a talking head for the upcoming documentary film 100 Yen: The Japanese Arcade Experience. The film is currently in production, and Casey is happy to share his experiences of being contacted for this unique film for a feature story or interview.
JET ALUMS DEVELOP JAPANESE FLASH APP
Mark Makdad, founder of software company Long Weekend Mobile, has developed with his partner Ross Sharrott the Japanese Flash vocabulary builder app for iPhone, as well as the Rikai Browser for iPad for reading Japanese. Interested in giving these products a spin and writing about them?
JET ALUM MICHAEL JIM GANNON PROFILE
Jim Gannon (Ehime 1992-94) has been the executive director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA) in New York since 2002. Headquartered in Tokyo, JCIE is one of the leading international affairs organizations in Japan. Jim was also the writer of the “JET Program on the Chopping Block” article published last summer. Talk to him about his work, Japan, and the continuing efforts to support JET in light of what’s happening in Tokyo.
PROFILE A SEATTLE-AREA JET ALUM
Kirsten Henning, Vice President of the Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Washington, is a senior project manager at Pyramid Communications and serves as an active volunteer for the Girl Scouts and Densho. Prior to joining Pyramid, Kirsten worked at the Seattle Mariners as media liaison and interpreter for Ichiro Suzuki and the Japanese press corps and then went on to manage media relations for Team Japan, champions of the inaugural World Baseball Classic. She spent the previous six years in Japan as a JET Program participant and later as special VIP liaison at Park Hyatt Tokyo. She holds a B.A. in East Asian Studies from Barnard College of Columbia University and also studied at the Stanford University Japan Center in Kyoto, Japan.
JET INSTANT NOODLE COMICS
Profile of JET alum artist Shun Endo and his “JET Instant Noodle Comics.” Read samples at http://jetwit.com/wordpress/2010/10/25/instant-noodle-comics-i-wish-facebook-had-the-boss-filter.
JET ALUM/SAKE EXPERT JOHN GAUNTNER
John Gauntner is a JET alum and noted lecturer on sake who travels the world to speak all about this appealing beverage. He has published a score of books on the topic and spoke at Japan Society last May. Visit his website www.sake-world.com.
ISSHONI LONDON – JET ALUM BLOG
London JET alum Vanessa Villalobos writes about Japan-related events, news, review and interviews. This would be a good Q&A piece for any JETs wanting to learn more about how our alumni groups operate overseas. Learn more at:
www.facebook.com/pages/Isshoni-London/119415767689
www.twitter.com/IsshoniVanessa
An innovative telecommunications site for Team Teaching, founded by a JET. www.teamteachers.com
JETSET – CANADIAN JETS IN JAPAN
Melissa C. runs JETset, a site for Canadian JETs in Japan and a well-known resource center for JET participants. See more for a profile at http://www.jetsetjapan.com.
***JAPAN WORLD***
WHERE DO YOU GET YOUR JAPAN FIX?
In an effort to revive the “Japan Fix” posts, we’d like to share a recent discoveries to help readers find a little piece of Japan close to home. How do you get your Japan fix wherever you live? Write it down and send it to Gail Cetnar Meadows (Hiroshima-shi, 2007-10), co-founder of Hiroshima JET webzine the Wide Island View, at gail [at] jetwit.com for the entertainment and benefit of the JET alum community.
ROBIN SAKAI OF GAIJIN POT
Gaijin Pot is a site that offers jobs, apartments and classifieds in Japan. Run by Robin Sakai, it strives to bring the Japanese and expat community together.
REVIEW OF JAPANESE LANGUAGE STUDY OPTIONS IN THE NY AREA
JetWit would like to add a listing as well as a possible review of Japanese language study options in the New York area. One of these is Hills Learning, founded by Jon Hills, who works with JETs in New York to promote his learning center, which teaches four languages to children and adults. Jon also co-presents monthly Asian networking events. Jon is open to a profile. Learn more at www.hillslearning.com.
RESTAURANT REVIEWS
JetWit is accepting reviews on any Japanese restaurant that you’d like to spread the word about. (Even better if they’re run by JETs.) JET alum Jamie Graves runs Kajitsu, an East Village restaurant in New York specializing in shojin cuisine, an ancient Japanese culinary practice developed in Zen Buddhist monasteries.
FILM/BOOK REVIEW
We are also accepting reviews or books and movies (past and present) related to Japan or the JET experience. Whether you’re checking out the theatrical release of a new anime film or digging into new translations of Natsume Soseki’s classics Kokoro and Sanshiro (coming this February), let us be your sounding board.
GOHAN SOCIETY OF NEW YORK
Profile. Based in New York, Gohan Society’s mission is to foster an understanding and appreciation of Japan’s culinary heritage in the United States through outreach to chefs, culinary arts professionals and all who admire and enjoy Japanese culture.
Gohan Society serves as a resource center for knowledge of traditional Japanese ingredients, techniques and food-related products, and as a catalyst for the expansion of that knowledge in the United States.
CONSULATE GENERAL SCHOOL CARAVAN
This is a decade-plus program run by New York’s Consulate General of Japan that sends consulate staff (American and Japanese) to New York high schools and junior high schools to introduce students to Japanese culture, and JET alums have even served as presenters! The purpose of this article will be to increase awareness of the program so more JETAA members can get involved.
KEIO ACADEMY OF NEW YORK
Based in Purchase, NY, Keio Academy is a school for bilingual and bicultural education established by its Tokyo namesake. Besides the various activities the school offers, it also seeks to recruit JET alums for potential work opportunities. We can put you in touch with their business officer, who is happy ro speak with more JETs about the subject.
ASIA SOCIETY OF NEW YORK
In Jan. 2010, NYC’s Asia Society held a concert called “Hogaku,” or Japanese folk instruments played with modern flair. We’ve never profiled Asia Society, so this would be a great time to find out more about how they select their Japanese attractions and exhibitions.
JAPAN INFORMATION CENTER OF NEW YORK
Profile. Take advantage of Japan Information Center to promote Japan!
The Japan Information Center (JIC) is the cultural and public affairs section of the Consulate General of Japan in New York. The JIC’s Services:
– Distributes educational materials, posters and pamphlets on Japan
– Provides speakers on various aspects of Japan to the schools throughout
this region
– Provides information on the Japanese Government Scholarships & the JET
Program
– Distributes the e-newsletter Japan Info
– Loans videos/DVDs and cultural artifacts
Please sign up to subscribe the Japan Info newsletter at www.ny.us.emb-japan.go.jp/en/c/ji_subscription.html.
For more information and to contact JIC, visit their website at www.ny.us.emb-japan.go.jp/en/b/01.html.
From JET alum Rosa Sobrino who is a producer for a Japanese morning show in NY:
“Live Japanese TV News program looking for some awesome volunteers to participate as extras on Thursday, December 16, 2010 from 2:30p.m.-5:30p.m. in Brooklyn. We will be introducing a local stunt school and would like to ask some people who can do basic exercise to come. If you are interested, please contact Rosa anytime at 917-755-0955 asap.”
JET ROI: JET alum creates “Smile Kids Japan” program for JETs to volunteer at orphanages in Japan
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Check out this article from The Japan Times on Fukui JET alum Mike Maher-King who started Smile Kids Japan (www.smilekidsjapan.org), a web-based network that enables JETs to volunteer at orphanages around Japan. The idea came from Mike’s own experience volunteering at an orphanage in his area, which he then expanded to bring other JET alums to the orphanage as well.
Here’s the URL for the article: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20100925a1.html
(Also of note, the article is by a JET alum journalist, Jody Godoy.)
Examples like this do a wonderful job of demonstrating the Return on Investment that Japan continues to reap from the JET Programme and its alumni. If you have other examples to share, please email them to jetwit@jetwit.com and we’ll post them for the JET alum community and others to read about.
Guinea Pigs Needed for Kanji Reading Experiment
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Karl Rosvold (ALT/CIR in Hiroshima Prefecture, ’93-’96) is conducting an online reading experiment targeted at foreigners who are learning or have learned Japanese. He’s looking for as many participants as possible who are native or near-native English speakers and “upper-beginner” or above in Japanese (defined as having passed the old JLPT 3/new JLPT N4). There are a few other conditions which you can see on the experiment website.
Registration will start around September 25th. To participate in the experiment, simply fill out a short questionnaire on the website, then come back two more times, about a week apart to take two short Japanese reading comprehension tests, with or without hints about the kanji in the text. Each step should take about 30 minutes. Ideally, people will participate because they feel the experiment is interesting and beneficial, but for participants living in Japan, Karl is also offering a 2000 yen QUO gift card to the first 100 people who complete the whole experiment.
Please check out the temporary website for more information: http://kanjijikken.web.fc2.com/
or feel free to e-mail Karl at kanji.experiment@gmail.com. Please let him know that you saw this message on Jetwit!
JET Alum Writer Beat
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I’d like to start a new series of posts titled “JET Alum Writer Beat.” And I’m looking for someone to take it on and make it happen. Please contact Steven at jetwit@jetwit.com if interested.
JET Alum Writer Beat will be kind of like JETAA Chapter Beat and Japan Society Round-up. You’ll follow established JET alum writers out there (I’ll give you a list to start)–i.e., read or subscribe to their blogs, their Facebook or Twitter accounts, email lists, etc.–and you’ll post a round-up once a week or so listing anything you think is worth mentioning about them and their recent work.
For more info, please contact Steven at jetwit@jetwit.com.
JetWit is seeking a volunteer to help post jobs on the JetWit site. If interested, please contact Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, 1992-94) at jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
The role primarily involves taking jobs that have been sent to the JetWit Jobs Google Group and making sure they also get posted to the JetWit site in a timely manner. You’re also welcome to find additional job listings that might be of interest to JET alums and post them on the site as well.
Knowledge of WordPress is helpful. (If you don’t know how to use it, then I’ll explain it to you–a good chance to learn a new skill.)
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu!
Call for Volunteers: JET Ambassadors for School Visits
Cultural Outreach, Uncategorized, Volunteer Comments Off on Call for Volunteers: JET Ambassadors for School Visits
From Mauric Maloney, President of JETAA DC:
We’d like to thank those members who responded to our earlier call for volunteers for the JET Ambassadors Program. This is a second call for volunteers before we begin our orientation and school visits in the fall.
The JET Ambassadors program wishes to establish a network of volunteers who can visit local schools and discuss their experiences in Japan through photos, videos, games, and other props.
The main focus of these presentations will be life at a Japanese school, but they will vary from person to person.
The goal is to begin presentations in the Fall of 2010 and include all interested schools in the JETAADC area, including the Baltimore Region, Annapolis and the Eastern Shore, Richmond and other points South, and even West Virginia. So regardless of your distance from D.C., please respond if you are interested.
Each presenter will receive be reimbursed for his or her time and travel.
If you are interested, please respond to this e-mail with the following information.
Name:
Current Location:
Preferred E-mail address:
Phone:
Years on JET:
Prefecture:
Grade Levels Taught in Japan:
Current Profession:
Access to Metro/Public Transport:
Access to Car:
There will be an orientation on September 14 at the Embassy of Japan. More details will follow. Please respond by Friday August 27 if you are interested. If you have any other questions, do not hesitate to contact me.
Maurice Maloney
President, JETAADC
president.dc@jetalumni.org
PS – If you know of or work at a school that might be interested in receiving visitors, please let us know with the name of the school, its location, and the best person to contact.
