Dec 10

Job: Website Manager for LIVE YOUR DREAM

Via Regge Life.  Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position:  Website Manager
Posted by: Global Film Network Inc.
Type:  N/A
Location:
N/A
Salary:
N/A
Start Date: N/A

Overview:

“Global Film Network Inc, Producer Regge Life and Andy Anderson are seeking help to maintain the website for the film “LIVE YOUR DREAM: The Taylor Anderson Story.” The site was built using Photoshop, so the person should be knowledgeable of this software. They want to update the site with links for viewing clips of the movie, continuing information about the film and fund-raising. If interested please send a message to liveyourdream1@earthlink.net.”


Dec 10

Job: Nissan – Benefits Admin/HR Asst. (Tennessee)

Thanks to Leah Hashinger for forwarding this job listing. Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Contract Benefits Administrator/Human Resource Assistant at Nissan
Posted by: Kelly Services
Type:  N/A
Location
: Franklin, TN
Salary
: Competitive
Start Date
: N/A

Overview:
Nissan has a strong belief in enriching people’s lives with cars that change the world for the better.  Their mission is to build vehicles that are more efficient, more beautiful, more inspiring, and more human than ever before.  Nissan values the quality of its people.  Imagination, inspiration, unique ideas, and innovation are all part of the Nissan Way.

As Nissan’s workforce partner, Kelly is looking for a self-starter who will take their ideas into overdrive in the progressive work environment that Nissan offers. Read More


Dec 10

Job: AFS-USA Director of Outbound Sponsored Programs (NYC)

Via Philanthropy News Digest. Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Director of Outbound Sponsored Programs
Posted by: AFS-USA
Type:  N/A
Location
: New York, NY
Salary
: Will be negotiated at the time of hire
Start Date
: N/A

Overview:
AFS-USA works towards a more just and peaceful world by providing international and intercultural learning experiences to individuals, families, schools, and communities through a global volunteer partnership.

AFS-USA is proud of its network of more than 5000 volunteers located in communities throughout the United States. Our staff and volunteers work in partnership to deliver quality intercultural exchange programs to adolescents and adults, both those interested in coming to the U.S. as well as those U.S. citizens interested in experiencing life abroad. Read More


Dec 10

DISCO International Career Forums

Via JETAA PNW.  Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Career opportunities for Japanese-English bilinguals
Posted by: DISCO International, Inc
Type:  Career Forum 2012
Location
: Tokyo 2012 & New York 2013
Salary
: N/A
Start Date:
N/A

Overview:

—Tokyo Winter Career Forum 2012—
Date: December 19 & 20, 2012 (Wed. & Thurs.)

http://www.careerforum.net/event/tkw/index.asp?lang=E

Some of the companies participating are:
ABERCROMBIE & FITCH / BLOOMBERG L.P. / COSTCO WHOLESALE JAPAN / ELI LILLY JAPAN / MITSUI CHEMICALS, INC / OTSUKA CORPORATION GROUP /
TAKEDA PHARMACEUTICAL COMPANY LIMITED and many more! Read More


Dec 9

Life After JET: Return to Japan? You can, and I did, as a Rotary International Peace Fellow

Mark graduating with his MA in Peace Studies from ICU, Tokyo

Mark Flanigan (Nagasaki, 2000-04) is a Program Director with The Japan ICU Foundation in NYC. Prior to his current position, he was a Rotary Peace Fellow at International Christian University (ICU) in Tokyo, Japan. He would like to share his story with you in the hopes of helping other JET alums apply for this great Fellowship opportunity. 

As a JET alum, have you ever thought about returning to Japan in a different capacity? Are you interested in earning a fully-funded MA in Peace Studies in Tokyo? You can, and I did, as a Rotary International Peace Fellow. (In fact, there have been at least five JET alums who have gone on to be Rotary Peace Fellows) For me, it was a perfect chance to return to Japan and advance my career at the same time.

Like many JET alums, I’d always thought it would be nice to live in Japan once again, but was not as interested in taking the Eikaiwa route. I had a wonderful experience as an ALT in Nagasaki (2000-04) and truly treasured my time there. After my time on JET, I had returned to the States and was living and working for the US Govt in Washington, DC through the Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Program. Still, I missed the experience of daily life in another culture and was looking for a way to make it happen. Through a friend of mine named William Daniel Sturgeon, who is also a JET alum and a former Peace Fellow, I learned about this great opportunity.  Thanks to his great advice and mentoring, I was able to complete the application and selection process successfully and become a Rotary International Peace Fellow in Japan in 2010.

Through the Rotary Fellowship, Read More


Dec 9

WIT Life #221: MoMA’s Avant-Garde Tokyo

WIT Life 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 month MoMA introduced an exhibition called Tokyo 1955-1970: A New Avant-Garde, which looks at the creations that emerged from this tumultuous period.  It features around 200 works of various media, such as paintings from Yayoi Kusama and photographs from Daido Moriyama, as well as pieces from lesser known artists.  They all offer social commentary and many are confrontational, some via explicitly sexual themes such as Tetsumi Kudo’s “Philosophy of Impotence” installation, which occupies a large section of the exhibit.

Another interesting work is Hiroshi Nakamura’s “Circular Train A,” which features uniformed schoolgirls as cyclops, further fetishizing this symbol of sexuality in Japanese society.  In this painting and others, the influence on modern manga and anime is undeniable.  Fun fact is that Yomiuri Shimbun had served as the sponsor of a Tokyo exhibition of post-war artwork, but withdrew the following year as the content had become too controversial.  The exhibition will run through February 25 and various lectures and gallery talks are offered, so make sure to check it out.

In conjunction with this exhibition, a film series called Art Theater Guild and Japanese Underground Cinema: 1960-1986 is taking place.  On Friday night I had the honor of Read More


Dec 8

JQ Magazine: Book Review – Haruki Murakami’s ‘1Q84’

“Murakami’s previous books were like delicious sandwiches that left you wanting more. 1Q84 is like a two-foot long sub that filled you to bursting, but you’re still not totally satisfied.” (Vintage International)

Roland Kelts, don’t kick me in the balls—

One man’s attempt to review a book honestly while still keeping friends

By Rick Ambrosio (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08) for JQ magazine. A staple of the JET Alumni Association of New York (JETAANY) community, Rick manages their Twitter page and is an up-for-anything writer.

My girlfriend wouldn’t shut up about it.

1Q84 is the best! Ah, when it comes out in English you need to read it!” Just talking about it made her rush to find her old copies (it was broken up into three books in Japan) and start reading them again. She was enthralled, to say the least. I’ve been a Murakami fan for a while: Norwegian Wood was emotional and sexually riveting; Dance Dance Dance was creepy as hell but lots of fun; Kafka on the Shore blew my mind. So I was hungry for 1Q84.

I picked it up shortly after it came out…and put it down for a while…then picked it up again…then down… then up…I think you get the idea. My feelings can kind of be summed up like this: Murakami’s previous books were like delicious sandwiches that left you wanting more. 1Q84 is like a two-foot long sub that filled you to bursting, but you’re still not totally satisfied.

The plot follows two people tied together by fate, love, and inter-dimensional happenstance. Tengo is an author and math teacher who finds himself embroiled in a shady plot to write an award-winning book. Aomame is a fitness instructor with a decidedly darker side job. Both find themselves in an altered version of 1984 called 1Q84 that deviates from the previous reality in specific ways. Those changes seem to revolve around a cult, a beautiful young girl, a book and mysterious “Little People.” Their battle to beat the odds and find each other, discover where they are, and who’s behind the changed world is an epic journey told through alternating perspectives.

1Q84 had all the things I love about Murakami: Super complex, interesting and engaging characters, crazy inter-dimensional sex, lots of mystery, and supernatural elements that bring it right on the cusp of reality, teetering between a fantasy realm and the real 1984. His ability to walk that line (like a cat walking a picket fence for those who love cats not only in Murakami novels, but also in reviews of Murakami novels) is astounding and he does it…for a really long time.

Read More


Dec 7

Job: Postings from Idealist.org 12.7.12

Via Idealist.org.  Posted by Geneva Marie (Niigata-ken 2008-09) Geneva is a contributor to both JETwit and JETAANY. Geneva is on a continuous (epic) search for Japanese-related jobs in the United States. Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.


Associate Program Manager

Posted by: Cultural Vistas
Type: Full-time
Location: New York, NY
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Application Deadline: None Specified

Cultural Vistas is seeking a full-time Associate Program Manager in its Columbia, Md. office to support in the administration of its J-1 Exchange Visitor Programs. Bachelor’s degree in international Studies, business, education, or liberal arts field preferred. Prior experience within international exchange or international education also strongly preferred.

http://www.idealist.org/view/job/DCC4fJTPHxNp/

 

Compliance Manager

Posted by: The Asia Foundation
Type: Full-time
Location: San Francisco, CA
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Application Deadline: December 11th, 2012

The Asia Foundation is seeking a compliance manager to work in its San Francisco, CA office. A minimum of eight years of finance, compliance and sub-recipient monitoring experience with an international development organization is required. Previous experience with USAID-funded programs and/or AusAid-funded programs is highly desirable as is prior work experience in Asia.

http://www.idealist.org/view/job/34C755cFJGfCp/

 

Development Associate

Posted by: The Asia Society of Northern California
Type: Full-time
Location: San Francisco, CA
Salary: Commensurate with experience
Start Date: February 1, 2013

The Asia Society of Northern California is seeking a Development Associate to provide support for development efforts, including: membership, corporate membership, program underwriting, Annual Dinner, special events and other fund raising activities. Bachelor’s degree and 2-3 years development work experience required. Familiarity with Asia and Asian American issues and the philanthropic community preferred.

http://www.idealist.org/view/job/33phX4cj7TwSP/


Dec 7

L.M. Zoller (CIR Ishikawa-ken, Anamizu, 2009-11) is the editor of The Ishikawa JET Kitchen: Cooking in Japan Without a Fight. A writer and web administrator for The Art of Travel, ze also writes I’ll Make It Myself!, a blog about food culture in Japan, and curates The Rice Cooker Chronicles, a series of essays by JETs and JET alumni on the theme of cooking/eating and being alone in Japan.

New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.

One last(?) squash purée recipe for the season!

I live in a country where the only cold cereals available at regular grocery stores (Tokyo Metro, you don’t count) are frosted flakes and cocoa puffs.*  As a result, I’ve learned to make a variety of breakfast foods. I’m actually not sure how I only ended up with one muffin recipe on the blog onsidering the frequency with which we eat them at home. Muffins are the ideal food for the Japanese kitchen: their size means they cook through easily, unlike some quick breads; silicone muffin cups are easy to find; and the infinite variations you can make means you can adapt them to whatever flours (including gluten-free), milk, or seasonal fruit you can find in your area. Plus, they’re just fun to eat.

Click HERE to read more.


Dec 6

Tohoku Holiday Greeting Project

Thanks to JETAA USA Board of Advisors member Jessyca Wilcox for sharing this information:

Tohoku Holiday Greeting Project

American students can send holiday greetings to students in the Tohoku area of Japan devastated by the 3/11/2011 disaster. Cards, which can be written in English, will be distributed beginning December 17. Postage for a regular-size envelope is $1.05.

Send cards to:

Boys and Girls
c/o Mr. Choji Sugihara
Shoshi High School
14-18 Nakamachi, Koriyama-shi
Fukushima-ken, 963-8004
JAPAN.


Dec 6

Jen Wang (Miyagi, 2008-09) is a lab tech in Dallas and a writer for the Japanese music sites, JRock247 and NekoPOP. Her love of cosplay and her junior high school students inspired the name for her own blog about Japan, Hibari-sensei’s Classroom.

Last August, I had the opportunity to be part of a great opportunity for cultural exchange. The skills I acquired came in handy, as North Texas hosted a delegation of over 150 Japanese visitors for the 2012 Japan-America Grassroots Summit. The Summit was inspired by the friendship between John Manjiro Nakahama and Captain William H. Whitfield, which would lead to official relations between the United States and Japan and a 171-year-old bond between the two families. The John Manjiro Whitfield Commemorative Center for International Exchange and the Japan-America Society of Dallas/Fort Worth worked together with fifteen cities (which included my hometown) to give the visitors an unforgettable experience.
Saturday25

Click here to read about my experience with the Summit.


Dec 6

Kyodo News “Rural JET alumni” series: Charlotte Green (Hokkaidō)

News agency Kyodo News has recently been publishing monthly articles written by JET alumni who were appointed in rural areas of Japan, as part of promotion for the JET Programme. Below is the English version of the column from November 2012. Posted by Celine Castex (Chiba, 2006-11), currently programme coordinator at CLAIR Tokyo.

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“The subtlest things we observe in children are often the most significant. Of all the lessons I learned from JET, this is perhaps the one I have carried with me the furthest.”

Charlotte Green (Hokkaidō, Biei-chō, 2006-08), is from St. Helens, Merseyside, in the U.K.  After studying abroad in Tokyo for one year, she graduated from university with a degree in Japanese and Politics in 2006. The same year, she came back to Japan on the JET Programme and spent two years in the lovely town of Biei. Now back in England, Charlotte is currently studying for a post-graduate diploma in Psychoanalytic Observational Studies and working as a play worker  with Barnardo’s.

 

Looking Back with Letters

In a childishly-decorated shoe box at the back of my wardrobe is a collection of items I keep from interesting times in my life.  A lot of it was generated from my time as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) on the JET programme. I spent two years teaching in Biei, a rural town in Hokkaido with a population of 12,000 people.  Like most other ALTs, I arrived with only an anachronistic picture of the place in my mind.  I worked at three different junior high schools, the smallest of which had twelve students and lay amidst rice paddies frequented by storks and warblers, and hills of birch trees that, in the autumn, turned a spectacular yellow. Snow fell thick and fast for six months of the year.  The landscape was a constant source of intrigue. I can remember walking home from work one afternoon and hearing Read More


Dec 3

Job: Part-time Volunteer Coordinator (Queensboro Plz-LIC) (NYC)

Thanks to  JETAA NY Secretary, Pam Kavalam for sharing this NYC listing. Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Volunteer Coordinator
Posted by: Materials for the Arts
Type: Part-time
Location: Long Island,
New York
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A

Overview:

Two month part-time worker needed to oversee groups of special needs volunteers in a warehouse setting. Three days a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday 10am-2:00pm, candidate must have experience working with special needs population of teens and adults.

Duties will include selecting appropriate projects, preparing materials and delegating tasks to group leader with instructions. All groups have counselors and leaders that accompany them.

Candidate must be able to work independently and also within a team environment.

Salary is commensurate with experience – $12 – $17 per hour.

Long Island City location near Queens Borough Plaza.

Please e-mail resume and work references to jkraft@mfta.nyc.gov.

No phone calls please-phone call applicants will not be considered.

Contact Audra Lambert (alambert@mfta.nyc.gov) for more information…


Dec 3

Job: Consulate General of Japan in Detroit – Political Affairs Section

Via  JETAA Chicago. Posted by Kay Monroe (Miyazaki-shi, 1995 -97). Click here to join the JETwit Jobs Google Group and receive job listings even sooner by email.
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Position: Research Analyst in the Political/Economic Affairs Section
Posted by: Consulate General of Japan
Type: Full-time
Location
: Detroit
Salary
: N/A
Start Date: N/A

Overview:
In 1993, as a result of the growing number of Japanese residents and businesses in Michigan and Ohio, the Consulate-General of Japan in Detroit was established. Consulate surveys indicate that there is now a combined total of 900 Japanese owned facilities in Michigan and Ohio. The current two-state population of Japanese nationals exceeds 18,000.

Important consulate missions include: providing support and service to local Japanese nationals, promoting trade and business development between Japan and the U.S., and strengthening U.S.-Japan relations and mutual understanding through various local economic, educational and cultural activities and exchanges. Read More


Dec 1

JET alum Bruce Feiler’s latest NYTimes column on Maria Popova, creator of Brain Pickings

Here’s the latest NYT column by JET alum Bruce Feiler (Tottori-ken, 1989-90), author of Learning to BowThe Council of Dads, and, most recently, The Secrets of Happy Family, as well as several books on the Middle East including Walking the BibleAbrahamand Where God Was Born.  To read prior columns, please click here.

This Life:  She’s Got Some Big Ideas

By Bruce Feiler

SHE is the mastermind of the one of the faster growing literary empires on the Internet, yet she is virtually unknown. She is the champion of old-fashioned ideas, yet she is only 28 years old. She is a fierce defender of books, yet she insists she will never write one herself.

CLICK HERE to read the full column.


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