Job: Grants Officer, Institute of International Education (NY)
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: Grants Officer
Posted by: Institute of International Education
Type: N/A
Location: New York, New York
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A
Purpose of Position:
Manages various Foundation-funded Travel and Learning funds and provides management to other grant initiatives in the division. Work is carried out independently under general supervision.
Essential Duties and Responsibilities include the following. IIE may add, change, or remove essential and other duties at any time.
•Responsible for complying with applicable contract and sponsor requirements and following all IIE policies and procedures
•Manage multi-million dollar grant, which enables individuals from all over the world to travel internationally to conferences, seminars, and short courses. Primary responsibilities include preparing grants and contracts, conducting due diligence, and monitoring grant/contract progress and payment.
•Assure compliance with IRS regulations, other U.S. government regulations and foundation-specific guidelines for all grants, identifying potential issues
•Ensure grant files meet legal and auditing requirements; coordinate creation, and maintenance of all grant files
•Manage the logistics of travel for consultants and grantees including heavy interaction with the travel agency to arrange for domestic and international travel and hotel reservations worldwide Read More
Job: Oakland Asian Cultural Center Seeks Executive Director (CA)
Thanks to JETAA Northern California VP Mark Frey who has worked closely with OACC for the past two years. 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: Executive Director
Posted by: The Oakland Asian Cultural Center (OACC)
Type: Full-time
Location: Oakland, CA
Salary: Salary $55-$60k depending on experience and skills
Start Date: N/A
Overview:
The Oakland Asian Cultural Center (OACC) was founded in 1984 by a coalition of volunteers who recognized the need for a strong artistic and cultural force in the Chinatown area. Since opening its own facility in 1996 in the heart of Oakland’s Chinatown district, the OACC has presented countless high quality cultural programs including performances, workshops, festivals, school tours, classes, and exhibitions. OACC builds vibrant communities through Asian and Pacific Islander American (APIA) arts and culture programs that foster intergenerational and cross-cultural dialogue, cultural identity, collaborations, and social justice. Read More
Job: PT Assistant at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership (NYC)
Thanks to J. Renay Loper for sharing this posting. 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: Assistant
Posted by: The Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership
Type: Part-time
Location: NY
Salary: Hourly wage, commensurate with experience. No other benefits offered.
Start Date: March 1, 2013 (or as soon as possible thereafter)
Overview:
Established in 1972, the Japan Foundation seeks to promote international cultural exchange and mutual understanding between Japan and other countries. The Foundation awards grants in the areas of Arts & Cultural Exchange, Japanese-Language Education Overseas, Japanese Studies and Intellectual Exchange, and operates fellowship programs to foster individual research and the development of human resources. The Center for Global Partnership (CGP) was founded within the Foundation in 1991 in New York City and seeks to promote exchange and collaboration between the United States and Japan with the goal of fulfilling shared global responsibilities and contributing to the improvements in the world’s welfare. Read More
Actus Job: Sales Assistant(temp to hire) at a Japanese Company (New York, NY)
Via Actus Consulting. 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: Sales Assistant
Posted by: Actus Consulting
Type: Temp to hire
Location: New York, NY
Salary: $30~35K
Start Date: N/A
Company Overview:
- The company provides mobile internet solutions to travelers in the United States and around the world.
- Main product is mobile Wi-Fi routes.
- Headquartered in Tokyo, established 40 years ago.
- Location: Manhattan , New York
- Number of Employees: 300 (worldwide), NYC Office 1
JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Takashi Ikezawa of Resobox Japanese Art Gallery

“We don’t want art to be only for wealthy people, but instead want to target as wide an audience as possible for the purpose of disseminating Japanese culture. This is actually the reason why we chose to be located in Queens, as it is said to be the most diverse part of the city.” (Stacy Smith)
By Stacy Smith (Kumamoto-ken CIR, 2000-03) for JQ magazine. Stacy is a professional Japanese writer/interpreter/translator. She starts her day by watching Fujisankei’s newscast in Japanese, and shares some of the interesting tidbits and trends together with her own observations in the periodic series WITLife.
In recent years, Long Island City has experienced a rapid gentrification, being converted from an abandoned, industrial wasteland to a hotspot of waterfront apartments and art institutions. Of course it has big hitters like the Noguchi Museum that are well known to Japanophiles, but there are also Japan-related galleries flying under the radar just waiting to be discovered. One such place is Resobox, a short walk from the Queensboro Plaza subway stop whose location is marked by only a small, overhanging sign and a signboard that sits on the sidewalk reading: “The place where people who are conversant with, dedicated to and influenced by Japanese art can gather, create innovative arts through the collaborative process and disseminate them to the world.” Interest piqued? So was mine, and I was fortunate to have the opportunity to speak with Resobox co-owner Takashi Ikezawa to learn more about this unique endeavor.
Can you share with JQ readers Resobox’s back story and the origin of your name?
Resobox was a name created from the words “resonate” and “box,” and it refers to a space where artists can meet and collaborate to create new and innovative art. It initially referred to a project begun by my partner Fumio Tashiro, a jazz musician who became interested in experimental music and music as art performance. He would collaborate with dancers, painters, and musicians to put together performances. I had a business background as I worked at a talent agency representing Japanese artists in NYC, and I knew Fumio casually. However, we started meeting up monthly to brainstorm, and our discussions always focused on the breadth and depth of Japanese culture and arts. In order for a solid collaboration to take place, you need to have a strong foundation. Since we are both Japanese, we found the culture of our native country to be a foundation substantial enough to build on. Our brainstorming sessions yielded the idea of artists, both Japanese and non-Japanese, coming to our box and resonating off each other to create new Japanese art. This is how Resobox was launched in its gallery form in June of 2011.
Can you give an example of some successful collaborations?
One of the artists who was featured until early January, Mary Burton Wheeler, became involved by taking a Japanese ink painting (sumi-e) class at Resobox. It happened to be taught by Ayakoh Furukawa, the artist we currently have on display, and collaboration began in this class environment. Wheeler learned not just about Japanese painting itself but about Japanese sense and ideas, and she incorporated this into the new pottery she produced as a result. On first glance you wouldn’t say that her work is particularly “Japanese,” but on closer look there is definitely a Japanese sensibility that she encountered via her collaboration with Ayakoh.
Justin’s Japan: Nippon in New York – A Lunar New Year Kickoff

Wakamaru, left, and Hiroshi Ota star in the short play “I, Worker,” part of the Seinendan Theater Company + Osaka University Robot Theater Project at Japan Society Feb. 7-9. (Osaka University & Eager Co. Ltd.)
By JQ magazine editor Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) for Examiner.com. Visit his Japanese culture page here for related stories.Saturday, Feb. 2, 6 p.m.-10 p.m.Stay warm this winter with some hot local events, from retro anime screenings to bilingual robot plays to a J-pop infused Lunar New Year spectacular.
This month’s highlights include:
Feb. 1-15, 9:30 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
NIPPON-JIN Exhibition
Consulate General of Japan, 299 Park Avenue
Free
Presented by J-COLLABO, a unique social network that promotes the Japanese art scene with various collaborating artists, NIPPON-JIN (meaning “Japanese”), will be on view at the gallery of the Consulate General of Japan from Feb. 1-15. Showcasing more than 300 unique portrait photographs taken by Junichi Takahashi, NIPPON-JIN reveals what Takahashi sees as “Japanese people,” opposed to the prototype of stereotypical “Japanese” that others expect and portray. To capture the essence of what makes Japanese “Japanese,” Takahashi decided to approach this project by taking hundreds of samples over a four-year period of Japanese being themselves, letting the accumulation of the subject matter form the answer. The exhibition will go to the gallery of Narita International Airport in Japan this summer.
Sunday, Feb. 3, 3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
Salon Series No. 44. Gestures, Mime and Dance
Tenri Cultural Institute, 43A West 13th Street
$15 general, $10 students/seniors
Now in its fifteenth year, the 45th performance of Sachiyo Ito & Company’s Salon Series is titled “Gestures in Japanese Dance and Mime.” From noh theater to today’s baseball heroes, the Japanese have tended to use more gestures than other peoples, particularly compared to those in the west, and in much subtle manner. Why and how we use them in daily life and see any of those are reflected in dance. Featuring guest Yass Hakoshima (who led Yass Hakoshima Movement Theater for 40 years in the USA and Europe), live demonstrations will illustrate how a mime draws gestures from daily life as a comparison and to gain further insight. Excerpts from kabuki dances choreographed by Ito as well as Hakoshima’s ever-popular comic piece, “Fisherman,” will be performed.
Feb. 7-9, 7:30 p.m.
Seinendan Theater Company + Osaka University Robot Theater Project
Japan Society, 333 East 47th Street
$28, $25 Japan Society members
Imagine a time when “robot maids” are commonly found in family households. That’s the much-anticipated setting of these two heartrending short plays by Oriza Hirata, founder of Japan’s celebrated Seinendan Theater Company. In Sayonara (android and human actors), an android is bought to console a girl suffering from a fatal illness, but when its mechanics go awry, the meaning of life and death to humans and robots comes into question. In I, Worker (robots and human actors), a husband’s struggle to cope with the loss of his child is juxtaposed with the malaise of one of his robots, which has lost all motivation to work. This double bill was developed in collaboration with Dr. Hiroshi Ishiguro, a leading international researcher on robotics and Director of the Intelligent Robotics Laboratory at Osaka University. Sayonara will be performed in English and Japanese with English subtitles. I, Worker will be performed in Japanese with English subtitles.
For the complete story, click here.
I’ll Make It Myself!: Vegetarian Curry Nabe
Leah 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, she 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, and The JET Alumni Culinary Group in LinkedIn.
New Rice Cooker Chronicles submissions always welcome. Just e-mail it to Leah at jetwit [at] jetwit.com.
Curry nabe is combination of two of Japan’s great comfort foods: curry-rice (karê raisu, カレーライス) and nabe (鍋). Curry-rice is a Japanized version of Indian curries via Britain: served with rice, this dish is a thick, brown sauce, more sweet than spicy, combined with onions, carrots, potatoes, and chicken or beef, which are sauteed before boiling in the sauce. If mac ‘n’ cheese and spaghetti are the epitome of basic American home cooking, curry-rice tops Japan’s list.
Most curry roux in Japan contain meat extracts (beef, pork, or fish are the most common). I am found of Sokensha‘s vegan* curry “flake type” roux (植物素材の本格カレー), which is sold in health-food stores like Noppo-kun but can also be ordered online. I like the “spicy” one (辛口), even though it’s not all that spicy.Haiku Girl recommends S&B’s Torokeru (とろける) curry roux blocks, and this“Curry for Vegetarians” by Sakurai is also vegan, though I haven’t tried it.
Then, of course, is the staple of Japanese winter cuisine: nabe, from nabemono, which refers to foods cooked in a (clay) pot. Nabe, like curry-rice, is completely adaptable to taste: use whatever tofu, vegetables, and/or meat you like and boil them in a broth of your choice. It’s like non-committal soup, and it’s great for casual dinner parties. You can purchase broth in a variety of flavors from soymilk to kimchi at any grocery store, but I prefer to make my own, and it’s really quite simple. (How did you guess?)
Job: Assistant Researcher Japan Local Government Centre (London, UK)
Via JETAA UK. 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: Assistant Researcher
Posted by: Japan Local Government Centre
Type: Full-time
Location: Central London
Salary: £22,680 – £26,640 (depending upon experience)
Start Date: N/A
Research
- Assisting Japanese staff research projects and also assistance in drafting responses to research topics from Japan regarding local administration in the UK and Northern European Countries
- Assisting research commissioned from Japan, collecting and providing information
- Assisting researching and drafting of reports
- Visit support for delegations from Japan
- Visit support for delegations from Japan visiting local authorities and other organizations
- Preparation of materials for the purpose of the delegations
- Assistance for Programmes Read More
JET Alumni Invited to Apply to Teach For America
Note: The below announcement resulted from a discussion between JETAA USA Board of Advisors member Jessyca Livingston (Hokkaido, 2003-06) and Christie Clark of Teach For America after they realized there have been a significant number of JETs who have done TFA and vice-versa. (e.g., It turns out that current AJET Chair Mark Noizumi is a TFA alum.) TFA has had good experience with JET alumni who go on to work for TFA, and the JET Programme certainly appreciates applicants who come with the kind of prior teaching experience that TFA alums have. Stay tuned for more info as JETAA seeks to grow its relationship with TFA.
JET ALUMNI INVITED TO APPLY TO TEACH FOR AMERICA
Only 1 in 13 students from low-income communities will graduate from college. You can use your experience in education to be a part of a movement to change this. Join fellow corps members– from all professional and academic backgrounds – in the fight to ensure ALL students have a chance at the American Dream.
Teach For America enlists a diverse corps of leaders who commit to teach for at least two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong advocates in the effort to expand educational opportunity. Our teachers use their numerous skills and experiences from their varied work, leadership, and academic backgrounds to effect change in their classroom and help break the cycle of inequity that prevents students from fulfilling their potential. Full salary, benefits, transitional grants, and Americorps funding.
Sign up here to apply. The final application deadline for the 2013 corps is Friday, February 15th.
For further information, please email Christie.clark@teachforamerica.org .
The 2014 Rotary Peace Fellowship Application is now available
Thanks to JET alum and Rotary Peace Fellow alum Mark Flanigan. 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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2014 ROTARY PEACE FELLOWSHIP
The Rotary Peace Fellowship is the premier educational program of The Rotary Foundation and supports Rotary’s mission to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace. It is intended for individuals who have chosen a career related to international relations, peace, and conflict resolution; who have work experience in these areas; and who have a commitment to community or international humanitarian service and working for peace. Applicants should consider these objectives carefully before applying. Two types of fellowships are offered: a master’s degree program and professional development certificate program. Read More
How Miso is Made – A Visit to a Local Factory
Posted by Benjamin Martin, a 5th year JET on Kume Island in Okinawa, publisher of the blog MoreThingsJapanese.com and author of the YA fantasy series Samurai Awakening (Tuttle).
Ever wonder what miso is? If you’ve been to Japan or eaten at a Japanese restaurant, you’ve likely had or at least seen miso. I remember my first time having miso soup. I was in college trying out a little Japanese restaurant that had popped up just outside the UofA. I was pretty green as far as Japanese food went so I ordered teriyaki chicken (I’m sure the chef was thinking all kinds of bad things about me). Before the meal, a bowl of soup appeared. It was a clear broth with some kind of brown particles floating in it. I tried the soup, but the flavor was so different from anything I had eaten before. I didn’t really enjoy it, but then it quickly grew on me. Now, I look forward to miso, be it in my soup, as a glaze for fish, or in the middle of a rice ball.
I’ve studied Japan for a long time, and I’ve always translated miso as ‘fermented soy bean paste.’ Just like soy sauce, miso is made from soy, but it is only part of the story. A few weeks ago, my island had its sangyo matsuri where I was able to meet one of the people who make miso here (Kumejima‘s miso is quite popular). I was interested in the process so I wrangled a visit to the factory.
One of the first things I found out is that they don’t make miso all the time. Traditionally, miso was something made at home. Each family would make their own miso for their own use. As with so many things, the miso making skills are fading with the convenience of store-bought foods. Still, there are a few places that still do local miso. Since it is a fermented product, the temperature is an important factor, thus miso can only be made in moderate seasons. If it gets too cold, or too hot, the fermentation wont go on as well.
The process also takes more than three months. At the small local factories, they make large batches two or three times a year as needed. The rest of the time, they focus on other projects or on creating new items.
For more about how miso is made, including pictures, a walk-through of the process, and great miso based recipes, visit MoreThingsJapanese.com
Job: Postings from Idealist.org 1.30.13
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.
Youth Associate, Asia
Posted by: IPAS
Type: Full-Time
Location: Chapel Hill, NC
Salary: Salary is commensurate with experience
Application Deadline: None Specified
IPAS is seeking a Youth Associate to implement activities designed to strength young persons’ leadership, mobilization, and access to information and services. This position has a global reach, with primary focus on Asia. A minimum of 5 years of experience supporting international health and/or rights programs with a focus on young people’s SRHR, required.
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/Psf3t37MhxNp/
Sales Associate, AsiaStore
Posted by: Asia Society
Type: Part-Time
Location: New York, NY
Salary: Salary is commensurate with experience
Application Deadline: None Specified
The Asia Society and Museum, a prestigious non-profit cultural & educational institution, is looking for part-time Sales Associates for its store. High School or equivalent. Knowledge of Asia preferred. Prior retail experience required.
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/tJspzF89dx74/
ESL Instructor
Posted by: Chinese American Planning Council, Inc.
Type: Part-Time
Location: New York, NY
Salary: Salary is commensurate with experience
Application Deadline: None Specified
The Literacy Program is looking for an experienced and qualified part-time Adult ESL Instructor for evening classes in Flushing, Queens to start in early February. Bachelor’s degree in TEFL, TESOL, English with a TEFL certificate or a related field required. Master’s degree preferred.
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/ZHTZSJTPHxNp/
Events Programming Assistant
Posted by: Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
Type: Full-Time (Temporary)
Location: New York, NY
Salary: Salary is commensurate with experience
Start Date: Available Immediately
This is a short-term casual position starting immediately. A permanent position related to events coordination and programming is in the process of being created and the successful candidate will be invited to apply for the permanent position subject to satisfactory job performance. Master’s degree or its equivalent required. Excellent interpersonal, oral, written, and budgeting skills required. At least two years of related experience and some supervisory experience required.
http://www.idealist.org/view/job/33p69sjpmKh4/
I’ll Make It Myself!: Café Dumbo (Veg* Out in Kanazawa Series)
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.
Café Dumbo
Location: Kohrinbo, Kanazawa
Type: Café, lunch
Veg status: vegetarian friendly
Languages: Japanese and English (menus, staff)
Job: International Admissions Advisor Berkeley College (NY)
Via Indeed. 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: International Admissions Advisor
Posted by: Berkeley College
Type: N/A
Location: New York
Salary: N/A
Start Date: N/A
Company Overview:
The International Admissions Advisor will work with international applicants and prospective students for all of Berkeley’s Locations. The advisor will be expected to respond to walk-in, phone and e-mail inquiries; meet with those requesting information, offer tours, and continuously work toward the growth of Berkeley’s International Student Population. The Advisor’s role will also involve file review and processing of acceptance packages. Local travel will be expected to ESL schools, college fairs, and high schools.
Requirements
- Excellent customer service, caring and patience, experience working with international students, attention to detail. Bachelor’s degree required and Master’s degree preferred.
- Previous experience working with graduate students a plus.
Grant application for study in Japan due Feb 10th!
Thanks to JETAA North Carolina. 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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CALL FOR PROPOSALS: RESEARCH TRAVEL GRANTS, SPRING DEADLINE – FEBRUARY 10
The TCJS provides grants to Duke, NCSU, and UNC faculty and graduate students to help defray the costs of research-related travel to Japan.
GRANT AMOUNT: up to $2,500 for travel and accommodation. Please note that the Japan Foundation, which funds this award, asks us to adhere to the following split: $100 for travel in the US, $900 for international airfare,$250 for local travel within Japan, and $1250 for accommodation and meals in Japan. Some small divergence from these amounts is allowed, but no more than 20%.
PRIORITY GIVEN TO: TCJS faculty members; faculty who have not received travel support from the TCJS recently; junior faculty members
DEADLINES: The spring application deadline is February 10. Travel must be completed, and all reimbursement paperwork submitted through your home department, by August 20. Read More

