Nov 17

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Matthew Gillam, Senior Researcher at the Japan Local Government Center

By Adam Lobel (Nagano-ken, 2000-02) for JQ magazine. Last year, Adam returned to New York after 10 years in Japan, where he researched satoyama (traditional landscape of Japan) as a master’s student, and collaborated with Japanese policymakers in science and technology while working at a think tank. Adam currently helps manage his family’s business, a land use law firm […]


Nov 11

By Preston Hatfield (Yamanashi-ken, 2009-10) for JQ magazine. Preston moved from San Francisco to New York City in January 2012 and is now accepting submissions from people who want to be his friend. Abduct him from his house in the middle of the night, or find him on Facebook and ask about his JET blog in which he details his exploits […]


Oct 28

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Jenn Doane of the Hiroshima Ange Violet

By Renay Loper (Iwate-ken, 2006-07) for JQ magazine. Renay is a freelance writer and associate program officer at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. Visit her blog at Atlas in Her Hand. Seattle native Jenn Doane (Shimane-ken, 2010-12) has played soccer since she was eight years old. Having been a four-year starter on her high school varsity team, a three-year starter […]


Oct 13

  By Ann Chow (Hyogo-ken, 2007-09) for JQ magazine. Ann is a native New Yorker who gets scared of the big, scary world, but ventures out into it anyway. She coined the term “stealth gaijin” (or thinks she did because she hadn’t heard of it before writing a bunch of articles under that moniker during […]


Sep 22

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with The Inaka Founder Chris Allison

By Sarah Rogers-Tanner (Kyoto-fu, 2009-11) for JQ magazine. Sarah hails from Afton, Minnesota and learned a thing or two about the inaka in her small town of Ujitawara, located in the mountains outside of Kyoto City. While there, Sarah taught students ages 2-15 and is now pursuing her master’s degree in elementary inclusive education at Teachers College, Columbia University. Chris Allison (Oita-ken, 2009-12) is a recent JET […]


Sep 8

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Paige Cottingham-Streater, Executive Director of the Japan U.S.-Friendship Commission

  By Renay Loper (Iwate-ken, 2006-07) for JQ magazine. Renay is a freelance writer and associate program officer at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. Visit her blog at Atlas in Her Hand. Paige Cottingham-Streater (Mie-ken, 1988-89) is a co-founder of the JET Alumni Association and executive director of both the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission (JUSFC), a federal agency that provides grants for research, training and exchange […]


Aug 5

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Bridges to Japan Founder Jennifer Jakubowski

space By Lana Kitcher (Yamanashi-ken, 2010-12) for JQ magazine. Lana is a New York native, and just recently returned to the U.S. She wrote for the AJET online magazine Connect while on the JET Program. She also enjoys writing about her adventures on her blog at Kitcher’s Café. Jennifer Jakubowski (Hokkaido, 1995-97) is the founder and managing director of Bridges to Japan, a Japanese-American cross-cultural consulting […]


Jul 8

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Darryl Wharton-Rigby on ‘Don Doko Don: The Yamakiya Taiko Drum Club Project’

  By Nichole L. Knight (Shiga-ken, 2007-09) for JQ magazine. Originally from Waterbury, Connecticut, Nichole became active with the JET Alumni Association of New York even before moving to the city. Since returning from Japan, she’s played with the University of Connecticut Taiko Team, and trained with Soh Daiko, the East Coast’s oldest taiko group. […]


Jun 23

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Mark Flanigan, Program Director of the Japan ICU Foundation

  By Shirley Dang (Yamanashi-ken, 2009-10) for JQ magazine. Shirley enjoys sipping chai latte and devouring scrumptious cakes while continuing her pursuit for Japanese- and education-related jobs. Visit her Facebook page here. Mark Flanigan (Nagasaki-ken, 2000-04) currently lives on the campus of International Christian University (ICU) / 国際基督教大学 in Tokyo, where he is finishing up […]


May 13

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Director Regge Life on ‘Live Your Dream: The Taylor Anderson Story’

  By Renay Loper (Iwate-ken, 2006-07) for JQ magazine. Renay is a freelance writer and associate program officer at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. Visit her blog at Atlas in Her Hand. Live Your Dream: The Taylor Anderson Story is the latest work by filmmaker and Global Film Network founder Regge Life, who […]


Apr 22

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with JET Alum Kalu ‘Kaz’ Obuka of Meta-Culture

  By Renay Loper (Iwate-ken, 2006-07) for JQ magazine. Renay is a freelance writer and associate program officer at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. Visit her blog at Atlas in Her Hand. Originally from London, Kalu “Kaz” Obuka (Saitama-ken, 2005-08) is currently working as a conflict resolution specialist at Meta-Culture, a conflict resolution […]


Jan 9

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with JUSTE Program Participant Kazumoto Takechi

  By Sierra Soleil (Fukushima-ken, 2000-02) for JQ magazine. Sierra works at an ESL school in Manhattan. He enjoys teaching, writing, and riding his bike. It’s been called the “Reverse JET Program,” which is a lot catchier than the Japan-U.S. Training and Exchange Program for English Language Teachers (JUSTE Program). A few of the East […]


Nov 21

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Author/JET Alum David Namisato on ‘Life After the B.O.E. the Book’

  By Rick Ambrosio (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08) for JQ magazine. Rick manages the JET Alumni Association of New York (JETAANY)’s Twitter page and is the creator of the JETwit column Tadaima! It’s probably happened to you over the last few years; you’re sitting at work, or maybe at home and an old buddy of yours from […]


Oct 17

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Peelander-Yellow of Alien Punk Band Peelander-Z

  By Justin Tedaldi (CIR Kobe-shi, 2001-02) and Vlad Baranenko (Saitama-ken, 2000-02) for JQ magazine. Psychedelic, seizure inducing, and fantastically successful in their ability to cause absolute sensory overload during their intergalactic performances, Peelander-Z is back. The colorful Japanese punk group hailing from the Z area of Planet Peelander returns to New York City (where […]


Oct 3

JQ Magazine: JQ&A with Author/JET Alum James Kennedy on the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival

  By Renay Loper (Iwate-ken, 2006-07) for JQ magazine. Renay is a freelance writer and Associate Program Officer at the Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership. Visit her blog at Atlas in Her Hand. James Kennedy (Nara-ken, 2004-06), author of the acclaimed young adult novel The Order of Odd-Fish, will be curating the 90-Second Newbery […]


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