Apr 4

Deadline Extended: Survey of American Alumni of the JET Program

Academic, Graduate School, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment

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Just received word from JET alum Emily Metzgar, Assistant Professor at Indiana University’s School of Journalism that given everything going on with the earthquake/tsunami in Japan, the deadline for the Survey of American Alumni of the JET Program has been extended to April 8 up until midnight. (Here’s the original post for the full explanation.) If you haven’t completed it yet, it would be greatly appreciated if you could as this info will have an impact on the future of the JET Program.

AMERICAN JET ALUMNI SURVEY

(URL: http://iujournalism.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_5hFAK01YxHtzqfO)

Mar 2

Matt Cook elected new AJET Chair

Japan Local, Local Government, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized

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Matthew Cook leads 4th & 5th year JETs in a game of karuta at the Mid-Year Conference

Matthew Cook (Osaka-fu, 2007-Present) has been elected as National AJET Chair for the 2011-2012 JET year. Cook has been particularly focused on the challenges faced by the JET Program to its future existence.

According to fellow Osaka JET Cailin Arena (2008-Present):

“Matt has spent the past year completely re-defining Osaka AJET. He and the other members have taken the organization in a new direction – using events planning and fundraising to promote JET within their community, which has been experiencing a diminishing number of requests for JETs every year. In just the past 10 months, Osaka has set up volunteer relationships with local orphanages and public service workers, and it has begun developing a study abroad scholarship for students of JET teachers. AJET has been working hard to show Osaka exactly what the benefits of choosing JET are.”

In addition to his work with AJET, Cook has been extremely active within his Board of Education, developing an English curriculum to help Japanese teachers make the transition to elementary school English education as easy as possible. Using his experiences as both a mid-year conference presenter and Tokyo Orientation presenter, Cook will also be leading training seminars this spring. Together with AJET, he hopes to bring support to both JETs and their contracting organizations.

For more detailed information on Cook’s plans for AJET, please visit the AJET website and read his campaign platform: http://ajet.net/lang/en/about/ajet-elections/2011-2012-executive-candidate-platforms/

You can also visit his discussion page to voice any opinions you have about the direction you’d like to see AJET go: http://www.facebook.com/MCookAJET

Osaka AJET is also on Twitter and Facebook. Follow us to join the discussion! http://twitter.com/OsakaAJET

Feb 28

JET World Festival Held in Toyama

Events, Japan Local, Local Government, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized

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Thanks to Hotaka Kawasaki and Matt Gillam of CLAIR-NY for sharing news about this nice example of “Return on JET-vestment” at the local government level:

The CIRs and ALTs in Toyama held the JET World Festival 2011 in Toyama City on February 27th to celebrate their respective home countries and deepen relations with the people of Toyama. According to the Japanese news release below, the festival included booths for each country as well as stage shows featuring Irish music, country & western music, capoeira, and puppet performances. The festival also included a “North Pole” themed kids’ corner and a refreshment stand.

How was the festival? Please feel free to tell us more in a comment to this post or via e-mail to jetwit [at] jetwit.com.

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Feb 23

US-Japan relations take a positive step–Is it good for JET?

Japan Trends, Return on JET-vestment

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Thanks to James Gannon (Ehime-ken, 1992-94) (Executive Director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA), author of the July 3 “JET on the Chopping Block” post and one of the newest members of the JETAANY Board of Directors) for sharing this Kyodo News Service article. Jim also attended the event in the context of his work for JCIE/USA.

Key U.S., Japan bigwigs huddle to restore ties strained by DPJ

Meeting of minds: Lawmakers, intellectuals and business leaders from Japan and the United States gather at a Tokyo hotel Tuesday to discuss ways to boost bilateral ties.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110223a7.html

No big news to report from the gathering, which included Senator Jim Webb (D-Va). But perhaps this is a step that could lay the groundwork for a stronger US-Japan relationship in the future, which in turn could have a positive impact on the future of JET and JETAA.

Stay tuned.

Feb 22

Cooking in Japan: Share your stories!

Anecdote Article, Food & Drink, Japan Local, Return on JET-vestment, Travel/Tourism

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Update: See submitted stories further below in this post! Additional ones will be added as received. So keep checking back.

I learned recently from our friends at the free Japanese weekly Shukan NY Seikatsu that “food” is the leading driver of tourism to Japan from the U.S. these days. With that in mind, I thought it might be helpful (not to mention oishii and natsukashii) if the JET and JET alum community were to share personal anecdotes about cooking while living in Japan.

E-mail responses to Steven at jetwit [at] jetwit.com.

Please make sure to include your prefecture, city/town and years on JET in the following format: Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, Kariya-shi, 1992-94)

Responses can be as short as once sentence and as long as 5 paragraphs. (*If you want to write something longer, that’s great too. I just suggest checking with me first to get on the same page before spending a lot of time and effort writing.)

Responses will be aggregated into one easy-to-read post.

Yes, this is one more project intended to help boost the “return on JET-vestment” for local governments as well as for Japan on the whole.

Itadakimasu!

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Stories of Cooking in Japan

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Feb 21

The Best Prefectures: By JET Alum LinkedIn Groups

Local Government, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized

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A couple weeks ago JetWit requested that JETs and JET alums join their respective JET Alum LinkedIn Groups. The goal has been to start laying the groundwork for prefecture governments to see a higher “return on JET-vestment” and over time provide a greater incentive for prefectures to hire JETs rather than NETs or dispatch company ALTs.

How is it going so far? And which prefecture’s JETs have come out the strongest? Here are….

The Top 5 JET LinkedIn Prefecture Groups

(by number of members as of 2/21/11)

1. Shimane – 44 members

2. Ishikawa – 27 members

3. Hokkaido & Niigata – 16 members

5. Nara, Saitama & Fukuoka – 15 members

Note: In addition to signing up for your prefecture’s group, please help spread the word and encourage others to join as well.

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Overall Ranking of JET Alum LinkedIn Groups by Prefecture

(by number of members)

Feb 21

Survey of American Alumni of the JET Program

Academic, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment

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Here is the link to the “Survey of American Alumni of the JET Program“:

AMERICAN JET ALUMNI SURVEY

(URL: http://iujournalism.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_5hFAK01YxHtzqfO)

The survey is being conducted by JET alum Emily Metzgar, Assistant Professor at Indiana University’s School of Journalism. Her research focuses on public diplomacy, political communication and social media. (Click here to read Emily’s bio.) The survey has been approved by Indiana University’s Institutional Review Board.

Note #1: This is the first attempt at a comprehensive survey of the JET alumni community. I completed the survey myself and it takes about 10 or 15 minutes. FYI, completing the survey is one more step you can take to help the future of JET.

Note #2: Although full participation in the survey is limited to Americans who participated in the JET Program, the link above also provides an opportunity for all interested parties to request updates about research.

Note #3: The above link will remain active until midnight (EST) March 9, 2011.

From Emily’s blog:

“I am happy to answer any questions about this research and would be delighted to keep you informed about the survey’s progress and eventual results. Please feel free to contact me through this contact page or via my page at Indiana University.”

Feb 17

Recent news about the fate of the JET Program

JETs in the News, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized JET ROI Jet Program

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Some interesting recent news about the fate of the JET Program. As you know, there was a bit of a dust up last year as the Japanese government reviewed all of its spending programs and that included JET. Anyone interested in helping to prove the worth of the program should check out the JET Return on Investment (ROI) page on this jetwit site: http://jetwit.com/wordpress/category/jet-roi/ There is also a continuing online petition to support the continuance of the program: http://www.change.org/petitions/save_the_jet_program Apologies if any of this has been posted on jetwit before!

High-profile JET alumni defend the program:
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110210f3.html

The same article was also published by the Mainichi:
http://mdn.mainichi.jp/features/news/20110205p2g00m0fe017000c.html

The program may not be in imminent danger after all. Here’s a page from a Japanese government web site that indicates that as of November of last year Prime Minister Kan was telling the U.S. that the program would continue (Regardless of his words, there is a continued need to track and publicize the worth of the program!): http://www.mofa.go.jp/mofaj/area/usa/visit/president_1011/exchange.html

The page is in Japanese but there’s a link to a pdf of an English document (the original?) on the right-hand side of the page. Here’s the text of that document (Item number 3 contains Japan’s continued commitment to the JET Program):

> FACT SHEET:
> Strengthening the exchange between Japan and U.S.
> for further deepening the Japan-U.S. Alliance
> November, 2010

> Prime Minister Naoto Kan and President Barack Obama met on
> November 13, 2010 in Yokohama. Prime Minister Kan, with the view that
> further enhancement of mutual understanding among wide range of people
> between Japan and the U.S. is necessary for mid and long term deepening
> and development of the Japan-U.S. Alliance,

> 1. announced his new initiatives as follows to further strengthen the
> exchange between Japan and the U.S. aiming at several thousand
> exchanges in 5 years and stated that he would continue his efforts to
> explore other possible effective measures;

> (1) Sending Japanese young teachers and interns to the U.S.
> -Sending young English teachers to the U.S.
> -Sending young Japanese language teachers to the U.S.
> -Sending Japanese students to the U.S. as interns at Japanese language
> courses in the U.S.

> (2) Other programs
>
> -Promoting collaborative education and two-way exchanges among
> universities in Japan and the U.S.

>
> -Supporting immersion Japanese language courses in the U.S.
> -Opening and expanding Japanese language courses and promoting
> Japan Studies in U.S. higher education institutions

>
> -Strategic promotion of international cooperation in the field of
> advanced science & technology and sending young Japanese
> researchers to U.S.
> -Strengthening relationships with U.S. think-tanks
> -Inviting Asian study experts from U.S. to Japan

>
> -Promoting short-visit program for U.S. students
> -Celebrating 2012 Japan-U.S. Cherry Blossom Centennial Anniversary

>
> -Delivering Japanese values such as peace and environment through
> Japanese art
> -Holding modern art exhibits at major art museums in the
> U.S.

> 2. expressed his concern over the decline of Japanese students who study
> in the U.S. and stated his intention to further concentrate and work on
> this issue; and

> 3. reaffirmed the importance of the several efforts addressed so far
> between Japan and the U.S, especially JET(The Japan Exchange and
> Teaching) Programme, CULCON (US-Japan Conference on Cultural
> and Educational Exchange) and Fulbright Program, expressed his
> intention that he would positively continue to utilize these efforts,
> concluded that he would continue to explore measures which contribute
> to the strengthening the Japan-U.S. exchange.

Cheers,
Mark Frey
Communications Director
JETAANC
www.jetaanc.org

communications@jetaanc.org

Feb 10

Stories from the JET-Tourist Tally Project

Anecdote Article, Local Government, Return on JET-vestment, Travel/Tourism, Uncategorized

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Below are approximately 150 comments received so far as a result of the JET-Tourist Tally Project. First the Top 10 Comments followed by all comments organized according to prefecture. (Click here for the latest totals from the JET-Tourist Tally Project.)

Important: If you have not yet responded, please help out by entering your JET Tourist-Tally information in the Google Form we’ve set up. And of course feel free to share any comments or stories! Every response matters. CLAIR, MOFA, JNTO and the prefecture governments are all paying attention to the results.

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The Top 10 Comments from the JET-Tourist Tally Project

(FYI, the comments were evaluated on the basis of “omoshiroi” plus effectiveness at demonstrating the value of JET.)

I took my parents up through Tohoku to experience a part of Japan tourists typically don’t see. We hiked Yamadera, shot over to Sendai and Matsushima, went to Hiraizumi, traveled through Aomori up to Sapporo, went over to Onuma Park, down to Hakonodate, and then down to Aomori for a few more days. They loved all of our experiences, from using an onsen and sleeping in a ryokan to learning how to order their own food. My father particularly loves to tell the story about a tiny yakiniku restaurant we stumbled into in Hiraizumi. The owner couldn’t speak English, but he did know at least one word. He came over to my father, put a beer down and said “suds.” From that point on, they were friends. A Buddhist monk sitting a few tables over joined us and invited us to visit his temple the next day. It was an amazing intercultural experience in an ancient town usually overlooked by tourists.

-Abigail McBain (Aomori-ken, Ajigasawa-machi, 2004-06)

My family said they never would’ve thought to visit Japan before I did JET, and since visiting twice couldn’t believe they ever said that because they had the most amazing time. Especially memorable was the opportunity to see village life in Japan and experience Japanese hospitality, something regular tourists rarely get to experience.

-Kirsten Jones (Tokushima-ken, Tsurugi-cho, 2005-07)

My parents still talk about the experiences they had visiting me in Japan. My father in particular. As a result he still maintains links to Japan and often buys tea directly from a Japanese seller near Uji named Hibiki-an. I myself have returned to Japan as a tourist three times since I finished the JET Programme, one time with a fellow JET alumna, staying 10 days each time. I plan to visit Japan again. I also often encourage my American friends who are interested in visiting Japan to go. One of my co-workers recently went there on vacation, again for about 10 days, and had a wonderful time.

-Rose de Fremery (Shizuoka-ken, Hamaoka-cho, 1998-2001)

Being able to share a country that I love (Japan) with people that I love (my family) was one of the best experiences of my life. My mother still talks about coming to visit me for those two weeks. We were able to explore my town (Hamamatsu) and also Tokyo, Hiroshima and Kyoto. In addition, this was the first time my mother had ever left the United States; she is amazingly proud to say she became a world-traveler when she was in her 50s! This would not have happened if I had not been a JET participant and could confidently share parts of Japan with my family.

-Jennifer Butler (Shizuoka-ken, Hamamatsu-shi, 2001-04)

Both of my visitors were and still are keen practitioners of aikido. They continue to teach the martial art and will be regular visitors to Japan, also inspiring others to travel there. Without my JET experience I wouldn’t have been able to take them to Japan. Also, I am now a British Airways pilot flying regularly to Tokyo so I could perhaps list a figure of several thousand visitors!

-Darren Tostevin (Fukuoka-ken, Omuta-shi, 1990-91)

Prior to my becoming an ALT, my fiance had never had any interest whatsoever in visiting Japan. It was only once I went there and started to tell her about the people I had met that she began to read more and educate herself about the country. When she finally came to visit me, she was constantly amazed at how genuinely welcoming and helpful everyone was as well as how easy it was to get around and experience everything that Japan has to offer. To this day she still tells everyone about her experiences there and how Japan went from the bottom of her “Places to Visit” list to become her favorite country that she’s ever visited. Not only did the JET Programme give my family and friends an amazing opportunity to see what Japan has to offer but it also converted someone who never had given the country a second thought into a vocal volunteer tourism spokeswoman.

-Gregory Blair (Nagasaki-ken, Saikai-shi, 2007-08)

I made sure to show two of my guests around Niigata, which is not your typical tourist destination–and they loved it even more than Kyoto! Having JETs in locations off the beaten track surely helps those areas.

-Maureen O’Brien (Niigata-ken, Niigata-shi, 2006-08)

Several of these visitors (at least 5) had previously stated absolutely no interest in visiting Japan…it took quite a bit of convincing on my part to get these individuals to come. In the case of one, a senior citizen friend from England, it just seemed so un-knowable and far beyond her comfort zone. But she loved it once she arrived. The other four, a Philippine-American family who are friends here in the US, were previously very anti-Japanese due to experiences their grandparents’ generation suffered during WWII. They couldn’t understand how I would possibly want to move to Japan on JET. But they kept in touch the entire two years, and finally – just one month before I returned – they agreed to come for a visit. They fell in love with the people and the country, their prejudices were totally erased. Even now, three years later, they are still talking about Japan…only now it is in terms of how wonderful and warm the people are and how we should all live up to these standards of hospitality. A total about-face!

-Margie Banin (Kochi-ken, Motoyama-cho, 2005-07)

My parents would never have dreamed of visiting Japan had I not been there. Now they are complete Japan enthusiasts and are really interested in the country and culture. My friends who came to visit still talk about it now and pass this on to other people, encouraging others to visit Japan. Also, thanks to my stories, pictures and news from the two years I spent in Japan, my whole network of friends and family have shared my interest in the country. I also organised letter exchanges with my old high school, and at least 20 students has direct contact with Japanese students at my school in Yakage-cho, and have become Japan enthusiasts.

-Annie Barber (Okayama-ken, Yakage-cho, 2007-09)

I had heard about all sorts of difficulties vegetarian ALTs had settling in to Japan, so I was a little worried when a vegetarian friend of mine came to visit. After five days of my drilling her with phrases that would help her order meat-free food, she and her companion ventured off to Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima for a week. They had no problems and were really impressed with how the restaurants were able to cater for her special dietary requests. They were also really impressed with the variety of food offered (tofu, seasonal / mountain veggies, tempura, etc.) that were appropriate for vegetarians. Another example of excellent service in Japan, going that extra mile to satisfy the customer! (On another side note, I’ve been pining for a visit back to Japan since I left and have managed to persuade my family to come with me after Golden Week this year. Assuming everyone can make it, that will be another 4 people spending a total of 48 days tourist travel in Japan!)

-Martin McCloud (Niigata-ken, Tokamachi-shi, 2004-09)

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Stories from the JET-Tourist Tally Project

(Organized by Prefecture) Read More

Feb 7

JETs in the News: Lars Martinson featured in Japan Times article on ex-pat comics

Blogs, Books, Cartoon/Illustration, Celebrity, Interview/Profile, Japan Trends, JETs in the News, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized, Writers

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JET alum and 'Tonoharu' creator Lars Martinson.

********

JET alum/cartoonist Lars Martinson (Fukuoka-ken 2003-2006), author of the graphic novels Tonoharu: Part Two and Tonoharu: Part 1, is the focus (along with Adam Pasion, author of the Sundogs anthologies) of a thoughtful Japan Times article by Gianni Simone on comics about Japan “that tell it like it is.”

Here’s the link to the article: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20110205a1.html

And below are a few excerpts about Martinson from the article:

The comic life of expats in Japan

Americans Lars Martinson and Adam Pasion tell it like it is with cutting-edge manga

By GIANNI SIMONE Special to The Japan Times

Tales of expat life in Japan all too often get blown out of proportion and quickly become picaresque adventures that little resemble real life.

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Luckily for us, many comic artists who have lived here seem to be more level-headed and have tackled the subject with a more realistic, no-nonsense approach.

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As the title suggests, “Tonoharu: Part Two” is not Martinson’s first foray in the field of expat comics: He self-published the first volume of this four-part saga in 2008 thanks to a grant from the prestigious Xeric Foundation.

Martinson, 33, first arrived in Japan in 2003 to work as an assistant language teacher, and spent the next three years working at a junior high school in a small town in Fukuoka Prefecture. His second stint in this country was in 2008 when he studied East Asian calligraphy under the auspices of a two-year research scholarship from the Japanese government.

Travel had played a pivotal role in his life (he had lived in Thailand and Norway as well), so when he came up with the idea of producing a graphic novel, he decided to make foreign travel a central theme.

“I planned from the start to turn my Japanese experience into a comic,” Martinson says, “even though I didn’t want it to be a mere autobiographical story. So I chose a 20-something American like me as the protagonist, but added a fictional group of eccentric expatriates living in the same rural Japanese town.”

At times living in the middle of nowhere was a challenge. Still, Martinson has no regrets about those three years spent in Kyushu.

“I’m actually a city slicker,” confesses Martinson, “and would love to live in a huge city in Japan at some point. Also, I’m sure that expat communities are awesome, but they can also separate you from the native population. When you live out in the country, you don’t have the option to just hang out with other Westerners, and this can force you to get involved in the host culture in ways you probably wouldn’t otherwise.”

Click here to read the full article: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/fl20110205a1.html

Click here to read more JetWit posts about Lars Martinson:

Click here for Lars Martinson’s official blog/website: http://larsmartinson.com

Feb 5

JET ROI: Mainichi Daily, Japan Times article highlights major foreign policy impact of JET alumni

JETs in the News, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment

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Update 2/12/11: The same article also subsequently appeared in the Japan Times. This time with Ben Dooley (a former CIR) getting the byline. Here’s the link: http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nn20110210f3.html

Here’s a great article that just appeared in The Mainichi Daily News titled “Returnees of English-language program key to Japan-U.S. ties.” Notably, the article quotes several JET alums who are established foreign policy experts including:

Michael Auslin – Director of Japan Studies at the American Enterprise Institute.
Ben Dolven – Current director of the East Asia division at the Congressional Research Service, the U.S. Congress’ official think tank
Michael Green – Head of Japan Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and former head of the Asia team under President George W. Bush’s National Security Council (Note: Michael was a “Monbusho English Fellow (MEF), a precursor to the JET Program.)
Andrew Ou – Currentlyworking in the U.S. Embassy’s political section

Here’s a link to the article: http://mdn.mainichi.jp/features/news/20110205p2g00m0fe017000c.html

Here’s the text of the article:

Returnees of English-language program key to Japan-U.S. ties

WASHINGTON (Kyodo) — When current participants in the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program gather, the discussion often focuses on English teaching methods. When the program’s U.S. alumni get together, however, talk often turns to a weightier subject: U.S. foreign policy towards Japan.

Since the program was established in 1987, it has brought tens of thousands of young Americans to Japan to engage in cultural exchange, with a focus on teaching English.

Although the program has an uneven track record when it comes to improving Japanese students’ English, it has quietly and unexpectedly become a powerful tool for achieving another objective: grooming the next generation of American leadership in U.S.-Japan relations.

Michael Auslin, a former participant of JET and prominent Japan expert at the American Enterprise Institute, said recent attacks on the program by the Japanese government’s budget screening have focused on the quality of its English teaching, while ignoring a more important feature as one of Japan’s most valuable tools for conducting “public diplomacy” both with the United States and other countries.

JET’s success in this regard is perhaps best demonstrated by the number of former JETs occupying Japan-related positions in both the academic field and the U.S. government. The U.S. Embassy in Tokyo alone employs 25 former JETs, and JET returnees have done Japan-related work at the highest levels of the U.S. government.

“The JET Program created a fairly large cadre of people who had Japan experience,” says Ben Dolven, a former JET and current director of the East Asia division at the Congressional Research Service, the U.S. Congress’ official think tank.

“You’ve got a core of people who have had this experience all over, who are now part and parcel of U.S. policymaking on Japan,” he said.

Dolven’s point is illustrated by an anecdote told by Michael Green, the head of Japan Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and former head of the Asia team under President George W. Bush’s National Security Council.

Green, who participated in a precursor to the JET program, was tasked with putting together a group to examine how the 2001 election of Junichiro Koizumi as Japan’s prime minister might affect its relations with the United States.

The task force consisted of Japan experts from various government agencies, ranging from the Central Intelligence Agency to the Treasury Department.

“The interesting thing about it was that you had all of these people from all of these agencies, who had been JETs…” or, like Green, had participated in similar programs in Japan, he said.

The group put together a set of recommendations that “became, in many ways, a blueprint for President Bush’s first meeting with Koizumi,” Green said.

Dolven said since JET program participants often work in rural areas, the program gives them a more nuanced view of the “real” Japan, a background that provides crucial context for better understanding the country and making informed policy decisions.

“There are lives being lived all over the country, and if you are just focused on Tokyo, you miss so much,” Dolven said.

Auslin also said that JET is probably the most successful, institutionalized, organized way to get young foreigners to obtain a deeper understanding of the “real” Japan.

This sentiment is perfectly embodied by Andrew Ou, a former JET now working in the U.S. Embassy’s political section.

While on the JET program 10 years ago, Ou developed a relationship with Ichita Yamamoto, now a leading figure in Japan’s main opposition Liberal Democratic Party. Ou cites this connection, as well as his JET experience with Japan’s local politics, as invaluable to his current work analyzing Japanese politics.

“You can’t put that into an equation and come out with a figure of how important it is for bilateral relations,” he said. But he believes that his own and others’ experiences on the JET program “add up to invaluable benefits for the U.S.-Japan relationship.”

Recent criticism of the JET program comes at a time when many scholars have observed an increasing tendency in Japan towards turning “inward,” contributing to what the Japan Center for International Exchange, a New York-based think tank, has called an erosion in the “the institutional base of U.S.-Japan policy dialogue and study.”

Ou finds criticism of the JET program especially disappointing. “I think as a group, JET alumni have a bigger impact on bilateral policy than any other,” he said.

And that is what makes it essential to “emphasize how important the JET program was and is for me and countless other diplomats,” he said.

(Mainichi Japan) February 5, 2011

Jan 26

JET Alum LinkedIn Groups: Shimane-ken demonstrates its superiority

Local Government, Networking, Return on JET-vestment

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Regarding the JET alum prefectural groups recently set up on LinkedIn, just a quick note to let everyone know that Shimane-ken is kicking major oshiri and is already up to 23 members. Well ahead of any of the other groups.

If you’re ok with this, you shouldn’t be. Now is the time to reach out to people in your prefecture and get them to sign up for the respective LinkedIn Group. The leading group by next week will receive significant accolades on JetWit. (That’s all I can really offer right now. JetWit t-shirts for everyone would be too expensive for me.)

Here’s the link again to all of the prefectural LinkedIn groups along with some explanation about why this is important to the future of JET and JETAA:

http://jetwit.com/wordpress/2011/01/21/saving-jet-jet-alumni-groups-by-prefecture/

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p.s. Also a reminder that there are also JET alum Linkedin groups for Translators, Lawyers, Education Professionals, China Connection, Restructuring Professionals and more. Here’s a partial list: http://jetwit.com/wordpress/jet-alum-groups/ (You can also just search on LinkedIn.)

And if you can’t find what you’re looking for, start your own group! Just e-mail the link to jetwit [at] jetwit.com and I’ll post about it on JetWit to encourage more people to join.

Jan 21

Saving JET: JET Alumni Groups….by Prefecture

Local Government, Networking, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized

Add Comment (4)

What does “Saving JET” have to do with joining your JET prefecture’s LinkedIn group?

The biggest threat to JET (and JETAA) now is attrition at the local government level as prefectural governments increasingly choose to reduce costs by getting ALTs from dispatch companies rather than hiring JETs.
The most effective way to counter this trend is to demonstrate a positive ROJ (“Return on JET-vestment”) at the local government level.
Local governments have expressed a strong interest in being able to connect and communicate with JET alumni who worked in their prefectures.
JET Alumni have never been organized by prefecture….

……until now. So please do your part and sign up for your respective JET Alumni LinkedIn Group below. It’s one small act of giving back to your prefecture that can make a big difference over time.

Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

–Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, Kariya-shi, 1992-94)
jetwit [at] jetwit.com

Prefectural JET Alumni LinkedIn Groups

FYI: All groups below were created in connection with JetWit and not by the prefectural governments. They’re just intended to help facilitate future communications.
Current JETs and Monbusho English Fellows (MEFs) welcome too, as always. Additionally, prefectural and other government employees as well as residents of each prefecture are welcome to join the groups.
If anyone would like to be a “Manager” for their respective LinkedIn group, that would be very helpful. Just get in touch. Primary role will be approving requests to join the group.
You may of course join other groups in addition to your own prefecture’s group if it’s helpful to you.

Note on Methodology: I took a relatively awkward approach to setting this all up. I created subgroups via my LinkedIn account. However, LinkedIn only lets a user create up to 10 groups and up to 20 subgroups, so I had to create a new LinkedIn account (“Jet Wit”) and use that account to set up the rest of the prefectural alumni groups. Not ideal, but it seemed to be the best solution under the circumstances and given limited resources. It’s always better to have something than nothing. I’m very open to any ideas and suggestions on better ways to set this up.

Jan 20

Update: JET-Tourist Tally Project

Return on JET-vestment

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Check out the latest numbers for the JET-Tourist Tally Project (i.e., how much tourism revenue alone does JET generate directly for the Japanese economy?)

http://jetwit.com/wordpress/2010/12/08/project-how-much-tourism-revenue-has-jet-generated-for-japan/

Tentative conclusion thus far?
With over 250 respondents to date, it looks like it’s fair to say that the average JET generates tourism revenue for Japan in an amount equivalent to about 1/5 to 1/6 of their salary. In other words, you could argue that 1/5 to 1/6 of the budget for JET salaries should be subtracted right off the bat for discussion purposes. This is in addition to other return on investment from JET (e.g., financial, diplomatic, cultural).

Jan 12

JET Alum Anthony Bianchi to run for Lower House seat in upcoming Japan elections

Celebrity, Local Government, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment

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Here’s the link to the article (which is in Japanese): http://www.asahi.com/politics/update/0111/NGY201101110010.html

Below is text from the article:

衆院愛知６区補選　民主、犬山市議のアンソニー氏擁立へ

民主党の石田芳弘衆院議員（６５）の名古屋市長選立候補に伴い、４月に予定される衆院愛知６区補選に、同党が愛知県犬山市議のビアンキ・アンソニー氏（５２）を擁立する方向となった。同党愛知６区総支部が１１日午前に開いた選挙対策会議で、候補として県連に提案することを決めた。

ビアンキ氏は米国ニューヨーク市出身。１９８９年に愛知県教育委員会の英語指導助手として来日。２００２年に日本国籍を取得して０３年に犬山市議選に立候補、最多得票で初当選した。０６年には同市長選に立候補したが、８候補中３位で落選。０７年に市議に再選された。

総支部の意向を踏まえ、県連が最終調整を進める。衆院補選への立候補について、ビアンキ氏は朝日新聞の取材に「名誉なこと。まだいろいろなステップがあるが、頑張っていきたい」と述べた。

６区補選では、０９年衆院選で落選した自民党元職の丹羽秀樹氏（３８）が立候補を準備。みんなの党も独自候補を擁立する方針だ。

The Top 5 JET LinkedIn Prefecture Groups

1. Shimane – 44 members

2. Ishikawa – 27 members

3. Hokkaido & Niigata – 16 members

5. Nara, Saitama & Fukuoka – 15 members

The Top 10 Comments from the JET-Tourist Tally Project

Stories from the JET-Tourist Tally Project

The comic life of expats in Japan

Americans Lars Martinson and Adam Pasion tell it like it is with cutting-edge manga

Prefectural JET Alumni LinkedIn Groups

Nara JET Program Alumni (set up by Savannah Maynard)

衆院愛知６区補選 民主、犬山市議のアンソニー氏擁立へ

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衆院愛知６区補選　民主、犬山市議のアンソニー氏擁立へ