About Us

We are an inter-collegiate initiative organizing a series of events to commemorate the magnitude 9.0 earthquake and subsequent tsunami that struck Japan last year on March 11, 2011.

As media coverage dwindles, memory of the disaster has receded in the minds of many. Here in the U.S., many people probably think that Japan is well on its way to reconstruction. Yet in reality, there is still much to be done – many people from the disaster-stricken areas still live in prefabricated houses away from home, and those who were forced to evacuate because of the Fukushima nuclear power plant disaster may never see their homes again.

By collaborating with four other universities and colleges in the northeastern U.S. – Brown, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton – we are inviting two speakers from Japan, Nozomi Kanda and Keiko Kiyama. Both are heads of NGOs working in the reconstruction effort, and both have personal experience of working in the afflicted areas.

We hope that, by listening to these two speakers, students and community members here can relive the experience of the disaster and hear a personal side of the story that one cannot normally find on news reports. We hope that students will have an opportunity to interact with the speakers in such a way that they learn not only about Japan’s current situation, but also about non-profit work in general and how they can make a difference in their own communities.

Sponsors:

Department of Japanese Studies

Rohatyn Center for International Affairs (RCIA)

Middlebury College Activities Board