jlgcnews letter
J A PA N LO C A L G OV E R N M E N T C E N T E R ( C L A I R , N E W Y O R K ) I S S U E N O .

68 S U M M E R 2 0 1 0

Towards Global Local Governments
YOKO KIMURA, CHAIRPERSON,COUNCIL OF LOCAL AUTHORITIES FOR INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

I

first got to know CLAIR about 20
years ago when I was staying in
Paris to conduct research on social
welfare in France and a professor froma Japanese university recommended
that I should definitely visit the CLAIR
Paris office.
When I met the staff there forthe first time, they gave me an
explanation of local government andwelfare in France as well as some
CLAIR Reports and other materials.
The CLAIR Reports, analyzing issues
from a local government perspective,
were fresh and interesting.
For me, as someone who
conducts policy research on topics like
local and national government financeand social security, information fromoverseas and support for my own
overseas research activities areindispensable, and CLAIR has becomea reliable partner for me ever sincethose days in Paris. In truth, the
CLAIR Reports from the overseas
offices have a very good reputation andhave been invaluable references incrafting the Trinity Reforms and other

ISSUE NO.

68 • SUMMER 2010

Towards Global Local Governments .................. 1
Words of Welcome from the New Executive Director ... 2
A Greeting from the New Counselor .................. 2
Mr. Sasaki Returns to Japan ............................ 3
Delegates from Miyagi Prefecture visit
the State of Delaware ................................. 4
Great Lakes JETAA - JET Alumni Association
for Ohio and Michigan ................................ 5
JAPAN NIGHT in Toronto ................................. 6
JLGC Toronto Office: Reporting on Canada
for fifteen Years ......................................... 6
Settlement programs for immigrants in Canada .. 6
JLGC New Staff ............................................. 7
JET programme, JET Alumni Association Vital
to the Future of U.S.-Japan Relations ........... 8

JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government Center

initiatives. Over the last 20 years I havealways had the impression that CLAIR
has been doing ambitious andmeaningful work. And now, throughsome strange twist of fate, I havebecome involved in the management of
CLAIR as its new chairperson.
CLAIR was established in 1988
by the local governments, working
together, with the goals to promote“internationalizing local government”
and to contribute to “local autonomy”.
It has been funded by proceeds fromthe sale of lottery tickets. I believe it isa valuable treasure for Japan,
particularly ordinary Japanese citizens,
as a window for them to the outside
world. CLAIR has built up thisvaluable resource through the labors of
all my predecessors who have worked tocreate relationships of trust withvarious organizations in the many
countries where we have overseas
offices. It has accomplished this inmany areas of activity, including
coordinating the JET Programme,
which is highly acclaimed both in Japanand abroad, conducting overseas
research, supporting sister city and stateexchange activities, and contributing tomulticultural coexistence initiatives.
There are many people thesedays who say that Japan has no choice
but to deal urgently with the issue of“internationalizing local government”;
because of economic globalization,
along with falling birthrates and an
aging population. In other words, it is
the arrival of a society marked bypopulation decline. CLAIR is at theforefront of research and policy
formulation in these areas, drawing on
its knowledge of other leading countries
around the world who are also grappling

with
these
issues.
CLAIR’swork
tosupport “internationalizing local
government”, or, really, to bring ‘aninternational flavor to people’s lives’, isvaried, complex and wide-ranging.
Through a network of connections tolocal government chief executives’
offices, international relations divisions,international exchange organizations,boards of education and other groups, aswell as through gaining the cooperationof central ministries like Internal Affairs
and Communications, Foreign Affairs,and Education, CLAIR headquarters inTokyo works, together with eachoverseas office, to make real the varietyof the international experience for theordinary citizen. We must also neverforget how the many local governments,
experts on the ground, and other people
around the country work in the
background to support these aims.
CLAIR
constitutesacollaborative infrastructure to promote“internationalizing local government”
and to contribute to “local autonomy”.
While we feel it has fulfilled this rolewell, we recognize that a mixture ofcontinuity and innovation are necessary
for continued success, so we willcontinue to carry out organizational
reform.
In closing, I must say how
deeply grateful I am to be able to work
toward achieving CLAIR’s lofty ideals.

PAGE 1

Words of Welcome from the New Executive Director
MASAAKI AKAGI, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, JLGC

y name is Masaaki Akagi
and I have the distinction of
being the first executive
director of the Japan Local Government
Center (CLAIR, New York) not
affiliated with the Ministry of Internal
Affairs. I have served as a public officialof Hyogo Prefecture government for
thirty years. My career work ininternational economic development
and industrial policy has consumed the
majority of my time serving the citizens
of Japan. During my first stay in
America, I received a Master of Public
Administration degree from Evergreen
State College in the state ofWashington in 1988.
Assigned as the new executive
director at the Japan Local Government
Center (CLAIR, New York) beginning
July 20, 2010, I am challenged to carryforward the core missions of CLAIR,New York, in order to empower the
existing relationships between Japan,
the United States and Canada. During
my stewardship at JLGC I hope to beable to make gainful strides in thefollowing areas:M

1. Commission valuable research
projects that identify best practices
in the field of public management in
the United States and Canada andto disseminate those models andcase studies to local governments inJapan.
2. Effectively and efficiently manage
aspects of the Japan Exchange
Teaching (JET) programing while
supporting the JET Alumni
Associations in their efforts topromote understanding of Japanand Japanese culture throughout theUnited States and Canada.
3. Promote bilateral cooperation
among Japanese, American andCanadian local governments andgovernmental associations.
4. Accept and initiate proposals thatwould create new and strengthen
existing collaborative partnerships
among Japanese, American andCanadian local governments.
The United States of America is thelargest market economy in the world.
Canada is a major trade partner and astrategic ally for Japan. Japan has thesecond largest market economy and is
the oldest constitutional monarchy in
Asia and shares various democraticvalues with the United States
and Canada. Productive and stablebilateral relations and the active
cooperation between the US-Japan andCanada-Japan are imperative to help

recover from aworldwide
recession andto safeguard
democracy inthe world. For the Japanese nationaland sub-national governments thepromotion and diversification of strong
bilateral relations will continue to be an
important mission in securing aprosperous and secure future for Japan.
In conclusion, I would like tothank the executive directors, directors
and Japanese and local staff who
preceded me. Their hard work andstellar leadership have positioned JLGC
as a prominent organization within theinternational community. I would also
like to thank the JET alumni
associations in North America, forvolunteering their time, energy andspirit in promoting Japan and Japaneseculture. Finally, I would like to express
my appreciation to the readers of the
JLGC Newsletter for their cooperationand support of CLAIR.
With warm regards,

A Greeting from the New Counselor
HOTAKA KAWASAKI, COUNSELOR, JLGC

H

ello, Everyone. I’m Hotaka
Kawasaki, a new staff member
at JLGC.
I was born in Shizuoka
Prefecture, which is famous for Mt.
Fuji. My father liked climbing
mountains so much that he moved to
Shizuoka, and he also named me after
Mt. Hotaka, a beautiful mountainbetween Nagano and Gifu Prefectures.
(Please search for it on Wikipedia.)
I am interested in visiting, living
and working in various areas around
Japan. That’s why I took a job at the
Ministry of Internal Affairs andCommunications, which is responsible
PAGE 2for the basic administrative systems andfiscal policies of Japanese local
governments. I have worked in theprefecture governments in Kagoshima
and Yamaguchi, in addition to thenational government in Tokyo. These
two prefectures are well known by theirold, feudal-period names of “Satsuma”
and “Choshu”, two of the main forces
behindintroducing
Westerntechnology
leadingtothemodernization of Japan about 150
years ago. I experienced a lot ofwonderful things in both places.
At the same time, I am alsointerested in living and working

abroad, and I
had been looking for such an
unusual chance
for a long time
while working at “domestic” offices.
And now I’ve gotten the chance tocome here, to New York!
At JLGC, I am in charge ofcooperative activities with publicorganizations in the U.S. and Canada,
as well as JLGC’s budgeting anddisbursements. I’m very happy andexcited about this precious opportunity,and I’m looking forward to meeting
you sometime!
JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government CenterMr. Sasaki Returns to Japan
SETH B BENJAMIN, PH.D., SENIOR RESEARCHER, JLGC

H

iroshi Sasaki, executive
director of the Japan Local
Government Center, New
York, for the last three years, hasreturned to Japan. There he has taken
up a position in Tokyo at the Fund for
Local Government Employees’ Accident
Compensation. Mr. Sasaki brought to
New York an energetic commitment toimprove the standing of the CLAIR(New York) office in the United States
and Canada. In his three years plus, hedid just that.
From the beginning, he wasvery engaged with the JET Alumni
Association. Indeed, Mr. Sasaki’s
children themselves had the benefit oflearning English here in the UnitedStates from a JET alumna. This senseof “one good turn deserves another”,
clearly brings hope that the vast
number of JET alumni, particularly in
the United States, one day will bring abenefit to what has been Japan’s
enormous investment in cultural
exchange. Who knows, as Mr. Sasaki
says, maybe a former JET will someday
become President. Also, Mr. Sasaki
hopes that the JET experience willremain with the youth of today always.
What better way of continuing this richrelationship with Japan than to become
lifelong supporters of JapaneseAmerican
friendshipthroughsupporting JET alumni activities. JET
alumni, Mr. Sasaki says, are the trueambassadorsofcross-cultural
diplomacy.
Another aspect of Mr. Sasaki’s
tenure in New York was the effort hemade to strengthen the government
relationship between Japan and North
America. He was indefatigable inbringing the Center closer to thevarious government organizations andtheir constituents. One way he did thatwas to emphasise getting the Japanese
officials to witness first hand, as agroup, the machinery of government inaction. So, there were visits to the New
York State legislature watching debateson bills being proposed for the State; toAndover, Massachusetts, to witness theunique form of government known
only in New England as the Town
Meeting - and lively that was too, or to
East Orange, New Jersey, to see how alocal government focuses its energy on
reviving the community spirit by using
remarkable technology to ensure public
safety. In addition to the staff of theCenter, Japanese officials from all over

Visit state capitol of Pennsylvania

the United States participated. These
events are truly a means of engaging all
the governments of Japan (central,
prefecture and local) so that they may
enrich their experience of what is new
and innovative in government
administration.
The theme of learning fromeach other is fundamental to themission of CLAIR’s overseas branches
and, in this area, Mr. Sasaki was always
looking for new ways for the Center ’tolearn’ from American governments.
One such initiative launched by Mr.
Sasaki is a collaboration with the State
University of New York. American andJapanese professors and government
officials will discuss both countries’
desire to provide services more
efficiently, after which they will preparea report that all can use to see how
better organising government may help
in responding to the needs of theircitizens more closely.
All in all, though times havebeen difficult fiscally, the Center has
thrived under the leadership of Mr.
Sasaki. We wish him well for the future.

Farewell with JETAA New York and JLGC
JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government Center

PAGE 3

Delegates from Miyagi Prefecture visit the State of Delaware
TAICHI HANZAWA, ASSISTANT DIRCTOR, JLGC

M

iyagi Prefecture and theStateofDelawareestablished their SisterPrefecture/State relationship in 1997
and have conducted exchange up until
now primarily through exchange ofstudents and government workers.
Under the slogan of “Realization of a
Prosperous Miyagi” the Miyagi
government has developed various
industrial promotion policies, such as
attraction of enterprises and cultivationof local industry. As a part of thesepolicies, the Miyagi government isaiming to promote economic exchangewith its Sister State based on thefriendship exchange the two haveshared up until now. Receiving
agreement towards this endeavor fromthe Delaware government, Miyagi set
its sights on reforming the contents ofthe two organizations’ “Agreement of
Exchange.”
Under these pretexts, adelegation of four members from the
MiyagiPrefectural
Government
Department of Commerce, Industry
and Tourism visited the State of
Delaware’s Cities of Wilmington,
Dover and Rehoboth Beach. The maincontents of the visit are outlined below.
• Signing of a Revised“Agreement of Exchange”

Delaware’s Secretary of State. The
contents of the revised agreement
stipulate a continuation of thefriendship exchange that has been
carried out up until now as well as afocus on economic exchange.

of Miyagi’s Economic Revitalization
Policy” and “Next steps to boosting
economic exchange with Delaware.”• Meeting with the Mayor of Dover• Courtesy Visit to Delaware
State Governor Jack Markell

A welcome reception held in their honor

Governor Markell receive a gift

The Delegation paid a courtesy visit to
Governor Jack Markell, who was
appointed as governor of Delaware in
January of 2009. By a letter written by
Miyagi’s governor, the delegation
expressed Miyagi’s desire to strengthen
the basis of economic exchange between
Miyagi and Delaware and to promoteexchange in environmental fields, suchas clean energy. The letter also invited
Governor Markell to visit Miyagi
Prefecture this year and expressed a hope
to reform Miyagi and Delaware’s“Sister-State Agreement,” to which
Governor Markell kindly agreed.
Furthermore, the delegation informally
discussed with the Governor topics suchas “Resolution of the contents of
exchange between Miyagi and Delaware
towards economic focus,” “Introduction

The Delegation also met with Carleton
E. Carey, Sr., Mayor of Dover,
Delaware’s capital city. Dover is Sister
Cities with Miyagi Prefecture’s
Iwanuma City. Recently there havebeen plans to sign collaborationagreements between Iwanuma/Dover
middle schools and colleges, and Mayor
Carey expressed his desire to see further
strengthening of relations.
• Participation in the Rehoboth
Beach Film Festival
The Delegation also promoted Miyagi
tourism at the “Rehoboth Beach Film
Festival” held in Delaware’s Rehoboth
Beach, as well as conducting a Miyagisake taste-testing and a presentation of“Suzume-odori,” the traditional danceof Sendai associated with Masamune
Date. The dance was performed by“Iroha Mazura,” a dance group wellknown in Sendai, and was very wellreceived by the audience.

Director-General Wakoh and Secretary of State Bullock

The main purpose of the delegation’svisit, the revised agreement pertaining
to the details of exchange between
Miyagi Prefecture and the State of
Delaware was signed by the DirectorGeneral of the Miyagi Department ofCommerce, Industry and Tourism and
PAGE 4

Iroha Mazura put on a festive performance
JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government Center

Great Lakes JETAA - JET Alumni Association for Ohio and Michigan
AMBER ARASHIRO, PRESIDENT, GREAT LAKES JETAAU

S-17 “Great Lakes JETAA” has
had a very busy year! New
officers were elected andsubchapters were formed in WesternMichigan, Southeast Michigan andOhio.
Subchapter representatives
coordinated many events for theiralumni including movie nights, apple
picking, BBQs, momijigari, nengajo
making, karaoke, cooking lessons andreturnee receptions. A pre-departure Q& A and reception for new JETs werealso well attended by alumni. Members
enjoyed a bonnenkai with special guests
from CLAIR New York.

A committee met to write
amendments and updates to outdated
by-laws, and several general meetings
were held. The Great Lakes JETAA
also published a newsletter with
contributions from several alumni.
Topics in the newsletter included
subchapter activities, elections, new
JET departures, returning JET alumni
gatherings, recipes, a movie review, andan introduction to our new Consul
General of Japan.
The highlight event forthe chapter was “A Feast for theEyes: a Japanese Confectionary
Demonstration” that was held May 1316, 2010 in collaboration with theMichigan-Shiga Sister State Board andShiga prefecture. The purpose of theevent was to provide Michigan
residents with an increased interest in
and understanding of Japan andMichigan’s Sister State, Shiga.
The first demonstration was
JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government Center

held at the Kellogg Hotel andConference Center in East Lansing,Michigan. Mr. Shoji Nishizawa gave ademonstration of confectionary making
that was attended by approximately
200 people. Following Mr. Nishizawa’s
demonstration, participants drankauthentic Japanese tea while they tasted
his unique and gorgeous Japanese
confections. The Great Lakes JETAA
president, Amber Arashiro, gave aspeech just after the confectionery
demonstration in which she described
her memories of receiving wagashi asomiyage from co-workers during the
JET Program.
The same program was repeatedat the Consul General’s residence inBloomfield Hills, Michigan, and again
at the Novi Civic Center.
Five
volunteers with the JETAA volunteered
to set up and sell the wagashi and theGreat Lakes JETAA Michigan vicepresident, Faye Valtadores, andsecretary, April Mears, gave speeches tothe audience about their wagashi andtea ceremony memories while teachingon the JET Program.
The Great Lakes JETAA has its
own website(www.greatlakes.jetalumni.org) and a
Facebook group page with 100
members. Photos of past events andinvitations to future ones can be foundon this Facebook page as well as thewebsite.
The Ohio vice-president, Valerie
Rambin, and treasurer, Claire Brender,
will attend the national conference in
New York in August and are expected toreturn with great ideas to make thechapter even stronger in the future.
The Great Lakes JETAA looks forward
to many more opportunities for
networking and sharing memories
among others who remember their JET
experience fondly.

WagashiGreat Lakes JETAA with Mr. Ouchi, one of the demonstrator of confectionery making from Shiga
PAGE 5JAPAN NIGHT in Toronto
YUKO NISHIDA, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, JLGC

F

or many years, the Japan Local
Government Center (JLGC)
attends the annual conference oftheFederationof
Canadian
Municipalities (FCM). Since 2009
JLGC has hosted a “JAPAN Night”
event. The festivity serves as a
networking reception. This year, incooperation with the Canadian Urban
Institute, Japan Night 2010 was heldon the evening of May 28th in Toronto.
Guests were welcomed by
JLGC’s executive director, Hiroshi
Sasaki and were treated to delicious
Japanese cuisine, a variety of cheeses
quenched with Canadian beer andwine. Over seventy people joined theparty; including many who attended
last year’s event. Everyone shared theirexperiences and many reminisced about
the nurturing relationships between
their city/town and their sister cities inJapan.

JAPAN NIGHT in TORONTOJLGC Toronto Office:Reporting on Canada for Fifteen Years
Located in the international city of Toronto, JLGC Toronto office has maintained astrong relationship with the Canadian Urban Institute (CUI). Please follow the link
below to learn more about JLGC Toronto and CUI.
Web: http://www.canurb.org/content/japan-local-goverment-centre

Settlement programs for immigrants in Canada
KAZUAKI NAKAJIMA, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, JLGC

T

his past July, Director Uemuraof the JLGC Toronto office andI visited Canada to conduct
research on language learning systems
for immigrants. During the early
1990’s, Canada became aware of two
issues that would affect their labor force
and compromise their national
strength; an increasing aged populationand lower birth rates. Therefore, theCanadian Government embarked on anational strategy to attract the best andbrightest immigrants to live and workin Canada. In order to entice andsupport newcomers, the Language
Instruction for Newcomers to Canada(LINC) program was launched in 1992.
LINC allows for the development of
linguistic
communication
skillsensuring that immigrants are better able
to function in and contribute to society.
In the last five years, the CanadianGovernment has spent $3 billion to
support newcomers!
Currently, Japan must confront
these same issues and can no longer
avoid or restrict accepting immigrants,
especially to support the workforce.
There are a few Japanese mayors from
cities that have large immigrant
population who are supportive ofaltering immigration policy.
Recently a conference washeld to support immigrants
where experiences and issues
on education, medical careand social security fornewcomers were shared
among government officials.
What’s good about
the Canadian policy? It
respects immigrants’ native
language and culture while
helpingtoameliorate

assimilation into Canadian society. The
extent of these efforts by Canadiangovernment is reflected partly from thehigh number of immigrants who
become naturalized citizens; currently
around eighty-four percent. Japan
could learn from the success of
Canada’s willingness to increase andsupport new immigrants.

Newcomer Information Centre in Toronto
PAGE 6JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government Center

JLGC New Staff

H

ello, myname isTo m o y a
Suzuki and I am
from Tokyo Metropolitan
Government.
This year, Tokyo and New Yorkcelebrate the 50th anniversary of theirsister city relationship which started in
1960. It is my great pleasure and honor
to work here as a representative ofTokyo in this celebratory year. At
JLGC, I am in charge of supportingJETAA USA and research projects fromJapanese local governments.
As part of my every-day life in
New York, I would like to learn more
about this exciting country and enter
into relationships with many American
local governments.

[Tokyo Metropolitan Government]• Population: 12,993,920 (as of Nov. 1, 2009)• Area Size: 2,187.58 km2• Transportation from Major City: FromTokyo Station, by train, 30minutes
Tokyo, capital of Japan, is thepolitical, economical and cultural center of thecountry. As well as all the state-of-the-art
technology, you can also enjoy the history andthe culture from Edo period in 400 years ago.
In the Tama area, western part of Tokyo, andin the small islands, a lot of beautiful nature
welcomes tourists.
The city is nominated 3rd place as the“Top 25 livable cities” by ’Monocle’ magazine.
And 197 restaurants in Tokyo were introducedby Michelin Tokyo 2010. Come and visit
Tokyo. You can discover what you want!
http://www.metro.tokyo.jp/ENGLISH/index.htm
JLGC NewsLetter No. 68 • © 2010 Japan Local Government Center

H

I[Niigata Prefecture]• Population: 2,380,000• Area Size: 12,582km2• Transportation from Major City: FromTokyo, by Shinkansen (Bullet Train):
100minutes
Niigata Prefecture is located at thecenter of the Japan Sea coast and blessed with
an abundance of natural beauty including
beautiful coastlines, sprawling mountain
ranges designated national parks, andbountiful rivers feeding into fertile plains.
Japan’s longest river, the Shinano, flows
through the city.
Niigata is the leading producer of ricein Japan. Niigata’s sake is famous for its
smooth and dry taste because of the quality ofrice and abundance of fresh water. Niigata is a
winter wonder land and visitors flock to
Niigata’s many ski resorts and hot spring spas.
http://www.pref.niigata.lg.jp/en/[Sakai City]• Population: 838,455• Area Size: 149.99km2• Transportation from both of Kansai Airport
and Osaka Station: 30 minute by train• Sister City: Berkeley (California, USA)
Sakai City has Nintoku-ryo Tumulus,
one of the three largest ancient tombs in theworld along with King Khufu’s Pyramid of
Egypt and the First Emperor’s tomb of Shin
Dynasty of China.
There is a magical harmony between
traditional and industrial culture. ManyJapanese traditional cultures, including:Japanese Tea Ceremony, Japanese incense andthe Shamisen a three-stringed musicalinstrument, were born in the Sakai area. Also,
components of the popular Shimano Bicycle
come from Sakai. There is a famous Japanese
expression: ”Mono no Hajimari Nandemo
Sakai”, which means “Everything is from
Sakai!”
http://www.city.sakai.lg.jp/index_en.html

ello, myname isTa k e s h i
Furukawa
from
Niigata Prefecture.
It’s nice to meetyou.
My main duties at JLGC
include accounting, budget and projectreview. I’m also in charge of planning aseminar in Washington D.C. that will
highlight the local government in the
United States. This seminar will
provide an opportunity for local
Japanese government officials living
and working in America to better
understand American local government
I look forward to meeting andtalking with many people and would
like to learn a lot of things through mywork at JLGC.

’m
Keizo
Ishibashi from
Sakai
City.
Located in theheart of Honshu
Island it is said thatthe soul of Samurai
is still alive in the city because the area
has been the capital of samurai sword
manufacturing since the 1300s.
I’m in charge of Fellowship
Exchange Program which affords seniorstate and local government officials an
opportunity to experience Japanese
government administration first hand.
While coordinating this program, I
would like to learn why Americans andCanadians are interested in Japan.

PAGE 7JET Programme, JET Alumni Association Vital to the Future of U.S.-Japan Relations
MATTHEW GILLAM, SENIOR RESEARCHER, JLGC CHIZUKO KAWAMURA, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR, JLGCJETAA New York hosted the
JETAA USA National Conference
from August 12 to 15, with 42
representatives from 18 of the 19 US
chapters (except Alaska) and the three
US
Country
Representatives
participating.
Since a review of CLAIR’s
activities for the JET Programme wasconducted by the Government
Revitalization Unit in May, andsupport for JETAA was among theactivities under administrative review
by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs inJune and July, this year’s conference was
focused much more than usual on
explaining the role of the JET
Programme and JETAA in efforts toimprove the English language ability of
the Japanese and to promoteinternational exchange in Japan.
The first main session on this
topic took place on the morning ofFriday, August 13. Mr. Yasuhisa
Kawamura, the director of the Japan
Information Center at the Consulate
General of Japan in New York,
explained the position of the Ministry
after their recent review. During his talkhe emphasized that the Ministry
understands the importance of JETAA’svital role in the US-Japan relationshipand will continue supporting thealumni. However, this support will bestrictly limited to activities and events
which enable former JETs to be
diplomatic assets for Japan, or which
improve the quality of future JETs. He
concluded his remarks with his “ThreeCs” for future relations, “Confidence,
Caution and Cooperation”, and asked
for pragmatism rather than excessive
optimism or pessimism in dealing withthe current situation. As to CLAIR’s
position, Mr. Matthew Gillam
explained CLAIR’s current situationand future support for JETAA, sayingthat the continuing fiscal difficulties

facing local governments make it
difficult for CLAIR to promise tomaintain current funding levels in the
coming years. He concluded by saying
it is very important that we gain the
support of local governments for
JETAA activities. These presentations
were followed by a lengthy discussion
by attendees on ways to address theissues raised in various criticisms of
JET and JETAA in Japan.
The other main session was on
Sunday morning, when we had a
special guest from the Embassy ofJapan in Washington, DC. Ambassador
Ichiro Fujisaki had a discussion withthe conference participants forapproximately 90 minutes in which
they exchanged opinions and ideas on
how to improve the quality of the JET
Programme.
In addition to these, sessions
were also held for chapter issues such as
membership management, event
planning, leadership transition andsuccession planning, basic fundraising,and career development.
Furthermore, on Saturday
morning, after a brief, general talk on
funding, a technical session was held
specifically for treasurers whereparticipantslearneddetailed
information on funding policy andadministrative procedures for both
MoFA and CLAIR. Everyone seemed
grateful for the clear explanations ofcomplicatedtheseincreasingly
processes.
One more major topic thatcame up in several sessions wastechnology, and a lot of effort was madeto build on the achievements of theTechnology Regional Conference heldin Portland earlier this year in order toprovide chapters with better, more
effective and easier to use technology
solutions to their data management andcommunications needs.

A press release was put together
after the conference, entitled “JET
Programme, JET Alumni Association
Vital to the Future of U.S.-Japan
Relations”. Among other things, therelease says that “JETAA USA came tothe conclusion that the JET
Programme and JETAA are crucial to
Japan’s international outreach and toincreasing mutual understanding
between Japan and the United States.
JETAA USA hopes that upon review
the Japanese government willrediscover the necessity and value of the
JET Programme and JETAA. Japanneeds both JET and JETAA to continuebuilding bridges between Japan and theUnited States.” This press release has
drawn quite a bit of attention from theJapanese media.
We believe this conference was agood opportunity for JETAA members
to share information on recent eventsand gain a better grasp of the situation
regarding the JET Programme and
JETAA. It was also a valuable chance
for all of us from JETAA, MoFA and
CLAIR to reconfirm our commitment
to working together to maintain andimprove JET and JETAA. We are very
grateful for the participants’ voluntary
initiatives to support the JET
Programme and improve JETAA
activities.
Lastly, we extend our sincere
gratitude to JETAA New York, the three
Country Representatives, and theConsulate General of Japan in New
York. This conference would not havebeen possible without everyone’s
commitment and generous support.

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