ISSUE #79

JULY 2014

JLGC NEWSLETTER
Japan Local Government Center ( CLAIR, New York )Issue no.79 July 2014

A Greeting from the Executive Director

JAPAN DAY 2014 IN NY

ISSUE NO.79 JULY 2014

A Greeting from the Executive Director (Page1-3)
Introduction of New JLGC
Staff (Page3-5)
Japan Day 2014 In CentralPark (Page6)

My name is Yasuo Tatsuta. I am
the new executive director of Japan Local Government Center(JLGC), CLAIR New York. I am
originally from Niigata Prefecture. Tokyo Metropolitan Government, where I now work, sent meto take over from my predecessor,Mr. Takaaki Ogata. I started mywork here from April of this year.

Mr. Yasuo Tatsuta

First of all, I would like to take this occasion to express, onbehalf of all staff members at JLGC, our sincere gratitude
for your continued support for and cooperation with our office. I believe that strong, close friendships between nations
can generate peace, development, and prosperity on bothsides, and I look forward to establishing and strengthening
closer relationships between Japanese communities andones in the US and Canada.

An In-Depth Look Into the2014 JETAA Canada Conference in Toronto (Page7-9)
New JLGC Staff visit Novi,Michigan (Page10)

JAPAN LOCAL GOVERNMENT CENTER(CLAIR, NY)
3 Park Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10016-5902
212.246.5542 office • 212.246.5617 fax
www.jlgc.org

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We mainly have three core aims at JLGC: Firstly, to strengthen grass-roots relationships and cooperation by state/provincial/local governments between North America and Japan; secondly, tosupport the activities and research carried out by Japanese local authorities in the US and Canada;
and thirdly, to support the Japan Exchange & Teaching (JET) Program and the JET Alumni Association. I will do my best to achieve these goals during my time and would greatly appreciate yourkind understanding and cooperation.
Japanese municipalities have about 440 sister cities in the US and about 70 in Canada. Thisspring, a friendship delegation from Nagaokakyo City, Kyoto Prefecture came to the U.S. to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the sister city relationship between Arlington, MA, and Nagaokakyo.
To my surprise, this delegation consisted of 61 people, including 26 students and 30 citizens who
spontaneously participated in this ceremony. In addition, some other delegations are going to comehere after this. I think this means that many Japanese local governments and their people put importance on their relationships with the US and Canada, and I hope that grass-roots exchange andmutual understanding may become even deeper in the future.
Recently, various aspects of Japanese culture, commonly called “Cool Japan”, including anime,
manga, J-pop (music), foods, and traditional culture, are very popular around the world. And in Japan we have not only sophisticated traditional handicrafts and food, but also many kinds of beautiful scenery and finely crafted products. In addition, Japanese culture values mutual considerationand support. Japan is made up of many different prefectures, from Hokkaido in the north, wide
open and rich in nature, through the main island of Honsyu, along with Sikoku and Kyusyu and on
to Okinawa in the far south. surrounded by beautiful ocean. I hope people from all over the world
will come and visit these beautiful and wonderful areas of Japan and develop lasting relationships
with them. I am sure you will like the people and regions wherever you go.
One of our main activities is supporting the JET Program and the JET Alumni, as I have mentioned. As you probably know, the JET Program makes it possible for Japanese local governments
to invite young people from around the world to live in Japan, teach English in public schools, andinteract with their communities. About sixty thousand people have participated in this program up
to now, and over half of them were from the US and Canada.

JAPAN LOCAL GOVERNMENT CENTER (CLAIR, NY)

Please visit our website at www.jlgc.org for more information2ISSUE #79

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After JET, their experiences in Japan stay with them and contribute to enhancing their careers
and their personal lives. These alumni then contribute to strengthening relations between Japanand their home countries. I wish continued success and prosperity for all the JET Alumni.
Now there is a new wave in Japan, which seeks more active exchange with the world, and JLGC
will try to contribute to this by strengthening relations at the local level. I would like to say thankyou to all of our readers and to the various government officials in the US and Canada as well as
the JET Alumni for all the help and support you have given us. I know that your cooperation will
make the relationship between Japan and the U.S. and Canada even more wonderful.
Yasuo Tatsuta
Executive Director

Introduction of New JLGC Staff

Koichi Matsuda （Iwate Prefecture）

Keisuke Matsuura （Miyagi Prefecture）

Yasuo Tatsuta （Tokyo Metropolitan Government）

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Koichi Matsuda, Assistant Director, Representative of Iwate Prefecture
Hello, my name is Koichi Matsuda from Iwate prefecture government.
Iwate is one of the largest prefectures in Japan, blessed withfertile land and beautiful nature and has various historicalsites, such as those representing the world heritage site of Hiraizumi. Also the Morioka Sansa Odori Festival is one of themain festivals in the Tohoku region, held from August 1
through 4. It is a traditional art form whose roots stem fromthe happiness of people after driving away demons. It is a verylarge group dance performance of over 30,000 people accompanied by flutes and drums down the main street of Morioka City.
The event set a Guinness World Record for “World’s Biggest

Mr. Koichi Matsuda

Drum Parade”.

While I’m in New York, I’d like to convey theattractions of Iwate to as many people as possible. And I’m looking forward to meeting andtalking to people all over the United Statesand Canada. Also, I should like to learn a lotof things through my work at Japan Local
Government Center.

The Morioka Sansa Odori Festival

The Golden Hall of Chuson-ji Temple in Hiraizumi

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Keisuke Matsuura, Assistant Director, Representative of Miyagi Prefecture

Hello. I’m Keisuke Matsuura from Miyagi Prefecture in Japan.
I’m very surprised I have been in New York from this April andwill work here for two years, because it is my first trip abroad.
Everything here is new and special for me, and I would like tofind many interesting things.
I’m mainly in charge of the JET Program at JLGC. For example,
I’m responsible for making Certificates of Participation for former JETs, supporting JETAA(JET Alumni Association) in theU.S., preparing JETAA meetings and so on. It is also the firsttime for me to handle JET. I would like to do my best in allthese things.

Mr. Keisuke Matsuura

As you may know, Miyagi Prefecture, where I’m from, suffered great damage from theMarch 2011 Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami.
However, many people helped us,
not only Miyagi Prefecture but also
all the affected areas. Thanks toyour help, it is getting better everyday. I’m very glad if you come toMiyagi Prefecture to see the scenery, like Matsushima that is said
one of the most beautiful places inJapan, and to eat Miyagi’s cuisine,
like Zunda-mochi, and to feel ourenergetic atmosphere. I’m looking
forward to seeing you in Miyagi inthe future.

Matsushima islands

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Japan Day 2014 In Central Park
Japan Day 2014 was held on Sunday, May 11 inCentral Park. There were many food tents andactivity tents for Japanese things, such as
Okonomiyaki, Tonkotsu Shoyu Ramen, Kabuki
Face Painting, origami, and so on. Stage performances, like Taiko, also played to large audiences. I felt the high interest about Japan fromvisitors, because there were many people whostood in long lines at every tent, and some people who painted their faces like Kabuki actors.

Many people were waiting in line
Japan Society and JETAANY hosted the Yo-Yo Balloon (water balloon) tent in thisevent. In this tent, visitors could play the ‘Yo-Yo fishing game’. It is a game to pull up a
Yo-Yo Balloon from a pool full of water like fishing, using a little hook whose fishing line
consisted of paper.

Visitors played ‘Yo-Yo fishing game’

The trick is how deep you put your hook into thewater so as not to dissolve the fishing line. JLGC
members joined this tent as volunteers to help
make Yo-Yo Balloons and assist children playing
the game. After starting the event there were also
many people visiting our tent, so it was a vibrantplace. Although it is difficult to make a balloon, because JLGC members had never made Yo-Yo Balloons until this event, in the end all members could
make them more beautiful and more quickly than
the first one they made. I was impressed by how
many visitors played the game and were happily
walking with Yo-Yo Balloons we made. I hope thisevent can be an opportunity for more people to beinterested in and love Japan.

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Each year representatives from the seven Canadian JETAA chapters come together for CanCon,
which is a conference hosted annually by chapters on a rotating basis that gives delegates a spacefor discussing the successes and hardships faced by individual chapters. It is also a great time foridea sharing and networking amongst the JET Programme alumni across the country and building
better bridges among Canadian JETAA chapters. The 2013 CanCon was held and hosted by theQuebec/Atlantique chapter in Montreal, with the 2014 CanCon scheduled to rotate to the Manitoba/Saskatchewan chapter in Winnipeg. Due to limited capacities, though, the conference was rescheduled to be hosted by JETAA Toronto at the Japan Foundation, in coordination with the Consulate-General of Japan and CLAIR New York. The conference was held Friday June 6th to Sunday June 8th, and focused on career development and mentorship initiatives. This article gives aquick summary of what the event was all about and what was discussed throughout the weekend.

Friday, June 6thOn Friday evening, CanCon kicked off with delegates from all over the country flying in to Toronto, who were then welcomed by a MOFA reception dinner hosted at the Official Residenceof the Consul-General, Eiji Yamamoto. The
Honourable Mr. Yamamoto, welcomed delegates and started the conference with an encouraging speech that recognized the efforts of
the JET alumni, including their dedication totheir respective JETAA chapters and to the local Japanese communities in their home cities.

MOFA reception at the Official
Resident of the Consul-General

Yamamoto-san brought to everyone’s attention the networking possibilities that JET alumni have
between JETAA chapters and with Japanese companies and corporations that are looking to expand their ties with Canada and are seeking people with an awareness of Japanese culture. JETalumni are ideally placed to help as bridges on the path to mutually beneficial partnerships andprosperity between our two countries. JETAA Toronto is very grateful to the Consul-General forgiving all the JETAA delegates a very warm welcome to the city.

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Saturday, June 7th
The main day of the conference was on Saturday, where a ton of information and ideas was shared
among the chapters. Jeff Minthorn, the keynote speaker, set off the day by narrating his own experiences after JET, in his escapades that led to his founding of Verge Magazine. Some advice given
by Jeff was to reflect on our motivations and values in what we are currently doing and ask ourselves, “Is it working?” He also expanded upon the notion of networking, and how you only get out
what you put in. You have to grow your networks and build a relationship with those people. In
the end, the network won’t come to you, you have to take the initiative, be proactive and actively
seek out those networks. Jeff’s stories of how he has engaged with people and kept his consistency
and motivation for cultural learning and travel was a great encouragement to all present, and wehope to hear from him again at future events.
The morning sessions also featured an update from MOFA and one from CLAIR New York on
Grant-in-Aid. Following these discussions, a delicious bento lunch was accompanied by music fromlocal Japanese artist Chihiro Nagematsu, of the Creator’s Lounge.

A discussion in the conference

The afternoon sessions were broken down into
reports and presentations from individual chapters. It seemed that most chapters host thestandard key JETAA events such as predeparture orientations, Japanese language lessons, natsu matsuri summer festivals, and networking events. Some of the more interesting
updates included Ottawa’s report on how they
are in the process of becoming a registered notfor-profit and are re-writing the chapter bylaws,
and how well they are doing with their annual

dragon boat team. The Quebec/Atlantique chapter has also been expanding, and for the firsttime last year was able to add an additional pre-departure orientation in Halifax run solely byalumni living there. They have also had success in their apple picking networking event andsending care packages to JETs in Japan. The BC/Yukon chapter has succeeded in their goal ofcentralized hosting. The past two years there have been focused on promoting the JET Programme in the region. Their current sempai programme is also a great example of JET alumni
mentoring. Southern Alberta is doing well with their biggest board yet, is striving for membership participation, and is making membership retention a priority. Throughout the session a lotof networking and information sharing was achieved.

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Jessie Zanutig, representing Northern Alberta, presented one of the last sessions of the afternoon,“Pitching Your JET Experience with a Professional Voice.” Jessie, as a professional educator andcareer counselor was nice enough to share her professional advice on how JETs can use their experiences in Japan and put them into resume form.
In the evening, after the conference, delegates were able to discover Toronto on a walking tour
around the lovely downtown. Delegates also had the chance to experience Toronto’s diversity bysharing a Brazilian barbeque dinner at Copacabana, hosted by CLAIR New York, and many continued the night singing karaoke in KoreaTown.

Sunday, June 8thCanCon wrapped up on Sunday with idea sharing on professional development events, interchapter communication and collaboration, strengthening ties to the JET desks, and the Canada
Representative election process. The possibility of the 2015 CanCon being hosted by Northern Alberta was also discussed. Wherever CanCon is hosted next year, we hope all chapters are able tocome together again and update everyone with all their great ideas.
CanCon 2014 was a huge success and could not be possible without support from CLAIR New
York, the Japanese Consulate General in Toronto, JETAA Toronto’s organizers, volunteers andsupport staff, the Japan Foundation, and of course all the chapter delegates who took time fromtheir schedules to come to Toronto.
JETAA Toronto

Downtown in Toronto

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JLGC’s new assistant directors, our Deputy Executive Director, Mr. Atsushi Inumaru, and Director, Rie Imazeki, visited the City of Novi,Michigan, on May 12-15, 2014.
Novi is located in southeastern Michigan andhas a population of about 55,000. There aremany numbers of Japanese companies doing
business in Novi, resulting in a strong relationship with Japan.
Every year, Novi is kind enough to host JLGC’s
new staff to help us learn about American localgovernment.

In Providence Park Hospital
Koichi’s Comments

Keisuke’s Comments

During my stay in the city of Novi, I was so impressed with the comfortable living environment
and the hospitality of officials in Novi. The officials of public facilities like the city hall, the library and the fire stations provide flexible service in many different situations. I was able tounderstand why foreign companies decided toestablish their offices in Novi. I want to makethis great experience useful for my work in thefuture. Thank you so much for everything!

Visiting Novi was my first trip out of New Yorkin the US. It was an excellent experience for me,
and I was impressed the most by ProvidencePark Hospital. They have a system, like Skype,called MARTTI, so that a doctor can speak to apatient who can’t speak English very wellthrough an interpreter who is available anytime.
This is one example of multiculturalism I havefound in the US. I would like to say thank you to
all the staff in Novi, and I hope the good relationship between Novi and JLGC will continue long
into the future.

JAPAN LOCAL GOVERNMENT CENTER (CLAIR, NY)

Published by Japan Local Government Center
3 Park Avenue, 20th floor, New York, NY 10016 / Tel: 212-246-5542 / Fax:212-246-5617 / E:mail: jlgc@jlgc.org / http://www.jlgc.org

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