2019 Sanriku Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Project
An Outline of the Opening Ceremony
Date: Saturday, June 1, 2019
Venue: Kamaishi Civic Hall TETTO, Hall A (Kamaishi City)
Program
Opening Remarks
Takuya Tasso, Executive Committee Chairman of the 2019 Sanriku Disaster Risk Reduction andReconstruction Project and the Governor of Iwate Prefecture
Presentation: The State of Reconstruction
Nobuhide Shiramizu, Director-General of the Iwate Prefecture Department of Policy andRegional Affairs
Speech: Support from Abroad
Joseph M. Young, Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy
Speech: The Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami’s Impact on International Discussions
Regarding Disaster Mitigation
Yuki Matsuoka, Director at the UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, Office in Japan
Presentation: The State of Reconstruction – Youth Efforts
Tomoki Yoshihama, Graduate of the TOMODACHI Initiative Support Program
An Overview of the Speeches
Support from Abroad
Joseph M. Young, Chargé d’Affaires at the U.S. Embassy
Although over eight years have passed since the Great East Japan Earthquake andTsunami Disaster, I will never forget the tragic events of that day. In an instant, thousands ofpeople lost their lives, homes, family members, and livelihoods.
The United States immediately reached out with an offer of support to the Japanese
Government.
With Operation Tomodachi, the United States government assisted the Japan
Self-Defense Forces and Japanese government agencies’ relief efforts. For many of the American
service members and first responders who worked alongside the Self-Defense Forces andJapanese rescue workers after the disaster, the experience was the beginning of a lifelong
friendship with the people of the affected areas. Firefighters and rescue workers from the Los
Angeles and Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Departments in the United States have continued
their friendship with their counterparts in Ofunato. They have shared stories of the brave heroes
they met here in the Sanriku region with their communities in the United States. By passing
along their experiences, they have honored those who were lost and raised awareness among
Americans about the tsunami and the need to prepare for disasters.
And new friendships have emerged from the debris and devastation. In 2013, a training-1-

boat—the Kamome— belonging to Takata High School in Rikuzentakata, Iwate, washed up on the
shores of Crescent, California, a city that once suffered serious damage itself when it was struck
by a tsunami triggered by the largest earthquake ever recorded in North America. After a groupof local high school students and volunteers arranged to return it to its home in Japan, the twocities decided to establish sister school and sister city relationships.
Also, I am delighted to see participants here today who participated in TOMODACHI
Initiative programs. TOMODACHI is a public-private partnership funded by Japanese andAmerican donors, which focuses on developing human capital through leadership programs aswell as educational and cultural exchanges. Over 7,800 Japanese and American youth haveparticipated in TOMODACHI programs since the initiative began in 2011. Young people from the
Tohoku region have accounted for over half of the participants and around 1,000 participants
have come from Iwate Prefecture. These young people have gained valuable leadership skills
that will prepare them to thrive in an increasingly global society. Just as importantly,
TOMODACHI participants from the Tohoku area have shared their memories of the disaster with
their new American friends. They have returned to their communities with a sense of pride andhigh aspirations for the future.
Over the past two days, I have had the opportunity to visit the cities of Rikuzentakata,
Ofunato, and Kamaishi to observe up close the dramatic progress in the reconstruction of thisregion. I have been truly impressed by the region’s new roads, buildings, and infrastructure,
which are critical to Tohoku’s revitalization. Above all, I’ve been most inspired by the people I’ve
met during my visit – those still rebuilding their lives, even though their homes and families havebeen forever changed, those supporting their communities, even though the disaster left themwith almost nothing, and those who have created and led innovative programs to make theircities welcoming, inclusive places for everyone. I am confident that overseas visitors who travel
here for the Rugby World Cup and 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games will also be inspired by
the region’s reconstruction and the resilience of the people they meet.
The United States has much to learn from Japan’s experiences about disaster
preparedness and risk reduction. I appreciate your efforts to ensure the lessons of 3.11 arepassed on to future generations and shared with friends in other countries, including the UnitedStates. By sharing your knowledge, you are saving lives. I look forward to further deepening
disaster preparedness cooperation between our countries in the coming years.

How the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami’s influenced the International Discussions on
Disaster Risk Reduction
Yuki Matsuoka, Head of the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) Office inJapan
I would like to talk about how the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami has
influenced international discussions on disaster risk reduction, and in doing so, I wish to convey-2-

the importance of sharing your experiences of the disaster and the on-going reconstruction
efforts with the international community.
The UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) is the United Nations’ focal point fordisaster risk reduction. One of the major roles of the UNDRR is to coordinate the international
process to develop a global framework for disaster risk reduction which would facilitate
countries to take actions on disaster risk reduction. The UN World Conference on Disaster Risk
Reduction played critical roles for the purpose. The UN World Conference on Disaster Risk
Reduction has been held three times to date—first in 1994, then in 2005. Most recently, theThird UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction was held in March 2015 in Sendai, Japan,
culminating in the adoption of the Sendai Framework, a fifteen-year international guideline topromote disaster risk reduction by the year 2030.
Discussions leading up to the adoption of the Sendai Framework lasted for more than
one year, and were largely influenced by the experience of the Great East Japan Earthquake.
Three keywords for the framework are Inclusivity, Resilience and All-of-Society Engagement.
Inclusivity emphasizes the need to implement disaster risk reduction strategies andpolicies that meet the diverse needs of a diverse community. This community may include
people with disabilities, the elderly, children, young persons, women, men and people withdifferent perspectives on gender. In sharing their experience, challenges and lessons learnt fromthe Great East Japan Earthquake and on-going recovery processes, the people of Tohoku
contributed to an enhanced recognition by the international community of the importance ofinclusivity, which is strongly reflected in the Sendai Framework.
Then there is Resilience, which emphasizes not only building resilience from structural
measures but building resilience from non-structural measures also, such as those which are
implemented by education and awareness-raising activities. Finally, All-of-Society Engagement
emphasizes not only an awareness of the most vulnerable members of society to be considered,
but also an awareness of how such people can become

powerful actors in disaster risk

reduction efforts. After all, the vulnerable are not solely defined by their weaknesses, as they
can greatly contribute to bringing about change, raising awareness and improving disaster risk
reduction efforts in their society. Emphasizing the concept of All-of-Society Engagement within
the Sendai Framework, the international community once again reflected the experiences ofwomen, children, young persons and persons with disabilities, all of whom have played a part in
the recovery and reconstruction efforts from the massive disaster in Tohoku.
The experience of the Great East Japan Earthquake has also made clear the importanceof private sector contributions. This is highlighted by the many roles undertaken by the private
sector both in the aftermath of the disaster and throughout the recovery process.
The UNDRR has worked tirelessly to share Japan’s experience of the Great East Japan
Earthquake—its lessons, challenges and good practices—with the international community. Of
course, there are lessons to be learned outside of Japan also, and by sharing these lessons, weare helping to set policy and improve capacity for disaster risk reduction, and build resiliencearound the world.
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After the Great East Japan Earthquake, the Special Representative of the UN
Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction and the Head of UNDRR visited the Tohoku region
many times, to speak directly to the people living there, and to ensure that their experiences
would be shared with the international community and serve as a lesson for the world. The
powerful messages that were heard in Tohoku brought new perspectives to the drafting processof the Sendai Framework, which was adopted at the UN World Conference on Disaster Risk
Reduction in 2015 and was also endorsed by the UN General Assembly in the same year as acomprehensive international guideline for disaster risk reduction.
The UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction was not merely attended by thedelegations of the Member States of the United Nations, but also various stakeholders fromaround the world. Each country is requested to implement the Sendai Framework by the year
2030, and the task of the UNDRR is to support these countries for implementation and tomonitor its progress.
While promoting implementation of the Sendai Framework, the UNDRR has made many
visits to the Tohoku region, to know about the on-going recovery effort and challenges facing thecommunities there. Since 2011, for the past eight years, some people have certainly seen
progress, while some others have also experienced many challenges including new ones whichhave taken years to develop, and other challenges which have been more psychological in nature.
Nevertheless, the very fact that progress is being made has served as encouragement and avaluable lesson to other disaster-stricken communities around the world, such as thoseexperienced by tsunamis in Indonesia, or by earthquakes, typhoons and cyclones in Bangladesh
and Nepal.
Through advocacy efforts by using the International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction
designated by the UN, UNDRR has been encouraging people around the world to look at
vulnerable people as not only in need of protection but also as potential actors contributing toresilient societies. These advocacy activities have also had a major effect on the contents of the
Sendai Framework.
The UNDRR Office in Japan has reported many cases on the situation in Tohoku, one ofwhich was referred in the Secretary-General’s message for the International Day for Disaster Risk
Reduction 2012. It was about the activities of an NPO in Iwate Prefecture that was set up to
support single mothers in Iwate Prefecture.
I previously mentioned how the contributions of the private sector are well-reflected in
the Sendai Framework. This is in part contributed by the 2013 publication of a collection of goodpractices related to the public sector contributions to disaster risk reduction in Japan during andafter the Great East Japan Earthquake. This publication was appreciated and read around theworld, and brought attention to the significant contributions of the private sector.
At this time, I would like to share a few words from Ms. Mami Mizutori, the current Headof the UNDRR , and her predecessor who served as the Head of UNDRR until 2015, Ms.
Margareta Wahlström—two individuals who have made many visits to the Tohoku region overthe past eight years. Both quotations are taken from interviews that they had with a media-4-

reporter during their visits to areas afflicted by the Great East Japan Earthquake.
“I have learned that the psychological recovery is important, and that it takes time.
When the people of Tohoku spoke to me about their painful experiences, I could feel that theywanted them to serve as lessons to learn. Their messages will lead to build back better andenhance disaster risk reduction around the world, which I hope will be illuminating for theinternational community.”“During my visits to the affected areas, I have learnt directly from the people involved
such as local governments and citizens. Learning from them is crucial for the world, because that
information is not only useful for Japan, but also for other countries during similar situations.
The lessons learnt from and reconstruction process in Tohoku after the Great East Japan
Earthquake in 2011 as well as Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake 1995 are useful for global learning on
DRR, since Japan has many years of knowledge and expertise accumulated in managing disasterrisks and major disasters”.
Lastly, it must be said that the challenges being tackled by the UN represent challenges
that are faced by the people all over the world. In fact, there are many challenges being
addressed by the UN that should be familiar to you as well, such as disaster risk reduction issues.
Please be encouraged to share your experiences and knowledge with the international
community. In fact, I believe that sharing your experiences and knowledge is one of theobjectives of the Sanriku Risk Reduction and Reconstruction Project. Please join the global
efforts on disaster risk reduction and contribute to moving one step forwards by reducing thenumber of precious life being lost in a disaster. We at the UNDRR will continue to devote
ourselves as a facilitator or a bridge between various local efforts and the global efforts in
disaster risk reduction.
I sincerely hope that this presentation has been an opportunity for you to become
familiar, even a little, with what we do at the UN, and to understand that by sharing yourexperiences with us, the people in Tohoku are contributing to disaster risk reduction efforts andactions around the world through the UN processes.

The State of Reconstruction — Youth Efforts
Tomoki Yoshihama, Graduate of the TOMODACHI Initiative Support Program
I would like to talk to you about a disaster that changed my life.
I was born in 1998, in Miyako City. When I was five, my parents enrolled me in a
traditional drum band called Yamaguchi Taiko. It was through performing at local festivals that I
learned the true meaning of “community spirit”. Then, on March 11, 2011, my community was
rocked by the Great East Japan Earthquake. It was the day before my elementary school
graduation. As I lived about five kilometers from the coast, I did not have to experience thedevastation of a tsunami. I did not lose any family members or relatives or friends. A week after
the earthquake hit, when I was asked to help a family friend clean the mud of out their store, I-5-remember seeing a 20-meter long fishing boat jutting out of different store, but it didn’t reallyregister with me on a personal level.
I started thinking about the disaster and reconstruction in earnest after I entered highschool. I had five really good friends in my class, and three of them told me that they had losttheir homes to the earthquake and tsunami. Two of them told me that they had lost their fathers.
I felt something then that I have not forgotten since. I also realized that I had done nothing tosupport the reconstruction effort. So on the advice of my older brother, I joined Miyakko Base, alocal NPO dedicated to encouraging young people to help rebuild their communities.
It was then that I met some high school students who were one or two years older thanmyself. They made maps for local commercial districts and gave tours to students from both
inside and outside the prefecture. Inspired to contribute to my hometown, I set up a high schoolgroup.
The first thing we did was hold a music festival. There were 30 of us in the group, all highschool students, and another 30, also high school students, who liked what we were doing andsaid that they wanted to volunteer. When it came to sourcing talent, we received applications
from more than 200 students, of all ages, willing to perform at our event. This was a young
persons’ affair—that is to say, the organization, performances, hosting, sound and lighting wereall, to a certain extent, done by young persons. And when the day of the festival finally arrived,
we counted more than 400 people in attendance. After that, our group set into motion all sorts
of projects. We ran a high school cafeteria that used only locally-sourced ingredients, andorganized disaster-prevention guided tours to local springs. We also made and sold T-shirts withdesigns inspired by our city, Miyako.
My desire to do something special for my community must have rubbed off on my fellow
high school students, for we kept growing as a group. Eventually, I handed the reigns over tosomeone younger and signed up for Softbank’s TOMODACHI Initiative. The TOMODACHI
Initiative is a three-week long study program focused on community service and leadership at
the University of California, Berkley. Participants are asked to think up possible solutions to local
community problems and, finally, to come up with an action plan for tackling challenges in one’s
own hometown.
When I came back to Japan, I had developed an interest in regional education. This
interest naturally expanded to include the broader Japanese education system, overseas
education systems and education systems in general.
Then, in the autumn of my last year of high school, two weeks before I was set tograduate, I dropped out of school. The reason is that I wanted to study at a high school overseas.
So I didn’t really drop out—I just put my graduation on hold. Then I looked for a potential
overseas school to host me, and I sent off ten or so emails. One of the replies I received wasparticularly favorable, so I filled out the necessary paper work and was admitted.
In the United States, school starts in the fall, so I had lots of time to prepare. Before
leaving, I decided that I wanted to see more of my own country, so I picked up some part-timework and traveled around. Also, seeing as I needed to work on my English, I took a one-month-6-

long intensive English course in the Philippines. Finally, in the autumn of 2017, I began myoverseas study at the Youth Initiative High School in Wisconsin.
But my time overseas was not at all what I expected it to be. When I arrived, the principal
at my high school asked me to join a research team dedicated to building a new university. I only
ever spent seven or eight hours at school each week, which was the bare minimum I needed tograduate—the rest of my time was spent as a researcher, designing a curriculum and school
system. I also participated in local community events. Looking at education from multiple
perspectives, I learned much about the differences between Japanese and American education.
After about ten months of study, I converted my school and research credits and was allowed tograduate. I returned home to Japan last summer.
Before I studied in the United States, I was torn between going to university overseas andlooking for work in my own city. Ultimately, I chose to return home. It was studying abroad thattaught me the value of my own hometown. And as soon as I returned, I began working for the
NPO Miyakko Base.
However, while thinking about my future, I began to worry about only working in myhometown. Then an opportunity arose for graduates of Softbank’s TOMODACHI Initiative, and I
interned for six months at Softbank’s headquarters, in their CSR department. Last fall, I was
spending half the week in Tokyo, contributing to society through a major corporation, and theother half of the week I was in Miyako, working for an NPO.
Needless to say, all this running around was not easy on my wallet or my physicalwellbeing. And yet I was doing what I wanted to be doing. I got used to my schedule and in
December started working at MYSH Sake Bar in Tokyo as a junior manager. The bar serves foodand Japanese liquors made with ingredients from Miyako. It is a place where I can really be
myself, and I enjoy working as a young manager.
In March, my contract with Softbank ended, and in April I was hired by Fireplace Inc., alocal developer. Specifically, I am in charge of putting up restaurants and event spaces in the
Nihonbashi area.
I am now working three jobs: one is a staff position at Miyakko Base, the second is amanagerial position at MYSH Sake Bar, and the third is a contract position at Fireplace, Inc. I havealso begun restoring abandoned homes in Miyako, turning them into share-houses. This has
been my life story up to now.
I am serious when I say that the Great East Japan Earthquake marked a turning point in
my life. The support that I received from adults who were affected by the earthquake, theyouth-assistance programs that were developed because of the earthquake, and many loving
environments has changed me for the better. I will always be trying my hand at different things
to repay the debt that I owe to my hometown.
As technology continues to become more and more advanced, the way we work and live
is beginning to change. There seems to be so many things to choose from. And yet sometimes itfeels like the things that are really important have lost something essential. It is at those times
that I think about Iwate, a meeting-ground for new challenges and good-old tradition. I feel that-7-

Iwate offers us a hint of what we can expect from Japan in the future.

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