Kids' Space Connection accomplishes one of the group's primary goals of breaking down cultural, ethnic, religious and linguistic barriers between children by encouraging them to communicate directly with their international peers using the Internet. Oba, who created International Kids' Space as a personal homepage in 1995, is an accomplished pianist as well as an author and lecturer, having published several computer-related books and other media in Japan. Living in NYC for the last seven years, Oba has received masters degrees in music and education from Columbia University. Recently she has taken a leave of absence from her doctoral studies to devote all her energy to Kids' Space. Kids' Space is living proof that caring individuals can work together in cyberspace and make a difference.
All work is performed over the Internet.
Staff members, most of whom have never met, only know Kids' Space and each other through the WWW, e-mail and telephone communications. Kumasaka, who recently earned her masters degree in social work at Columbia, now also works full-time on the project. An entirely new generation of kids is learning just how much they all have in common with each other no matter their background or physical location. It's wonderful to be working on a project that is at the cutting-edge of this dynamic new trend. International Kids' Space and Kids' Space Connection are unique websites that engage children with colorful graphics, simple navigation and rich content.