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The Japan Foundation is delighted to announce the top eight shortlisted entries for the Japan Webpage Contest for Schools. This year had such a high standard of wonderful and imaginative entries and it was very hard to choose just eight for the shortlist!

Click here to vote for your favourite entry* 

The school that receives the most online votes will win the Public Vote Award. The Overall Winner, Runners-Up and Design Award Winner will be decided by the final judging panel, and announce on March 1st 2012.

Please feel free to send this link to anyone who may be interested, and encourage them to look at the entries and cast their vote. Voting closes on the 25th February 2012.

* Please note that we only allow one vote per person.
** The Japan Foundation will record e-mail addresses for the remainder of the voting period. Details will be checked to ensure one vote per person. E-mail addresses will not be disclosed to any third party or used for any other purpose. Once the voting period has ended, the Japan Foundation will not keep records of any of these e-mail addresses.

Please take a peek and vote for the website you like best!

2011 will be remembered for the devastating earthquake and tsunami which devastated the Tōhoku region of Japan. The magnitude 9.0 (Mw) earthquake was the fifth largest recorded since 1900 and is estimated to have jolted the island of Honshu east by 2.4 metres. The disaster claimed the lives of nearly 20,000 people and damaged or destroyed 125,000 buildings. More than 9 months on, the Daily Yomiuri reports that nearly 335,000 people are still living as evacuees. In the second of a series of articles looking back at the disaster and how alumni have responded in 2011, JETAA explores how UK alumni have contributed to the fundraising efforts of charitable organisations.

Following the devastating earthquake and tsunami which struck the north-east coast of Honshu in March this year, JETAA was inundated with emails from UK alumni asking how they could help. UK JETAA members were keen to donate both money and time to support fundraising for relief efforts. Since the disaster, UK alumni have planned, supported and run a series of imaginative fundraising initiatives to support various charities, including The British Red Cross, Mercy Corps and the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. This article provides an overview of how these charities have responded to the disaster and how JETAA UK has supported them.

Japan Earthquake and Relief Fund

This relief fund was set up by the UK-based Japan Society and has raised more than £620,000 to date. The fund is working with the Sanaburi Foundation in Sendai to identify and support local activity throughout the region. The Fund believes that local Non for Profit Organisations are based placed to "identify need and to work with members of their communities to rebuild their lives, but may need support from outside the region to deliver these projects effectively."

JETAA UK encouraged alumni members to contribute directly to the fund through their 'Give a Day for Japan' which asked former JET participants to donate a day's pay. Further funds were raised through a pub quiz, a charity karaoke evening, the JETAA Annual Ball and a raffle (£1,780). JETAA Scotland's appeal contributed a further £515. Members from the JETAA London chapter also assisted in processing payments and helping to collect money in buckets.

Global Giving UK

The' Response to the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Fund' provided by Global Giving disbursed funds to Mercy Corps who supplied shelter materials, water and other relief items to devastated areas in the immediate aftermath of the disaster. In the longer term they will channel money for post-trauma assistance to help affected families rebuild their lives. Mercy Corps has partnered with two local groups to establish the 'Sanriku Tomodachi Fund for Economic Recovery.' You can learn more about it here. Over £285,000 has been raised for the Mercy Corps' relief effort in Japan so far.

This charity was supported by JETAA Wales (Cymru) who organised a sponsored family walk along the stunning Glamorganshire Heritage Coastline in south Wales in May. Former JET participants and the families of those currently participating on the programme walked the challenging 14km route taking in dramatic views from the rugged cliffs, exploring the Dunraven Fort Gardens and passing both the Nash Point lighthouse and St Donat's lifeboat station. Walkers from across south Wales came to support the event (pictured) and raised £745.

British Red Cross

In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami, the British Red Cross launched a 'Japan Tsunami Appeal' which raised an estimated £13.5 million. These funds were channelled directly to the Japanese Red Cross' Relief and Recovery Programme which enabled the deployment of 790 medical teams who treated over 75,000 patients. In the aftermath of the tsunami they distributed 132,000 blankets, 30,000 emergency relief kits and 13,000 relief kits. Since March, they have fitted out temporary housing for 90,000 families. You can learn more about their work here.

JETAA Northern Ireland supported the British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal by supporting the Japan Society of Northern Ireland (JSNI) to hold a fundraising event at the Carrick Civic Centre in Carrickfergus and Tower Shopping Centre in Ballymena. The events showcased aspects of Japanese culture and involved making paper cranes to be handed out to members of the public. JSNI raised over £11,000 for the British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal.

Some members of JETAA Wales also attended two charity concerts held in Cardiff in aid of the British Red Cross Japan Tsunami Appeal.

Other Fundraising Initiatives

In addition to JETAA organised events, some former UK participants of the JET Programme have also organised their own events and fundraising initiatives which they have contacted us to help publicise. These include;

• The Crane Campaign set up by Kate Truscott and Sarah Hill, two ex-ALTs from Shizuoka-ken (1993-95). They sought to encourage school children to make origami cranes with messages inside for Japanese school children. Donations were directed towards The Japan Society Fund, Save the Children and Smile Kids Japan. The campaign was covered by ITV News in London.

• Fukushima Challenge. A 100 mile, 24 hour run and cycle ride in London, with the length of the route representing the exclusion zone set up around the Fukushima Plant. Maia, a former JET participant (Tochigi) cycled the route on a Boris bike, accompanied by her brother Bill on foot. They raised over £27,000 for the British Red Cross.

• JET Endurance. A charity founded in September by Ross Burgon, a UK-based Alumni who worked as an ALT in Toyama Prefecture. Ross will be running the Tokyo Marathon in February 2012 to raise money for JET Endurance. You can learn more here.

• Walk for Japan - The London Victoriathon The London Victoriathon was based on the annual Tokyo Yamathon Challenge in which participants visit all stations of the Japan Rail Yamanote line. On 16th April 2011, participants including ex-JETs walked across London visiting all 16 stations (19 miles) of the Victoria Line - the city's busiest Tube line - passing the Embassy of Japan on the way. They raised over £2000. You can read more about their walk here.

If you are a former JET participant who has undertaken fundraising or relief work following the Japan Earthquake and Tsunami we would like to hear from you. Or if you are planning an event, please let us know so we can support it. Please send us your accounts and any photographs which you are happy for us to publish to webeditor@jetaa.org.uk

The next JETAA Journal has been published by JETAA International. To see more international JETAA news: http://paper.li/jetaai/1307949024

2011 will be remembered for the devastating earthquake and tsunami which devastated the Tōhoku region of Japan. The magnitude 9.0 (Mw) earthquake was the fifth largest recorded since 1900 and is estimated to have jolted the island of Honshu east by 2.4 metres. The disaster claimed the lives of nearly 20,000 people and damaged or destroyed over 125,000 buildings. More than 9 months on, the Daily Yomiuri reports that nearly 335,000 people are still living as evacuees.  In the first of a series of articles looking back at the disaster and how alumni have responded in 2011, JETAA explores how some former UK JET participants have rolled up their sleeves and travelled to the disaster hit areas to offer a helping hand.

Following the devastating earthquake and tsunami which struck the north-east coast of Honshu in March this year, JETAA was inundated with emails from UK Alumni asking how they could help. As well as raising money for the relief efforts, some even expressed an intention to travel to Tohoku to help with the clean up and rebuilding efforts. In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, prevailing advice was that relief efforts on the ground should only be undertaken by experienced personnel.

Six months after the disaster, five UK-based JETAA members spent a day volunteering in the city of Rikuzentakata (陸前高田市) in Iwate prefecture. The Alumni from the London, Scotland and Northern Ireland chapters were in Japan for the JETAA International Meeting held in Tokyo. They collaborated with local JET participants in Iwate Prefecture to assist with the post tsunami clean up and also paid a courtesy visit to the City Mayor Toba Futoshi (pictured right - courtesy of JETAAi).

At the time of the 2010 census, Rikuzentakata city was recorded as having a population of 23,300. However, an article published earlier this month in the Wall Street Journal estimates that the disaster killed almost one tenth of the town’s population. An American ALT, Monty Dickson was amongst those who lost their lives in the town on the 11th of March.

Other British JET Alumni have also been returning to Iwate Prefecture. Alan Mockridge was an ALT from 1992 to 1994 in the coastal town of Ohtsuchi. He revisited the Iwate in September as part of the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the Japan Tourism Agency's (JNTO) programme to understand the current conditions and recovery efforts. You can read his five day blog and see his photographs here. 

Opportunities also exist for those British Alumni members wishing to roll up their sleeves to support Tohoku. Inside Japan Tours recently organised a 4-day volunteering tour in collaboration with RQ Citizens Disaster Relief Network Japan (RQ-CNJ). Project volunteers participating on the tour are able to assist with various cleaning tasks alongside local Japanese volunteers. Tasks may include cleaning and restoring damaged houses and schools, shoveling rubble from roads and clearing parks and rice paddies. The £450 package includes 3 nights accommodation and a chartered coach from Tokyo to Miyagi prefecture and back. It also includes all meals and equipment (rain boots, rubber gloves, cap, dust mask and dust proof goggles). Volunteers will have to pay for international flights, airport transfers and accommodation in Tokyo. No dates for further tours have been organised at present for 2012, but if you are interested you can find out more information here.

Another option is working for one of the three international volunteer groups being supported by UK-based charity Helping Hands for Japan. Helping Hands for Japan is a Charitable Organisation set up by staff at Into Japan Specialist Tours in collaboration with the Japanese community in Oxford to provide much needed help and assistance to the people of the tsunami hit regions of Japan. You can volunteer for one of the following projects;

• It's Not Just Mud (based in Ishinomaki restoring houses, helping businesses to repoen, making furniture for evacuees and building playgrounds near to temporary housing)

• Save Minamisoma (delivering supplies to Minamisoma and supporting events at temporary housing)

• Team Heal Japan (assisting clear up operations in Iwaki)

Into Japan are happy to make travel arrangements on a non-profit basis for anyone wishing to spend at least five days as a volunteer. You can find out more information here.

If you are an ex-JET who has returned to the tsunami hit regions of north-eastern Japan, we would like to hear from you. Please send us your accounts of volunteering along with any pictures that you are happy for us to publish.

The next article in this series will provide an overview of fundraising activities of JETAA UK following the tsunami in March.

Please note JETAA UK does not have any affiliation with the organisations listed in this article. The details are provided for information purposes only.

A Canadian JET Alumni, David Namisato has just launched his official book: 'Life after the B.O.E'

Have a peek if you would like to re-live life as a JET! Click here for further information.

Due to popular demand, we are delighted to announce that the Japan Foundation has extended the deadline to allow more schools to enter the Japan Webpage Contest for Schools. The new deadline will be the 12th of January 2012, so there is still time for you to include your own school’s webpage in the contest.

This contest is open to any UK Primary or Secondary school that is teaching Japanese, or doing any kind of project related to Japan. Your school does not need to be teaching Japanese to enter.

To Enter:

The deadline for the Japanese Language Proficiency test is fast approaching! Applicants have until the 6th of October to apply for the test in December. Good luck to everyone that is planning to take the test this year!!

More information via the Japan Foundation website here.

• Applications for London click here. 
• Applications for Edinburgh click here.

‘Talking Contemporary Japan’ is designed for adult learners interested in updating and refreshing their knowledge about Japan whilst practising their Japanese language skills in a series of evening classes at the Japan Foundation London.

This term, the course will be taught by Hiroko Tanaka, Japanese Language Advisor at the Japan Foundation London.

Whilst providing a genuine chance to look behind some of Japan’s contemporary cultural issues, the course will also provide you with an ideal opportunity to improve all four skills of Japanese. In this course, participants will:

• Enjoy talking and discussing in Japanese.
• Understand what Japanese people think about other cultures and their use of use non-verbal communication.• Enjoy talking and discussing in Japanese.
• Understand what Japanese people think about other cultures and their use of use non-verbal communication.
• Develop language skills in listening, reading, speaking and writing of Japanese.
• Gain confidence and broaden their knowledge of Japanese language, culture and society

Click here for more information.

Since 1994 Raindance has uneashed some of the most potent and exceptional Japanese films and filmmakers onto the British public. This year is no exception. Discover the best indie films Japan has to offer...

For more information see the raindance festival website here.

Six months on from one of the world's most devastating tsunamis, the BBC's Panorama programme spent 3 weeks travelling the diaster zone to hear remarkable tales of survival amid the epic destruction.

The programme, broadcast this week on BBC One and the BBC News Channel tells the dramatic stories of those who managed to escape when so many did not.

The disaster on 11th March 2011 claimed the lives of 21,000 people, including 74 children in a school in Okawa. In the programme, Panorama's Paul Kenyon meets
Naomi Hiraska who explains her decision to continue the search for the body of her 12-year-old daughter, Koharu, who was one of 108 children who attended the school.

The film also follows those returning briefly to homes abandoned within the radioactive no-go area around the Fukushima nuclear power plant, and asks what the future holds for the thousands affected.

You can watch the programme (in the UK only) on BBC iplayer here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b014sgtt/Panorama_Tsunami_The_Survivors_Stories/