January 2012 Volume 16 Issue 3

JETAABC

#16.3 01/2012

n e w s l e t t e r o f t h e j a pa n e xc h a n g e a n d t e ac h i n g a l u m n i

www.jetaabc.ca

a s s o c i at i o n o f b r i t i s h c o l u m b i a a n d y u ko n

02 08

jetaabc

02 04 06

news flashes from the consulate jetaabc agm

+ shinnenkai 2012

changing tides exhibition and silent auction

from japan

08

rikuzentakata, iwate: the tsunami

12 14 15

jets on location

9 months after

update from smile kids japan tohoku, via google street view

16

jet life

16 17 18

career advice in ready jet throw upcoming events

5 minutes or less

T

he University of Alberta would like to draw your attention to opportunities for students to pursue a funded MA degree focusing on various areas in East Asian Studies. The university is keen to build its graduate program, and 11 new MA students (many with full funding) entered the department this fall, part of an expansion they aim to continue. Though it currently focuses on the MA level, an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in conjunction with other programs is an option, and it hopes to start a Ph.D. program in the near future. The deadline to apply to their graduate program for Fall 2012 entry is January 10, 2012.

Students with interest in Japanese can focus on any of the following areas: • Japanese Linguistics/Pedagogy • Japanese Literature

T

he UBC Master of Arts Asia Pacific Policy Studies (MAAPPS) is a boutique program offering training focused on the Asia Pacific to prepare graduates for professional careers in policy-analysis and policy-making.

MAAPPS gives you the opportunity to focus on topics ranging from international relations and Asia’s place in the world, to human security and human rights, governance, international development and more. MAAPPS is an innovative and flexible program that can be tailored to suite you and your goals.

Like Asia Pacific Memo, the MAAPPS program is hosted in Vancouver at UBC’s Institute of Asian Research. Many frequent APM contributors teach in the MAAPPS program.

In the context of the MAAPPS program, the faculty focus on the policy implications of some of the research and broader topics that they report on in their Memos.

• Japanese Cultural Studies

For further information, please visit http://iar.ubc.ca/ maapps

For further information, please visit the U of A website: www.eastasianstudies.ualberta.ca/en/GraduatePrograms. aspx

Deadline for applications is January 15, 2012.

(text edited from Yoshi Ono, Graduate Coordinator)

News Flashes from the Consulate text and photos by

Thomas Law

A

omori JET alum and frequent contributor to AJET/JETAA newsletters worldwide David Namisato has published a compilation of his “Life After the B.O.E.” comics. It is now available on Amazon.com.

For his individual comics, visit: www.lifeaftertheboe. com

2

Recent returnee Kimberly McNelly interviewed at Returners’ Reception. (Nikkei TV/OMNI)

T

hey’re back! Well, officially back, anyway. In early November, the Consul General of Japan, Mr Hideki Ito, hosted a reception at his residence to welcome JET participants who completed their contracts this summer. As this was the first group of JETs to return since the March earthquake in Tohoku, there was substantially more local media coverage of the returnees. Interviews with the recent returnees are available via Nikkei TV/OMNI at www.youtube.com/NikkeiTV#g/c/F67156D6674985D2, and another interview is available in the Nov 24th edition of the Vancouver Shinpo on page V-12 (http://issuu.com/ vanshinpo/docs/vancouvershinponovember24-part2).

The Returners’ Reception was preceded by the JETAABC Welcome Back Meishi Mingle a few weeks prior at the Elephant and Castle. A slightly more casual affair.

JETAABC

W

e are pleased to present another session of Intermediate-Advanced Japanese classes to JETAABC alumni!

This class is geared towards individuals who are at the level of taking the Japanese Language Proficiency Test (JLPT) N2/N3 this year.

If you are interested, please send an e-mail to Megumi at senioradvisor@jetaabc.ca. As the class has a limited number of seats available, please let me know as soon as possible or by Thursday January 12th.

Please provide the following application details in your email: • Name • Email address • Phone number • Years on JET (eg. 2005-2008) • Location on JET • Japanese level, Japanese courses taken, JLPT level, etc.

Dates: Tuesdays, January 17 – March 20, 2012 (once a week, every Tuesday for 10 weeks) Time: 6:30 pm – 8:30 pm

E

arly in December, the Japanese Consulate in Vancouver hosted a banquet celebrating the 78th birthday of Emperor Akihito of Japan.

The event, held at the Coast Coal Harbour Hotel, was attended by dignitaries from around the city, including Premier Christy Clark, who along with Consul General Ito and other VIPs participated in a sake cask-breaking ceremony. Guests in attendance (including JETAABC board members) enjoyed traditional musical performances as well as the wonderful food supervised by the Consul General’s own personal chef.

Location: Consulate General of Japan in Vancouver 800-1177 West Hastings Street Vancouver, BC V6E 2K9 Fee: $150 (deposit*) + course materials * The fee for the course will act as a deposit. It will be returned to individuals who complete 80% or more of the course. For those who attend less than 80% of classes, $20 will be deducted from the deposit per missed class. In addition, the costs for course materials used in class are approximately $20. On the first day of class, please bring your deposit cheque payable to JETAABC. Note: Based on the number of responses that we receive, there may be more people interested in taking classes than there are seats available in the session. If so, we will create a waitlist for students based on a first-come first-serve basis, their application, and payment of deposit.

Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

Megumi Johns JETAABC Senior Advisor

New Japanese Classes Starting in January

Guests enjoyed the performances and refreshments at the banquet celebrating the Emperor’s birthday.

JETAABC

3

Food!

Meetings!

Acronyms!

AGM

+

SHINNENKAI 2012

Date: Friday, January 27th, 2012

Akemashite omedeto gozaimasu! It’s time to kick off Heisei 24-nen and the Year of the Dragon!

Time: 6:00 – 9:00 pm Location: YWCA Hotel (Downtown Vancouver)

JETAABC is pleased to invite all JETAABC members and their guests to the Annual General Meeting and Shinnenkai 2012.

733 Beatty St (Between Robson and Georgia St) Your RSVP is kindly requested by Friday, January 21st, 2012 at agm@jetaabc.ca.

Annual General Meeting The AGM is your chance to participate in the election of our new Board of Directors and other important JETAABC business. Please consider running for a position! A brief description of positions is provided on the next page.

Shinnenkai Light food and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided at the AGM. Come meet and catch up with fellow alumni.

We look forward to seeing you there!

4

JETAABC

President

Volunteer Coordinator

• Acts as the official representative of JETAABC.

• Solicits and directs volunteers to participate in appropriate sub-committee activities.

• Liaises with the Japanese Consulate, CLAIR and JETAA Canada representative.

• Chairs the Board of Directors meetings and facilitates JETAABC activities and communications.

• Advises and coordinates all JETAABC activities in conjunction with the Board of Directors.

• Spearheads JETAABC long term planning and vision.

Treasurer • Maintains records of JETAABC’s finances (e.g. bank deposits, balancing cheque book).

• Reports on the financial activities at the monthly Board of Directors meeting.

• Prepares the application for the CLAIR grant-in-aid, and liaises with CLAIR on related matters.

Secretary • Prepares the agenda for and takes minutes at meetings.

• Facilitates communication between the Board and JETAABC members.

• Maintains the minutes, all files, documents, and correspondence for JETAABC.

Newsletter Coordinator • Collects and edits articles, prepares JETAABC newsletter for distribution.

• Responsible for digitally-publishing and distributing JETAABC newsletters.

Membership Coordinator • Maintains and updates membership and contact information of all alumni in the JETAABC database.

• Encourages alumni to join JETAABC.

• Serves as the primary contact for alumni interested in getting involved with JETAABC.

Career and Personal Development Coordinator • Develops and organizes career-related and personal development events such as networking events and workshops.

• Organizes the annual Re-Entry & Career Seminar in the autumn for new returnees.

Social and Cultural Coordinator • Organizes social events for members throughout the year such as pub nights, hiking.

• Coordinates cultural events and programs such as cooking classes, language lessons, or other events that help maintain ties to Japanese culture.

External Liaison • Brings JETAABC members in touch with other JET alumni associations.

• Develops relationships with outside organizations (e.g. Mokuyokai, Powell Street Festival Society, Nikkei Place) to allow JETAABC members to maintain their connection to Japan and Japanese culture.

Technical Coordinator • Helps maintain the JETAABC wiki and website, and archives documents online.

• Programming or complex technical skills are not a requirement.

Senior Advisor • Filled by someone who has previously served on the Board of Directors.

• Offers guidance and input on Board decisions and dialogue.

• High-level database skills are not a requirement.

Social Media Coordinator • Maintains JETAABC’s Facebook and Twitter pages • Coordinates with Board members to ensure JETAABC events & information is communicated via Facebook/ Twitter

If you would like to run for a position but cannot attend the AGM, please send a platform to agm@jetaabc.ca by January 21, 2012.

JETAABC

5

JETAABC Presents Changing Tides Exhibition and Silent Auction at the Nikkei Centre text by

Thomas Law

Photo credits clockwise from left: Tracey Taylor & Dee Green, Kelvin Po, Yoshinori Ueno

Information updated frequently at

www.jetaabc.ca/changing-tides

A

s the one-year anniversary of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami disasters in the Tohoku region approaches, it feels surreal that so much work has been done in the recovery of the region, and yet how much more work remains. Since the disaster last year, JETAABC has dedicated much of their work to raising donations for relief and reconstruction efforts in Tohoku, and its efforts culminate in the Changing Tides photo exhibition and silent auction.

Presented by JETAABC and hosted by the National Nikkei Museum & Heritage Centre in Burnaby, the event is an exhibition of photos taken by Peace Boat and JETs who lived in the Tohoku region. A silent auction gala will be held on February 18th, where the pictures taken by Tohoku JETs and various items donated by sponsors will be auctioned off to raise money for two NGOs — Peace Boat and Living Dreams — in their relief efforts in the Tohoku region. With a $10 ticket donation to the gala, guests are invited to bid on items as they enjoy refreshments and performances by Japanese artists.

Photography Exhibition: January 14th to March 10th (free admission) Silent Auction Gala: February 18th, 6 – 9pm • $10 tickets — available at tickets@jetaabc.ca or at the door • cash or cheques accepted at auction • all proceeds donated to Tohoku reconstruction efforts 2nd Floor Hallway National Nikkei Museum & Heritage Centre 6688 Southoaks Crescent, Burnaby, BC

6

JETAABC

A

ccounts written by JET alumni who were directly or indirectly affected by the disaster will also be on display at the exhibition. The following are some excerpts:

Another time in Soma the other JETs were supporting a local kindergarten.

Whole neighbourhoods were gone; boats and bulldozers had been tossed around like toys and the wave had come high enough to bend road signs.

We were told not to touch any tatami mats that we came across for they had been used during body recovery.

— Kelvin Po Aizu-Wakamatsu, Fukushima JET

To see these sights and to see that the reconstruction wasn’t coming along as quickly as on the mainland, I was brought to tears. But the students and teachers walked to school like they had always done, keeping their eyes forward… The students and teachers told me that it was a tragic event but at times like these, people have to work together and stay focused.

— Tanya Gardecky Shiogama City, Miyagi JET

Photo credits clockwise from upper-left: Mark Montgomery, Lisa Rie Hansen, Megumi Johns. These three pictures and seven others

by Tohoku JET alumni will be on auction at the Gala on February 18th

JETAABC

7

Inside Enzo’s old apartment (not many building survived). He had lived in teacher housing in front of the high school.

8 

JETAABC

Rikuzentakata, Iwate: 9 Months After the Tsunami text by and photos from

Alison Dacia Brown Rikuzentakata ALT, 2005-2008 | ESL Teacher, GEOS Language Academy

T

he last article I wrote for JETAABC was just a few weeks after the tragedy happened. I lived in Rikuzentakata, a small city in Iwate prefecture on the coast, whose location and landscape could not have been worse on March 11th. Over nine months has passed, and even though Rikuzentakata, or Takata for short, is far from being fully healed, it’s unbelievable what has been accomplished to make the city liveable again in such a short period of time.

Temporary housing has been built. Grass has begun to grow again. Debris has been cleared. The Tanabata festival has been celebrated. A Lawson has been opened.

Possessions have been returned to their owners.

Possessions thought to have been lost forever. As an example of this, could you imagine losing your home and possessions and barely escaping with your child and a few clothes? Could you imagine the happiness you would feel when a volunteer is able to give you a memory card

with pictures on it you thought were lost forever? There was one volunteer department responsible for this ‘Photo Recovery Project’. In an online video, I smiled when I saw those blue laundry hangers with the clips holding photos that had been recovered and carefully cleaned.

I was devastated when I saw the images of the destruction in the days that followed the tragedy. What was worse was seeing a video taken of the city from a helicopter. It wasn’t just destruction; it looked apocalyptic. I recognized about three buildings which were some of the biggest: The Capital Hotel, City Hall and the building that housed Daiso and the town supermarket, Maiya. Even though they were spared from the waves which swept mostly everything away, they seemed to stand there like ruins, completely gutted from the inside. In the days that followed, a closer look at these buildings showed trapped trees, cars, and probably people which were swept into their paths. Boats on top of buildings seemed commonplace.

JETAABC

9

I keep in regular contact with my friends in Rikuzentakata and Ofunato, the city next door. In addition, I do some volunteer editing on the Save Takata website. I feel like doing all these things is keeping my spirits up. What also keeps my spirits up is hearing all the stories about my town from volunteers and friends. The day-to-day activities that show that life really does go on are amazing. One of humankind’s best qualities is the ability to adapt, and the residents of Rikuzentakata have certainly adapted and carried on. Enzo Caffarelli, a good friend and former ALT from Takata, has since returned with the volunteer group All Hands. I remember messaging him back and forth on Facebook after he arrived and he told me was doing some work at a rice harvest cooperative, and being managed by a dirty old Japanese man who loved women and sexual innuendos. Awesome.

In addition to cleaning ditches and digging canals, he was able to do some salvage work for a friend of ours who was the art teacher at the local high school. He was able to find pieces of art, photos, slides and documents which made her very happy. Another project he helped with was in making a local cemetery accessible again. Stones had been toppled and the paths had been uncut for months. He said it was great to see people coming back to visit their ancestors.

A new ‘Takata’ has appeared outside of the central town which houses many of the businesses and public buildings that were destroyed in March. This new Takata now has our post office, city hall, a Lawson, a couple of bars, an AU shop, among others. This sleepy area has now had to absorb new migration from the disaster zone. Makeshift laundry shops and hair salons have popped up to service the people who live nearby in temporary housing settlements. In the neighbouring town of Senmaya, Takata’s sake brewery has been reopened.

Twisted train tracks have been removed from banks, buildings and bridges.

Debris sorting areas have been organized. Highly-organized debris sorting 10

JETAABC

Clockwise from left: A boat in the middle of the street in Ofunato; some lonely trees are all that are left in the neighbourhood; Enzo has dinner with some friends

Children continue to go to school.

Life goes on no matter how difficult it may be.

areas. Concrete foundations for new housing have been poured. Children continue to go to school. Life goes on no matter how difficult it may be.

I haven’t been able to return to Rikuzentakata but amazingly Rikuzentakata was able to visit me two days ago. I was able to connect with Hiromaru and Nobuko, a couple from Takata who lost everything in the tsunami. Hiromaru spent two months in the hospital recovering from leg injuries. Many countries have stepped up to the plate and offered temporary residence for survivors on a temporary basis. Canada was one of them. They were offered airfare, homestay and a scholarship to study at a local ESL school here in Vancouver.

Their time is almost up in Vancouver, but they will travel to San Diego to visit friends and then head back to Japan for a while. They would like to improve their English and explore other options that are available to them. I wish them all the best and was so happy to share stories with them.

The Japanese flag hangs from a ruined building

I was able to connect with Hiromaru and Noki through Yuko Okamura, an American grad student here in Vancouver. Yuko is doing a master’s degree in architecture. To my pleasant surprise, she has been researching Rikuzentakata for her thesis which focuses on rebuilding after a natural disaster with memory and sustainability being key factors in the process. She spent a short amount of time in Ofunato and Rikuzentakata during the summer and had obviously never seen the city prior to March 11th. She shyly asked if we could meet so I could talk about my memories of the buildings, the beach, and the people of the town. I was and always will be more than happy to talk about Rikuzentakata.

It is expected that it will take roughly 10 years for the city to return to its pretsunami state. Some people have left, some people have stayed. Many have accepted the geography of where they live and will not succumb to the fact that nature rules all. It will be interesting to see the continued progress which I know is incorporating new tsunami contingency plans. I will document it when it happens.

Above to below: Alison with Noki and Hiromaru; Takata high school; view from Kesen-cho. The high school and the Capital Hotel are visible from this view

JETAABC

11 

JETs on Location

I

n part 2 of our JETs on Location feature, we catch up again with a few new JETs who are now experiencing their first winter in their new homes. Unfortunately Russell and Simon, our other two cotributors, couldn’t join us for this issue, but here are Aileen and Kane, two

JETs who live on opposite sides of Japan.

Thomas Law Newsletter Coordinator

Aileen O’Brien ishikari, hokkaido Winter in Ishikari I’m in my 5th month in Ishikari! I feel like I’ve really begun to settle in well. Along with my Yosakoi practices and my Japanese lessons, I am now taking lessons in tea ceremony, flower arrangement and calligraphy. I’m really excited to be able to learn about traditional Japanese culture while I am here, but I sure am busy these days. I love chatting with my teachers, even though I only understand half of what they say I’m thankful to be able to spend time with them and learn such interesting subjects! Plus they always give me presents like tasty treats, equipment I can use to practice at home or hand-knitted wool socks!

Winter coming was a bit of a shock, being from Victoria I’m not accustomed to snow or cold but I am getting used to it now. It helps that there are upsides to all this snow in Hokkaido, like snowboarding! I have a seasons pass to Kiroro, a very nice mountain resort near me and have already been out to try snowboarding for the first time, of course I spent most of the day on, or falling on to, my backside. Going to the onsen afterwards was amazing though, sitting in the outdoor hot spring while the snow fell around me was an excellent reward to my hard work on the slopes.

At the school festival.

apparently to the Elementary school curriculum) that’s what really counts. I look forward to more adventures in Japan in the New Year, but right now I’m only looking forward to going home for Christmas and eating turkey Aileen with my family!

Oh and I also have been teaching Elementary school too!

The kids are hilarious and so energetic! In November the schools had their School Culture Festivals where each grade performs a play or played music for their parents and community. I was able to see a few Culture Festivals of the 6 Elementary schools I teach at and I was so impressed! All the kids did an amazing job and were really dedicated to putting on a good show.

I love teaching and although sometimes I am not certain how much English my kids are actually learning I know they have a lot of fun in my classes and to me, (and 12

JETAABC

Kane

Opposite top: The bike path in front of Aileen’s house. Bottom: Aileen’s flower arranging work.

Kane Mercer b e p p u , o i ta

Always be Prepared for the Unexpected During the Jet Programme orientation, I was told to always be prepared for the unexpected. I took that to mean that we should think on our feet when we are at work, but as I found out this weekend, this equally applies to other aspects of Japanese life too. This Saturday (December the 10th) at around 6am, my wife and I woke up to the sounds of a scared JET one floor below struggling with a fire in her apartment. At first we took the screaming sounds to be

an assault and we were prepared for as much, but when we were about to exit the apartment our lungs filled with smoke and we realized what we were facing. We quickly put on some clothes, grabbed our passports and ran outside to look at the blaze. The fire which was directly below us shot up and the flames heated our windows so much that they all smashed.

We were really lucky. Since all of our windows were closed, they stopped the fire long enough for the fire truck to come, but our ALT friend lost almost everything. I remember that my wife and I were very keen to grab passports, but we didn’t grab our cellphones. I put on rain pants, but forgot to wear my shoes in the panic of the fire. We reacted, but I can’t say that we or the other JETs were as prepared for that situation as we should have been.

The good thing about all of this situation is the way the community responded to help us. The fire happened at 6am and one of my 3rd year students was the first on the scene to ask me, “Kane sensei, daijoubu desuka?” at 6:15.

Through his family I was able to contact my schools, and people started to arrive between 6:30-6:45 in the morning. Before long there was a long line of Kocho senseis, Jimuchos (head secretaries), and supervisors waiting at the scene to care for us. The degree and amount of care which we have received has been overwhelming at times to say the least. After the fire happened, a teacher from an apartment downstairs organized a team to clean up our house and make sure our stuff was safe from the elements. We are currently staying at the dormitories in one of my schools. They will apply for us to stay in emergency housing while our windows get repaired, so in our case, absolutely everything was taken care of for us.

If I learned a lesson from this whole situation, it is that we should be prepared for anything to happen. Rather than just have things put aside in a special place, things such as passports should be in a place which is also easily accessible to take and run in an emergency situation. Also things would have gone better for us if we had planned beforehand what would be necessary for us to take in the case of an emergency. It can be stressful to be in a situation such as the one we were put through, but judging by the way everyone is taking care of us, I think that this home away from home for us is one of the best places to be in the middle of a crisis.

Much thanks to Aileen and Kane for their contributions.

JETAABC

13

Update from Smile Kids Japan

H

ello and Happy Holidays from Smile Kids Japan! This winter season has started off in a very charitable and eventful spirit!

In November, Fukui JET held its annual charity auction for Smile Kids Japan and raised nearly ¥300,000 for Japan’s orphanages. December so far has seen volunteers make festive visits to orphanages in Fukui and Tokushima, just to list a few. We are also happy to report that Smile Kids Japan volunteers have made their first visit to the Inamien Kids Land children’s home in Kaga, Ishikawa Prefecture this month. The JET Alumni Association of Southern California also showed its support this month by promoting online donations to the Tohoku Kids’ Project as well as holding a raffle on the behalf of Smile Kids Japan during its annual Bon Enkai.

Since the start of this JET year, Smile Kids Japan has caught the attention of many, thanks to the continuous support we receive from JETs and JET alumni alike. Thanks to such support, our message and volunteer base are spreading at such a rapid pace that we keep catching the attention of Japan media sources such as the Mainichi Shimbun and, more locally, Fukui’s own URALA magazine. Balancing such media attention along with volunteer management and our regular teaching jobs is tricky for us at our small organisation but we are enjoying the challenge!

In other good news, the Tohoku Kids’ Project is still going strong.

Living Dreams, our partner NPO in Tokyo, has been regularly organising events, financial supporters, fundraisers and workshops for the orphanages in Tohoku since the beginning of the project in March.

We here at Smile Kids Japan are continuing to support the project through managing the volunteer base in Tohoku and keeping track of the needs of every orphanage in Tohoku through those volunteers.

Through all of our work so far, we have realised that not only are we happy to bring smiles to children across Japan, all of us at Smile Kids Japan are glad to see members of the JET and overall Japanese community come together as they volunteer their time to make life better for children across the nation. There are so many good things that result from the work we all put into Smile Kids Japan. We hope our organisation continues to draw strong support so that it can continue to help children long into the future.

Meredith Smith Smile Kids Japan PR and Media Coordinator Anna Ho Smile Kids Japan Volunteer Coordinator Smile Kids Japan | www.smilekidsjapan.org Living Dreams | www.livingdreams.jp

14

JETAABC

Tohoku, via Google Street View text by

Thomas Law

A

s part of a digital archiving project at Google, its Street View team has recorded 360-degree images of more than 44000km of roads throughout the Japanese Tohoku region. For those who used to live in the affected regions, or for the simply curious, the high-resolution imagery is truly an eyeopener. Simply access Google Maps at http:// maps.google.com and direct your query towards the Tohoku region to view these images.

Alternatively, Google has also set up a website called “Memories for the Future,” at www.miraikioku.com/streetview/en/ that provides Street View imagery of the region before and after the March 2011 disaster.

Photo: Google

Ceramics Class at HiDé Ceramic Works text and photos by

Thomas Law

W

e’ve just finished another (seemingly) yearly ceramics class here at JETAABC! More than 10 JET alumni and their friends came to HiDé Ceramic Works in late-October to try their hand at making their own ceramic items. Finished products included plates, cups, ramen bowls, beer mugs, and other containers that probably started as a bowl, but ended up turning into a cup… And then flattened into a dish. Since the process for making ceramics requires a few weeks, participants finalized the shape of their work, wrote down their choice of glaze colour, and the items were completed by instructor Hide Ebina, just in time for Christmas.

Thank you to Hide-san for setting aside a special timeslot in his schedule to host a class at his studio just for JETAABC.

JETAABC

15

Career Advice in 5 Minutes or Less text by

Karly Pinch Career and Personal Development Coordinator

I’m considering a career change — what should I do?

M

aking a career change can be a daunting thing to do.

Maybe you’ve always been an ESL teacher, but what you really want to do is run a non-profit organization, or do financial auditing. But you can’t really just start applying for jobs you’re interested in. When considering a career jump, it’s best to start 6 or more months in advance, and lay the groundwork.

Research It seems obvious, but before you make any decisions, do your research. You can start online, looking for descriptions or postings of the kinds of jobs you’re interested in. Find out who the top companies are in the field, what kind of qualifications they are looking for, who does the hiring, and where would a good starting point be. If you’re interested in a certain industry, but don’t know what exactly you want to do within it, some initial research can give you an idea of the types of jobs there are.

Websites like careercruising.com are a great resource for professions (contact me if you want an access password).

Career Cruising is a Canadian site, so you know the information is relevant.

On this site, start with a profession you know (i.e. teacher). It will show you what kind of education is 16

required, what a typical career path looks like, and the salary range. But what is really interesting about this site is when you look at the “Related Careers.” This part can help you discover similar career paths that you may have never thought of before, like trainer or facilitator. Exploring this site can help you generate ideas. The “Other Resources” tab can help you find industry associations or groups where professionals in this field come together.

Which leads us into the next, and much more important, stage of research.

Talk to people You can do all the research you want, but what’s really going to help you make decisions is actually talking to people who work in the field. Are you wondering if you’d be better off going to grad school, or getting experience?

Wondering what kinds of skills are actually needed in this job? Curious as to what the day-to-day experience is? All of these are questions that can only truly be answered by someone currently working in the field. It is better to have the insight of the field before you rush back to school or start applying for hundreds of jobs.

Set up an informational interview with someone doing the kind of job you’re JETAABC

interested in. If you have your own connection (someone you know, or can be introduced through someone you know), start with them. LinkedIn can be a good resource for finding people this way. If not, try contacting an industry or professional association (i.e. Association of Fundraising Professionals).They will generally know who among their members likes to do informational interviews, or who would be a good contact person. If both of those options don’t pan out, just go for the cold email. Find the name of someone you’d like to talk to (use the company website, or call the reception), and send them an email.

When requesting an info interview, remember to be respectful of the fact that you’re asking for the person’s time. Offer to take them out for coffee, and emphasize that you are looking for information, not asking for a job.

More than one person I’ve talked to has refused to do an info interview because the person requesting was too pushy and demanding.

At the end of the interview, ask the person if they have 1 or 2 other contacts that they can refer you to. This way, you’ll grow your network and get several points of view.

Get the skills When you’re making a career transition, you need to accept that there may be certain new skills, education or experience that will be required, especially if you want a position higher than entry-level. During your info interviews, find out where your skills gaps are, then do whatever you need to do to get those skills, through courses, volunteering, or other kinds of community involvement.

Consider carefully your transferrable skills. Management, computer skills, communication, and client services are all transferrable across many

disciplines. Your ability to teach ESL to adults might translate well into running career skills workshops (case in point: me). Identify your transferrable skills, and then make it really obvious to the employer how your skills in a different industry not only make you good for the job, but might actually give you a competitive advantage (i.e. my work teaching ESL helped me to design workshops that appealed to an intercultural audience).

Industry events, conferences, volunteering, info interviews, and online tools (LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook) are all great ways to network in your chosen field. While not all of us are stellar networkers, if this is something you really want to do, then it’s time to force yourself out of your comfort zone and make some new friends. Join a sports team, go to some JETAABC or Mokuyokai events, you never know where you might meet the right network contact.

Network, Network, Network, and Apply

When making a career change, sometimes you have to be prepared to start at a lower position than what you did before. Remind yourself why it is you want to make the change, and where you hope to be in 5–10 years. It can be scary to look for work when you’ve been comfortably in a job for several years, but it can also be very exciting to think you’re on a path more suited to your goals and interests.

Notice the balance here. 80% of jobs are filled through personal contacts and referrals, which means the percentage of time you spend networking should be equally proportional. Of course, have a superstar resume and cover letter when you submit your applications. But if there are 150 applicants for a job, the thing that’s going to clinch an interview is whether you’ve met anyone from that company that can vouch for you, or can at least make sure the hiring manager reads your whole application.

Have career questions or want to work on your resume?

Contact Karly at career@jetaabc.ca.

Ready JET Throw: Dodge, Duck, Dip, Dive & Dodge text by

Wanda Yee

W

ant to re-live your experiences as an elementary school ALT, or just enjoy throwing balls at people for kicks? If you answered “yes” to either of those questions, then we have some great news for you!

pm (*or 8:30 to 10:00 pm depending on our weekly rotation). If you can dodge, duck, dip, dive, dodge and throw, then fantastic! If not, do not worry as Patches O’Hoolihan once said, “If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball.”

We have a few positions open on our JET Alumni Dodgeball team, Ready JET Throw, and we are looking for a few fun individuals to join us on Thursday nights as we go head-tohead against various teams from the Vancouver Dodgeball League.

And with that in mind, if you are interested in joining our team and can commit a few hours of your time on Thursday evenings, contact our team captain, Ann at president@jetaabc.ca.

The spring season starts February 2nd and goes until May 10th, 2012. We play at various elementary/secondary schools in Vancouver from 7:00 to 8:30

See you on the dodgeball court!

Photo: Light Work Studio (Creative Commons/Flickr)

JETAABC

17

Upcoming Events jan

14

Mokuyokai Hollyburn Mountain Snowshoeing Trip

jan

Mokuyokai is kicking off the 2012 Outdoor Program with our annual trek up Hollyburn Mountain at Cypress Mountain. Snowcovered trees, stunning alpine views and the slide down are some of the reasons to experience this winter wonderland! We’ll follow a well-used back country route that has many steep sections. If you can do the Squamish Chief or the Grouse Grind, you can do this trail. You will need to bring your own showshoes or rent them.

When: Saturday, January 14th. 8:30am– 3pm (approximately 4–5 hours of snowshoeing) Where: Hollyburn Mountain, Cypress Provincial Park Meetup Location: 1) Vancouver Tourism Info Center at 8:30am (300 Burrard Street).

2) White Spot parking lot at Park Royale Shopping Centre at 8:50am

14– mar 10

Mokuyokai Fees: Members: None JET Alumni Association: $5 Non-Members: $10

feb

18

The exhibition will also include anecdotal accounts of JETs and JET alumni who were affected direcly or indirectly with the disaster. Admission is free and the exhibit is open during Nikkei Centre’s opening hours.

Changing Tides Silent Auction Gala A silent auction night where 10 photographs taken by JET alumni based in the Tohoku region will be sold via silent auction. Other donated items from various businesses are also on auction. Guests are invited to come join the silent auction and enjoy the live musical performances and refreshments.

All proceeds donated to Peace Boat and Living Dreams, two NGOs that are directly involved in Tohoku reconstruction efforts. $10 entry tickets are avaiable at tickets@ jetaabc.ca or at the door.

For details, please see p.6 — 7 or visit www. jetaabc.ca/changing-tides

jetaabc dodgeball team

ready jet throw

See http://mokuyokai.blogspot.com/2012/01/ snowshoeing-up-hollyburn-mtn-at-cypress. html for more details

18

JETAABC presents an exhibition of photographs taken by JET alumni based in the Tohoku region as well as photographers covering disaster relief efforts with the Peace Boat organization.

For details please see p.6 – 7.

RSVP to Michael Marland (hike@mokuyokai. bc.ca) by Wednesday, January 11th Please indicate: 1) Are you a Mokuyokai member or JETAA? 2) Can you drive or do you need a lift?

3) Do you want to meet at the Vancouver Tourism Centre or at Park Royale?

4) Your phone number 5) Emergency contact: name and phone number

Changing Tides Photo Exhibition

JETAABC

The season starts on Feb 2, 2012 and will finish around the end of April. All games are on Thursday nights at either 7pm or 8:30pm at various elementary/ high schools in Vancouver. So, if you’re willing to duck, dive, dodge, and throw, then please contact Ann at president@jetaabc.ca. Hurry, as there are only a few spots left!

Wrapping Up text by

Thomas Law

I

got the notice for the AGM in the mail around this time last year, and up till then, the only interaction with JETAABC I had was helping out at the Vancouver JET Pre-departure Orientation (I was the PowerPoint page-turner…), and just on a whim I decided to go to the AGM. That’s pretty much how I joined the Board of Directors as the Newsletter Coordinator. I managed to help out with the re-branding of the group and I may have changed the newsletter a bit. The March 2011 disaster in Japan dramatically changed our entire group’s plans. We hosted the 5toSurvive fundraiser, many of our usual events turned into fundraisers as well, and in a week we are hosting one of our biggest events with the Changing Tides photo exhibition and silent auction.

Our cover photo was taken by Greg Henkel, a JET alumni from Miyama in Gifu. This picture will be on display at the Changing Tides photo exhibit at the Nikkei Centre. Those interested in a large print can bid for this photo at the silent auction on Feb 18 (see p.6 for details).

Greg’s photo and video work can be found on lifeinrectangles.com

a l i s o n dac i a b r ow n

meredith smith

aileen o’brien

megumi johns

anna ho

p e ac e b oat

greg henkel

w a n da y e e

kane mercer

j e ta a b c b oa r d

None of this can happen without a dedicated Board who did some tremendous work — all volunteer work — that they can be proud of. Your participation, on the Board or as a member, can be as much or as little as your time can afford, but every little bit helps.

This issue ends our current year’s cycle of newsletters. I hope you enjoyed the new format.

Come swing by the AGM this Jan 27 (see p.4).

Say hello!

k a r ly p i n c h

newsletter designed c o m p i l e d by

+

t ho m as l aw

stay in touch! www.jetaabc.ca

Thank you. @jetaabc

www.facebook.com/jetaabc

j eta a b c newsletter january JETAABC

2 012 19