the community as a whole. After speaking with many residents, it became clear that one of the main goals of the reconstruction process was to create opportunity for the younger generation. This sense of community and profound level of mutual respect have made the Japanese people incredibly resilient following this devastating experience, which would be difficult to replicate in other countries. Our translator, Mari, remarked that Japan’s large population and small living areas have forced the Japanese people to interact harmoniously to share spaces and resources. These shared, community values are a contrast to the individualism that is valued in Western societies. These lessons from Japan can be applied to community development and reconstruction in the United States and I would encourage Luskin students to participate in the Japan trip in future years.
By: Kevin Medina I was fortunate enough to participate in the 2015 UCLA Luskin Japan Trip. I came to Japan a few days prior to the official start date of the tour with 3 classmates. The first apparent cultural difference was individual’s willingness to help travelers. Locals approached us within seconds when our perplexed faces suggested we had no idea what we were doing when looking at the metro station map written completely in Japanese. This type of hospitality was frequent and seems to be embedded in Japanese culture. Once we got our bearings, the next thing that stood out to me was the efficiency of the transit system. It seemed that everywhere we wanted to get to in Tokyo was reachable via no more than a 10-15 minute commute via public transportation. After tackling the city by ourselves for a few days, we then met up with the main group and began our journey. I was on the Reconstruction track, and traveled to areas in Tohoku to learn more about reconstruction efforts since the 2011 Tsunami and Earthquake. We visited local government and multiple businesses and organizations to get a first hand look at the reconstruction progress at multiple levels. Thanks to our trip organizers, we had access to organizations and officials that we would not have had access to otherwise. An additional asset was the multidisciplinary composition of our team. The Reconstruction group had individuals from all 3 departments of the Luskin School. Bringing all 3 departments together enriched our experience by allowing us to experience the multiple perspectives our classmates took on the same issue. In addition to the educational component of our trip, we had the pleasure of trying local cuisine, staying at a farmhouse (with an alpaca!), relaxing in an onsen, try-
ing Zen sitting, and seeing numerous cherry blossoms in bloom. Overall, this trip was a huge success. The Japan trip allowed me to meet many individuals from Japan who share common professional interests. I met with many incoming Japanese MPP students, MPP alumni, and other professionals that I am now fortunate enough to be connected with. I return to Luskin recharged and ready to tackle Spring Quarter. I highly recommend this trip to all interested Luskin students. By: Victor Mendez Japan was the very first Asian country I have ever visited in my life. I had a great experience learning the culture, reconstruction efforts, and different cities. I learned a lot in just one week however, that is not to say I learned everything I needed to know. The in depth meetings with professionals, students, and government officials provided an engaging environment to exchange ideas. By having these meetings on a daily basis, I understood how important it was to talk with communities and listen to their many concerns. However, what stood out the most on the trip were the people of Japan. Their hospitality and respectfulness to others made me feel welcomed and comfortable throughout the trip. In addition, their knowledge and experience of the tsunami and nuclear disaster was compelling. There were a lot of mix feelings of how the national government handled evacuations and decontamination efforts. But the people that I talked to seemed very optimistic about the national government’s efforts of addressing future natural disasters. First of all, Japanese culture was a humbling experience. I experienced Japanese etiquette before stepping onto the plane at LAX when we were boarding the plane. The flight attendants and staff bowed before, during, and after the flight to everyone. This custom was practiced everywhere we visited. I noticed that there were different types of bowing: informal, formal, and very formal. The very formal bowing occurred when interacting with government officials. The formal bowing was witnessed between professionals and informal bowing occurred almost everywhere. On the other hand, I learned that the reconstruction efforts have made great progress. Within a year or two, municipalities located outside of Fukushima prefecture will lift their evacuation efforts. In addition, the residential areas that got affected by the tsunami are being pushed further back and higher from the coast. Mountains are being flattened in order to create neighborhoods in Onagawa. Surprisingly, Onagawa’s power station managed to avoid the disaster. The power station was built on higher ground and had a more efficient emergency response than Fukushima’s power plant. Some parts of Los Angeles are also located on the coast and the city can learn from Japan’s efforts by developing power plants and residential structures on higher ground and further away from the coast. This will cause less damage and savage thousands of lives if a large tsunami were to hit the coast. However, because residential development already exists by the coast, it would be a very big political issue if the city decides to use eminent domain. Coastal land is prime real estate property for developers and Los Angeles is in a housing shortage. Therefore, if the city plans to limit development by the coast they will have a lot of issues with homeowners and developers with big pockets. 17