Public invited to talk by Fukushima activist Yuko Nishiyama

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Aya H. Kimura, (808) 956-2706
Assistant Professor, Women's Studies
Lisa Shirota, (808) 956-7352
Communications Officer, College of Social Sciences
Posted: Feb 25, 2013

Yuko Nishiyama
Yuko Nishiyama
Yuko Nishiyama, famed Fukushima activist and survivor of the March 11, 2011 triple disaster in Japan, is coming to the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa campus to share her personal experience of the nuclear crisis and the challenges faced by evacuees. Nishiyama is the founder of Minna no Te (translation: Everyone’s Hands), a support group for evacuees. The group raises funds to assist in reuniting family members separated by the 2011 crisis.
 
Her lecture is part of “Japan After 3.11: Change and Hope from the Center of Triple Disaster,” a free public symposium commemorating the second anniversary of Japan’s March 11th earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis. The symposium will be held at UH Mānoa’s Center for Korean Studies Auditorium on Sunday, March 10, 2013 at 2 p.m.
 
“We are honored to host Ms. Nishiyama at this event. Her personal experience of the March 11, 2011 tragedy, as well as her subsequent work to raise global awareness of the ongoing crisis, provide a powerful perspective on Japan’s continuing efforts to rebuild the lives of its people and communities,” said Denise Konan, dean of the College of Social Sciences.
 
The symposium will also feature: The Honorable Mazie Hirono, who will address attendees via a video message; Japan-America Society of Hawai‘i’s Kelsey Soma Turek, who will address Rainbow for Japan Kids, a program that brings children from the affected regions of Japan to Hawai’i for respite; UH Mānoa MA candidate Tomoki Kimura, who will share a personal account of the event; Aya H. Kimura, assistant professor in the Women’s Studies Department at UH Mānoa, who will address the subject of food and agriculture in post 3/11 Japan; Dr. Mary McDonald, director for the Center for Japanese Studies at UH Mānoa, along with UHM PhD candidate Yoshitaka Miyake from the Geography Department, who will address the topic of change and hope in the tsunami zone.
 
The symposium is co-sponsored by UH Mānoa’s College of Social Sciences, Department of Religion, Department of Women’s Studies and Center for Japanese Studies, together with the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i and the Japan-America Society of Hawai‘i.
 
Doors to the public symposium will open at 1:30 p.m. for the 2 p.m. event. Seating is limited and will be on a first-come, first-served basis. On-campus parking is free.