Staff Interview: Ryo ONOYAMA (Afghanistan Project)

[Original by Haruka SHIMIZU, 2015 Public Relations Intern (March 24, 2015); Translated by K. Adachi/R. Florea] Hello, my name is Haruka Shimizu. I am a PR intern for JVC. Because of the security situation in Afghanistan, Japanese staff cannot reside or go on a business trip there. Mr. Onoyama, who is in charge of the Afghanistan project, keenly continues his support from Tokyo under such circumstances. Where do his strong will and passion come from? I am also going to ask about his nice beard in this interview.

Read more

Staff Interview: Sumiko TERANISHI (Korean Project*)

[Original by Haruka SHIMIZU, 2015 Public Relations Intern (March 23, 2016); Translated by K. Adachi/R. Florea] [*Ms. Teranishi recently moved to AYUS, another NGO working for international cooperation (http://ngo-ayus.jp).] Hello, my name is Haruka Shimizu. I am a PR intern for JVC. In today’s staff interview, we have Ms. Teranishi who is described as a “Caretaker of JVC” by Ms. Namiki who is in charge of the Palestine project. Ms. Teranishi is not only in charge of the Korean project, but also in charge of taking care of interns every day. She is an unsung hero. She seldom speaks about herself because she is shy. Other staffs don’t know much…

Read more

Staff Interview: Mariko OMURA (Public Relations*)

[Original by Yuka WATANABE, 2015 Public Relations Intern (February 3, 2016); Translated by H. Sugishita/R. Florea] [*She is now in charge of the Cambodia Project and stays at Siem Reap from December 2017.] Hello, everyone. I’m a Public Relations intern, Watanabe. As the first interview in 2016, I interview Ms. Mariko Omura. She has been with JVC for two years and works in the Public Relations Division. I’m so excited for this interview!

Read more

Staff Interview: Mai NAMIKI (Palestine Project*)

[Original by Yuka WATANABE, 2015 Public Relations Intern (March 15, 2016); Translated by J. Maruyama/R. Florea] [*Ms. Namiki is currently in charge of the Public Relations and Fundraising as of April 2019.] Hello everyone, I am the Public Relations intern Watanabe. Today, I will be interviewing Ms. Namiki, who is currently in charge of the Palestine Project. She has been dedicated to the Middle East since her university days. I wonder what kind of stories she has to tell, so I look forward to hearing it!!

Read more

Staff Interview: Reiko KOBAYASHI (Sudan Project)

[Original by Haruka SHIMIZU, 2015 Public Relations Intern (February 16, 2016); Translated by M. Kanai/R. Florea] Hello everyone! My name is Haruka SHIMIZU, Public Relations Intern for JVC. This is already the 10th installment of staff interview marking the halfway of the series. Today, I would like to introduce Ms. Reiko Kobayashi who is in charge of the Sudan Project since July, 2015. Her slim figure and polite manners are quite impressive. On the other hand, she was often observed by her colleagues making a joke with a straight face or tying her hair with a bulldog clip… I am curious to know what kind of person she is. I…

Read more

Staff Interview: Tomoko ISHIKAWA (Concert Project)

[Original by Haruka SHIMIZU, 2015 Public Relations Intern (December 11, 2015); Translated by Y. Nakamura/R. Florea] Hello everyone, I am the public relations intern Haruka Shimizu. In our sixth installment of staff interviews, we have Ms. Tomoko Ishikawa. When she was a student, she went to the JVC’s Concert for International Cooperation. Later on, it led her to her current task in charge of the Secretariat for the Concert Project. This concert contributes its profit to JVC’s activities. Ms. Ishikawa, in charge of this great event, is a mother of two children. I would like to find out about her experiences in student days, family life and organizing concerts!

Read more

Staff Interview: Masato HIRANO (Laos Project)

[Original by Yuka WATANABE, 2015 Public Relations Intern (February 15, 2016); Translated by H. Velnom/R. Florea] Hello everyone, I am the public relations intern Yuka Watanabe. Here is the blog article number 9! This time, I will be interviewing Masato Hirano who spent three and a half years in Laos since 2008, and worked for three years in the Tokyo office. He is now working again in Laos since November 2015. We will deliver a picture of the interview we took just before the appointment.

Read more

Staff Interview: Miki IKEDA (Accountant & Iraq Project)

[Original by Haruka SHIMIZU, 2015 Public Relations Intern (December 3, 2015); Translated by K. Takemura/S. Thapa] Hello, my name is Haruka Shimizu. I am a PR intern for JVC. In our fifth installment of staff interviews, we have Mr. Miki Ikeda, in charge of accounting and our Iraq project. It is important for NGOs to manage money rigorously as in companies, since many supporters donate the money. Why does he take part in the Iraq project at the same time? Let’s ask him and find out. He is a typical “Kansai-jin”, a person who grew up in the Kansai area (near Osaka) and speaks this dialect exclusively. I wish I…

Read more

Staff Interview: Takahiko HASHIMOTO (Calendar Project)

[Original by Haruka SHIMIZU, 2015 Public Relations Intern (March 14, 2016); Translated by S. Thapa/Y. Nakamura/A. Guermont] Hello everyone, I am the public relations intern Haruka Shimuzu. Today, I will be interviewing Mr. Takahiko Hashimoto who was previously intern in the Palestine Project and is currently in charge of the JVC Calendar production*. Being a soccer star in his teens, travelling abroad the world in his twenty’s and a nursery school teacher in his thirties, the well versed and experienced Hashimoto san aims to “connect nursery school teaching with international cooperation”. I wonder what kind of stories he has to tell, so I can’t wait to hear them! [*He is…

Read more

Staff Interview: Junya HOSONO (Deputy General Manager)

[Original by Yuka WATANABE, 2015 Public Relations Intern (November 18, 2015); Translated by S. Thapa/Y. Nakamura] Hello everyone, I am the public relations intern Yuka Watanabe. In our third installment of staff interviews, we have Mr. Junya Hosono, Deputy General Manager. Mr. Hosono is in charge of various range of things at the office, including general affairs and labor. To be honest, Mr. Hosono is a little bit unusual in an NGO setting. He is a Systems Engineer (SE), a ‘techie’. How did a systems engineer get into the path of international cooperation? Let’s ask and find out. What led you to participate in the field of international cooperation? Initially,…

Read more