Let’s Establish a School for Children Who Have Otherwise Lost the Opportunity to Receive an Education Due to Conflict and Natural Disasters
Your Furusato Nozei (Hometown Tax) Can Help Establish a School for Children from Around the World Who are Unable to Receive an Education
The NPO, Peace Winds Japan, provides opportunities for children from Japan and around the world who are victims of natural disasters or war and are unable to go to school the opportunity to receive an education. First, beginning in 2018, we are providing children with scholarships that they do not have to repay to attend the summer school in Kamijima-cho as well as international schools in Japan. Moreover, in the future, we are planning to establish the Peace Winds Global Citizens School after 2020 in Kamijima-cho and possibly other locations, and will accept children from Japan and around the world, and attempt to develop them into becoming global citizens who can resolve regional social problems. At the same time, through this project, we hope to contribute to the rejuvenation of the local community by bringing in many people from other places in Japan and around the world to address Kamijima-cho’s problems with depopulation and an aging society.
Establishing, through an NGO, a New Type of International School That Will Develop the Human Resources Who Have the Ability to Improve Society
For more than twenty years since 1996, PWJ has assisted people who have been threatened by disasters, conflicts, and poverty. Beginning in 2017, PWJ is now taking on a new challenge, to provide educational support to children in Japan and around the world. We are planning to establish an international high school, tentatively to be called the Peace Winds Global Citizens School, with dormitories after 2020 in Kamijima-cho. Its goal will be to develop and educate people who will be able to help solve the world’s social problems. Employing a staff assembled from around the world and working under the direction of leaders in multiple fields, the children will learn the knowledge and skills necessary to become the next generation of global citizens. The curriculum will be based on real-world experience by educations in humanitarian assistance, community development, animal welfare, and many other practical areas. Furthermore, the children will be exposed to the beautiful nature surrounding the respective campuses and lifelong friendships through international exchange with their teachers, fellow students, and neighbors. These children from different backgrounds will come together to learn, live, and eat together sharing their different experiences and values, studying specialized subjects to develop gain the knowledge and skills to become global leaders themselves. We hope that when they graduate, they will become global global citizens and solving social issues around the world. The ultimate goal, in that sense, is for those who study and learn at the school, whose lives were once in danger, can now be empowered to help save the lives of others.
Scholarships Provided to Children Who Have Been Denied the Opportunity to Learn Due to Disasters and War
While the Peace Winds Global Citizens School is being established, scholarships, will begin to be provided to children to attend the summer school to be held in Kamijima-cho from 2018 or go to other international schools in Japan. Donations through the Furusato Nozei (Hometown Tax) will also go toward the construction of school buildings, the provision of supplies and teaching materials, and instructor salaries, etc. Upon the opening of the Global Citizen School, some of the children will receive scholarships to cover the costs of their education for three years. The scholarships will cover some or all of tuition, as well as room and board (maximum of 5 million yen/year/person). There are no nationality or regional restrictions for receiving scholarships.
Social Innovation Kamijima-cho-Style
In addition to operating the Toyoshima Guest House, a resort on Toyoshima Island, together with the NPO Setouchi Art Platform, PWJ also runs a gallery on the island displaying the work of the world famous German modern master artist, Gerhard Richter. Beginning in June 2017, PWJ has provided medical service using helicopters to the remote islands of Uoshima and Takaikamishima, both comprising Kamijima-cho. We believe these efforts to date that have already taken root and the new education initiatives will have a multiplier effect, bringing even more people to the town. By involving the local people more and more, it will lead to even further social innovation in the area. At the same time, the education project seeks to address some of the problems facing the community, including depopulation, a rapidly aging society, increasing employment and economic opportunities, and promoting the development of underutilized resources, by bringing people from around Japan and the world to the town.
