Kumamoto Earthquake Reconstruction Support Seminar Held

On Friday, November 17th, we held the
“With Kumamoto Superwoman Project: Women who rose from the earthquake disaster – Kumamoto Earthquake Reconstruction Support Seminar” at our company.

It has been about a year and a half since the Kumamoto earthquake. Although various forms of support have been provided, the local recovery in Kumamoto is still only half-way through.
In this context, this seminar invited three representatives from the Kumamoto Superwoman Project, a group of female entrepreneurs who stepped up to help the local area at the time of the earthquake, to talk about their journey to launching the recovery project.

Although it is brief, I would like to report on the contents of the seminar.

<Lecture>

■ “From building a network after the earthquake to business development”
by Sachiko Miyata, Representative of the Kumamoto Superwoman Project

They spoke carefully about their real experiences during the disaster, their living conditions afterwards, how they built a network to get work done, and the path they took to become an organization. I was deeply
moved by their story of forging ahead to achieve their goals despite facing various negative rumors.

■ “What ifs are always there ~ Prepare for the unexpected”
Special lecturer at the Smart Survivor Project, Toshiro Sato

…Mr. Sato, who was a teacher affected by the disaster, spoke about what kind of preparations are necessary and how important it is for organizations to act, focusing on what happened at Onagawa Elementary School during the Great East Japan Earthquake, and sharing his own story.
Some people were moved to tears by Mr. Sato’s lecture, which was filled with his thoughts and wishes.

<Panel discussion>

■ “How to act when faced with adversity – A woman’s perspective”
Speakers: Kumamoto Superwomen Miyata, Tagami, and Yamamoto
Facilitator: Noriko Ishizaka

…Three members of the Superwoman Project spoke about how their experiences of the disaster have changed their perspectives on work and life.
They said, “If it weren’t for the earthquake, we wouldn’t have met the members we have today,” and I was deeply moved by their efforts and their strength as people.

At the networking event following the lecture, there was lively communication between the attendees and the speakers, with many attendees saying, “We want to take action by doing what we can.”

The participation fee for this seminar will be used to support the recovery efforts following the Kumamoto earthquake.