Get Involved! JET Special Interest Groups

 

 

As children, the excitement of no school during summer quickly devolves into crippling boredom. To pass the time, siblings may wage war, disasters are delivered unto kitchens, and the backyards have never before seen such ruin. As ALTs, our outlets may change, but ennui is just as likely to set in. For activities outside of school hours, below you will find JET groups that would love your participation.

 

 

API AJET

What’s up, JETs! We are API AJET, a special interest group committed to providing peer support to the Asian Pacific Islander (API) community in Japan, as well as to raise local and global awareness about the diverse range of issues that face this community. The group is open to any and all who wish to share experiences and/or promote cross-cultural understanding through discussions, events, activities, etc.

 

In the past, our block leaders across Japan have held various events in their communities, such as movie screenings of Hafu, a charity event for the Philippines, as well as local meetups and hangouts. Every year, we plan a National Meetup for members to get together.

 

This year, we’re streamlining and revamping our social media presence, so stay tuned. In the meantime, get your discussion on and share your experiences with our weekly API AJET Q&A. Want to get those API frustrations onto paper? Write articles, poems, and other literature for our API AJET magazine!

 

You can find us online at http://api.ajet.net or on Facebook. Look for the API AJET group!

 

Book Club

Do you love reading books? Do you love talking about books with like-minded individuals? Then join the Hyogo book club! We meet every two months in the cafes of Kobe to talk about a book we voted on, enjoy some late lunch (or perhaps an early drink), and choose our next book. Info about meetings will go up as a Facebook event on the Hyogo AJET page.

Our first meeting is September 6th, where we’ll be discussing Margret Atwood’s Oryx and Crake. Please come!

 

¡Hola!JETs

Do you like Hispanic culture? Have Latino heritage? Want to learn more about Hispanic and Latino culture within Japan and attend Latino or Hispanic events? Well, then why not join ¡Hola!JETs! We’re a special interest group for those of Hispanic or Latino descent, or those who are interested in learning about Hispanic and Latino culture. Todos estan bienvenidos! Everyone is welcome!

 

We are here to build connections with the Latin community based in Japan and encourage others to learn more about our cultures. Latino and Hispanic culture is something that is not as visible or heard of in Japan and so by creating this group, we hope that many more people become interested. ¡Hola! JETs provides various ways in which the community can stay connected. You can visit our website www.holajets.ajet.net, where we post bi-monthly spotlight articles which focus on specific Latin American countries. They showcase everything from travel, to food, to music, and are written by fellow members. We also share recipes and where to find those much needed ingredients.

 

If you want to know about all the cool Hispanic and Latino cultural events happening in Japan, then you can check out our Facebook page. If you want to get involved, we’re only an email and a click away. Feel free to message us at holajets@ajet.net! Hope you see many of you at all the upcoming meetings throughout the year! We help bring the Fiesta to Japan!

 

Hyogo Science Coalition

The Hyogo Science Coalition is a group of educators, students, professionals, and community members who wish to promote scientific education and global understanding. We create and participate in events where people can learn about and discuss science while using English, such as the Hyogo E-Café where we invite guest speakers to present a topic at a coffee shop or other such venue, and then have a discussion afterwards. Future events may include a student poster competition and workshops. We are a very new organization, and are open to any ideas you may have. We’re looking for ALTs who can help facilitate discussions with non-native English speakers, and who can advertise to students and any others they think may have an interest. Currently, all of our events are based in the Kobe area, but we also may expand elsewhere in the future. For more information, please contact us by e-mail at HyogoScienceCoaltion@gmail.com or connect with us on Facebook by searching for “Hyogo Science Coalition.”

 

Jennifer Saunders

 

Hyogo Writers’ Group

Interested in writing and receiving friendly critique from other writers? Join the Hyogo Writers’ Group! There is a Google mailing list at https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/hyogo-writers where you can request membership.

 

JCF

If you are a Christian or are interested in Christianity, JCF is the place for you! We are a non-denominational, unaffiliated group of Christians, who strive to love God with all of our hearts, souls, minds, and strengths and to love our neighbors as ourselves. We have no membership requirements, or application process. Getting involved is as simple as giving us your email address, or joining one of our Facebook groups. From there, your level of involvement is entirely up to you. So what does JCF offer? Our goal is to get Christians connected with other Christians and with local churches. If you tell us where you live, we will probably be able to find a church that you can go to. At our retreats, which are our biggest events held twice a year, you can connect with other Christians from all over Japan.  We meet once in east Japan and once in west Japan (usually in Kobe) for a time of teaching, fellowship, worship, prayer, and encouragement. The last few years, we have sent missions teams to the Philippines to help with disaster relief. We will continue to have missions trips both inside and outside of Japan. We also offer various Skype opportunities, such as Bible Studies and Prayer Meetings. Do you have a different way that you want to serve God in Japan? Let us know about your ideas, and we can provide a community that will support you, pray for you, and serve with you. For more information you can check out our website www.jetchristianfellowship.com. You can join our Facebook group JET Christian Fellowship, or send us an email at jcfnatco@gmail.com.

 

Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying:

“Whom shall I send,

And who will go for Us?”

Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.”

(Isaiah 6:8)

 

Kobe JET Rock Climbing (& Friends)

Our main focus is hanging out at a rock climbing gym and bouldering there, but we’re more than happy to try other climbing activities! You can find us on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1528846997333330/?hc_location=ufi

 

Stonewall Japan!

Stonewall Japan is an English-speaking LGBT+ group in Japan. Stonewall Japan connects the LGBT+ international community, shares information and resources, and provides a safe space for members to find support. It does this by…

 

1. Organizing a variety of events around the country.
2. Sending monthly emails about LGBT+ related information to its members.
3. Continually adding to a large amount of LGBT+ related resources on our website.
4. Maintaining a private ‘Facebook’ group for peer support and interactions.

 

Anyone living in Japan, or soon to be for an extended period of time, can join! To become a member, all you have to do is join our Facebook group ‘Stonewall Japan’ and/or go to our website and join our mailing list. No membership fee!

 

Japan is divided into 6 geographic blocks, in order to better serve members on a local level. You can look on the website to find which block you are in and who the block leader is. Block leaders send out monthly block emails and organise events in the area.

 

Stonewall Japan communicates in English and is run by volunteers who are elected into the position of President, Vice President, Web Coordinator, and Block Leaders. We’re always looking for more volunteers!

 

Feel free to participate in the Facebook group discussions and join events. Many Stonewall members are JET participants, and there are many who are not, too. Whether you just want to keep up to date with the latest news in the LGBT+ movement, or want to help us organise events, find us on Facebook, Twitter or visit our website! If you have more questions, please email us at stonewallsig@ajet.net. We’re looking forward to hearing from you!

 

VegJET

Do you like cooking vegetarian and vegan food, but wonder how to do this in Japan? Do you want to contact other vegetarians and vegans who can offer insight into living the veggie life out here? Do you simply want to expand your knowledge of veggie food while getting to know some like minded people? If any of the above applies to you, then join our group, VegJET!

 

VegJET is an open, active community and a useful resource for vegan/vegetarian JETs living in Japan. (We also have non vegan/vegetarian group members, who are simply looking to reduce their intake of animal products and therefore are looking for advice.)

 

We share helpful information on veggie life in Japan, special events taking place around the country, recipe ideas, new vegan or vegetarians products we’ve found in local stores, and so much more.

 

If you’re a current or incoming JET wishing to maintain a compassionate and healthy lifestyle, then you should join VegJET!

 

Email: vegjet@ajet.net

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/151952321651902/

 

 

 

Compiled by Rackle Beaman and Brittany Teodorski