To gain insight into Japanese working environment and especially Non Profit Organizations, I took part in a four week internship at Groundwork Fukuoka (NPO). A more specific goal was to understand the concept of this one NPO by participating at all kinds of projects and assisting at the event management. Simultaneously, my Japanese skills should be improved.
My tasks in detail:
- At Joyo (cultural center against rural exodus and for the preservation of the environment) I took part in the preparation and realization of events to turn the place more attractive to people (e.g. baking bread, lantern festival, planting potatoes). I also prepared leaflets in English to interest foreigners of different language schools in the project.
- Concerning disabled persons, I did assist in weeding the herbal garden, which Groundwork Fukuoka laid out for the Fukuoka School for Blind Students. Furthermore the student took part in the preparation and realization of the Flower Joint Concert for Disabled People and was responsible for the evaluation (excel) afterwards.
- Regarding environmental protection, I assisted in the preparation (including the translation of the project outline from Japanese into English) of a trip to Nepal to clean a sacred river (Bagmati 2009 cleaning campaign).
- Every day work at the office included also writing manuals in English to assist later interns in the usage of special computer programs and other tasks.
I enjoyed the cooperation with very nice people and the working environment at Groundwork Fukuoka and learned a lot about (Japanese) NPO work. Taking part in the preparation and realization of very interesting projects and events helped me to improve my working experience especially concerning event management. Furthermore, I got inspired by the ideas and energy of the staff.
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