Hello everyone, I am Zhang Zhizhen, a research student of our empowerment
lab. It is been a pleasure to record our visiting trip on day care center for
Chinese-speaking elderly, which is named as Yixiao Yuan. The President Sasaki
of Yixiao Yuan greeted us warmly and expressed his welcome when we arrived
there. We really appreciate President Sasaki for providing us with a valuable
opportunity to learn.
And also thanks to the generous invitation of Li Shuanghong-san, she is one
of our lab members right now while also devotes herself to help the elderly in
Yixiao Yuan, we got this precious opportunity to visit this special day care
center located in Tokyo.
The elderly people in the day care center belong to the group with better
health status under the classification of long-term care certification in Japan.
The day care center Yixiao Yuan offers day care service for the elderly 6 days
a week, including pick-up-and-drop-off from nearby neighborhoods, daily meals
and snacks, and help with toileting and bathing. The special point is that almost
all staffs and elderly who use its service are Chinese speakers using Chinese as
their first language, even though the facility Yixiao Yuan is located in Tokyo.
Among the elderly, there are war orphans who are unable to find their cultural
affiliation due to historical problems, as well as Chinese elderly who once studied
abroad, worked overseas, or immigrated to Japan with family.
A total of 11 members of our lab participated in this visit together with Anme-sensei,
8 of us are also Chinese-speakers. We played ball game and sang songs with the
elderly as afternoon activity at the day care center. This visiting also gives us a
realistic picture of how the long-term care system works in a special community
day care centers. Staffs provide family-like caring and companionship to the elderly
during the day time and the elderly also call each other as brothers and sisters, since
Chinese people always value family-style emotional connection. Looking forward to
having more opportunities to learn and understand the operation of the long-term
care system in practice.
Hello everyone. I am Gao Haotian, a research student of empowerment lab.
It is my honor to record this event.
The theme of today’s café is Tips for Community Empowerment at the Toy
Museum as a Regional Center. We were fortunate to invite the director of Tokyo
Toy Museum— Chihiro Tada sensei as our presenter. And thanks to Watanabe
sensei who host this café.
Firstly, Tada sensei began by explaining Kazaguruma's sculpture and introduced
the concept of the wind of disease-free life. The wind of disease-free life is a
weapon to defend yourself. So please raise the wind by yourselves and protect
you from diseases.
Then, Tada sensei explained the embodiment of the wind of disease-free life in
traditional Japanese toys. And he explained how the concept of the wind and
the similar things was useful to patients in the old days when medicine and
health concepts were not developed.
After that he talked about a nursing home that had many kinds of toys. That
nursing home became a favorite place for local babies and parents. That was
a kind of intergenerational exchange. The nursing home and the toy museum
became a platform for intergenerational exchange.
In Tada sensei’s opinion, it is important that the toy museum would be directly
linked to the development of the city. To achieve this goal, there are two virtuous
cycles needed. The first one is the virtuous cycle of intergenerational exchange.
And the second one is the virtuous cycle of play with art. Residents can learn from
these two cycles. Above these, this is the community empowerment in Tada sensei’s
mind.
At last, Tada sensei gave us a story about education with woods. How to make
this be a virtuous cycle is also a kind of community empowerment.
What I learned from today’s café is that the essence of empowerment is to
promote a virtuous cycle of things. Health promotion requires not only health
promotion, but also the involvement of the entire community environment.
As public health professionals, we need to approach health promotion not only
from the traditional medical and health fields. We also need to change our thinking
to include the things that our target populations are exposed to in their daily lives.
Thanks for everyone who prepared and participated in the café. We are looking
forward to the next café.
Hi, everyone. I’m Zhao Ruifeng, the first-year doctoral program student in
empowerment lab. We visited the Tobishima village on 15th-16th, February.
Please allow me to record this visit to Tobishima village for you.
On the morning of the 15th, a group of us led by Anme sensei arrived at
Tobishima village. There, we met the local residents and government staff
and were warmly received by them. Afterwards, we had a workshop with
the local volunteers, during which we had a friendly conversation, and I was
touched by the importance of health and the positive attitude of the villagers
towards life. In the afternoon, we went to the home of Mr. Hattori, the former
head of the village, to visit his wife and offer incense at a Buddhist altar for
Mr. Hattori, who had passed away, we all felt very sad about this. In the evening,
we had a workshop with sports volunteers after dinner. The volunteers had a
heated discussion about the Empowerment Picture Book, and we learned a lot
from Anme sensei's explanation.
On the 16th, we attended the research meeting with practitioners for the 2023
survey together in the morning. And then, Zhang san attended a Health Conference.
In the afternoon of this day, we ended the Tobishima visit and said goodbye to
everyone before the return.
Tobishima village is a beautiful environment where people are leading healthy lives
and have an optimistic outlook on the future. I was deeply moved by them and
determined to make their dream of health come true for more people in the future
through my research. We all enjoyed this visit and look forward to the next one!
Hello, everyone! I am Zhu Zhu, a third-year PhD student in Empowerment Science
Lab. We (I and Li Xiang, a second-year PhD student in our lab) are very honored to
get the great precious opportunity to attend the 33th National night childcare
conference and community seminar in Kitakyushu with Anme sensei from 11th Feb
to 12th Feb.
The conference was held annually by the national night childcare alliance for the
national childcare professionals to share one-year valuable experience and empower
each other. Nearly 200 people participated in the two-day conference this year
and the topic was “childcare for the future, night childcare effects—the new start
and sustainable childcare—“.
In the first day, we learned a lot about the Japanese national childcare system and
the child social welfare practice in Kitakyushu from two keynote addresses. In the
community seminar, we communicated with the childcare teachers freely, frow which
we heard a lot of wonderful childcare cases in their daily childcare works.
In the second day, we attended the second branch venue directed by Anme sensei,
the title of which was “Put child at the center, realizing the flexible childcare”.
Anme sensei firstly showed our empowerment elf named “Amely”, pointed the
empowerment tips, and gave our empowerment picture book for the participants as
a present. Then Eguchi sensei sensei from Doronko Nursery in Fukuoka shared their
flexible childcare practice experience, including the one-day childcare process,
Montessori activities, cooperations with families, and so on. In the group workshop,
all participants were divided into 13 groups on site and 2 groups online to finish
drawing a bouquet, blooming with excellent childcare practice points. All the
participants were empowered by the group report, the points of which were included
but not limited to child-centered daily life, family-oriented support, secure environment,
global perspective and diversity of child, family, childcare, and support.
We have a deeper understanding of excellent practice in Japanese childcare through
the precious opportunity. Best thanks to Sakai sensei, Kido sensei, Miyazaki sensei,
and all the professionals and staffs together prepared for such wonderful conference.
We will try our best to spread Japanese precious childcare experience to the world to
empower children and their families. See you in the next National night childcare
conference in Tokyo!
(We took photos in front of the platform of the conference with Anme sensei, Sakai sensei,
and Miyazaki sensei)
(One of the works in the group workshop named “The bouquet of Empowerment destiny”)
Hello, everyone! I am Li Xiang, a second-year PhD student in Empowerment Science Lab.
We got a precious opportunity to have the childcare practice in Doronko Nursery in
Fukuoka under the professional guidance of Kido-sensei from 8th Feb to 10th Feb.
Firstly, Kido-sensei kindly introduced the overview of Doronko Nursery and showed
us around. We are so impressed that the whole nursery is like a beautiful garden which
is a precious treasure for children. Then, we are assigned to visit the classes to learn
how to do the childcare practices in the next days. During this practice, we got a lot of
practical knowledge such as how to organize the eating, sleeping, sports, daily activities
and rhythm for children and etc, especially how to apply the Montessori education in
childcare. Besides, we also deeply learned the childcare system and organization.
Every childcare professional’s enthusiasm and passion for the childcare and every happy
smile from the children are the best gifts for our research life. We are so moved by the
nursery’s great efforts which aimed to support the self-actualization of physical, mental,
economic, social, and culture development for children and their caregivers and finally
realize the family well-being
We really appreciate that we can get such valuable opportunity to have practice in
Doronko Nursery in Fukuoka. Best thanks to Kido sensei, also to all the childcare
professionals and children in Doronko Nursery.
This practice is valuable experience for our research life. We believe that we can use
learned knowledge to empower children all over the world. We also wish that Doronko
Nursery can get more success in the future!
(We took photos with Kido-sensei in front of the gate)
