Group to establish museum on Fukushima disaster

 March 29, 2015

Group looks to set up Fukushima disaster recovery museum

http://mainichi.jp/english/english/newsselect/news/20150329p2a00m0na005000c.html

FUKUSHIMA -- A group of young locals is looking to establish a museum here that could pass on lessons and memories from the Great East Japan Earthquake and Fukushima nuclear disaster.

As an initial step, the group has planned an event for people to interact with Fukushima Prefecture farmers on April 11. While regularly holding such events, the group intends to collect items for exhibition that will tell the stories of the disaster evacuees. They hope to put the items on permanent display at the museum.

The group was formed by Kenta Sato, 33, who evacuated from Iitate, Fukushima Prefecture, to the city of Fukushima, and six others, including university students. They got to know each other through Fukushima disaster-related nonprofit work.

The idea for a Fukushima museum came after Sato guided a tour of the disaster-hit areas and realized how difficult it was to convey the feelings of local residents to tour participants in the limited time available.

"I want to create a place where people can really learn about the current situation of Fukushima Prefecture," he says.

In addition to exhibits, the museum would have a "learn-by-doing" section. For people from outside Fukushima Prefecture, the museum could serve as a starting point for learning about the disaster areas, while for prefectural residents it could serve as a way to learn about the current state of the disaster areas' recovery.

At the April 11 event at the "Channel Square" facility in the city of Fukushima, a game thought up by 29-year-old Chiemi Kamada, who was born in Minamisoma, Fukushima Prefecture, and now lives in the prefecture city of Tamura, will be played. Called "One Bowl of Rice," the game involves the participants being handed cards with jobs, ages, and sexes written on them. The participants will role-play that person and give their thoughts about Fukushima Prefecture-grown rice. The game is aimed at making the participants imagine the feelings of people with a variety of viewpoints.

Kamada previously worked in Tokyo but returned to Fukushima Prefecture. While helping with the recovery efforts, she got to know a farmer who continued to grow good rice even after the disaster. She also met a mother who told her that even if Fukushima farmers meet the radiation standards for their crops, people may not buy them.

"In Japan, with its nuclear plants all over the country, anyone could end up in this kind of situation," she says.

It will not be easy for the group to set up the museum without financial assistance from the government or private sources. Sato is looking for wide-ranging support.

"I'd like to involve various people from inside and outside the prefecture, while thinking about how to stop the memories and lessons of the disaster from being lost, and what I can do as a Fukushima Prefecture resident," he said.