Japanese and Ukrainian youth shared experiences through a photo exhibition and talk, promoting cultural exchange and understanding.

Last Updated (Friday, 12 January 2024 16:52)

I am Mizuki Sakachi from the Yokohama YMCA and I am also a member of the Change Agent cohort 5.0 from Japan. I got involved in the YMCA when I was a university student and I have been working in the Yokohama YMCA for about 8 years now. This time I got the opportunity to work with Ukrainian youth refugees so I would like to share my experience.

We held a photo exhibition and talk event "We love Yokohama as well as my hometown" on November 11, 2023. This event is a collaborative project among Yokohama City, Yokohama International Friendship Association, Yokohama City University, and Yokohama YMCA, aimed to facilitate friendship between youths from Ukraine and local Yokohama youths, encouraging them to explore each other's positive aspects. This collaborative project was started because Ms. Soheila, the president of the world YMCA visited Yokohama in June and met the mayor of Yokohama city. During her Courtesy call to Yokohama she emphasized Youth empowerment. So we decided to start this project. My role in this project was as the program coordinator, as a youth staff member of the YMCA. I planned the meeting, and an in-person gathering, and created the webpage for this event, designed the poster and invitation format, and translated the subtitles of Ukrainian youths' speech, presentation and interview video. I was also a facilitator of each gathering and event. I learned a lot from this project and this was a great opportunity for me to think about “Just world” and “Youth empowerment”.

The preparation period for this event was approximately two months. Initially, a kickoff meeting was held on September 9th at Yokohama Central YMCA, where youths met face-to-face and online to discuss their interests and preferences.

Subsequently, on October 8th, a photo session took place. Ukrainian and Yokohama youths were divided into small groups and explored different districts of Yokohama. Before the exploration, a guest speaker session was conducted at the Yokohama Central YMCA. Ms. Katsuta, a member of the Yokohama YMCA English School, shared her experiences working as an elementary school teacher in Yokohama and explained her experiences during the East Japan Great Earthquake. Following that, Mr. Mishima from Yokohama City spoke about the history, development, and current initiatives in Yokohama. Afterwards, 16 youth participants were given disposable cameras and explored different places in Yokohama city.

On October 21st, an online meeting was held where volunteer members introduced their hometowns. Following the meeting, our members were requested to prepare photos and accompanying texts to introduce their hometowns at the photo exhibition.

On October 27th and 30th, Kateryna, a Ukrainian staff member at Yokohama YMCA, conducted interviews with Ukrainian youths. The interviews were conducted at Yokohama Park, Yokohama Central YMCA, and also online. Liliia who is also an Ukrainian staff member edited the video and translated it into English.

On November 1st, a press release for the event was issued by Yokohama City. We started off the PR through SNS. And the poster illustration used for publicity was created by a student member of Yokohama City University.

The exhibition at the venue included photos of Odessa, Ukraine since Odessa is a sister town with Yokohama city. And posters with photos and explanations of Ukrainian youth's hometowns followed, Yokohama youth's hometowns, and instant camera photos from the exploration of Yokohama.

Visitors engaged in lively conversations with youths, asking questions about their hometowns in a friendly atmosphere. Following that, Kateryna and Liliia from Ukraine delivered speeches in Ukrainian, sharing their experiences of coming to Japan and living in Yokohama, and discussing their future plans. Afterwards, we watched the interview video of Ukrainian youths together.

After the speech session, we had a small gathering involving tasting Ukrainian bread, Piroshki. This provided an excellent opportunity for youths to build friendships. 

In conclusion, I had never talked with a Ukrainian before, and I hadn't really thought about what kind of country Ukraine is, what language they speak, or what kind of people live there. Being in Japan, it's easy to be insensitive to what's happening in Ukraine. However, making friends from Ukraine has made me feel more connected to the situation. Yet, I  communicate with Ukrainian youths in English, it's a second or third language for both of us. I am not sure how much we truly grasp each other's intentions. Through this project, I got to know their hometowns. Their beautiful cities and nature which look totally different from Japan. It makes me want to visit Ukraine someday. I believe encounters and experiences during the critical time of their youth can change their entire life. I hope that the years they spend in Japan bring positive influences to their lives and peace will come to Ukraine very soon.

 By Mizuki Sakachi, Yokohama YMCA, Japan