About Second Harvest Japan (2HJ)
Konbanwa ("good evening),
Today I'm going to tell a bit more about what I do as an intern with Second Harvest!
Second Harvest Japan (2HJ) is one of very few food banks in the country, so their work is incredibly important. They collect donations of food that is "damaged" and/or close to expiration from grocery stores around the greater Tokyo area. As I mentioned in my previous post, the organization mostly distributes these items for free to needy single-parent households, elderly people, students who are just beginning to live on their own, refugees*, and other needy populations.
I typically work in the pantry in Akihabara, helping to sort donations; package food for shipping to households around the greater Tokyo area; and distribute groceries to those who come to the pantry from nearby. On Thursdays, in addition to working in the pantry, I join staff and volunteers in the kitchen down the street to make obentou (lunch boxes) for distribution to homeless people in and around Ueno Park. On Friday evenings, I help in "Kids' Cafe," where 2HJ patrons' children can come to play, eat, and do homework after school and/or while their parents are picking up groceries.
The food we distribute is an interesting mix of Japanese, American, and other culinary cultures. Because foreign places like Costco are big donors, we end up with a lot of bread and bagels, which few Japanese people regularly eat. There are plenty of items like curry, natto (sticky fermented soybeans), ocha (green tea), ramen and other noodles, and rice that are familiar to most/all of our patrons, but we have to push the bread-based items as well so we don't end up throwing them away. 2HJ also works hard to accommodate for those with dietary restrictions (such as vegetarianism, Hindu traditions, Islamic traditions, etc), which is really nice. Especially compared to the United States, Japan is a remarkably homogeneous country; Mai-chan, an 18-year-old Japanese volunteer, told me that because of this, it can be difficult to find vegetarian or halal food, even in the city.
Each day, aside from the staff and the interns, the volunteers are different. About half are Japanese and half are foreign. Most of the Japanese volunteers are shufu ("housewives", but I have mixed feelings about the connotations of that term in English), students on break, and older men and women who have retired from working a typical salaried job. The foreign volunteers are usually participating in service trips with companies like Delta Airlines, Google, Trip Advisor, etc; many of them are expats who currently live in Japan for work. On the weekends there is quite a bit more diversity in age and occupation**. Everyone is super interesting to talk to - though sometimes we have to pull out Google Translate to type our questions/answers to one another!
Work at 2HJ is tough - lifting heavy boxes, standing for several hours, and enduring the sticky heat of the Japanese summer - but I'm really enjoying it! Similar to working with Girl Scouts and NARAL, it gives me the feeling that I am having a direct positive impact on the lives of people around me, and taking part in addressing a social justice issue about which I am passionate. I'm looking forward to getting to know the staff better, learning more about 2HJ as an organization, and gaining a more nuanced perspective about poverty and food insecurity in Japan.
That's all for now (aside from a link to my pictures from this week - I went on a hike with my host mom, and to a shrine in the city)! Jamatane (see you later/soon)!
*Due to Japan's geographical location, I had not really thought about the possibility of the country absorbing a significant number of refugees during the crisis - but they're here! That said, Japan has one of the most strict policies in the world for asylum-seekers. I'd like to learn more about this, so I'll be exploring the Japan Association for Refugees (JAR) website tonight! As for 2HJ's stance on the issue - I was told we don't question anyone who comes to receive food; aside from demonstrating need, patrons can disclose as much or as little information as they want while visiting. Patrons are entitled to a sense of privacy and are treated like guests, regardless of their background :)
**Several of my Japanese co-workers have mentioned that they wish more Japanese people would be compelled to do volunteer work like that of 2HJ... As I mentioned, the volunteers are split pretty evenly between Japanese and non-Japanese ethnicity. Of course, my co-workers were not saying this as a slight to their foreign counterparts; they emphasized that they felt volunteer service was not seen as an integral component of Japanese culture, and wanted to change that perception. Given that my impression of Japan is one of a rather collectivist nation (in the workplace, in keeping public spaces tidy, etc), I wonder why/how collective responsibility does not appear to translate over into service work. Definitely something to ask more questions about!
