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INTERNS & VOLUNTEERS

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Ashinaga Internship Program

Gain experience with one of Japan’s largest NGOs by doing an internship with Ashinaga Japan. Alternatively, support our international work by interning with Ashinaga Uganda or Ashinaga Senegal. Over 500 interns from more than 135 universities in 35 countries worldwide have helped us to continue to carry out our mission.

 

Whether it be supporting the Ashinaga Africa Initiative scholars at study camps in Uganda or Senegal, aiding Japanese student activities, or working with an internal team like marketing, interns can gain practical skills and experience working at Ashinaga.


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Volunteer with Ashinaga

There are opportunities to contribute to Ashinaga’s cause, wherever you are. For those living in Japan, you can volunteer with us in-person at student events or at Ashinaga’s emotional care facilities. For those living outside of Japan, you can volunteer with us remotely by providing online English education support for Japanese Ashinaga scholars.

 

*Note: Japanese language ability is generally required for in-person volunteering opportunities in Japan.

Volunteer in Japan

Various volunteering opportunities are available with Ashinaga’s programs in locations all over Japan. There are three ways to volunteer:

1) Summer Camp (Tsudoi) Volunteer

Ashinaga organizes summer camps (Tsudoi) for high school and university scholars in Japan every year. These camps are held from August – early September in nine different locations across Japan. Each year, we invite international volunteers residing in Japan to join us, in order to make Tsudoi a more global gathering. Volunteers will get to interact extensively with Ashinaga scholars during the camp, and share their stories and experiences with the scholars. Japanese language ability (at least conversational level) is preferred, but not mandatory.

 

*Please note that this event has been cancelled for 2020 and 2021, and partially cancelled in 2022 due to COVID-19. As we will be keeping participant numbers small in 2022, we unfortunately will not be recruiting volunteers for Tsudoi in 2022.

 

Register Your Interest to Volunteer at Tsudoi (Summer 2023)

 

2) Fundraising Volunteer

 

The Ashinaga Student Fundraising Association (Ashinaga Gakuseibokin) conducts street fundraising in Japan during Spring and Fall every year. The street fundraising takes place over eight days (four days in April and four days in October), in around 200 different locations across Japan. Two types of Bokin-related volunteering opportunities are available.

 

1) Participate in Bokin on the day of the event. Get involved as a Bokin volunteer and stand alongside the Ashinaga scholars to conduct fundraising on the streets of Japan. Volunteers will distribute flyers, as well as conduct yobikake, a speech to the public advocating for the importance of education for orphaned students. This opportunity is open to members of the general public, including university and high school students. Please note that advanced Japanese language skills are required, as the fundraising is conducted in Japanese. For more details on street fundraising, access the Ashinaga Student Fundraising Association’s website here (Japanese only).

 

2) Become a member of the Ashinaga Student Fundraising Association. If you are a university student in Japan looking for a regular volunteering opportunity, consider registering as a member of the Ashinaga Student Fundraising Association (Ashinaga Gakusei Bokin). Registered members (known as Kyokuin) will join teams and work with other students, many of whom are Ashinaga scholars, to plan the annual fundraising. Volunteers will get to attend regular meetings with other students and work extensively with the Ashinaga student community. Please note that advanced Japanese language skills are required, as meetings and events are conducted in Japanese. For more details on the Ashinaga Student Fundraising Association please visit “Member Registration” page.

3) Rainbow House Facilitator

Volunteer at our Rainbow House facilities and contribute to the emotional care Ashinaga provides. There are five Rainbow House facilities in Japan.

 

1.     Ashinaga Rainbow House (Tokyo)

2.     Kobe Rainbow House (Hyogo Prefecture, Kansai Region)

3.     Sendai Rainbow House (Miyagi Prefecture, Tohoku Region)

4.     Ishinomaki Rainbow House (Miyagi Prefecture, Tohoku Region)

5.     Rikuzentakata Rainbow House (Iwate Prefecture, Tohoku Region)

 

Please note that an advanced level of Japanese language proficiency is required for volunteering as a Rainbow House facilitator. For more information on the activities of the Rainbow Houses, visit this page.

 

Learn more about becoming a Rainbow House facilitator and apply here

 

Volunteer Remotely

Volunteer with the Ashinaga Kokoro-Juku: With the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic, Ashinaga has started turning towards online resources and seeking the help of remote volunteers, particularly in the area of English education support for the Japanese scholars.

 

In 2021, the Ashinaga Kokorojuku in Tokyo started an English conversation partner program for Japanese scholars. Volunteers from all over the world pair up with Ashinaga Japanese university scholars and participate in English conversation sessions online. If you are looking for a safe way to volunteer during the pandemic while contributing to the Ashinaga’s educational support, do consider joining as a conversation partner.

 

If you are interested in volunteering remotely, fill in this form and we will notify you once applications open. 

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