http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/ Our Future is in the Hands of Children en 2010-03-04T11:25:51+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/03/march_10_newsle_1.html Hello, everyone!

Flying from Kansai Airport to Kuala Lumpur, to Kuching, to Miri, and finally to Bario, it was quite a long travel. Planes got smaller as we transit, and the plane from Miri to Bario was twin engine Otter which felt quite full with 14 people on board. We heard about the bad weather but we were blessed with great sunshine without turbulences. ]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2010-03-04T11:25:51+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/03/march_10_newsle.html This month Pangaea Ring writer is Gary, from the Universiti Malaysia Sarawak. He helped us a lot to open Bario in this January and he is keen to enhance interaction among children not only internationally but also locally, within Malaysia. ]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2010-03-04T11:17:18+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/02/first_exchange.html Today we carried out activities via Webcam link between Mie University and the University of Malaysia, Sarawak! With 25 kids in Mie and 35 kids in Malaysia! In total 56 kids participated.

We did "Nazoren" this time as well and both Japan and Malaysia were really excited. Nazoren is a guessing game where you guess the answer based on 5 hints.

We used the "Language Grid Project"'s Language Grid Toolbox's machine translation system, but from now on since we'll also be working with Wikipedia, we'll be able to translate Malay. The kids tried their hardest discussing hints, so their friends in the other country would be able to guess the answer with fewer hints and were checking whether it would get across properly to the other group.
]]> 1. Activity Report kumakinoko 2010-02-06T22:47:37+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/02/february_2010_n_1.html Hello, everyone!

Pangaea Activities have begun this year, early January, in Kyoto at the Kyoto International School(KIS for short). This new Pangaea village will have children with diversified backgrounds, families from foreign countries, or Japanese families who came back from living in foreign countries. Pangaea will be held as a part of after-school activities weekly. There are also many unique nicknames for everyone to get to know, out of which the most interesting is Miso (means bean paste in Japanese) who will be one of the FL. Miso is an American who is a teacher at the KIS's Kindergarten, and because I myself was the same, I sensed a closeness to her. She is a person full of energy and has plenty of humour. It looks like the Pangaea Activities will be very lively.]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2010-02-04T11:07:20+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/02/february_2010_n.html How do you do.

I am Toshihide Yoshioka. I have been a technology volunteer for Pangaea since April 2008. I am based in Kyoto and everyone calls me 'Yoshio'. It's nice meeting with you all (on-line) I first learned about Pangaea from Kadoppe, a senior at my college. One day, it happened that we went out drinking with some of my friends and Kadoppe told us in detail about his own research. He mentioned the Pangaea during his talk about his research. I got so excited about hearing about the Pangaea activities and conveyed my wishes to Kadoppe that I would definitely love to join and take part in the activities my own, thinking that there would not be so many opportunities for me to deal with such a big theme as the world peace. Kadoppe encouraged me to do my best and then introduced me to Toshi. I was then enrolled in the Pangaea activities.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2010-02-04T11:00:02+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/02/starting_bario.html I went to the Long-awaited Barrio in Malaysia, the second base. I explained PANGAEA to everybody and held the first activity. It took an hour from the first base of Kuching City to the second base, and, if by air propeller boat, it would take about 1.5 hours to the inland. If it was the small plane, the checking of weight was very severe and even the body weight was to be measured.
Located in the high mountain, the way to Barrio is difficult. It is such an interior jungle that not many people from outside came until recently. The people at this altitude were known for the tenement buildings, called Holy longhouse. Children in Barrio highlands hadn't received education in school because of high altitude until now. Even the nearest neighborhood, it took children 15 days’ walking from where they lived. Therefore, they had to live in the boarding school. It was easy to imagine how lonely these children were, living in school away from their parents, at such elementary or middle school age.
]]> 8. General yumi 2010-02-01T21:23:37+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/01/january_2010_ne.html
A happy new year!

It's been bloody freezing recently in Kyoto. No snow yet, but when I return to my home after work, I always feel frozen and immediately turn on the oil heater which I bought in the last year. It's a bit costly but I cannot stop turning on it. This Christmas, people seem to experience tightfisted mood due to the cut off of bonus in Japan. We, Pangaea, originally haven't got any bonus so no impact by this situation. Is it good or poor? However, the financial report of Pangaea ends in the black a little bit in this September which is the first time from its foundation. Although it's been still financially agonizing, Prof. Ema, the one of the board members, somewhat praised us.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2010-01-06T13:22:32+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2010/01/january_10_news.html Well, I introduce Mr. Ando Yasutoshi a.k.a Andu as a Pangaea ring writer for this month. He was participating in the research project at Sweden's Karolinska Institute. He's already appeared in this series but he again writes about what he felt during away from Japan.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2010-01-06T10:06:27+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/12/2_new_locations.html It's been decided that we will launch Pangaea in January at the Kyoto International School, Kyoto. Starting in mid-January. We will be holding events once a week, until now we've not had 4 events in one month, but if this goes well we are thinking perhaps of afterwards trying after school activities at other schools. Furthermore, at the end of January we are launching a 2nd base in Malaysia at Bario. Bario is a place in the unexplored highlands in Sarawak, Borneo. It said on the T.V. that it has been recently discovered that 1500 orangutans live near there. However, since the 1st location in Malaysia, Unimas, started the project 10 years ago, it seems that they have been able to connect to the internet. It's certainly thanks to Unimas thinking being involved with Pangaea is a really great thing, that this Bario project has been carried out. 8. General yumi 2009-12-08T08:57:48+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/12/december_2009_n_1.html Hello, everyone!

We would be in end-of-year rush when you get this letter. In November, it was demanding but fruitful time for me. We conducted the webcam activity between Seoul and Kyoto and I gave a presentation at Beppu-wan conference on agricultural support utilizing Youth Mediated Communication Model (YMC Model) for developing countries, gave a lecture at the reunion event of UCLA. Then I participated activity in Tokyo as a facilitator.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2009-12-02T10:55:14+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/12/december_2009_n.html Now, I introduce Mr. Taisei Tanaka, CEO of Geisha Tokyo Entertainment Inc, as a Pangaea Ring writer for this month. He has been supporting Pangaea from it's foundation as a corporate member.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2009-12-02T10:49:03+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/11/korean_exchange.html Today we carried out activities via Webcam with Kyoto University and Korea!
A total of 32 kids and 20 local volunteer staff participated.

"Nazoren", which we tried for the first time previously, was well received by both Japan and Korea. Nazoren is a word association game where you guess the answer from 5 hints.
It's a very simple game, using the "Language Grid Project" Language Grid Toolbox's machine translation system we can check whether each other are being understood and enter hints and answers in the chat.
"Passport", "baseball" etc. the groups tried their hardest to think which hints would convey this. One team answered "Pangaea" with the first hint "friendship".
Yumi was deeply moved, saying that "I want to give them bonus points". ("Friend" was the answer to the second hint "Best friend").
In the second half we asked each other questions we wanted to know by machine translation chat.
On the post-event survey there were comments like, "I learned a lot about Japan", "Korea seems fun, I want to visit" and "I want to meet and play in person", telling of a fun day.


Volunteer Guts gave the comment, saying that "For the first time in ages I felt happy".
]]> 1. Activity Report kumakinoko 2009-11-14T23:26:15+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/11/november_2009_n_1.html Hello, everyone!

We are recently enjoying the clear autumn sky in Kansai, the Japanese western part where Kyoto is located in. The last month, very before starting the meeting, I caught the phone call from Guam where my mom was staying for the vacation and it said my mom slipped and fell down at the entrance of a shopping mall and she seemed injured and was transported to the hospital! I was extremely frightened at that time and immediately headed off to Guam from Aoyama, Tokyo, via Kyoto to get the passport from Hana-pooh. After 12 hours passed, I got to the hospital around 2 am. When I met her, she said 'I had too much fun and I was punished.' Fortunately, she spent just one day for treatment in the hospital but unfortunately it cost more than 400,000 Japanese Yen (almost USD 4,000)! That's a painful experience. Extra loads of work had to be put on staffs due to my absense from office.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2009-11-04T11:56:36+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/11/november_2009_n.html Well, it's time to introduce Su Yeon Choi as the Pangaea Ring writer for this month. She has been participating in Pangaea for two years and she works for FL nowadays. She wrote about what she was feeling during activities as the FL honestly.
]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2009-11-04T11:51:51+09:00 http://www.pangaean.org/blog/english/archives/2009/10/october_2009_ne_1.html Hello everyone, this is Toshi.
This time, I am writing this on behalf of Yumi.

Having finished the summer vacation in school, we have cheerfully resumed Pangaea activities in each location. But still, we are strongly concerning H1N1 flu. We have been carefully judging implementation of the activity considering its influence. For instance, at the Tokyo activity held few weeks ago, its ensured that we made sure its situation with the school just before starting the activity and body temperature check for all the participants both children and staff. Also, we prepared alcohol antiseptic for hand sterilization at each activity site. In fact, this kind of antiseptic makes big sales in Japan and hardly left in the pharmacy. So this time, I run for three times of pharmacy-hopping to get it. Actually, the cheaper one was sold out and we could only get expensive one. Such a shame... ;-(

]]> 3. Newsletter kumakinoko 2009-10-02T16:22:02+09:00