Kakehashi Project 2019

Chickaloon Native Village delegation was invited to participate in a cultural exchange program called the Kakaehashi Project.  “KAKEHASHI Project – The Bridge for Tomorrow” is coordinated by the Japan International Cooperation Center (JICE) as part of the Youth Exchange Program with North America promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan (MOFA).

The KAKEHASHI Project aims to heighten potential interest in Japan and increase the number of overseas visitors to the country, as well as enhance international understanding of the “Japan brand,” or the nation’s strengths and attractiveness, such as Japanese-style values and “Cool Japan.” The project is also anticipated to revitalize and boost the Japanese economy.

The objective of this youth exchange project is to promote deeper mutual understanding among the people of Japan and the United States, enable future leaders of Japan-US exchanges to form networks, and help young people develop wider perspectives to encourage active roles at the global level in the future.

For Chickaloon's visit, the program was slightly ammended to accomodate the delegation to allow for more meaningful connections.  The Chickaloon delegtion was the first group to participate in the program from Alaska.  The delegation attended and visited various sites throughout Tokyo and Sapporo, Japan, from November 30th through December 8th, 2019. The visits emphasized particular similarities between Japan and Alaska specifically such as Arctic Studies research, global warming and indigenous culture. 

The delegation members included:

Rick Harrison, Melissa Shaginoff, Selena Ortega-Chiolero, Maria Shaginoff, Havan Shaginoff, Estaban Harrison, Jakob Harrison, Tawe Carmen, Tristan Hosman, and Skyler Hosman.