TOMODACHI Initiative – Remembering 3.11 and Looking Toward the Future

This year, as we reflect on the eleventh anniversary of the unprecedented Great East Japan Earthquake, we would like to offer our sincerest condolences to those who lost irreplaceable family members, friends, and loved ones. We also hold the deepest respect for countless people who devoted their time and effort to restore communities and build new lives in the Tohoku region.

The TOMODACHI Initiative was established through the spirit of cooperation and friendship from “Operation Tomodachi,” the American military and Japan Self-Defense Force’s joint rescue operation in the wake of the disaster. The TOMODACHI Initiative began by providing support for recovery in the Tohoku region and continues to expand its wide range of activities, as well as nurturing the next generation of leaders from across Japan and the United States.

Members of the younger generation, who were in elementary school at the time of the earthquake, now join the TOMODACHI programs to become leaders, solving their local challenges and promoting industries in their own communities. This week, U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel and his wife Amy Rule visited Tohoku and TOMODACHI alumni welcomed them and shared their experiences and what they had learned from the TOMODACHI programs. Our deepest appreciation for all of you who enable TOMODACHI to make such a big impact.

To ensure that the Great East Japan Earthquake and those affected by it will never be forgotten, and to pass on the memories to the next generation of leaders who are not aware of the disaster, the TOMODACHI Initiative will maintain its efforts to help develop not only the Tohoku region but also the relationship between the U.S. and Japan. We will continue to walk alongside our young future leaders.

Together with everyone from Tohoku, today and hereafter,
TOMODACHI Initiative