DVD and discussion create interaction with visitors

For the 35th annual Hiroshima Flower Festival, we organized an event on May 5 in which visitors could interact with the junior writers. It was the first time the junior writers of Peace Seeds took part in the Flower Festival, and about 100 people gathered for the event. It was also streamed online.

Junior writers share their most memorable reporting experiences. (Photo taken by Mako Sakamoto, 14)

At the start, we screened a DVD called "Welcome to Peace Seeds" which introduces our activities. Three junior writers then spoke freely about their memorable experiences as reporters and how they hope to contribute toward peace, and they responded to questions from the audience.

Shotaro Takata, 17, talked about the story he covered concerning a person who provides support to child soldiers so they can find work. "It gave me a clue as to my direction for the future," he said. Rena Sasaki, 14, said, "I want to prepare myself for the future by learning a lot and trying new things."

Visitors enjoying a game of "Peace Karuta." (Photo taken by Mako Sakamoto, 14)

Sachiko Kitayama, 14, has reported on problems that exist around us, such as "the lives of pets" and "bullying." She said that she would like to share what she has learned with friends and help make efforts to resolve those problems.

One person in the audience asked: "What stories do you want to cover in your Peace Seeds work?" Shotaro said that he wants to investigate the history of the reconstruction of Hiroshima after the atomic bombing and write an article that can make use of this experience for the reconstruction of the damaged areas in eastern Japan as a result of the recent earthquake and tsunami. Rena responded that she would like to check how the donation money sent to help the earthquake victims has actually been used.

Seventeen people tried our "Hiroshima Quiz" on Hiroshima and the atomic bomb. Fifteen of them gave the correct answer to the question "What year was the world's first atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima?" All of them answered correctly in response to "What was the target of the atomic bomb?" But only seven people knew the right answer to the question "Which Hiroshima flower is said to have been the first to bloom after the atomic bombing?" The answer is "Oleander," but many people chose "Paulownia." We also played a traditional Japanese card game, called "karuta," with a peace theme, and 15 visitors, from elementary school students to high school students, enjoyed playing it together.

Miyu Nakajima, 13, a second-year student at Hiroshima Jogakuin Junior High School, told us: "I think it's cool that junior high and high school students are creating a newspaper together and considering peace issues so deeply. It reminded me that the people of Hiroshima have a responsibility to appeal to the world for peace." (Minako Iwata,17 and Yuumi Kimura, 14)