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Let me be the first to welcome you to “JET Talks”, a brand new speaker series organized by the JET Program Alumni Association of Washington, DC (“JETAADC”).
JET Talks is modeled after the TED Talks concept and will feature dynamic and interesting speakers with the goal of inspiring innovative ideas and conversations on Japan-related themes. JET Talks is separate from the Let’s Talk Japan podcast but our goals are the same – to get people talking and thinking about Japan.
Shauna Tischler came up with the idea of JET Talks and currently serves as JETAADC’s Thought Leadership Chair. From 2000-03, Shauna worked as an Assistant Language Teacher on the JET Program in Gifu Prefecture. Special recognition is also owed to Leigh Ann Mastrini, the current President of JETAADC, and the Japan Information and Cultural Center of Washington, DC for hosting the first JET Talks event.
Regular listeners of the Let’s Talk Japan podcast will recall that in Episode 11, I spoke with director Regge Life about his film Live Your Dream, chronicling the lives of JET Program participants Taylor Anderson and Monty Dickson who passed away in the March 11th 2011 Tohoku earthquake.
Regge was recently in Washington, DC, along with Taylor’s father, Andy Anderson, and Monty’s sister, Shelly Frederickson, to speak at the first JET Talks event – a screening and panel discussion of the film Live Your Dream. More than 120 guests were in attendance and the event was a huge success.
For anyone who has not yet seen Live Your Dream, I encourage you to listen to Let’s Talk Japan episode 11, as it provides a good overview of the film.
In this JET Talks, you will first hear introductory remarks from the JET Talks organizers and panelists, followed by the panel discussion, which followed the screening.
Enjoy the Talk!