一般財団法人　連帯　東北・西南　RENTAI　TOHOKU-SEINAN

Details of activity：Helping the fishermen who cultivate seaweed (shearing ropes used for rafts)
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（Mr. S ・Age:41・Male Tokyo resident)

Our activities on the island involved mainly physical work (under the guidance of fishermen) such transporting bamboo which are used to make the rafts necessary for oyster and seaweed cultivation, as well as helping with the manufacture process for ropes also used in raft making. 
The rafts have been wrecked twice in the past year with the Chile earthquake, and now the Tohoku Earthquake of 11 March. Although the plan was to produce 800 rafts by the autumn, currently there are 400, which is only half the required amount, and people are working without a break.

Soon a Shinto ceremony to purify the site will be held, and debris-removal work will also begin in earnest.

We need to continue to directly help those who experienced extensive damage, and I hope that this can help strengthen the ties between the people of Tohoku.

Details of activity：Helping the fishermen who cultivate seaweed (Shearing ropes used for rafts)
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（Mr. A ・Age:26 ・ Male   Tokyo resident)

What I felt when I came into contact with the people at the site is that they are all have a positive outlook. Everything they had spent their time and effort on until now has all fallen apart and there is no other way but to start building their lives again from scratch. Electricity only started coming through at the beginning of May, and there being no hospital, the island residents told us warmly how grateful they were for us to come week after week to volunteer.

I felt strongly that despite being in difficult circumstances, in order to be able to live alongside the beautiful sea again, it is necessary to recognize what needs to be done and carry it out. When living in urban areas there is always a tendency to have sparse interaction with neighbours, but in Katsurajima the whole town is like one big family, and regardless of the fact that there was a huge earthquake disaster it felt steeped in a warm atmosphere.

Details of activity：Helping the fishermen who cultivate seaweed (shearing ropes used for rafts)

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（Mr. N ・Age:39 ・ Male   Tokyo resident)

Despite the fact that 850 rafts are to be made by the time seeds need to be attached for seaweed cultivation in autumn, only 300-400 rafts have been completed. Although the work was simple, involving cutting ropes for net spreading to a fixed length using a soldering iron, it was a great help for the small number of fishermen for us to lend our hand with this activity.

（Ms. A ・Age:60 ・ Female   Tokyo resident)

The fishermen of Katsurajima are comprised of about 90% who cultivate seaweed and 10% who cultivate oysters, and those who deal with seaweed are usually referred to as 'seaweed people'. Our work over three days was to help the seaweed people, and we participated in the production of rafts for cultivation. In good seasons during the cultivation period it is possible to harvest five times, the first three times of which are for seaweed, after which they are for seasoned seaweed and seaweed condiments. However a slight change in climate makes it necessary to go out to sea and harvest, otherwise the crop will be ruined, and therefore it is not possible to be off one's guard. The farmers feel that if they have even a small amount of income, they would like to purchase a drying machine and invest in the maintenance inspections that come with it.

（Ms. A ・Age:33 ・ Female   Saitama prefecture resident)

Details of activity：Helping the fishermen who cultivate seaweed (shearing ropes used for rafts)

Though the volunteer activities in Katsurajima aim to support people concerned with the fishery cooperatives and island residents, volunteers themselves can individually think about and then discuss what they felt as a result of their experience, and how to make use of these experiences in their daily lives and work. I feel that if they can maximize the feelings and thoughts they gained from this experience and materialize that in thier actions, it will heighten the importance of these volunteer activities.

With regard to the clean up of swimming beaches, I felt that due to the fact that collected rubbish can only be incinerated once in two weeks, and weather and sea conditions can cause the once-collected rubbish to be dispersed all over again, it would better to carry out this activity in a more organized way.