Date: May 19, 2026
Place: Tokyo
Participants: 1 graduate, 2 Mirai no Mori staff
Sponsor: Morgan Stanley

This May, we had the great pleasure of hosting our 6th Awareness Talk with Morgan Stanley, one of our top sponsors and dedicated partners. Over the years, Morgan Stanley volunteers have witnessed the journey of growth of the youth we support, from young campers to high school students, and ultimately, to independent program graduates. 

This year, 100 Morgan Stanley employees joined the talk both online and offline, where we invited two guest speakers: a Mirai no Mori program graduate, who joined us as an LIT and is now on his 7th year as an active graduate in our community, and a former care home worker with over 20 years of experience, who dedicated part of her career to the very care home where our guest graduate was raised. Together, they offered an insightful and moving look into institutional care from different perspectives, exploring daily life, long-term challenges, the jarring transition to independence, and how the Mirai no Mori community empowers the children along the way.

Our discussion began by looking at the reality of growing up within a care home.

Many children living in care homes often feel afraid of trying new things or failing. What was it like for you?

Graduate: “Most aspects of my life were completely self-contained inside the care home. I didn’t feel the need to connect with the outside world, so I had very little experience exploring things outside of the care home where I always had the reassuring support of adults. However, once I became a university student and then entered the workforce, I felt terrified of making various decisions all on my own.”

During your time as a care worker, was there anything you consciously did to help the children in the facility build courage and confidence?

Former care worker: “Showing them that I don’t have to know everything myself, and intentionally demonstrating how to courageously connect with society.”

When youth enter the Mirai no Mori programs, they are introduced to diverse adult role models and an environment designed to celebrate stepping out of one’s comfort zone. For the graduate, his high school years in the LIT program became a space for self-discovery.

You participated in Mirai no Mori as an LIT during your high school years. What part of the program stands out the most to you?

Graduate: “In my third year of the LIT program, I decided to step up as a leader, and I found it incredibly difficult to discover my own leadership style. I tried emulating the style of senior leaders I had met before, but it didn’t feel right. Ultimately, I realized that instead of being a leader who aggressively pulls everyone forward, I am better suited to be a supportive leader who works behind the scenes.”

The former care worker recalled watching this transformation happen in real-time:

“Staff members used to describe him as a good child who could handle things on his own; a great student we never had to worry about. It was hard to picture him seeking out major changes. […] Participating in Mirai no Mori gave him a chance to discover himself and build up an immunity to setbacks. Whenever he returned from a Mirai no Mori program, he would spontaneously initiate a reflection time. Thanks to this, we watched him grow into an expressive, deeply human person, making his life much more vibrant. Additionally, having stimulating challenges as an LIT might have been his very first experience with “failure”. If he had left the care home without ever making a major mistake, experiencing his life’s first failure in the outside world might have been incredibly overwhelming.”

Throughout the years, Morgan Stanley employees have provided safe spaces for the youth we support to practice new skills and build trusting relationships with diverse adult role models.

Is there anything from your interactions with Morgan Stanley volunteers that left a lasting impression or has influenced you today?

Graduate: “The Morgan Stanley employees I met during mentoring sessions and workshops truly cared about the LITs and graduates, supporting us wholeheartedly. This made me realize that it is okay to seek help from adults and that they can offer genuinely helpful guidance. After that, I started proactively striking up conversations with other adults I met at Mirai no Mori.”

Now in his third year at his first corporate job after graduating from university, the graduate highlighted that the journey doesn’t end when a youth leaves the care home. He shared how he constantly draws on the skills and mindset built through Mirai no Mori to navigate life as an independent, working member of society.

Have you had any experiences in the workforce where you felt the lessons from Mirai no Mori truly came to life?

“Mirai no Mori provides an environment where you can learn from your mistakes. I now know how to pick myself back up after failing at something.”

Where do you think you would be today if you hadn’t encountered Mirai no Mori?

“I think I would have much less self-confidence overall, and my interest in English would never have grown this much. I wouldn’t have had the courage to go on the one-month study abroad trip to Australia, which immensely broadened my horizons, and I wouldn’t have discovered how much I actually love talking to people.”

The former care worker left the Morgan Stanley audience with a powerful reminder of how to think about the youth we support.

What do you keep in mind when interacting with children?

“I believe that children heal and grow by accumulating experiences of being cherished within a safe, reassuring space. I also value the perspective that neither the children nor I live solely within the facility; we are beings who exist within society. Finally, rather than bunching them together under the label of ‘children,’ I make it a priority to face each one as an individual human being. Every child has a different background, experience, set of values, interests, and way of feeling.”

We want to extend our deepest gratitude to the Morgan Stanley team for hosting us once again, and for their years of commitment to our mission. Your generosity builds long-term memories and impact that empower the children we support to navigate the world as confident and resilient members of society.