Blog

Mirai no Mori Update

Dear Supporters,

From the entire Mirai no Mori team, we hope this note finds you and your loved ones healthy and safe during these trying times.  We wanted to reach out to you and keep you informed on our recent activities, as we work to continue to serve children in state care, despite this difficult situation.
 
First and foremost, we wanted to assure you that Mirai no Mori remains committed to our mission, and we are working on creative solutions to continue to deliver support to the children we serve, in such a way as to also maintain proper safety procedures.
 
We have been in close contact with the care homes to stay updated on their situation and needs. While the specific needs of each child in each home are different, many have told us that staying indoors has raised the children’s stress levels, and many homes are concerned about the long term impact on children’s development due to quarantine and school cancellations and resulting social isolation.
 
To help care homes address these needs, we are currently developing the “Mirai no Mori Activity Kit” a set of activities and educational materials to be sent directly to the care homes in our network. The kit includes video messages from recent camp staff and volunteers from around the world, some of our regular camp activities modified for the care home environment, and other fun activities to keep them active and engaged.
 
It is our hope that these activities will provide a connection to the outside world, new routines within their constrained daily lives, and the opportunity to continue with their experiential learning. The activities are designed to be children-led and require minimal supervision from the care workers, hopefully delivering the added goal of reducing care worker stress levels, too.
 
For our Summer Camp, Back to Nature, Leader in Training and other programs, we are closely monitoring the situation and the guidance from the Japanese government and the WHO, and will only resume in-person programs as and when we are certain that the situation is safe for everyone involved.  We will update you again in due course as the situation develops.
 
Please let us know if you have any questions, comments, or thoughts. It is only with your support that we can continue to deliver on our mission. We truly appreciate your kind donations of time, ideas, and funds as we navigate through these uncharted waters together. Thank you very much for your encouragement and support and please stay safe.
 
Sincerely,

Kozue Oka
Executive Director
Mirai no Mori