Seven Questions About the Nagasaki Youth Delegation
Q1. What is the Nagasaki Youth Delegation?
Q2. Who can apply to participate?
Q3. Who pays for the expenses incurred?
Q4. Who selects the members?
Q5. Do participants need to have studied the nuclear issue as a specialist subject?
Q6. What activities are participants involved in on-site?
Q7. What do participants do after returning to Japan?
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Q1. What is the Nagasaki Youth Delegation?
A1. The Nagasaki Youth Delegation is a human resources fostering project sponsored by the PCU Nagasaki Council for Nuclear Weapons Abolition (PCU-NC), which is composed of Nagasaki Prefecture, Nagasaki City and Nagasaki University. The first group of young people commenced their activities in 2013. These young people who will be the leaders of the next generation learn in a practical manner about nuclear and peace issues by meeting with figures involved in this field from both Japan and overseas. Its aim is that they will equip themselves with an ability to think and act on their own.
The young people selected through an application process become involved in an array of activities centering on the Review Conferences of the Parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) or the Preparatory Committee for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conferences. (To the Page Top)
Q2. Who can apply to participate?
A2. Applicants should be university students, graduate or undergraduate students, or young people enrolled in, residing in or working in Nagasaki Prefecture, and aged between 18 to around 25 (in principle). Those who are still high school students at the time of applications cannot apply, but there are no restrictions on nationality. Applicants should have a deep interest in the nuclear weapons issue, a will to gain knowledge and experience in this field, and be enthusiastic about continuing to be involved in some way in activities to realize a nuclear weapons-free world after completing the official term of activities. Applicants are welcome regardless of their faculty or major at university, but a certain level of proficiency in communication in Japanese and English is required. Furthermore, participants must in principle be able to attend or take part in all the study groups, planning and preparatory meetings in order to attain the knowledge requisite for the activities that will be carried out. (To the Page Top)
Q3. Who pays for the incurred costs?
A3. Part of the expenses incurred by activities will be paid in the form of a grant by the PCU Nagasaki Council. A uniform sum of approximately 200,000 yen per person will be paid to cover the travel expenses and accommodation during international conference participation. The individual participants themselves are requested to pay for any costs that exceed the 200,000-yen grant. (To the Page Top)
Q4. Who selects the members?
A4. The selection process consists of two stages. In the first stage a screening of the written documents including the potential participants’ motivation for applying is conducted. The second stage consists of an interview in English. In addition to faculty members from Nagasaki University and RECNA, the screening involves the participation of faculty members of other universities, native English speakers, and personnel in charge at Nagasaki Prefecture and Nagasaki City. (To the Page Top)
Q5. Do participants need to have studied the nuclear issue as a specialist subject?
A5. Participants do not need to have had a specialist education. They will be provided with an ample opportunity to study the nuclear issue from its basics through to the latest situation. Lectures and workshops are held featuring RECNA faculty members and external specialists. Tuition will also be provided on the reality of the nuclear bombing of Nagasaki, and the background leading up to it. (To the Page Top)
Q6. What activities are participants involved in on-site?
A6. The main principle is that participants should create their own programs by themselves. Preparatory Committee sessions for the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Review Conference draw not only governmental representatives from various countries but figures from global-wide international organizations and NGOs, experts, university students and other young people; everyday all sorts of meetings and workshops are held in parallel with the governmental meetings. In the past, the Youth Delegation members participated in these and also conducted workshops on their own initiative in the meeting rooms of the United Nations headquarters. They also exchanged opinions with diplomats from various countries and paid visits to schools providing supplementary Japanese language tuition. Information on these kinds of activities was transmitted in real time over SNS, and shared by numerous people. It is fair to say the way participants make original on-site action plans in line with their own areas of interest and goals is the great attraction of the Nagasaki Youth Delegation activities. (To the Page Top)
Q7. What do participants do after returning to Japan?
A7. First they report the activities and their results to Nagasaki Prefecture, Nagasaki City, Nagasaki University and the citizens of Nagasaki. After that, before the end of the term at the end of August, various activities, including peace education visits throughout Japan, are conducted by maximizing the knowledge participants have gained through the series of activities and the human network in both Japan and overseas.
There are no specific obligations for members of the Nagasaki Youth Delegation once their term has been completed, but each individual is encouraged to use their own experiences in some sort of way that is related to the nuclear issue. In actual fact the youth members will find that they are frequently requested to enter into exchange with other people, give lectures and reply to media interviews throughout the year. In addition, it is possible for former members to increase their knowledge and build up experience by participating in the seminars, symposiums and various events hosted by the PCU Nagasaki Council and RECNA. (To the Page Top)
