Approaching the anniversary of the Japanese tsunami...

Just over a year ago, I was in a hotel car park on Coventry's ring road. I'd driven across from home to lead an NQT Conference for the GA.
It was the 11th of March. I turned on my phone to catch up with tweets and e-mails and there were a few messages about a large earthquake and tsunami warning in Japan.
As I sat there, the first videos came in, and as I set up the room for the day, the story began to unfold. We referred to it on the day as an example of the way that social media and other tools can allow a major global event to be followed.

Over the last year, there have been further remarkable programmes and stories: the bravery of the workers trying to stabilise the nuclear reactors at Fukushima, the clearance of rubble and reinstatement of the road network, areas of evacuation, the children of the Tsunami who have lost parents, and the programmes piecing together video footage and the stories of narrow escapes and tragic loss.

One particularly valuable source of stories which add a geographical context to the ongoing rebuilding is the twitter feed of Rethink Urban Japan @CityRenaissance

Just this morning for example, there were a new tranche of stories which would add some interesting new areas for students to explore further.


There is a nice article on the way that family photos are being cleaned up and returned to their owners


There's also a report on the way that communities are preparing for another possible tsunami.

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