Japan
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Photo: Chris Cabatbat/Mercy Corps
Our strategy
Restore jobs and services to coastal towns heavily damaged by the March 2011 tsunami.
The context
One of the largest earthquakes ever recorded triggered a tsunami that killed more than 15,000 people, spurred a nuclear crisis and caused an estimated £141 billion in damages — Japan’s worst disaster since World War II. Entire coastal communities were wiped out by the surging waters.
Our work
- Emergency response: Provided relief supplies to meet the basic needs of 42,000 people living in shelters and helped children heal from trauma after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami
- Economic opportunity: Delivering start-up grants, employment incentives and loan-interest subsidies to encourage new businesses and hiring in tsunami-affected towns
All stories about Japan
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Japan: A hot, hot summer July 8, 2011
When I left Japan a little over a month ago, people warned me about what it would be like when I returned.
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Japan: The best octopus fisherman in town July 6, 2011
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Japan: Movie night in Kesennuma July 4, 2011
In the business of recovery from disaster, my days are usually filled with programmes and budgets, focusing on getting the right resources to those who need it most and can do the most with it.
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Japan: For survivors like Sumiko, more than a bus ride June 30, 2011
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Japan: Moving day in Rikuzentakata June 28, 2011
Rikuzentakata, Japan — When her home in this coastal city was destroyed by the tsunami, Tomoko Kinno, a 60-something retiree, was forced to stay with relatives hours away from here. She had lived with and cared for mother, who now had to stay in a temporary facility for the elderly.
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Japan: When your hometown no longer looks like a town June 27, 2011
As we head west toward the coast, and start to see signs of the March tsunami’s devastation, I ask my colleague Sachie Saijo to stop the car so I can check it out.
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Japan: 90-day report from Japan June 9, 2011
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Japan: All the colors of helping survivors June 9, 2011
Fumie Sugawara sits on the blue tarpaulin that's spread across the floor the gymnasium. A bright yellow truck and other vibrant toys are gathered around her. Fumie engages two young girls in an imaginative game using a dozen different shades of Play-Doh.
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Japan: A bus from yesterday to tomorrow June 9, 2011
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Japan: More than up to the challenge June 9, 2011
Since mere moments before Japan's tsunami hit, and after long weeks of enduring its aftermath, Tsutomu Nakai has been faced with a series of unimaginable decisions. Some saved his life, and his family's lives. Other decisions put their personal lives on hold.