38th JET Programme Pre-Departure Reception

On July 4 a reception was held at the Official Residence of the Consul-General to farewell the 15 new participants who will depart for Japan at the end of this month to begin their time on the JET Programme (The Japan Exchange and Teaching Programme).

Around 100 guests including Former Ambassador to Japan (and former Premier), the Hon. Richard Court AC, members of the state parliament, members of the local Japanese business community, and former JETs from WA and elsewhere joined us to cheer on our new JET participants. Since its beginning in 1987, The JET Programme has had more than 550 participants from Western Australia.
 
Following Consul-General Naito’s opening remarks (here), the Hon. Matthew Swinbourn MLC, Parliamentary Secretary to the Attorney General; Minister for Electoral Affairs; Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Mines and Petroleum; Energy; Hydrogen Industry; Industrial Relations (representing The Premier of Western Australia) also said a few words. He congratulated the participants and praised the contributions of all JET participants who have played an important role in building a deeper relationship between Japan and Australia.

Taking this opportunity to speak to a large number of former JETs, the JET Alumni of Western Australia (JETAAWA) made a short presentation, introducing their main activities such as Japanese cultural events, and encouraged the former JETs to become part of the alumni association. We look forward to new members joining JETAAWA who will promote the JET Programme and the attraction of Japan to others from unique perspectives in ways the Japanese themselves are not able to.

Our new JETs will soon take up their new roles all over Japan, from Yamagata in the north, to islands to the south of Kyushu, and everywhere in between including WA’s sister state of Hyogo. They will not only be involved in teaching foreign languages, but also in the promotion of internationalization at a local level. In the lead-up to this reception, our new JETs visited the Japanese School in Perth who gave them a great experience of a typical Japanese classroom. They also took part in our pre-departure orientation and Q&A, which was supported by CLAIR Sydney, the official travel agent for the JET Programme here in Australia, and JETAAWA. They will depart for Japan at the end of July.