The Clark community sends heartfelt thoughts to all of the people who have been affected by the earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The loss of lives and livelihoods is devastating.
“We are saddened by the events that have occurred in Japan,” said President David Angel. “We reach out to all our students, faculty, staff, and alumni with family and friends who have been affected by this disaster.”
Clark has been in touch with our student studying abroad and a number of alumni and friends in Japan, who all have reported they are safe. We will share additional information with the Clark community as we hear about it.
“The residents of Japan have been highly distressed by the chain-reaction multiple disasters of a historic proportion, but the outpouring of support from around the world has given them hope for recovery,” said Geography Professor Yuko Aoyama. Illustrating the effect of the disaster, she continued, “Ten days after the earthquakes and tsunami, 9,000 are known to be dead, 14,000 are still missing, and a quarter of a million people are displaced from their homes and are living in temporary shelters in 16 out of 47 prefectures.”
One way that Clark University is offering support is through the efforts of Clark Labs, directed by Professor Ron Eastman. The Clark Labs team has volunteered to help the Government of Japan and others in their response to the massive earthquake and tsunami by processing satellite images of the Japanese coast. One of the lab team’s before-and-after image analyses revealed a giant SOS on a playing field. Click here to read more.
Several efforts are also under way on campus, including the following:
Donate-a-Meal:
More than 250 students have donated a meal swipe from which $2 will be donated by Clark Dining Services.
Gala and After-Party:
Organizers of the International Gala on April 1 plan to station people at the entrance to collect donations. Major publicity for the popular and free event will also notify attendees of the opportunity to donate money at the door. Also, all proceeds from the International Gala After-Party on April 2 will go to Japanese relief efforts. These efforts are expected to raise thousands of dollars for recovery relief in Japan.
T-shirts Sales:
Eiji Miura ’12 and several other students plan to sell T-shirts as a part of a nationwide initiative called “Action Now Japan.” This initiative provides artwork to be used by college student groups who then sell the T-shirts for $20 apiece. The Clark students will “table” at the Higgins University Center during the next few weeks to take pre-orders. The office of Student Leadership and Planning, under director Michael McKenna, will also email an order request survey.
Student Club Events:
Miura and the students he is working with are accepting donations at various student events by selling baked goods and “passing the hat.” They collected $250 during the “Acappellooza” event March 19, which featured the Clark Bars, Counterpoints, and International Achords student singing groups.
Several other opportunities to help out with disaster relief can be found at this website:
