GCIAG Participates in the “Support Our Kids” Program*

Five junior and high school students from Japan visited our GC International AG office in Lucerne, Switzerland on March 24th to give a presentation and lead a discussion with us. The students came from areas that were heavily affected by the earthquake when they were 6 to 10 years old.

The tour members were chosen to share their experiences that were learned from the disaster by interacting with the Swiss local host families for the duration of two weeks. The key message that these children delivered was the importance to establish a relationship and network in the local community, consequently forming a resilient community spirit and togetherness, which is immune to the affects of natural disasters.

One 14 year old student’s dream is to become a cardiac surgeon so that he can help to save as many people as possible. Another student, 16 years of age, set a vision to build a community to strengthen a bond between people as an architect. We are really impressed and moved by their perseverance and optimistic attitude towards the future, regardless of their challenging circumstances, as their lives are still on the path to full reconstruction.

In return, GC International AG Chairman Nakao gave them a presentation on how the GC Group tackles social and health issues in the growing aging societies and how we communicate the important message through the entire company. GC International AG and the students both confirmed that we can learn a lot from Swiss society, which can be beneficial to Japan, as Switzerland is very successful in forming and keeping a strong social fabric in the local community and embracing the cultural diversity it has.

*The “Support Our Kids” Program was launched due to the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011. This program aims to help the affected children regain their pride and confidence. It has sent 404 students from the area to the overseas host families in 11 different countries affiliated with diplomatic offices and embassies.