Background

Taking into consideration the third goal of the Schools of the Society of the Sacred Heart, A social awareness which impels to action

  • The school educates to a critical consciousness that leads its total community to analyse and reflect on the values of society and to act for justice.
  • The school offers all its members opportunities for direct service and advocacy and instils a life-long commitment to service.
  • The school is linked in a reciprocal manner with ministries among people who are poor, marginalised and suffering from injustice.
  • In our multicultural world, the school prepares and inspires students to be active, informed, and responsible citizens locally, nationally and globally,
  • The school teaches respect for creation and prepares students to be stewards of the earth’s resources.

Objective:

To develop students as future agents for a social transformation according to the spirit of JPIC, in particular by expressing solidarity with the people in need.

Activities   

The school students take part in the following awareness activities and fund raising campaigns: 

  • Rice Ball Making: Donate time after school or on Saturdays to making rice balls for the homeless. 
  • Luci Lights: These are LED (Light Emitting Diodes) lights that are solar powered. Children in rural Nepal can continue to read after darkness. Safe as there is no risk of causing a fire.
  • Lunches for Kindergarten students in Nepal: Fundraising by selling crafts from Nepal, the students are able to fund a lunch program for Kindergarten students. 
  • Biofuel Burners for Nepal: These burners are a cleaner way for families to cook with and also a form of heating in winter. They produce very little smoke so the children’s eyes are not irritated. 
  • Bottle Caps’ Collection: The Ecocap Movement, a Japanese nonprofit organization (NPO) in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, established in 2007, has been engaged in the donation of polio vaccines to children in developing countries through the collection and sale of plastic bottle caps to recycling companies.
  • SOFIS: SOFIS stands for the first letters of the five Sacred Heart schools in Japan: Sapporo (Hokkaido), Obayashi (Hy?go), Fuji (Shizuoka), ISSH, and Sankocho (Tokyo). During the summer vacation, a few high school students from each of these schools are selected to participate in an annual workshop. Each year, the workshop aims to strengthen the bonds between the sister schools while providing an opportunity for students to consider their ways of contributing to society. The Sapporo Sacred Heart School hosted the 2019 SOFIS event, where students discussed the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) set by the United Nations. The students also exchanged views on how humans can live in harmony with nature to achieve a more sustainable future for all.

The school curriculum include the following JPIC oriented lessons: 

  • Prayer and Meditation
  • Peace Studies
  • Moral Decision Making
  • Refugees and Human Rights
  • Ethics

Outcomes

  • Students are fully aware of how privileged our community in Tokyo is.
  • Students are aware of the harsh conditions some children live in.

 

People being served

People being served : Agents of transformation (Educators)

Age group : Children 0-17

Number of participants : 251-500

Schedule

Project status : Ongoing

Images

Overview

Society presence : Japan

Focus of the project : Peace

JPIC Imperative : Transforming and Being Transformed

UN Sustainable Development Goals : 16 Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions, 17 Partnerships for the Goals