2014.04.28

NEWS | Press conference on ‘YUI’ project

Tohoku University has held a press conference on the disaster prevention project, 'YUI'. YUI, or in Japanese 結 literally means unity, indicating the importance of community ties in disaster management.

As it is customary in Japan for school children to carry a handkerchief in their pocket to wipe their hands on, the YUI handkerchief has been designed for school children with detailed disaster prevention advice.

The handkerchief illustrates how to act in a disaster and what to prepare for in an emergency, based on research at Tohoku University. The handkerchief is to be distributed to all fifth grade students in Miyagi prefecture, and classes on disaster prevention are to be given.

Left: Mr. Kazuhisa Odagiri, Sendai Television. Center: Prof. Nobuyoshi Hara, Tohoku University with the 'YUI' project handkerchief. Right: Ms. Mari Yasuda, IRIDeS (International Research Institute of Disaster Science)

As a university located in a disaster area, Tohoku University is sharing knowledge on disaster prevention. Practical programs for improving response capability have been held in Hawaii as well as in Japan.

Professor Nobuyoshi Hara, Executive Vice President for Tohoku University, told the conference that the handkerchief will lead children to think about disaster prevention by themselves.

This project is carried out with the cooperation of Sendai Television, Miyagi Prefectural Education Board, and Sendai City Board of Education.