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August 2023 Polestar

08/27/2023

The August 2023 issue of Polestar is here! Stay cool this month with intriguing articles and stunning photos from around Hokkaido and beyond! Please enjoy!

Related articles

September 2023 Polestar

09/26/2023

HAJET at Sapporo’s First Saint Patrick’s Day Parade

03/23/2019

The 2019 Hokkaido Newcomer’s Guide Is Now Online

11/19/2019

The Hokkaido Association for Japan Exchange and Teaching

HAJET is an association focused on helping ALT’s and others living in Hokkaido. We also organize events to help increase your social circle, fund extracurricular English events throughout the island, offer opportunities for professional development, and try our best to make sure your life in Hokkaido is unforgettable.

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Today's Meet The PC interview is with Kyle Willits

Today's Meet The PC interview is with Kyle Willits! Check it out below 👇

•What's your role at HAJET?

"I’m back this year as webmaster. I mostly just make sure our site and other I.T. stuff stay happy and healthy."

•What are your hobbies?

"I’ve been doing Kyudo for about 3 years now and recently just achieved my first dan ranking! Other than that, playing games and working in my extremely tiny garden."

•In a few words, how would you describe your JET experience?

"I was a web developer at my last job. It paid very well, but ultimately I found myself feeling unfulfilled. JET has given me a lot of opportunities to help/interact with people/cultures in a way that I didn’t have before. I feel like I’ve been given chances to really put myself together in a more solid way."

•What makes Hokkaido special to you?

"Being surrounded by nature is a really amazing experience. A large forest and river are literally right outside my window. I practice Kyudo in a little section of the woods where deer and the occasional fox come and watch. Maybe an hour drive away is an enormous mountain I can climb when the weather is right. It’s a lot of close-up opportunities that I’ve never really had until now."

•Tell us one or two fun facts about your placement (town/city).

"Utashinai is literally the smallest city in Japan. It has one of the highest depopulations from about 40,000 people in 1950 to 3,000 people now. Despite that we have one of the best onsens in the area, a good school, and a really interesting museum that gives you a good window into “the good old days.” It also has, in my experience, some of the nicest people I’ve met in the country. Strangers have given me rides home when they saw me waiting on the bus my first year!"

#hajetmeetthepc #hokkaidojets #hajet #jetprogramme #nationalajet #hokkaido

Hi all! Take a look below 👇👀 Today's Meet t

Hi all! Take a look below 👇👀

Today's Meet the PC: Toby Steven

•What's your role at HAJET?
"I am the HAJET Translator."

•What are your hobbies?
"In the winter I’m an avid snowboarder. In summer I enjoy hiking, running and hitting the gym. When I’m not out and about, I enjoy reading, watching movies and studying Japanese."

•In a few words, how would you describe your JET experience?
"Amazing, eye-opening, a bit challenging at times but incredibly valuable."

•What makes Hokkaido special to you? "Hokkaido is such a beautiful island with so many unique characteristics from the animals, food, geography and the lovely people who live here and the connections I’ve made. Oh, and don’t forget the snowboarding!"

•Tell us one or two fun facts about your placement (town/city).
"Taiki Town is famous for rockets and hosts the rocket launch site for Interstellar Technologies. They also just recently had a launch!"

#hokkaidojets #jetprogramme #hajet #nationalajet #hajetmeetthepc #hokkaido

Attention! Are you looking to gain professional e

Attention!
Are you looking to gain professional experience? Get more involved in the Hokkaido JET community? Learn new skills and make new connections?

HAJET has a number of open positions that can help you do just that!

Current openings include:

President, VP, Secretary, Northern Representative, Eastern Representative, Sapporo Representative, Project Outreach Coordinator, Polestar Editor, Publications Coordinator, Elections Coordinator.

If you're interested in any of the positions listed above, please send us a message!

#hajet #hokkaidojets #jetprogramme #nationalAJET

Today's Meet the PC interview! 👇 Meet: Queena

Today's Meet the PC interview! 👇

Meet: Queena Xu

•What's your role at HAJET?

"I am the HEC Director."

•What are your hobbies?

"I love the grand outdoors! Hiking, cycling, running, camping in the summers and skiing in the winter. But I also love my indoors me time, spent mostly watching anime, drawing and painting!"

•In a few words, how would you describe your JET experience?

"Magical. Self-growth. Lots of ups and downs, but eventually finding my peace."

•What makes Hokkaido special to you?

"I can’t really describe it, but living in Hokkaido feels like a never-ending dream, one that I don’t want to wake up from. The scenery is breathtaking, the people I have met here are amazing, the life that I live feels fulfilling. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else."

•Tell us one or two fun facts about your placement (town/city).

"Kembuchi is famous for a picture book library that has over 4,000 picture books! We also have an alpaca farm because we are sister cities with a town in Peru."

#HAJET #Hokkaido #JETProgramme #HokkaidoJETS #NationalAJET #HAJETMeetThePC

Our first 2021 Meet the PC interview! Check it out

Our first 2021 Meet the PC interview! Check it out below.

Meet Andrew Gerber

•What's your role at HAJET?

"I design the Polestar Magazine, and now also edit it."

•What are your hobbies?

"I like to read, write, draw pictures, drive to a lot of places around Hokkaido or simply in the countryside, sometimes hike, take pictures of what I find, cook dinner at home, play guitar, and conlang. Although, because those are a lot of things, I rarely do any of them every day (except cook). Most recently, I started gardening."

•In a few words, how would you describe your JET experience?

"It’s great! Hokkaido (see my next answer) was not my choice, because I didn’t write any place on the application, but it turned out to be an excellent match for me. I have a very chill BOE, which doesn’t mind me going all those places and never micromanages me. I’ve adapted to live in a Japanese farming town very well."

•What makes Hokkaido special to you?

"I grew up in Southern California’s constant heat, saw Japan’s overcrowded well-known cities, and spent several years of frozen isolation teaching in Mongolia. Hokkaido is refreshingly moderate in temperament and temperature. My area has most of the conveniences of a city, without really being a city. Spacious, without being forbiddingly remote. I get four full seasons, which change at a regular enough pace that I never get sick of the weather. Unsurprisingly Hokkaido is the first place where I got to really appreciate going outdoors. And also, I don’t live with my parents anymore."

•Tell us a few fun facts about your placement (town/city).

"Shiretoko, Po River, Notsuke Peninsula, Kushiro Wetlands, Akan Onsen, Lake Kussharo, Lake Mashu, Abashiri: None of those places are actually IN my town, but Nakashibetsu is in the middle of all of them, and I can reach all of them in 2 hours or less. It’s an excellent base for exploring East Hokkaido. The most famous place IN town is probably Yoroushi Onsen. We also used to have a giant salmon’s-head sculpture sitting in the middle of the countryside."

#HAJET #Hokkaido #JETProgramme #HokkaidoJETS #NationalAJET #HAJETMeetThePC

Tomorrow is Game Night 😁 Saturday, July 10th, 7

Tomorrow is Game Night 😁
Saturday, July 10th, 7:30 PM, HAJET Discord
We look forward to seeing you there! (Virtually, of course)
Link for the event in bio!
#hajet #hokkaidojets #hokkaido #jackboxgames #nationalajet #jetprogramme

Good afternoon HAJET friends! The 2021 Summer Mee

Good afternoon HAJET friends!
The 2021 Summer Meeting is approaching (July 10th). If you plan to attend, please vote for your favorite game in our poll. We look forward to hearing from you 🙂
https://forms.gle/GosPsVHo9zChpYbN9
You can also follow the link from our Facebook post!
#hokkaido #hokkaidojets #jetprogramme #ajet #hajet

Send your pictures to social.media@hajet.org and y

Send your pictures to social.media@hajet.org and you could be featured right here!
#hajet #hokkaido #jetprogramme #photography #nature #japan

Hey all! We have finalized the Year-End report and

Hey all! We have finalized the Year-End report and are happy to share it with you all. The full report is on our website, the link is in our bio. If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us!

We weren't able to accomplish many of our social event goals, but I'm proud of what we did for our communities through this difficult time. Thank you, everyone, for your help and support. We wouldn't have been able to do it without you!

See you all 'round the Do!

~Steffanie

#hajet #jetprogramme #volunteering #Hokkaido #SpringIsNear

Please help us in welcoming our newly elected PC m

Please help us in welcoming our newly elected PC members for the 2021-22 year! 🎉👏🎉👏

They will begin their roles on March 1st, and we can't wait to see what they have planned for the upcoming year! 🤩

#jetprogramme #HAJET #PCelections #PrefecturalCouncil #NewBeginnings #NationalAJET

Good evening everyone! HAJET Elections are now op

Hello! We hope everyone is keeping well! Unfortu

Hello!

We hope everyone is keeping well!

Unfortunately, we will be cancelling Winter Meeting. Due to COVID, the PC has voted that it would be in everyone's best interest not to have a large gathering of people coming from all over the island.

We also don't expect that we will host Spring Meeting either but we will let you all know once the PC has been able to vote and make a decision.

Thank you all for being so accommodating and sharing your opinions and feelings about this. With the vaccine rollout in Japan we are excited about future events we will have. Be on the lookout for those updates!

#hajet #wintermeeting #jetprogramme #jetprogram

PC nominations are being accepted until JANUARY 15

PC nominations are being accepted until JANUARY 15th! Email elections@hajet.org with a bio, picture of yourself, and why you would be a good fit for the position. You can see the position descriptions on our website. The link is in our bio.

We look forward to your emails! 🥰

#jetprogramme #volunteering #ProfessionalDevelopment #hajet #nominations #ExtendedDeadline

Happy new year! 🎉 We hope you have a great star

Happy new year! 🎉 We hope you have a great start to your new year!

#hajet #JETprogram #NationalAJET #Hokkaido #NewYear #明けましておめでとうございます

Happy Holidays! 🎄🎆🧧✡️🕎🎶🕯 Pl

Happy Holidays! 🎄🎆🧧✡️🕎🎶🕯

Please be safe when celebrating by following the Concentrated Countermeasures set by the Hokkaido government.

**Reminder** Don't forget to send in your nomination for next year's Prefectural Council election! It's a great way to give back to the community and develop your team working skills! Check out the position descriptions here: http://www.hajet.org/about-us/get-involved/

#hajet #hokkaidojets #jetprogramme #nationalajet #WinterHolidays #SafeHolidays #voting #nominate

We have a proposed amendment to the constitution t

We have a proposed amendment to the constitution to be voted on. The amendment would allow for PC meetings to be cancelled for health and safety reasons. Please look at the full change here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1OB3INbJSdODMD2LLW4ZlMZGgeTit2EBAj2JhqN9qbYM/edit?usp=sharing

After looking over the changes, please vote here:

https://forms.gle/oWw9wmVptcRCxUxv9

If you're interested in becoming a part of the nex

If you're interested in becoming a part of the next council, check out the HAJET website in our bio for role descriptions!

To apply for the Prefectural Council (PC), please submit a photo, short bio to elections(at)hajet(dot)org and answer the following questions:

Why do you want the role?
What previous experience do you have?
What could you bring to the role?
What does HAJET / HEC mean to you?

Best of luck!
#hajet #jetprogramme

Best of luck to all sitting the JLPT on Sunday! Ta

Best of luck to all sitting the JLPT on Sunday!
Take care of yourselves (especially those taking public transport) and don't forget your hand sanitiser.
In the immortal words of Kamina - "Don't believe in yourself... Believe in the me who believes in you!".

#hajet #jlpt #jlpt2020 #exams

Nominations are open!! 🎉 Please email elections

Nominations are open!! 🎉 Please email elections@hajet.org to nominate yourself or someone you’d think do the role justice! HAJET is a great way to give back to your JET community by supporting them in social and professional development opportunities. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to message us! (This is post 2/2) #hajet #jetprogramme #nominations #volunteering #ProfessionalDevelopment

Nominations are open!! 🎉 Please email elections

Nominations are open!! 🎉 Please email elections@hajet.org to nominate yourself or someone you’d think do the role justice! HAJET is a great way to give back to your JET community by supporting them in social and professional development opportunities. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to message us! (This is post 1/2) #hajet #jetprogramme #nominations #volunteering #ProfessionalDevelopment

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