The JLA Lifesaving Forum 2010

Japan Lifesaving Association held The JLA Lifesaving Forum 2010â„¢, on Saturday, March 13 at National Olympics Memorial Youth Center in Tokyo, with the grant-aid of Japan Foundation.


Japan Lifesaving Association held The JLA Lifesaving Forum 2010′, on Saturday, March 13 at National Olympics Memorial Youth Center in Tokyo, with the grant-aid of Japan Foundation.

In the morning session, the special lecture “Preventing Drowning in Developing Countries ” Lessons for us all was presented by Mr. Justin Scarr, Chair of ILS Child Drowning Committee, COO Royal Life Saving Society Australia.

It was a great opportunity for JLA members to understand ILS’s emphasized activities, and to start paying attention to this desperate situation in the Asian region, our neighbor countries. There were approximately 130 audience including JLA members, sponsors, and people from supportive organizations.

Mr. Justin Scarr introduced the current situation of child drowning in developing countries in Asia, which may exceed 350,000’s drowning deaths each year. It was an astonishing fact for us. Also the information of World Conference on Drowning Prevention 2011′ which will be held in Vietnam next year was provided.

For this lecture, Mr. Justin Scarr prepared 45 pages of Power Point slide. My colleague of JLA International Affairs Dept. made a great job of translating all the information into Japanese making the lecture very understandable.

Following the lecture, a panel discussion was conducted to discuss our challenges and expected possibilities of JLA.

In the afternoon session, the Rescue Committee, Environment Committee, and Academic Investigation Scholarship Group reported their activities and achievement during the year. After their fruitful report, another panel discussion was conducted with the theme of Social Role of Lifesaving ” an approach from Beach Patrol statistics data, Nature Environment, and Education’

It was a wonderful sight to see the gathering of many people from different backgrounds and age groups. Young lifesavers, instructors, leaders, executives, sponsors, and supporters who share lifesaving spirits were all studying hard to share our ideas on what we can do and what we should do.

-written by Chiharu Aizawa (Chair of JLA International Affairs Dept.)