more Aid for Japan

Just found a website called Pay for Japan that has collected together various companies that are donating products for fundraising in Japan- including the fantastic book Art Space Tokyo. Great interviews of curators and directors of art spaces as well as maps and hits- I hope they send the new edition!

But you have to buy before the end of March

Aid for Japan

Art-it Asia has a listed some fundraising events for aid assistance for the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami. One of the projects listed asking for direct donation is by architect, Shigeru Ban and is a project to construct cardboard partitions for survivors living in relief centers in the Tohoku region.

Like in the Christchurch Earthquake, Red Cross Australia, re directs donations to the Japanese branch.

thinking of Japan

All of my friends are safe although very shaken and distressed with the strong after shocks.

The images of the tsunami leave me speechless. My thoughts and best wishes are with the people of Japan.

This is how I had my bed set up at TWS, I usually included a bottle of water too. The strange shaped thing is a torch. I had another helmet next to my desk, and one down stairs in the studio. I was paranoid- the TWS building is very new.

Andrew sykped with Utako in Tokyo yesterday, she was wearing one of these white helmets, her family in the north are all fine. I have heard from Hanako who was at TWS during the quake, everything and everyone there was fine, although she said it was terrifying. She had to walk back to Asakusa- a journey Kajsa and I did in reverse on our bikes home after a sento visit in February a year ago. It's a long way and disorientating - even more so if you are avoiding walking under the raised JR train lines.

New link to Avaaz petition to drop Haiti's debt

click here or on the top link on your right

Here is part of Avaaz request:

Even before the earthquake, Haiti was one of the world's poorest countries. After Haitian slaves rose up and won their independence in 1804, France demanded billions in reparations -- launching a spiral of poverty and unjust debt that has lasted two centuries.

In recent years, the tremendous worldwide campaign for debt relief has awoken the world's conscience. And in the last few days, under mounting public pressure, lenders have begun to say the right things about erasing Haiti's still-devastating debt burden.

But the devil is in the details. After the 2004 tsunami, the IMF announced relief from debt payments for stricken countries -- but the underlying debt went right on growing. Once public attention had faded, the debt payments were bigger than ever.

It's time to cancel Haiti's debt fully and without conditions, and ensure that earthquake aid is made with grants, not loans. A victory now will change lives in Haiti even after the world's attention has moved on. Join the call for debt relief, and pass this message to those who feel the same: