1991-2000 | The Nippon Foundation

April1992-93

Worldwide Support for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Individuals Begins

Support for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals begins with the creation of an endowed scholarship fund for deaf and hard-of-hearing students from developing countries at Gallaudet University and the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) in the United States.
See Raising the Status of Sign Language for more.

April1994

Distribution of Welfare Vehicles Begins

A program to distribute welfare vehicles gets underway in fiscal 1994. Later, responding to changing needs and improvements in welfare policies for elderly persons and people with disabilities, the Foundation expands the lineup of wheelchair-accessible vans to include vehicles with bathing services, care facility transport services, and nursing services, as well as food carts that employ persons with disabilities.

Photo of a wheelchair user boarding a wheelchair-accessible vehicle

January1995

Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake

The Great Hanshin Awaji Earthquake has a profound effect on volunteer activities in Japan. With the local government immobilized by the catastrophe, ordinary civilians converge on Kobe to assist the relief effort. During a four-year period through March 1998, the Foundation assists 104 emergency reconstruction projects, and in 1996 establishes the Hanshin Awaji Community Fund to foster reconstruction work and volunteer activities. This leads to close links being forged among volunteer organizations and nonprofit organizations.

December1995

New Era of Leadership Under Ayako Sono

Ryoichi Sasakawa, who served as the Foundation’s first chairman, passes away in July 1995 at the age of 96. In December of that year, Ayako Sono, a writer and philanthropist, is appointed to take his place. In 1996 the nickname “Nippon Foundation” and logo mark are chosen. The logo mark, created by Shin Matsunaga, symbolizes the Foundation’s guiding vision, with a character representing happiness and harmony painted in colors evoking the ocean and Earth.

June1996

Start of the Hospice Program

A hospice research group is set up and a hospice program is inaugurated to raise awareness, train specialists, and improve facilities, in line with recommendations made regarding the promotion of hospice and palliative care. In addition to providing assistance for the creation of buildings and programs, the Foundation focuses its efforts on training doctors and hospice nurses who can provide quality end-of-life care.

Photo of hospice nurses discussing a case

January1997

Cleanup Assistance Following Sea of Japan Oil Spill

After the sinking of a Russian oil tanker (Nakhodka) in a storm causes a massive oil spill, the Foundation quickly teams up with a volunteer group that was established after the Kobe Earthquake and establishes a volunteer registry center near the site (Fukui Prefecture) to coordinate volunteer activities to assist with the cleanup. More than one thousand people from all over Japan rush in to work as volunteers.

February1998

Supporting the Nagano 1998 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

The Foundation covers various expenses associated with the 1998 Winter Games held in Nagano Prefecture, including operating expenses for the running of a volunteer center at the Paralympics, and also establishes contact with volunteer organizations and mobilizes a fleet of welfare vehicles to transport spectators with disabilities.

Photo of Nagano 1998 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games

April1999

Antipiracy Measures

Based on its surveys conducted in 1999 on damage from piracy, the Foundation becomes clearly aware of the need for countermeasures and proposes a coordinated effort throughout Asia. An Antipiracy Regional Conference, attended by representatives from coast guard agencies and maritime policymakers, is held in Tokyo in April 2000. This paves the way for the establishment of a new framework for international cooperation in maritime safety.

History

Worldwide Support for Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Individuals Begins