Inquiry in Japan - Day 4

Wednesday, January 5

In the morning we crossed the city to Hijiyama Park to visit the Radiation Effects Research Foundation, a scientific organization that was established as part of an agreement between the governments of the U.S. and Japan in dedication to the health of atomic bomb survivors and all of humanity. We were given a tour of the facility and a presentation on the study of the medical effects of radiation from the Associate Chief of Research, Dr. Evan Douple.

Then we returned to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum for an audience with Mayor of Hiroshima Tadatoshi Akiba. The Mayor, a former Tufts professor, gave us a lecture on the importance of working towards a world without nuclear weapons, and described his own policy proposals and work as a leader in the abolition of nuclear weapons. We then presented Mayor Akiba with the Jean Mayer Global Citizenship Award for his tireless work to foster peace and intercultural understanding both within his city and around the world, especially through his tenure as president of Mayors for Peace, a global network of nearly 5,000 mayors working toward banning nuclear weapons by 2020.

We departed for Tokyo in the evening.

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