All aboutKATARIBAEnglish

Aiming for a Future
Where All Teenagers Can Be
Motivated and Creative

We believe in the importance of meeting new people, talking, worries, and learning during your sensitive age of adolescense. It is equally important to find your role model, the person whom you aspire to be.

All of this turns into the motivation and creativity to carve out one's future.

In Japan, however, society is becoming more divided and the economic disparity widened.
The "opportunity gap" is growing based on what environment you grew up in or the education that you received.

There are children in disaster-afflicted areas who have lost so much. There are children in poor family environment who have given up their dreams. There are children who pass the days wandering and doing nothing.

No matter what environment they grew up in,
they should be able to develop their motivation and creativity to make their own future.

Since 2001, Katariba has been delivering learning experiences and opportunities for interaction to schools. Katariba is also working on creating spaces and turns in society for teenagers.

Why We Do,
What We Do

In this era where unpredictable transformation is taking place, the motivation and creativity to create one's own future are essential qualities for all young people.

Teenagers in Japan tend to have low self-esteem, little self-confidence and motivation.

"I think I am a person of value."Proportion of high-school students that answered
"agree" or "somewhat agree" to the question.

Survey Report on Awareness of Mental and Physical Health of High
School Students: A comparison of Japan, USA, China and South Korea
March 2018, National Institute for Youth Education

Furthermore, Japanese society is seeing a widening
"opportunity gap" depending on one's background.

  • Depopulated
    areas

    Depopulated areas make it difficult for the youth to make plausible career choices as they cannot find a role model nearby.

  • Disasters

    Disasters deprive teenagers of everyday life. After the disaster, they will be completely exhausted without hopes or dreams for the future.

  • Family
    environment

    Family environment may force teenagers to give up on dreams or hopes for getting higher education. The economic condition also makes it difficult for them to pursue what they want.

Bringing up teenagers with complicated background is
stretching parents and schools to their limits.

Many teenagers do not share important issues with their parents. Such tendency turns the burden on teachers who are expected to work more. It now becomes more difficult for parents and teachers to comprehend everything about their children and students and to provide necessary support.

No more brushing it aside as their own fault, and no more throwing it on parents and schools.
Katariba aimes to create a new paradigm in which we overcome the opportunity gap,
and all teenagers can develop their motivation and creativity.

Our Activities

Katariba focuses on four main areas and develop and provide services for teenagers.
Katariba is engaged in activities nationwide that offer learning experiences and opportunities for interaction at schools.
Katariba aims for creating spaces and turns in society dedicated to teenagers.

Theme_01

DISCOVER

Making a teenage life full
of exploration

Teenagers should be able to spend each day filled with activities to pursue what interests them. Katariba provides inspiration for students and expose them to explorative themes through its programs. The programs are rolled out across schools, after-school clubs, and local areas. The programs offered are:

#Katariba Program#My Project#Youth centers for middle schoolers#On-campus youth centers#Search support coordinators

Theme_02

RESILIENCE

Creating a future out of
adversity

Children need to have a place where they feel safe and comfortable at heart in order to move forward. Especially for teenagers who are wrapped up in problems at home, Katariba is developing programs and spaces to give them peace of mind. The programs are:

#Learning Centers#Truancy support#Kids cafeteria#Youth support coordinators

Theme_03

GLOCAL

Developing future academic
ability in the countryside

Being raised in the countryside can bring many chances for motivation and creativity. Katariba is developing original educational programs that make use of the rich human connections, culture, and beautiful nature of the countryside, and which create a new learning environment tailored to each region and connect teenagers to the world. The programs offered under this premise are:

#High school support coordinators#Education administration support#High school makeovers

Theme_04

POSTTRAUMATIC
GROWTH

Turning the sorrow from disaster
into strength

No child should have to give up their dreams due to natural disasters. Katariba is working in collaboration with schools and education authorities to pool resources and provide educational support to disaster-affected areas, while examining the needs of the disaster based on its scale and location. The programs Katariba offers under this framework are:

#Collabo-schools#Education administration support for disaster-affected areas#Emergency youth support coordinators

NPO Katariba
Locations

Katariba currently runs 7 locations nationwide regularly visited by teenagers as of April 2021.
Adding our headquarters, we run our various programs and projects from 8 locations.

Our Strengths

Katariba has three unique strengths.

1

A mutual growth model of
diagonal relationships

Different from teachers and parents (vertical) or classmates and friends (horizontal), seniors who are "one step ahead" can create a diagonal relationship that lights teenagers' internal spark. These innovative relationships form the core of all our activities.

2

Methods and initiatives
that match teenagers

There are five steps to building motivation and creativity in teenagers. Katariba improves and evolves our programs on daily basis at every stage.

3

A strong organizational culture that
fosters personal growth

Holding at its core a strong sense of purpose among teammates that nurture personal growth and joy to work, Katariba's organizational culture enables its individuals and teams to continue progressing.

See NPO Katariba
on Video

MovieaboutKATARIBA動画で見るNPOカタリバ

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2:51

Our Activities in
Numbers

Figures from 2023
(1st September 2023 to 31st August 2024)

Supported Teenagers'
Voices

It's a place where you can
discover who you want to be

I think that Otsuchi Ringakusha isn't just a place to study, it's also a place where you can meet many different people and discover what you want to do. When you find that person you want to be like, what you want to do gradually becomes clearer. If the earthquake hadn't happened, I wouldn't have lost things dear to me or have these painful memories. However, the Ringakusha came to Otsuchi after the earthquake happened, and many supportive people came, so I feel I got something valuable out of it.

It's different to school, prep
school, or the children's home.
It's a place that made my mind
unbreakable.

I received so much from there, I really cannot thank them enough. I grew so much mentally and in how I think; they always listened seriously to what I had to say and then properly thought about it. They gave me confidence by recognizing what I was struggling with, and helped me make an unbreakable mindset that makes me think "keep going!" whenever I am depressed or irritated. Because of this, I want to come back as a staff member once I become a college student, and pass on what I received.

Organization
Profile

Awards (excerpt)

Media (excerpt)

22nd August, 2009 -
Cover and Special Feature in
Time Magazine (Asia/Oceania Edition)

Donate to
Katariba

There are many children with painful memories caused by various hardships
such as natural disasters or the environment in which they grew up.
Katariba has been providing educational opportunities to children like these thanks to the donations from
compassionate individuals and companies.
Will you support these children's futures with your donation?

We are currently recruiting Katariba Supporters, who regularly donate every month from ¥1,000.
You are of course welcome to donate at the amount and frequency of your convenience.

Donations for Katariba
/ Enquiries

If you would like to know more about Katariba's work, or would like to make a donation,
please contact us below:
If you want to donate as a corporation, please click here

contact us

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