How can you really help Christchurch and Japan recover from their ordeals?

At the moment, I am in beautiful New Zealand, preparing for a fundraising concert in Auckland for the victims of the Christchurch earthquake on February 22^nd this year.  People’s generosity has been incredible around the world, and I ate at a lovely restaurant last night on the Waterfront in Auckland called Euro, which raised over NZ$100,000 for the New Zealand Red Cross.  I am not at liberty to divulge the amount raised by the concert I am taking part in, but rest assured it is huge!

In both New Zealand and Japan, the Red Cross organizations for each country are working tirelessly to help those in need.  I would like to pay particular tribute to those that are working very long hours and putting themselves in harms way in order to help protect people and restore basic services to them.  In Christchurch, power engineers are working knee deep in raw sewage in order to make sure electric power is kept to those living in the area.

In Japan many engineers have put themselves in real danger in order to prevent an even more major catastrophe occurring.  Make no bones about it; these are very brave people who are hardly seeing their families, some of whom who have lost families themselves.  The fact that the Fukishima plant is recovering is tribute to their efforts, and while there are still obvious concerns, there is confidence that things should return to normal.

The wounds run deeper than the physical damage, though.  Many people have been killed and are still missing, and the amount per capita is not so very different in New Zealand as in Japan.  My thoughts continue to be with both the people of Christchurch, Canterbury and Japan.  It will take a long time for things to be completely ‘normal’.

One thing I have noticed in the spirit of both New Zealand and Japan, is that people are being united and brought together, and old rivalries are being put aside to come to the assistance of those in their fellow citizens.  There is still a long way to go, but both countries have started their journey to recovery.

So what can we outside New Zealand and Japan do to help?  The most obvious way is to donate money to Red Cross in New Zealand and in Japan, and to that end, I will add links to both charities on this blog.  But how can we help in a more practical way?

Tourism is very important for both the Japanese and especially the New Zealand economies.  The countries’ ability to rebuild their shattered buildings and infrastructure will be reliant on the public purse to pay for much of the rebuilding and recovery.

In New Zealand, tourism has been hit hard by the earthquake of 6 weeks ago.  I have stated on Facebook and twitter that New Zealand is open for business and for exploring.  Much of Christchurch is still cordoned off, but there is still so much to see in one of the most beautiful countries on earth.  On the south island you have the mountains and lakes of Queenstown and routes down to Milford Sound.  You also have Napier on the coast, a city devastated by an earthquake in the 1930’s and rebuilt as an art-deco town.  You have the wineries of Otago and Marlborough, which produce some wonderful Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc among others.  On the North Island, you have the beautiful but windy capital city of Wellington with its many cafes and bars along a beautiful coastline, as well as many museums.  Further north you have the sulphur active (you will know by the smell!) mud pools of Rotorua with its lovely town centre serving wonderful pies in shops and a beautiful small museum that pays tribute to a volcanic disaster many years ago.

Further north again, you have the largest city in New Zealand, Auckland with its iconic harbour and skyline.  If you’re very brave you can come down the sky ride on the front of the building (not me!). Here you have even more wineries of Gisborne (if you have seen the wine Cloudy Bay in your supermarket, this is where it comes from) and the island of Waiheke also has quite a few wineries and restaurants to enjoy.

Japan is obviously more complicated.  North of Tokyo there are areas still fenced off for public safety.  But there are still places to visit.  Further south you have Osaka, you also have Kobe, famous for its massaged cows that make the most expensive steak in the world.  You then have the tranquility of Kyoto, and beautiful Fukuoka (the last time I was there last March it snowed!), which is on the south west coast of the southern island.  Further north you have the busy city of Kanazawa, with its temples and wonderful views of the Japanese Alps.

Yes please continue to donate money to charities supporting recovery and support in both New Zealand and Japan.  But we can do more.  Neither country is closed to visitors.  If you can, visit them.  Let’s let them know that they are not on their own, and explore their beautiful countries and help them move forward.  Some areas are out of bounds.  Some areas are dangerous still, and of course we should all take appropriate precautions and advice.  But if you had a trip planned to New Zealand or Japan and are reconsidering, do think again.  There are areas devastated by the disasters, but we can show our support for the people of these great nations by continuing to visit and let them know that they aren’t on their own.

http://www.redcross.org.nz/cms_display.php

http://www.jrc.or.jp/english/relief/l4/Vcms4_00002070.html