Pro Bono Volunteers
Haruki Kato
The Nippon Foundation
The Nippon Foundation
Using Skills for Social Contribution
Indepth Articles
[Feb. 05, 2010]
From left: Ikoma, Chibana, Oguro
TOKYO -- On December 5th, a forum was held on the theme of pro bono volunteerism. It was cold rainy day, but the three hundreds seats in the conference room were full. Most participants seemed to be in their twenties or thirties. The forum had been organized to introduce the concept of volunteering one's skills rather than just time or money in order to take part in social activities.
Participants listening attentatively
The word "pro bono" originally comes from the Latin Pro Bono Publico, meaning “for the public good.” More specifically, the term refers to specialists who use their skills for social contribution. The concept is relatively new in Japan and the non-profit, Service Grant, organized the forum as part of an effort to increase awareness in the country.
What knowledge and how many hours can I offer?
The NPO, which receives support from The Nippon Foundation, encourages social entrepreneurs to provide their expertise and skills, teaming up with NPOs to help them design and create their websites and pamphlets.
The December forum started with an explanation of the concept of pro bono volunteerism, and reported on the comparatively advanced activities in the United States. To begin the forum, fashion journalist Yoshiko Ikoma, fashion model and reporter Kurara Chibana, and editor-in-chief Kazumi Oguro of the environmental magazaine Sotokoto discussed the concept of supporting NPO activities through skills and techniques.
Exchange of opinions
Following this, a computer programmer who has taken part in a pro bono team, reported on his experience with an NPO that focusses on postnatal care and the care of sick children. A representative of the bar association explained the history of free legal counseling in Japan--the traditional form that pro bono activities have taken in this country. In these reports, it was emphasized that pro bono work is related to each person’s specialized field, and that those who take part in it often receive the unexpected benefit of watching their own networks expand.
“WANTED! PRO BONO” posters at the conference hall
After the introduction, participants split up into groups of ten for a workshop and discussed their own potentials for such work. In total, it was calculated that they would be capable of providing 29,000 hours of free work, for a total value of 100,000,000 yen. On hearing this, they seemed to really sit up and take interest, and as a group declared that 2010 would be the real start of pro bono volunteerism in Japan.