The Japan-America Society of Washington DC is recruiting volunteers to help with this year’s National Japan Bowl competition. Now in its 30^th year, the 2022 National Japan Bowl will be held online via Hopin on April 21-22 as Digital Japan Bowl III.

 

Each spring the Japan-America Society of Washington DC brings together 200 of the country’s top high school-level Japanese language students for two days of competition, cultural events, and networking. The National Japan Bowl is a high-intensity competition that tests the students' knowledge of Japanese language, and of the culture, history, and social context that brings the language to life.

JASWDC is looking for volunteers to serve as preliminary round monitors to help guide the students through the preliminary round. Volunteers are assigned to one team during each preliminary round of the competition and share the pre-recorded video of the preliminary round questions, distribute answer sheets, make sure students adhere to competition Code of Conduct. It's a rewarding position that allows volunteers to engage with the students and experience the competition questions. Knowledge of the Japanese language is not necessary. Volunteers will receive training in advance.

 

For any questions, please reach out to japanbowl@jaswdc.org.

DJB III Volunteer Flyer_Final.pdf

SBA Offers Disaster Assistance to Businesses and Residents in Central Alabama Affected by October Severe Storms and Flooding  

NEWS RELEASE

Disaster Field Operations Center East 

Release Date: Dec. 23, 2021 Contact: Michael Lampton (404) 331-0333  Michael.Lampton@sba.gov 

Release Number: 22-110, AL 17289/17290 Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Blogs & Instagram 

WASHINGTON – Low-interest disaster loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) are  available to businesses and residents in Alabama following the announcement of a Presidential  disaster declaration due to severe storms and flooding on Oct. 6 - 7, 2021. 

“SBA’s mission-driven team stands ready to help Alabama small businesses and residents impacted by  this disaster in every way possible under President Biden’s disaster declaration for certain affected  areas,“ said SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman. “We’re committed to providing federal  disaster loans swiftly and efficiently, with a customer-centric approach to help businesses and  communities recover and rebuild.” 

The disaster declaration covers Jefferson and Shelby counties in Alabama, which are eligible for both  Physical and Economic Injury Disaster Loans from the SBA. Small businesses and most private nonprofit  organizations in the following adjacent counties are eligible to apply only for SBA Economic Injury  Disaster Loans: Bibb, Blount, Chilton, Coosa, Saint Clair, Talladega, Tuscaloosa and Walker in Alabama.  

Businesses and private nonprofit organizations of any size may borrow up to $2 million to repair or  replace disaster-damaged or destroyed real estate, machinery and equipment, inventory, and other  business assets. Applicants may be eligible for a loan amount increase up to 20 percent of their physical  damages, as verified by the SBA, for mitigation purposes. Eligible mitigation improvements may include  a safe room or storm shelter, sump pump, elevation, retaining walls, and landscaping to help protect  property and occupants from future damage caused by a similar disaster. 

For small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and  most private nonprofit organizations, the SBA offers Economic Injury Disaster Loans to help meet  working capital needs caused by the disaster. Economic Injury Disaster Loan assistance is available  regardless of whether the business suffered any physical property damage. 

Disaster loans up to $200,000 are available to homeowners to repair or replace disaster-damaged or  destroyed real estate. Homeowners and renters are eligible for up to $40,000 to repair or replace  disaster-damaged or destroyed personal property. 

Interest rates are as low as 2.855 percent for businesses, 2 percent for nonprofit organizations and  1.563 percent for homeowners and renters, with terms up to 30 years. Loan amounts and terms are set  by the SBA and are based on each applicant’s financial condition. 

Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at  https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov/ela/s/, and should apply under SBA declaration #17289, not for  the COVID-19 incident.

To be considered for all forms of disaster assistance, applicants should register online at  DisasterAssistance.gov or download the FEMA mobile app. If online or mobile access is unavailable,  applicants should call the FEMA toll-free helpline at 800-621-3362. Those who use 711-Relay or Video  Relay Services should call 800-621-3362.  

Businesses and individuals may also obtain information and loan applications by calling the SBA’s  Customer Service Center at 1-800-659-2955 (1-800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or emailing DisasterCustomerService@sba.gov. Loan applications can also be downloaded at  sba.gov/disaster. Completed applications should be mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration,  Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155. 

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is Feb. 21, 2022. The deadline  to return economic injury applications is Sept. 21, 2022. 

About the U.S. Small Business Administration 

The U.S. Small Business Administration makes the American dream of business ownership a reality. As the only  go-to resource and voice for small businesses backed by the strength of the federal government, the SBA  empowers entrepreneurs and small business owners with the resources and support they need to start, grow  or expand their businesses, or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive  network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit  sba.gov.

Toyota Alabama’s Future is Electrified and Turbocharged

Plant revs up exclusive production for two new engines, going in the 2022 Tundra!

Huntsville, Ala. (October 18, 2021) – Together with state and community leaders, Toyota Alabama held an event to celebrate the first of Toyota’s latest engine products for the all-new 2022 Tundra to come off the production line. The new engines, a hybrid electric powered twin-turbo V6 engine and the gas-powered twin-turbo V6 engine, usher in the next era of powertrains being assembled in Huntsville.

Toyota’s new twin-turbo V6 engine line was part of a $288 million investment that also added 450 new jobs. That represented the largest hiring need in Toyota Alabama’s history, , boosting the plant’s total employment to 1,800. Completion of this project – originally announced in February 2019 - marked the fifth expansion at Toyota Alabama. Toyota Alabama’s total cumulative investment is $1.2 billion and now boasts an annual engine capacity of 900,000.

Toyota Alabama is the sole producer of both engine models for the 2022 Tundra in North America, creating long term employment stability for the plant’s 1,800 workers.

“Our team members in Alabama recognize the confidence and trust Toyota places in us since we are the only plant selected to build engines for the all-new Tundra,” shared Jason Puckett, president of Toyota Alabama. “Launching the new twin-turbo V6 line and celebrating our 20th anniversary remind us here just how lucky we are to have such incredible team members who have made Toyota Alabama known as ‘the engine capital of the world’.”

At 142 yards, both of the twin-turbo V6 engine options for the 2022 Tundra are being built on the longest Toyota engine line in North America. The V6 Turbo line will produce a new engine every 58 seconds, with a capacity to build 18,000 engines each month. These additional engines push the total capacity for Toyota Alabama engine production to up to 900,000 engines per year.

The all-new 2022 Tundra goes on sale later this year. The standard i-FORCE 3.5L twin-turbo produces up to 389 horsepower and 479 lb.-ft of torque. The i-FORCE MAX powertrain boasts 437 horsepower and 583 lb. -ft of torque, making it the most powerful engine in the Toyota line-up.

“For the last 20 years, our state and Toyota Motor Manufacturing Alabama have shared a mutually beneficial relationship that has created remarkable outcomes for Alabamians,” Governor Ivey said.

“Toyota’s $288 million investment to produce the all-new twin-turbo V6 engine continues to demonstrate that Alabama is not only open for business, but is the best place to do business.” Toyota Alabama is hiring. To learn more visit toyotamanufacturingjobs.com.

About Toyota

Toyota (NYSE:TM) has been a part of the cultural fabric in the U.S. for more than 60 years, and is committed to advancing sustainable, next-generation mobility through our Toyota and Lexus brands, plus our nearly 1,500 dealerships.

Toyota has created a tremendous value chain and directly employs more than 36,000 in the U.S. The company has contributed world-class design, engineering, and assembly of more than 30 million cars and trucks at our 9 manufacturing plants, 10 including our joint venture in Alabama that began production is September 2021.

To help inspire the next generation for a career in STEM-based fields, including mobility, Toyota launched its virtual education hub at www.TourToyota.com with an immersive experience and chance to visit many of our U.S. manufacturing facilities. The hub also includes a series of free STEM-based lessons and curriculum through Toyota USA Foundation partners, virtual field trips and more. For more information about Toyota, visit www.toyotanewsroom.com.

Media Contact:

Bekah Schmidt

256.788.4304

Bekah.schmidt@toyota.com

Please see below for a special opportunity from Natasha Lewin to participate in an HBO children's documentary featuring multicultural children and elders across America!

アメリカ全土の多文化の子供たちと年長者を特集したHBOの子供向けドキュメンタリーに参加する特別な機会については、以下で書いてあるメッセージをご覧ください。

CALL FOR PARTICIPANTS!  

Award-winning documentarians are working on a new children's documentary featuring an intergenerational conversation on what it means to be multiracial in America. As a way to highlight the diversity in experiences, their crew will interview older adults across 50 states and some of the U.S. territories.  The production is seeking to hear the stories of adults who are 70+ years old and identify with two or more races and/or families with a mixed race child between the ages of 6-12. 

 

If you are interested in learning more, please contact natasha.lewin@hboprod.com

 

No acting experience necessary.

受賞歴のあるHBOドキュメンタリーは、アメリカで多民族であることの意味についての世代間の会話を特集した新しい子供向けドキュメンタリーに取り組んでいます。 経験の多様性を強調する方法として、彼らの乗組員は50の州といくつかの米国領土の高齢者にインタビューします。 この作品は、70歳以上で、6〜12歳の混血の子供を持つ2つ以上の人種や家族と同一視する大人の話を聞くことを目的としています。

詳細については、natasha.lewin @ hboprod.comまでお問い合わせください。

演技の経験は必要ありません。

Please see the article below discussing the 43^rd joint meeting of the Southeast US-Japan and Japan-US Southeast Associations virtual meeting.  The link is included in the article or you can click here to watch the video.

Virtual SEUS-Japan meeting focuses on strong ties, growth potential

November 03, 2021

Words by Jerry Underwood

The robust economic and cultural ties between the U.S. Southeast and Japan are on full display in a virtual meeting of organizations dedicated to strengthening the long-standing relationship between seven Southern states and the Asian nation.

The 43^rd joint meeting of the Southeast U.S.-Japan and Japan-U.S. Southeast Associations had been set for October 2021 in Tokyo, after the 2020 installment was canceled due to COVID-19. Organizers decided to hold the meeting virtually because of the pandemic

A video of the virtual meeting, featuring remarks from Japanese officials and Alabama Governor Kay Ivey and leaders from other Southeastern states, is now available for viewing. Click here to watch the video.

Teruo Asada, chairman of the Japan-SEUS Association and a former leader of the Marubeni Corp., said Japanese companies have been major investors in the Southeast, with over 1,500 Japanese companies investing a combined $60 billion in the region, generating around 200,000 jobs.

Plus, he added, Japanese companies have continued to invest in the Southeast during the pandemic, highlighted by Mazda Toyota Manufacturing’s $830 million additional investment in its joint assembly plant in Huntsville, which began production in September.

In her remarks, Governor Ivey praised the SHOWA Group, the only U.S. producer of single-use nitrile gloves for health care workers. During the pandemic, SHOWA’s expansion project at its Fayette facility doubled production to 2 million gloves per day, and it is now working on another large-scale growth project there.

“This is just one example of our Japanese investors working to help to Alabama and the world fight COVID-19,” she said.

Governor Ivey said Southeastern leaders need to sustain the strong bonds between the region and Japan that have been forged over decades.

“As we look toward the future, we must continue to build upon the rich history of business collaboration between the Southeast United States and Japan,” she said.

“Let’s continue to move forward in finding ways to strengthen this partnership between our great region and Japan to fully realize the opportunities for the benefits for all of our citizens.”

FINANCIAL IMPACT

Alabama today is home to around 80 Japanese companies, involved in industries including chemicals, steel, advanced materials and nutritional supplements in addition to a heavy concentration in automotive manufacturing.

Since 2015, Japanese investment in Alabama has totaled $4.4 billion, resulting in over 7,500 jobs, according to Commerce data. Two-way trade between Alabama and Japan totaled nearly $2 billion in 2020.

“The relationship with Japan is strong not just for the state but for our local communities,” said Greg Canfield, Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce. “We all utilize the SEUS Japan conference to connect with our Japanese investors, and it is particularly useful when the conference is in Japan. It provides us an invaluable opportunity to enhance the relationship personally.

“I know we are all looking forward to the time when we can meet face-to-face and deepen connections with our Japanese friends.”

Florida will host the 44^th Annual meeting in the Fall of 2022.  More details will be shared as those plans are put into place.  If you have any questions, please contact me at Hilda Lockhart, AL SEUS Japan Coordinator email: hilda.lockhart@commerce.alabama.gov or 334-328-2460.

-----------------------------------

Relo Redac, Inc.

全米リロケーション・総合不動産サービス

URL: www.reloredac.com

-----------------------------------

『激動の米国賃貸マーケット！今、企業にできることは？』

日時：8月20日（金）

東部時間 午後4時 / 中部時間 午後3時 / 山岳時間 午後2時 / 西部時間 午後1時

会場：ZOOM※定員500名

内容（仮）：

1.　米国賃貸マーケットの基礎知識

2. 2020 年コロナで住宅マーケットの”何”が変わったか

3. 2021 年ポストコロナの異常事態

4.　ポストコロナで生じた問題点

5.　今、企業にできることは？

6. Q&A

参加者へのリアルタイムでのアンケートも企画しております。

当日参加される日系企業各社の対応や状況など共有して参りますので、皆様のご参加をお待ち申し上げております。

【参加登録リンク】

https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_dr4MhX-0SXKOSRt4iNSiAA

Pecha Kucha, which means 'chit-chat' in Japanese is a presentation style where 20 slides are shown for 20 seconds each, creating a presentation of 6 minutes and 40 seconds in total. This style was created by architects Astrid Klein and Mark Dytham of Tokyo’s Klein Dytham to have “More show. Less tell,” and streamline design presentations to below 7 minutes.

Now it is used by millions around the globe, becoming the world’s fastest-growing storytelling platform. Global innovators in school or business use the PechaKucha platform to create powerful, visually-compelling stories that move audiences. There are also separate events called 'PK Nights' where anyone's Pecha Kucha story can be shared. These events have an attendance of anywhere from from 50 to 5,000 people.

Visit the official website and the accompanying links to watch some presentations, learn about the history and execution of PK, and even create your own Pecha Kucha!!

Official Site

How to Make Great Presentations the Pecha Kucha Way

How to plan, present, & survive a Pecha Kucha style presentation

How the EU's VAT Tax Changes

Impact Small Businesses

Beginning on July 1^st, 2021, the EU enacted new regulations surrounding tax collection and tariff labels. It aims to “simplify VAT obligations” for all goods and services sellers.

The VAT rules on cross-border business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce activities have changed. The rationale for these changes is to overcome the barriers to cross-border online sales and address challenges arising from the VAT regimes for distance sales of goods and for the importation of low value consignments.

Everyone in the e-commerce supply chain is affected, from online sellers and marketplaces/platforms both inside and outside the EU, to postal operators and couriers, customs and tax administrations, right through to consumers.

• All goods priced up to €150 will be subject to the VAT. This contrasts with the previous rule that exempted items priced under €22 from the VAT. Items priced above €150 were already subject to VAT and will not see any change in regulations.
• Services such as “Import One-Stop Shop” (IOSS) that assist in collecting the VAT are expected to be required for sellers in online markets.
• Businesses should begin collecting the VAT on all goods sold for up to €150. IOSS or third-party shippers such as Fed-Ex and UPS may be used by sellers to easily charge VAT. In reference to tariff codes, business can find the corresponding codes for their products via tools from the European Taxation and Customs Commissions and the U.S. International Trade Commission.

More Information Here

Auburn University dedicated the new standard for structural engineering research laboratories today.

Link to full Article with video Here

Located at the corner of West Samford Avenue and Shug Jordan Parkway, the new $22 million Advanced Structural Engineering Laboratory (ASEL) is a state-of-the-art 42,000-square-foot facility that includes a high bay laboratory with a strong wall and strong floor specially engineered to handle extreme structural testing loads; a geotechnical chamber within the strong floor; a concrete materials research and testing laboratory; wind testing capabilities that can replicate hurricane-level loads; and faculty and graduate student spaces.

The lab allows for elements up to 140 feet long and features a 4,700-cubic-foot geotechnical test chamber within the strong floor footprint — the only such test chamber in the nation included in a university laboratory — that will allow the department’s geotechnical researchers to conduct testing on foundations, anchorages and towers previously only possible in the field.

Auburn University President Jay Gogue, one of several university officials who spoke at the Friday afternoon event, described the ASEL as “a beacon for research, leading the nation and the world in groundbreaking technological advancements in structures and load resistance testing.”

“The Advanced Structural Engineering Laboratory is the next step in elevating Auburn University’s prestige,” Gogue told the more than 200 attendees. “It will allow for our exemplary faculty to find life-saving solutions to extreme events by creating more sound buildings, bridges, towers, pipelines and machinery that can withstand the forces of nature. And the new Advanced Structural Engineering Laboratory provides a unique, hands-on learning experience for our students.”

Auburn University Trustee Charles McCrary, ’73 mechanical engineering, also took the podium to praise the lab’s potential.

“This is a world-class lab that in my opinion is second to none,” said McCary, retired president and chief executive officer of Alabama Power Company. “We can make this world a safer place because of this facility. It's an engineer's dream."

Though that dream has been a reality since the ASEL opened its doors late last year, College of Engineering administrators postponed the dedication due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Christopher B. Roberts, dean of engineering, thinks the delay may have worked out for the best.

“While this dedication ceremony was delayed, I am actually glad it is taking place now that the laboratory is already being utilized,” Roberts told the audience. “Now you can see the equipment we have set up across the laboratory, and I would challenge you to find a graduate student after our program and ask them about the great projects they are undertaking in this space.”

The only thing graduate student Dan Jackson, who will graduate this fall, dislikes about the ASEL is how little he’ll be able to use it.

“I won’t have much of a chance to really use this facility,” Jackson said from the podium. “But this lab will definitely be a draw to top graduate students all around the world as it provides the opportunity to work at a state-of-the-art facility and participate in innovative research.”

Steve Taylor, associate engineering dean for research, agrees.

“We now offer one of the best laboratories in the country — if not the best,” he said. “If I’m a student who wants to be a structural engineer, this is the best place to go to school in the nation.”

"Just because World Trade Month 2021 is over doesn't mean you can't still learn from the international trade experts"

The Alabama International Trade Center® has provided access to free webinars hosted by Shipping Solutions® that took place for Free trade Month. These webinars have representatives of NASBITE International®, Law Office of Jack Shelton, Minnesota Export District Council™ and many more present to discuss all things Exporting! 

Please enjoy these webinars here: Free Webinars on Exporting