Waiting as Support, Listening as Aid: A Case Study of Student Disaster Volunteeringafter the 2004 Mid-Niigata Prefecture Earthquake

摘要

Disaster volunteering as a participatory approach to disaster mitigation was investigatedby examining a case study of student disaster volunteering following the 2004 Mid-Niigata Prefecture Earthquake on October 23, 2004, which caused serious damage inNiigata Prefecture in Japan. Immediately after the quake, we started promoting disastervolunteering based on mid- and long-term perspectives. A student group worked as disastervolunteers in collaboration with a consortium of other disaster nonprofit organizations.Through the student activities, the group established a moderately familiar relationship—neither too close nor too distant—with the residents of temporary housing. In this article,the significance of the students' volunteer activities was examined based on a philosophicaldiscussion about waiting and listening. Furthermore, the importance of liberation from therigid relationship of aid provider and aid receiver is discussed.