Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health scholars at FMU. Their “Field Trip to Fukushima” has begun!
The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health's 2026 “Field Trip to Fukushima” has brought 15 graduate students and 3 faculty members to our prefecture from Monday, January 5 to Friday, January 23. Starting with a campus and hospital tour, they deepened their understanding of our university's medical personnel training, conditions during the 2011 disaster, and our post-disaster facility infrastructure.
This program, now in its second year, brings participants to various locations within the prefecture for approximately three weeks to learn about recovery efforts that followed the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. This year’s Field Trip focuses on three themes: “Radiation & Environmental Health,” “Disaster Preparedness & Health System Resilience,” and “Community Recovery & Social Impact.” Participants explore “build back better” approaches grounded in specialized expertise.
Multinational Participants and Diverse Learning Opportunities
Participants include early- and mid-career graduate students from Brazil, Canada, China (including Hong Kong), India, South Korea, and the United States.
Site visits include the Fukushima City Public Health Center, Koriyama Women's University, the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, and the Great East Japan Earthquake and Nuclear Disaster Memorial Museum (in Futaba Town, on Fukushima’s Pacific coast). Additionally, FMU provides lectures by faculty and opportunities for interaction with our students, who also benefit greatly from this opportunity to reexamine Fukushima's progress from an international perspective.
Courtesy Visit on the First Day
Upon arrival, 15 students from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health met with FMU President and Chief Executive Seiichi TAKENOSHITA, who said, “It is a pleasure to welcome Harvard scholars again this year, as we approach the 15th anniversary of our disaster and ongoing recovery.”
Professor Aya GOTO, Project Professor at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Specially Appointed Professor at our university, was instrumental in establishing this course. “Our mission is to advance reconstruction while passing on the lessons we've learned to the next generation. I hope Harvard students will learn from Fukushima's experiences.”
Campus and Hospital Tour
Following the courtesy visit, participants joined a tour of our campus and affiliated hospital led by Professor Kenneth NOLLET of the Radiation Medical Science Center for the Fukushima Health Management Survey.
Ongoing Schedule at the University
On Tuesday, January 20, during the program period, the University will host a “Field Trip Report Session” where students will summarize their learning experiences in Fukushima.
Campus and Hospital Tour led by Professor Kenneth Nollet
Japanese version is here.