Why Japan

I quickly changed schools to start in a pilot program at the Orange College of TAFE called “Pathways” that not only offered Japanese language (which my high school did not), it provided practical skill development which I was also interested in.  Unfortunalty, while I graduated from the course with a Bar Operations certificate,  Accounts Clerical certificate, First Aid certificate and a Tourism and Hospitality certificate (Grade 2), the language teacher who taught Japanese for the course managed to “assist” each and every student fail 2 unit z (basic) Japanese.

Basically, this resulted in a lower than expected TER and non-acceptance into the courses I had applied for. Shocked into action, I decided that the thing that kept me from university was Japanese, so I needed to go to Japan and learn how to speak it properly. While it is normally not possible to organise an exchange program in less than 6 months, within three I had arrived in Japan thanks to the Tamworth branch of the Lions Club.

I was sent to Sasebo on the island of Kyushu in southern Japan. While there I attended both Japanese high school and primary school. My experience at both locations in con-junction with my experiences living with three different host families (all of which could not speak English) gave me the motivation I needed to develop. While I will not go into all of the experiences I had there, it is during this period that I developed foundational elements of Japanese language and culture that have pushed me along the path I am currently on.

Upon returning to Australia, I returned to my hospitality base by working for the Nikko Hotel Darling Harbor. There I developed my customer relation skills, and event management knowledge, while at certain times of the night, also playing the role as the only person on staff who could speak Japanese. After nearly a year there I found a position for greater pay and greater responsibility working for the Regent Hotel Sydney. I had decided at this point in my life that I was sold on the world of hospitality (which originally goes back to when I was on summer vacation, working at the Hyatt Hotel in Saipan.)

After a little over a year at the Regent, a family reunion was organised in Hawaii.

After a little over a year at the Regent, a family reunion was organised in Hawaii. Young and confident, I convinced myself that I should quit my job at the Regent, sell or store everything in my apartment, pack my life down to two backpacks and go to live in Hawaii. My grand plan was to work in a resort in Hawaii for a year, at the same time as taking the SAT exam to enter into American University (all thanks to my US passport).

Part 1 of my plan is as far as I made it. I used all of my savings and the money I had on my credit card to finance interviews and travel over the big island. While I was successful in getting a job, they refused to give me health insurance (a very costly thing in the US) and so my dream was dashed. Coming back to Australia was tough. I had said my goodbyes on leaving, and was sure I would not be back any time soon.

First things first I had to get money to pay off my credit card and start again. I did so by borrowing $40 from my dad, and staying at the Backpacker HQ in Kings Cross (again using my US passport) while doing odd jobs here and there to earn money. On the list of jobs I worked at Harold Park Raceway in the members bar, shift bar work for events at the entertainment center, and in the end at the Woodfire Pizza company in Crows Nest as  a Bartender/cashier and then promoted to bar supervisor. In any case, I worked and saved until I had enough money for an apartment (it took about 4 months) and then moved out.

With that done I set my sights on university. I was just approaching my 21st birthday, and as such would then be eligible for the Undergraduate Preparation Program (to enter UNI as a mature age student). Long story short, I did very well in my course, and applied (and more importantly) was accepted into the University of New South Wales to do my BA Asian Studies.

Along the lines of my interest in Japan, I elected to study Advanced Japanese as a major. Pumped up with my confidence of my Japanese exchange I made a special application to start at third year. While my professor suggested that it would be better if I started in 2nd year, I insisted that while I knew it would be a challenge, I did not want to sit back and relax, I wanted to be pushed. I can not say that I was wrong, but that professor certainly was right. I struggled though advanced Japanese. While my listening and hearing skills were better than most in the class, my basic grammar suffered. I did not sit back and relax by any means. I begun setting up special meetings with my professor, who helped me specifically in the areas that needed attention. Many years later at my graduation from my Masters of Arts: International Relations, we agreed that she was really “the reason” I made it though. She was also the reason that I was accepted on my second exchange to Japan, to Kyoto University.

The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) plays a similar role to that of AUSTRADE. JETRO is a facilitator of trade, primarily Foreign Direct Investment into Japan in the form of opening new offices or distribution networks, however we also play a supporting role to our member companies. Most would be unaware that while JETRO receives over 90% of its funding directly from the Japanese Government, the remained comes from “Member Companies”. For these companies JETRO provides a supporting research function, which in my role as a Research Officer for Australia and the South Pacific Economies, in the simplest terms, I provide answers for there questions. These questions range from legislation, policy change, tariffs, market surveys, product inquiries, and pretty much anything else that you can imagine.

It is this broad base that provides the most stimulus in my position. Given the opportunity to constantly stay informed by digesting multiple newspapers and website a day, my knowledge is constantly stretched.

]]> http://jamesfridley.com/2008/02/jetro-sydney/feed/ 0 http://jamesfridley.com/2008/02/access/ http://jamesfridley.com/2008/02/access/#comments Thu, 31 Jan 2008 22:01:01 +0000 James http://jamesfridley.com/?p=30 Story of ACCESS

In 2004, while completing my Masters of International Affairs at the University of New South Wales, I formed a university group called MAIR (MAsters of International Relations). This group was formed to promote the social interaction of postgraduate students and increase the networking potential for the course I was taking. While there was some success getting teachers and students to come to events, the time constraints of those people I wished to involve became an obvious hurdle.

To substitute my interest in international relations based events, I started to attend and volunteer at the Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) NSW branch, however this event model did not match my desires. The membership base, while extremely experienced and of great value, were demographically difficult to mix with. Having searched around Sydney, unable to find a group that truly fit my needs, I created one.

In March of 2004, I got together a group of like minded individuals, and we set about creating ACCESS. ACCESS was set up underneath the AIIA to provide a catalyst for young interested people who wanted to get involved and have access to influential members of the international relations community, and to bolster a historically important organisation. While our first events provided hard lessons in event management, and the costs that could be incurred, through hard effort and determination we not only survived but proved that our model was viable.

During the period that I was chairman of ACCESS, the ACCESS model spread to Victoria and the ACT, and is currently on the verge of moving into the other states around Australia. I am very proud of the achievements of ACCESS, and especially thank the efforts of my team for making it a success. From the early days of 10-15 people attending events, to a contact list which reaches thousands, ACCESS is something that is here to stay.

To get a general idea of what ACCESS events we had while I was involved, please have a look through my Achievements.

Responsibilities/Experiences

• Managed relationships and direction within the ACCESS organising committee.
• Organised and chaired events, making sure members and guests enjoyed high quality experiences at all ACCESS events.
• Expanded ACCESS interstate (new branch in Melbourne and Canberra).
• Created opportunities for the committee to use and develop their personal experiences.
• Developed new web features to ensure the increased use of the ACCESS web site as a useful knowledge based tool.

Full Resume

Motivated by my acceptance into the Masters of International Relations program, again at the UNSW, I searched Sydney for a group that I could become a part of that would inform me and provide me with contacts. When I found the AIIA, I could not believe the consistent dealings I would have with current and former members of DFAT, ONA, UN, amongst many other “acronyms’. More importantly, the content of the events was intriguing. It was the first time I had been granted access to informed, experienced and educated people from within the international relations sphere. The doors of this world were now opened to me.

Rather than just show up, I immediately put up my hand to help run events and do office administration under the watchful eye of Louisa Graham (the Executive Officer of the NSW branch). This in turn opened more doors for me to members on the council and to the event speakers.

My involvement in the AIIA took a giant leap forward in March of 2004 when I founded ACCESS along with a group of like minded individuals. To ensure smooth communication with the council concerning the events and developments of ACCESS, I was elected to joined the NSW branch board.

Through out my involvement with the council I have consistently done my part in moving the organisation forward. This position offered me the opportunity to gain the experiences associated with being on the board of a not for profit organisation, and through my positions on both the speakers committee and the website development committee, to participate in the day to day affairs of the branch.

With the international relations community now open to me, the connections and contacts that I made during this period continue to be very valuable. Representing ACCESS and the AIIA, I have attended many events at organisations such as the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) the Lowy Institute for International Policy and SafeGuarding Australia. I was also very privileged to attend the APEC Second Track Dialogue in Melbourne in 2007.

I will always be grateful for the development and experiences I had at the AIIA, and the support of those around me. Those experiences are now the platform from which I will start the next stage of my career and life.

Responsibilities/Experiences

• Engaged in group management, budget consultations, event management and planning future directions of the organisation.
• Increased the number of younger members attending AIIA events, ensuring the growth and survival of this important institution.
• Liaison between ACCESS and the council, enabling the promotion of new directions and potential solutions to existing issues.

Full Resume