In June of 2014, a workshop titled “PhotoVoice & Feminist Action Research: Towards Praxis” (フォトボイスとフェミニスト・アクション・リサーチ：プラクシスをめざして) was held at the Japan Society of Community Psychology 17th Annual Conference at Ritsumeikan University (Kyoto), in which researchers, students, and NGO members met to try the PhotoVoice approach and learn more about action research.
Moreover, co-director Mieko Yoshihama presented on “What PhotoVoice Has Made Visible” (フォトボイス・プロジェクトを通じて見えてきたもの) at the “Community Empowerment after the Great East Japan Disaster” panel of the Japan Society of Community Psychology conference. This paper was subsequently in the Japanese Journal of Community Psychology, 19(1).
In March of 2015, in collaboration with National Women’s Education Center (NWEC), a workshop titled “PhotoVoice & Archive: Disaster Prevention through Record and Transmission of Victim Experience” (フォトボイスとアーカイブ：多様な災害の記録と発信を防災に役立てる) at the United Nations Third World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction Public Forum. The photographs and written voices created by women affected by the disasters were used as a gateway to discuss matters of disaster prevention and reconstruction, with workshop participants divided into groups by select topics. This workshop was also aided by Japanese-English interpretors, allowing for international attendees to participate and learn about the current situation of disaster-affected areas and survivors, as well as the prospects and challenges on the road towards recovery.
PhotoVoice Project activies have also been presented at various academic conferences overseas, including the International Sociological Association, Society for Social Work Research, European Conference on Social Work Research, European Conference of Community Psychology, Society for Community Research & Action, and the Joint World Conference on Social Work Education and Social Devleopment. With topics ranging from social welfare, community psychology, sociology, community action and social development, these conferences have provided a platform for members’ photos and voices to present current problems and ongoing initiatives in disaster prevention and reconstruction.
A list of academic papers published on PhotoVoice thusfar can be found here:
Kuniko Muramoto, Kamiyama Machiko, Mieko Yoshihama, Dan Shiro, & Mitsuru Hisata, “Community Empowerment after the Great East Japan Disaster” symposium presented at the Japan Society of Community Psychology 17th Annual Conference, Japanese Journal of Community Psychology 19(1), 1-32.
Yoshihama, M. & Yunomae, T. (2018). Participatory investigation of the Great East Japan Disaster: PhotoVoice from women affected by the calamity, Social Work, 63(3), 234–243. https://doi.org/10.1093/sw/swy018
Yoshihama, M. (2018). PhotoVoice: Arts-based participatory research and action in post-disaster Japan. Social Dialogue, 19, 28-30.
Yoshihama, M. (2018). PhotoVoice Project: A Participatory Research and Action in post-disaster Japan. In E. Huss & E. Bos (Eds.), Using Art in Social Work Practice in social work: A handbook for arts in social work. London, UK: Routledge.
