Side By Side (2014)

The Philippines: Almost 6 months have passed since monster typhoon Yolanda hit. Japanese support groups continue their aid efforts on the ground, utilizing their knowledge from Japan's own disaster experiences. An NGO led by Sadakazu Ikawa, who was an evacuee during the 1995 Great Hanshin Earthquake, is currently supplying building materials to people who lost their homes. A company with cutting-edge water filtering technology has stepped in to help in the midst of a water shortage crisis. The Japanese government is also moving to support towns worst hit by the disaster in their recovery process. The program follows their commitment to helping with restoration, working side by side with the local people.

This year, the Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties has begun full-scale restoration of the Angkor ruins in Cambodia. Having restored the Heijo Palace in Nara, the Institute is known for its careful restoration methods based on thorough research and surveying. Having already carried out extensive surveying of the area, restoration of the Angkor ruins is finally ready to begin this year. This program is an up-close look at how Japan and Cambodia are cooperating to preserve the ruins, and highlights Japan's unique way of contributing to the international community through protecting cultural heritage sites.

Surabaya city in Indonesia is working to dramatically reduce garbage by adopting a new waste management system. Such efforts have been supported by Kitakyushu, a city in western Japan which has overcome its own pollution issues in the past through effective cooperation between the government, private companies and the community. The 2 cities are now aiming to expand its cooperation to create a business platform and potentially serve as a model to solving waste issues in Indonesia and other Asian cities.

Dominica, a small Caribbean country with a population of about 70,000, is now exerting efforts to make the best use of its resources and achieve a more independent economy. Mitsuhiro Ishida of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has been working with the locals with a focus on establishing a sustainable method of fishing and promoting the custom of eating fish within the country. The program documents the process as they work together in developing a new fishery industry in Dominica.

A Japanese firm is helping to strengthen Vietnam's coal mining business. A few decades ago, there were nearly 1,000 coal mines across Japan, but now Kushiro Coal Mine is the only major coal mining company still in business. Its primary task is sharing Japan's coal mining skills with miners overseas with a special focus on safety. Watch how Japan's long-established mining techniques and work ethics are helping the young miners of Vietnam.

Mongolia is located in East Asia with around half of the population living in rural areas. Many people live nomadic lifestyles in which horse-riding and motorcycle accidents frequently occur. The program follows the efforts of young Mongolian physicians working with a group of Japanese experts to spread the use of "Judo Therapy", a traditional method of treating bone fractures which can be administered with the use of hands and various materials available at home.

Bangladesh is a land of rivers with an acute drinking water shortage. The small Japanese company Nippon Poly-Glu saw they could solve this problem with a unique purifying agent developed from natto, the traditional Japanese food. The key factor was letting local representatives decide themselves how to promote and sell the product. We see how the company worked side by side with local communities both to develop a business and to solve a nation's drinking water problems.