{"id":2359,"date":"2024-12-01T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-12-01T09:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/?page_id=2359"},"modified":"2025-12-03T15:35:29","modified_gmt":"2025-12-03T14:35:29","slug":"word-of-chairman","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/en\/word-of-chairman\/","title":{"rendered":"A word from the chairman"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<div class=\"wp-block-ugb-container ugb-container wide-header ugb-cd2fd07 ugb-container--v2 ugb-container--design-plain ugb-main-block\"><style>@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-cd2fd07.ugb-container{margin-top:-20px !important;margin-bottom:0px !important}}@media screen and (min-width:768px){.ugb-cd2fd07 > .ugb-inner-block > .ugb-block-content > *{padding-top:0px !important;padding-bottom:0px !important;padding-right:0px !important;padding-left:0px !important}}<\/style><div class=\"ugb-inner-block\"><div class=\"ugb-block-content\"><div class=\"ugb-container__wrapper ugb-cd2fd07-wrapper\"><div class=\"ugb-container__side\"><div class=\"ugb-container__content-wrapper ugb-cd2fd07-content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-stackable-image stk-block-image stk-block stk-7756026\" data-block-id=\"7756026\"><style>.stk-7756026 .stk-img-wrapper{height:300px !important;}.stk-7756026 .stk-img-wrapper img{object-position:50% 42% !important;}@media screen and (max-width:999px){.stk-7756026 .stk-img-wrapper{height:250px !important;}}@media screen and (max-width:689px){.stk-7756026 .stk-img-wrapper{height:200px !important;}}<\/style><figure><span class=\"stk-img-wrapper stk-image--shape-stretch\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"stk-img wp-image-2417\" src=\"https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Japan-Festival-Amstelveen_Voorwoord-voorzitter.jpg\" width=\"2000\" height=\"1333\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Japan-Festival-Amstelveen_Voorwoord-voorzitter.jpg 2000w, https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Japan-Festival-Amstelveen_Voorwoord-voorzitter-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Japan-Festival-Amstelveen_Voorwoord-voorzitter-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Japan-Festival-Amstelveen_Voorwoord-voorzitter-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/03\/Japan-Festival-Amstelveen_Voorwoord-voorzitter-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 2000px) 100vw, 2000px\" \/><\/span><\/figure><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-ugb-container ugb-container ugb-a386589 ugb-container--v2 ugb-container--design-plain ugb-main-block\"><div class=\"ugb-inner-block\"><div class=\"ugb-block-content\"><div class=\"ugb-container__wrapper ugb-a386589-wrapper\"><div class=\"ugb-container__side\"><div class=\"ugb-container__content-wrapper ugb-a386589-content-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-stackable-heading stk-block-heading stk-block-heading--v2 stk-block stk-9f6e40d\" id=\"strong-a-word-from-the-chairman-strong\" data-block-id=\"9f6e40d\"><h1 class=\"stk-block-heading__text stk-block-heading--use-theme-margins\"><strong>A word from the chairman<\/strong><\/h1><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><br>Since its inception in 1997, the Japan Festival Netherlands in Amstelveen has grown into the largest and most authentic Japanese cultural event in the country. Today, it attracts visitors not only from across the Netherlands but also from abroad. Since 2016, the festival has been organized annually by the Japan Festival Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening the ties between the Japanese and Dutch communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Having worked for 13 years at Canon in Amstelveen, I have witnessed how colleagues from diverse cultural and national backgrounds collaborate with mutual respect and understanding. This spirit of harmony is deeply rooted in the long-standing relationship between Japan and the Netherlands, where differences are not only acknowledged but valued. It is my hope that this culture of respect and coexistence will continue to thrive and be passed on to future generations. Through the Japan Festival, we aim to contribute to this vision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Due to the renovation of the City Square, the 2026 edition of the festival will take place on <strong>Sunday, June 28<\/strong>, at a new location: <strong>Handelsplein in Amstelveen<\/strong>. A new venue brings new opportunities, and we are excited to prepare for this next chapter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The festival\u2019s slogan, <strong>\u201cWa \u2013 Harmony in Diversity,\u201d<\/strong> reflects the spirit we want to share: a celebration that brings people together to experience and enjoy the beauty of Japanese culture. With the Japan Festival 2026, we hope to build on the momentum of recent years and further strengthen the ties between Japan and the Netherlands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We look forward to welcoming you to the festival!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>On behalf of the Japan Festival Board,<br>Sincerly yours,<br><strong>Tetsuhisa Tagawa<\/strong><br>Chairman<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A word from the chairman Since its inception in 1997, the Japan Festival Netherlands in Amstelveen has grown into the largest and most authentic Japanese cultural event in the country. Today, it attracts visitors not only from across the Netherlands but also from abroad. Since 2016, the festival has been organized annually by the Japan [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2359","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":6}},"featured_image_urls_v2":{"full":"","thumbnail":"","medium":"","medium_large":"","large":"","1536x1536":"","2048x2048":"","gform-image-choice-sm":"","gform-image-choice-md":"","gform-image-choice-lg":""},"post_excerpt_stackable_v2":"<p>A word from the chairman Since its inception in 1997, the Japan Festival Netherlands in Amstelveen has grown into the largest and most authentic Japanese cultural event in the country. Today, it attracts visitors not only from across the Netherlands but also from abroad. Since 2016, the festival has been organized annually by the Japan Festival Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to strengthening the ties between the Japanese and Dutch communities. Having worked for 13 years at Canon in Amstelveen, I have witnessed how colleagues from diverse cultural and national backgrounds collaborate with mutual respect and understanding. This spirit of&hellip;<\/p>\n","category_list_v2":"","author_info_v2":{"name":"japanfestival","url":"https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/en\/author\/japanfestival\/"},"comments_num_v2":"0 comments","yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>A word from the chairman | Japan Festival<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.japanfestival.nl\/en\/word-of-chairman\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A word from the chairman | Japan Festival\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A word from the chairman Since its inception in 1997, the Japan Festival Netherlands in Amstelveen has grown into the largest and most authentic Japanese cultural event in the country. 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