INS sponsors Japan – UK Picture Exchange
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Friday November 5th, saw seven Maryport primary schools using art to link up with their counterparts on the other side of the world to strengthen cultural links between West Cumbria and Japan.
The 11th Japanese Picture Exchange event, was held at the Wave Centre in Maryport, and was sponsored and hosted by International Nuclear Services. The event is the culmination of a local schools art competition and was attended by winners and teachers from each of the UK schools, as well as Allerdale Member of Parliament, Tony Cunningham MP; Mayor Robert Hardon of Allerdale, and Hiroyuki Ono and his wife, joint sponsor from the Japan Atomic Power Company. The children’s pictures were displayed at the ceremony alongside pictures by Japanese school children.
International Nuclear Services’ Corporate Responsibility Director, Rupert Wilcox-Baker, said: “West Cumbria has had very strong economic links with Japan for several decades due to long-standing commercial arrangements that Japanese power companies have had with Sellafield’s nuclear reprocessing services.
“The role of INS is to manage and build that relationship for the benefit of West Cumbria and UK taxpayer. However, we also believe we have a parallel contribution to make in terms of helping to bring both communities closer together on a cultural level and the Japanese Picture Exchange is very effective in doing that.”
As well as providing an opportunity to view the display of pupils’ artwork, the ceremony included a one-hour interactive show by local cartoonist Colin Shelbourn.
The Wave Centre will continue to show the schools’ artwork until Tuesday the 16th November 2010, after which the pictures will be posted to Japan for the subsequent Japanese opening ceremony in Tsuruga on the 4th December, before moving on to Tokai, where they will be displayed until April 2011. The pictures from the Maryport schools will then be returned to the UK in May 2011.
