Waiting as Support, Listening as Aid: A Case Study of Student Disaster Volunteering after the 2004 Mid-Niigata Prefecture Earthquake

Disaster volunteering as a participatory approach to disaster mitigation was investigated by examining a case study of student disaster volunteering following the 2004 Mid-Niigata Prefecture Earthquake on October 23, 2004, which caused serious damage in Niigata Prefecture in Japan. Immediately after the quake, we started promoting disaster volunteering based on mid-and long-term perspectives. A student group worked as disaster volunteers in collaboration with a consortium of other disaster nonprofit organizations. Through the student activities, the group established a moderately familiar relationship—neither too close nor too distant—with the residents of temporary housing. In this article, the significance of the students’volunteer activities was examined based on a philosophical discussion about waiting and listening. Furthermore, the importance of liberation from the rigid relationship of aid provider and aid receiver is discussed.