Please introduce yourself. Hello, I'm Ryan Patrick Barry, co-founder of Koguma Benefit Corp , an exploratory collective of American appreciators and Japanese masters of onsen culture. I grew up in the Berkshires as a child opera singer at Tanglewood before moving to New York, where I was an actor for 20 years. A circuitous life journey has led me back to the countryside of New England and deeper into those of Japan. This winter Koguma Benefit Corp. is starting with an invitation-only net-zero...

Would you introduce yourself briefly? Katherine Tallman, Executive Director & CEO, Coolidge Corner Theatre . I have been in this role for 12 years and was on the Board for several years prior. What inspired the Coolidge Corner Theatre’s unique focus on championing international cinema, especially Japanese film? Prior to the Coolidge becoming a nonprofit organization in 1989, it was owned by renowned cinema programmer Justin Freed, who saw an unmet demand for international cinema in the Boston...

Where were you in Japan as a JET and when?  I lived in Mihama, Mie as an ALT from 2012 to 2016, and I taught elementary and junior high school. What sparked your interest in applying for the JET program?  When I was studying Japanese at Oberlin College, someone came to hold a session and speak about the JET Program. For most of my life before that, I never thought I could move across the country, let alone to the other side of the world. Suddenly, after that info session, something clicked...