“Hiroshima Archive” is a pluralistic digital archive using the digital earth to display on it in a multilayered way all the materials gained from such sources as the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, the Hiroshima Jogakuin Gaines Association, and the Hachioji Hibakusha (A-bomb Survivors) Association. Beyond time and space, the user can get a panoramic view over Hiroshima to browse survivors’ accounts, photos, maps, and other materials as of 1945, together with aerial photos, 3D topographical data, and building models as of 2010. The archive aims to promote multifaceted and comprehensive understanding of the reality of atomic bombing.
We collected A-bomb survivors’ accounts in cooperation with local high school students and nationwide volunteers and created a “Community of Records” through developing a collection of memories. We will also create an online community by using social media, such as Twitter, to collect from all over the world messages of hope for peace and nuclear abolition and incorporate them into the digital archive. We aim to make the archive a platform to gather the threads of stories for the future by sharing the past memories and the present messages in both real and web spaces.
On March 11, 2011, the Great East Japan Earthquake occurred, and among those who suffered the disaster in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, was one of the members of the Hiroshima Archive Production Committee. The earthquake and tsunami completely destroyed the local people’s beloved towns, and the following nuclear reactor accident brought the scourge of radioactive substances, putting an end to normal life. Since the March 11th earthquake, the mission of this project, which aimed originally to pass on the story of Hiroshima to future generations, has also undergone a change: “Learn about past tragedies, feel involved, and hand them down to future generations in your own words.” We hope that our Archive will be used by many people.
・Nagasaki Archive
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Okinawa Archive
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The Peace Learning Archive in OKINAWA
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The East Japan
Earthquake Archive