Women Crossing the Digital Divide!

DigitalEve Japan

As the world races along the technological highway, men are not the only ones in the driver's seat. In fact, more and more women are 'getting digital' and taking a ride on the Internet bandwagon. In Japan, the chances are that if a woman is bilingual and has an interest in the digital arena, she may well belong to DigitalEve Japan (DEJ), the Japanese chapter of DigitalEve International, a global, non-profit organization that has more than 50 chapters with almost 24,000 members worldwide.

DEJ promotes women's digital lifestyles by offering a supportive community and programs tailored for women who are using IT in their workplace and everyday lives. DEJ's members are made up of Japanese and foreign women living in Japan who span a wide range of ages, lifestyles, technical and cultural backgrounds.

Embracing women from many cultures
DEJ is more than just a group of women with shared interests - it also embraces many cultures. DEJ's Membership Coordinator KAJIRO Misao says, "Our members totals 713 and our member's nationalities number more than 20 with diverse occupations and ages." Many of DEJ's members work in computer-related jobs, such as web designers/producers and programmers.

KAWAI Chiharu, DEJ's Media Coordinator says, "Many of our members have joined DEJ by finding us by word of mouth or on the Internet. I would say that most of our members joined DEJ to improve their computer skills and to get associated with other women who are also interested in IT to exchange information."

But these are not the only reasons people join the organization. "We function as a big support group for foreign women living in Japan," Chiharu continues. "When this group needs information in their daily lives in a foreign country, our members can provide advice and help. In fact, we also post information about available jobs, garage sales, interesting events, doctor information, etc." Japanese women can also benefit. Some Japanese members join DEJ to seek opportunities to make friends with foreign women and/or to practice English, Chiharu says.

Online community opening doors to new opportunities and friends.
"The best part of this group is the ability to help one another via the mailing list," Chiharu explains. “Some members post technical questions, sometimes very basic questions, and others answer them. Basically, we are an online community, so face-to-face events are secondary. But in the Kanto region, we try to organize as many events as we can."

In addition, DEJ also has social events called 'Meet the Devas' (DEJ calls its members "Devas") every two months, which are informal gatherings for older and newer members. "This is a great opportunity to meet interesting members and make friends," Chiharu says. "In addition to these regular events, we have speaker events, the occasional retreat, seasonal excursions and parties."

As if all that wasn't enough, DEJ members can also take advantage of the groups' very useful monthly newsletter. "This is actually the best tool for us to unite our growing online community," Chiharu explains. "We have a Newsletter Team comprised of several volunteer members, who compile and edit the English and Japanese versions of the newsletter every month. The newsletter includes comments and announcements from the leaders, a feature article about a technical topic, an interview with a member, event information, and more."

Broadening knowledge of the world
Ailsa WYLIE, a Canadian who has lived in Japan for almost seven years and works as an Assistant English Teacher, points to friendship, networking, skill-building and support as some of the benefits she enjoys from being a DEJ member. "I've made wonderful friends through DEJ and my professional network has expanded," she says. "Being a member of the Newsletter Team for over three years has given me experience in proofreading, writing editorials and articles, translating, and assembling/formatting an e-mail newsletter to a deadline. I've learned a lot and I really appreciate the support and dedication of the other members of the team."

Jennifer PACK, an American who has been in Japan for two years and works in the Graphic Design industry, says benefits of belonging to DEJ include the support, networking, making contacts for her freelance design work, and making new friends. "I have made new friends from other countries and this has broadened my knowledge of the world," she says. "I have also made several business contacts who have become clients for my freelance design business."

And for all those men wondering whether they too can join DEJ, the news is good. "We also accept male members who agree to help our mission," Misao says.

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