Life experiences give CWU professor a unique perspective for upcoming trip

Mary Eberhardinger selected as an ambassador for Japan Exchange and Teaching program

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Japanese calligraphy, bicycle rides to ikebana flower-arranging classes, and the celebration of food are just some memories and mementos Dr. Mary Eberhardinger carries with her from years of participating in the Japanese Exchange and Teaching (JET) program as an educator and ambassador.

With a February 18-24 trip to Hokkaido and Fukushima on the horizon, the Central Washington University Department of Communication lecturer describes her excitement for a fresh opportunity to reunite with a foreign culture that has played a significant role in her life.

“I will be creating my own media, photos, videos, short stories and snippets,” Eberhardinger says. “I will narrate with my voice some experiences that I will have. A goal with that is to encourage and inspire my students. I have students myself, and I do the work actively to prepare them for the JET program and other study abroad opportunities.”

She also plans to hand out physical materials and pamphlets from the CWU Office of International Studies and Programs about CWU’s programs to build interest among prospective study abroad participants.

Eberhardinger is one of 20 individuals selected for this month’s trip, sponsored by CLAIR (Council of Local Authorities for International Relations). She received the opportunity through the JET alumni network.

“JET alumni are able to apply to opportunities like this and really continue the mission of JET, which is to share and exchange cultural information,” she says. “I hope that the media I share will spark interest and encourage the Ellensburg community to take perhaps a closer look at Japan.”

She has learned from experience that traveling and studying abroad can be life-changing and “positively transformative.”

“I'm talking self-esteem, I'm talking about learning about yourself and others, meeting people — a lot of positives,” she says.

While she will be traveling to the northernmost regions of Japan, known for its cold winters, Eberhardinger will be capturing the warmth of community, cuisine and culture. The primary focus for the trip will center around Japanese food education and promotion.

“Food should be something that makes our lives better, and there is something for everyone and ways to be creative about international cuisine,” she says. “I find it a reason to be happy about life.”

Eberhardinger is sensitive to the food scarcity that exists around the world, along with the prevalence of eating disorders. This trip, for her, will be about exploring those feelings and using what she learns to help other people. 

“I want to share and exchange intercultural information with others,” she says. “Food is connected to our emotions, and some people might restrict themselves from eating or overeating. I think many people have these experiences, and hopefully we can be positive about it, be sensitive and tactful to let each other live our best lives.”

Serving as an Ambassador

Fukushima is located in a region that was impacted by nuclear radiation after an earthquake and tsunami in 2011 caused a severe nuclear reactor meltdown. Eberhardinger doesn’t know if the disasters of 13 years ago are still affecting the region, but she is hoping to report back to her friends and colleagues in the U.S. that the country has recovered from the tragedy.  

“Part of this Japan trip I'm taking is, I believe, to revitalize interest for people to feel good about traveling to those northern parts,” she says, adding that she believes the Japanese government sees her and the others chosen for the trip as ambassadors.

“They see people who did JET as these individuals who would share photography and stories and talk about Japan in positive ways. I am here to represent Japan positively, but we can't avoid the fact that there was and, possibly still are, radioactive effects.”

Eberhardinger will learn more about the state of the region from locals and colleagues on her journey as she creates media content. She expects to learn a lot, but she already has a solid foundation about Japanese culture and tradition from when she was a student herself.

Eberhardinger first started traveling to Japan while pursuing a minor in Japanese language as an undergraduate. She received a BA in Communication Studies from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and a master’s in Communication Studies from The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

She later earned a PhD in Rhetoric at Duquesne University, where she proposed a research question for her dissertation that related to her studies in Japan∶ “What is the relationship between gift and rhetoric?”

Eberhardinger transformed her dissertation into an award-winning book titled A Rhetoric and Philosophy of Gifts.

“Rhetoric, to put it simply, is about discovering all possible means of persuasion from an Aristotelian perspective,” she explains, “and so if you think about gift-giving as a rhetorical and symbolic gesture and practice, it becomes a persuasive tool for international friendship building and peace and conflict diffusion. You can start small scale with souvenirs, but on a large scale, if you think about political and public relations, I argue in the book that gift character is one of the things that distinguishes us as humans from other mammals.”

Eberhardinger’s time in Japan inspired her to explore the topic of gifts, since gifting is a significant feature of Japanese culture. She says that when you travel to other countries, especially Japan, bringing gifts from your home country is a symbolic gesture of goodwill.

She found gift-giving to be a form of communication and relationship building — “a diffusing of the ice, and in reciprocity, the Japanese culture are advocates of ‘omiyage,’ which means ‘ little souvenirs.’ They want to share their local delicacies or culture by way of small gifts.”

 

Finding Yourself Abroad

Traveling overseas can be expensive, and Eberhardinger advises students who are considering a study abroad trip to seek scholarship funding if they are worried about the cost. She was able to take advantage of the Freeman Asia Scholarship, and she recommends it as a potential option for current students.

“There are things you can do,” she says. “You can apply for study abroad funds and you can make it happen. So, I just want to encourage people that travel can be life-changing, and there is money out there to be obtained if you go after it.”

Eberhardinger urges students to research alternative study abroad opportunities, even if they do not get accepted into their first-choice program. She noted that if you don't get into JET, for example, there are other options available.

Once living abroad, Eberhardinger recommends that students seek out activities to connect with local communities.

“When you're there, it’s what you make of it,” she says. “Do you stay in your apartment every day, or do you go out there and take, for example, a Japanese calligraphy class or a tea ceremony class? Or, an ikebana flower arranging class, or Japanese language courses, or cooking classes? There are so many things to get involved in.”

She also suggests enrolling in martial arts classes, such as karate, judo, kendo, as a way to cope with being homesick.

“That’s exactly what I did,” she says. “I made sure to take classes in flower arranging, maybe ten bucks a lesson. I would ride my bike to my ikebana sensei's class. These are local senseis who offer these wonderful Japanese arts lessons, and they're not terribly expensive. I highly recommend it.”

Looking toward the future, Eberhardinger hopes to further her work connecting CWU with other nations. In addition to her continuing her connections with JET, she has established a memorandum of understanding between CWU and a university in the Czech Republic.

She is also hoping she and her colleagues will soon secure a European Union-funded grant that would connect CWU to new and different EU universities.

Her visit to Japan this month will only fuel her passion for making CWU a more diverse, multi-cultural institution.

“I am building bridges for CWU in an international way,” she says.