Nao Sasaki, a high school student living in Higashimatsushima City, Miyagi Prefecture, set up a booth at the International Exchange Festival selling coffee roasted in Higashimatsushima, raising a total of 40,776 yen in support funds!
Thank you so much for such a wonderful initiative.
We first met Nao through an extracurricular program at a cram school in Tokyo.
From there, she shared her background of living in an area affected by the disaster, as well as her interest in international aid, and expressed her desire to initiate activities from her hometown through school meal support for Malawi.
Afterwards, Nao found a local coffee roaster to roast the beans, created an original Higashimatsushima coffee label, and put it up for sale.
The illustration featuring Higashimatsushima’s famous Blue Impulse aerobatic team flying from Malawi to Higashimatsushima is deeply touching and unique!
(Illustration used for the drip bag design)
It is wonderful that through Ms. Sasaki, the heartfelt support of many people—starting with the local residents who resonated with her passion—was directed toward Malawi, bringing together a great deal of aid.
The “International Exchange Festival” in Higashimatsushima, where the coffee was sold, was held for the first time on July 20, 2026. We believe Ms. Sasaki’s activity serves as a pioneering example of student-led international cooperation that leads to concrete action.
It also served as a great inspiration to young children and local students, who drew their own illustrations on the coffee drip bags to create and purchase custom packs.
Some even drew the flag of Malawi, which showed that the student volunteers led by Ms. Sasaki did a wonderful job of explaining about Malawi!
Additionally, Ms. Sasaki is currently running a crowdfunding campaign.
We would greatly appreciate your support!
