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Paper short abstract

This study shifts attention to the role of storytelling in fostering public engagement for the revitalisation of devastated areas by presenting two case studies of community-led kataribe initiatives: the Tomioka Fukushima kataribe and RE: Project tsūshin of the Sendai Cultural Foundation, both established following Tōhoku triple disaster.

Paper long abstract

This study examines the role of the kataribe (storyteller-witness), who has historically been central to Japan's post-disaster reconstruction planning. Kataribe are voluntarily recruited through bottom-up initiatives led by local groups and associations. Their activities serve several purposes: (1) revitalising the area through events, workshops, and exhibitions on local history to encourage regional tourism; (2) contributing to the creation of archival repositories based on testimonial accounts; and (3) performing pedagogical and educational functions in the field of disaster risk reduction (DRR).

However, limited research has addressed the relationship between kataribe and the psychological therapeutic outcomes of their roles as storytellers and guides for listeners at disaster sites or memorials. My previous research has examined storytelling as a form of Narrative Therapy (NT), which exposes kataribe to habituation and may reduce dysfunctional emotional responses. The activities of these witnesses can contribute to the reworking of traumatic memories associated with disasters and promote the coherent reconstruction of personal experiences, potentially leading to post-traumatic growth (PTG).

This study shifts attention to the role of storytelling in fostering public engagement for the revitalisation of devastated areas. To illustrate this, two case studies of community-led kataribe initiatives are presented: the Tomioka Fukushima kataribe and RE: Project tsūshin of the Sendai Cultural Foundation, both established following the triple disaster in Tōhoku, Japan. Horizontal cooperation (suihei kyōryoku) among public and private institutions is supported by gojo (mutual aid) and kyōjo (volunteering, charitable activity; Cavaliere and Otani, 2026), with storytelling serving as an exemplary practice of these principles.

This research adopts an interdisciplinary approach, integrating social disaster studies and social psychology, to investigate kataribe activities. The analysis highlights not only the therapeutic outcomes for individual mental well-being achieved through the verbalisation of psychological trauma via storytelling, but also aims to demonstrate how these testimonial activities constitute a form of community empowerment. By fostering new awareness of their value and role within the local community, kataribe activities facilitate the restoration of both survivors' fragmented identities and the broader community.