Volunteer-run Japanese radio in Cairns connects the community through thick and thin

"Cairns has the largest number of Japanese-speaking people per capita in Australia," said Jun Tagami, a volunteer DJ for a local Japanese radio program WAKU WAKU Japanese Radio.

Waku Waku Japanese Radio in Cairns has been playing an important role in the community, said it s DJ Jun Tagami. Source: Jun Tagami

WAKU WAKU Japanese Radio in Cairns hosted its inaugural mochi (Japanese rice cake) pounding event for the community in 2020. Source: WAKU WAKU Japanese Radio

Mr. Jun Tagami made a big decision to move to Cairns after spending nearly two decades in Sydney.  About a year after the move, Mr Tagami was contacted by Cairns' community radio station and asked to run its Japanese program as a volunteer.

In Cairns, as a cyclone-prone multicultural town, community radio has been playing an important role. 

Mr Tagami said that he has been enjoying building local network through his radio work and seeing the network grow.  Even there was a time when Mr Tagami was the only staff and he had to do everything for the weekly program, WAKU WAKU Japanese Radio now has four solid team members. 

They successfully organized a mochi (Japanese rice cake) pounding event in 2020 for the community, just before the pandemic.

In the audio, Mr Tagami talks about the radio program and an upcoming big community event, Cairns Bon Dance Festival on Saturday the 11th.

Staff meeting for WAKU WAKU Japanese Radio, a community radio in Cairns, QLD. Photo was taken in 2018. Source: WAKU WAKU Japanese Radio

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