Polaris Project Japan operates the Japan Trafficking Intervention Program (JTIP) to combat human trafficking in Japan.  Launched in September 2004 and headquartered in Tokyo, Polaris Project Japan works to create an effective community-based response to curb local human trafficking network activity.

Activities
Victim Outreach and Identification:  Polaris Project Japan identifies safe and effective access point for victim outreach by conducting field research trips and using online and media tools to gather information.  Multi-lingual outreach projects include safety street patrols in collaboration with local police, distribution of outreach materials to community members, targeted education and meetings with community leaders, posting of hotline numbers and resources in red-flagged locations.  Outreach efforts are supplemented by toll-free hotlines for victims of trafficking in Japan.  Crisis hotlines are available in Japanese, Korean, and English with additional translation available in Thai.  Since the launch of the hotlines in April 2005, Polaris Project Japan received over 400 calls and email reports.  Polaris Japan also worked with the UN Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to provide Japanese translations and hotline numbers for customized Public Service Announcements on trafficking in Japan.
 
Victim Services and Protection:  Polaris Project Japan provides emergency client services for 1-6 days once a victim is identified, then coordinates referrals to community partner agencies for longer-term care based on each client's needs. Examples of emergency services include crisis intervention, court advocacy, translation/interpretation, transportation, and emergency support during the crisis period.  Referrals are made for legal services, medical help, mental health counseling, and job training.  Polaris Project Japan has provided direct services, support, and/or referrals to more than 20 victims from four different countries.
 
Policy Advocacy:  Polaris Project Japan worked within the Japan Network Against Trafficking in Persons (JNATIP) and through international advocacy efforts to successfully encourage the Japanese government to pass a criminal law against human trafficking in 2005.
 
Prevention and Youth Empowerment:  In 2007 Polaris Project Japan started working with Japanese youth to prevent crimes on the streets; they also advocate for trafficking victims and share information about local services. It has produced and distributed dozens of outreach materials, including a message of self-value as well as the hotline number, to more than 1400 youth and community members.  The direct street outreach will soon be regularized to reach a wider cross-section of the potential victim population.
 
Task Force, Coalition, and Infrastructure-Building:  Polaris Project Japan is a member of JNATIP, a national network of legal and social service providers.
 
Training, Technical Assistance, and Strategic Planning:  Polaris Japan has partnered with embassies to sponsor a series of workshops for law enforcement to facilitate peer-to-peer training and to help increase the collaboration between non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the embassies, and the police.  Workshop participants to date have included anti-trafficking experts from the National Police Agency (NPA), prefectural law enforcement from Tokushima, Shimane, Akita, Miyazaki, and Shizuoka, the Embassies of the United States, Columbia, and Thailand, and Polaris staff.  Polaris Project Japan also developed one of the first Social Service Provider Manuals on Trafficking in Persons in Japan.  The Manual provides general guidance on using a multicultural, strengths-based, victim-centered approach with trafficking survivors and has information on the current victim benefits available.  The manual has been developed with the support of the Yokohama Women's Association, in consultation with social workers, attorneys, and other anti-trafficking experts.  Over 550 total copies of the manual have been distributed to NGOs, Women's Consulting Centers, advocates, and many law enforcement sources, including every police prefecture in Japan and all 55 police stations in Kanagawa prefecture.  Polaris Project Japan has received funding to reprint the book and it is now in the process of reviewing for a second edition.
 
Leadership Development:  Polaris Project Japan operates the Japan component of the Polaris Project Fellowship Program, training young anti-trafficking activists through an intensive service and advocacy experience. To date, the program has had 21 full-time and part-time Fellows who have provided approximately 10,000 hours of volunteer time with a total in-kind value of over $177,000.
 
Grassroots Community Mobilization:  Polaris Project Japan has begun to build a Grassroots Network (GN) of dedicated volunteers and supporters throughout Japanese civil society.  Currently, our network includes over 300 supporters.  We have also begun the early stages of community awareness-raising by organizing community meetings at local schools, colleges, and other organizations.  Polaris Japan staff have presented to over 2,000 community members, students, and professionals, raising awareness about human trafficking in Japan.