When a 1970s cultural exchange between St. Paul and its Sister City, Nagasaki, sparked the idea for a Japanese garden, no one could have predicted the decades-long journey that would follow. In this episode, Bill Pasek shares how he and the original designer, Mr. Masami Matsuda, worked across languages, cultures, and continents to restore the garden's true vision—with the help of passionate volunteers and a community united by peace and purpose.

From pruning trees to shaping hills with sand, this is the story of how a garden became a living symbol of diplomacy, beauty, and friendship.

This week on Everyday Ambassador, I had the honor of speaking with Tomihisa Taue, the former mayor of Nagasaki, as the city prepares to mark the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombing. Mayor Taue served from 2007 to 2023 and has spent his life bridging the memory of devastation with the work of building peace—locally and globally.

In our conversation, Mayor Taue reflected on the events of August 9, 1945, and the lasting impact on Nagasaki’s people. He shared what the city looks like today and described how peace-building is not only a matter of international diplomacy, but something that begins in neighborhoods, communities, and everyday relationships. We also explored how to pass the message of the Hibakusha—atomic bomb survivors—to the next generation in ways that resonate and empower.

Mayor Taue spoke candidly about the difficulty of building peace in the face of short-term political and economic pressures and offered examples of how citizens can still take action. He also reflected on life after public office and the importance of balancing “output” with “input”—making time for learning, renewal, and listening.

Join me this summer for an intimate journey through Nagasaki—interviews with officials and artists, live discussions, expert analysis, and personal reflections as we mark 80 years since the bombing. The full schedule, available to all subscribers, is here:

Episode Timestamps:

* [2:17] What happened in Nagasaki on August 9, 1945

* [3:43] What Nagasaki is like today

* [4:36] How the people of Nagasaki think about the 80th anniversary

* [6:10] How to pass on the memory of the atomic bomb to new generations

* [8:38] Revising the Peace Declaration to reflect both survivor and youth perspectives

* [10:55] From memory to message: reframing how Nagasaki tells its story

* [12:18] Connecting local peace-building and global activism

* [14:54] What it means to build peace at the local level

* [17:19] What gets in the way of peace

* [20:03] What ordinary citizens can do

* [23:05] Why learning and reflection matter in peace activism

* [25:04] Life after public office: finding a balance between input and output

Journalist and NewsGuard Executive Editor Jim Warren joins Everyday Ambassador to explain how misinformation spreads online—and what’s being done to stop it. From fake health cures to AI-generated propaganda, Jim shares what NewsGuard’s team of reporters has uncovered across thousands of websites, podcasts, and social media posts. He also discusses the challenges of media literacy and what schools, journalists, and citizens can do to better evaluate the information they consume.

To learn more about how you can access NewsGuard’s browser extension or use it in your classroom, visit newsguardtech.com. You can also check out their Substack newsletter, Reality Check, for weekly updates on the state of online information.

This week on Everyday Ambassador, I spoke with Zsofia Banuta, co-founder of Unhack Democracy, a grassroots organization working to protect democratic institutions across Central and Eastern Europe. Don’t miss our live follow-up event on May 8th on Substack with Zsofia and her co-founder Elliot Goat, where they’ll answer your questions and share more about their work.

Annelise Riles speaks with Austin Bryan, an anthropologist and soon-to-be professor of global health, about his ten years of research with LGBTQ+ communities and healthcare workers in Uganda. Bryan offers a behind-the-scenes look at how international HIV funding has shaped not only access to care but also the emergence of activist networks in a country facing severe anti-LGBTQ+ laws. Their conversation explores the human cost of defunding, the resilience of marginalized communities, and why long-term, ground-level research matters.