Five years since Dr. Svetlana Sizykh, head of the Botanic Garden of Irkutsk State University, came to Hiroshima. We miss her, but she sends good tidings! The XVII interregional Competition of performances in the Japanese language  was held on April 12 at the Institute of Philology, Foreign Languages and Media Communication of the Irkutsk State University, also attended by students of Novosibirsk Stae University, Siberian Federal University (Krasnoyarsk) and other institutions. After the competition the group visited the Botanic Garden specially to see the only Japanese Garden in Siberia and The Green Heritage Hiroshima Exposition. This year is the year of 'Japan in Russia and Russia in Japan'. They are planning several special events at the Botanic Garden, including a public event for citizens on August 6, dedicated to the memory of the victims of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Seeds of A-bombed trees were delivered to the Botanical Garden of the Irkutsk State University. The director, Dr. Victor Kuzevanov, and his team received the seeds. The garden celebrated the opening of their Japanese garden in August 2012. About 150 children visit daily the Japanese garden, which as of October 2012, includes the saplings.