When: Saturday, February 6th, 2016
Where: Osaka Convention Center’s MO Hall (Meeting Room)
Sponsors: Hyogo Prefecture Board of Education and Osaka University
Support: JICA Kansai
Keynote speech: “Considering International Problems as my own Problem” by Professor, Kazuto Turuga, from a research associate at Osaka University’s Global Collaboration Center
Panel discussion: “How are High School Students Affected by International Problems?”by Professor Hisakazu Matusige of Osaka University
Poster Session: 41 groups, including 5 groups from Himeji Nishi High School, made presentations. The following discusses each group’s topic, the name of the participants and the main points that each group presented about.
Himeji International Proclamation Plan: Unoccupied Houses and Airbnb
(Kana Yamamoto, Hina Goto, Kanna Teramoto, Eri Kitagawa, Kiyohide Maura, Yuji Miki )
As in many other municipalities in Japan, Himeji City faces a problem with unoccupied houses that has been caused by aging society, the nuclearization of the family and migration to large cities. We’d like to adapt Airbnb’s way of thinking to help solve this problem and we’d like to make a plan that would allow tourists to reserve accommodations easily and inexpensively so that they can stay in Himeji longer.
The Globalization of Business: Nishimatsuya Model Business Plan
(Haruhi Matura, Yukino Sakamoto, Risa Sugitani, Miyu Takasugi, Nagisa Yoshida )
We are planning make a business model for Nishimatsuya relating to opening a kids clothing shop in Shanghai, China. We chose Shanghai because Nishmatsuya’s factories are nearby and people’s incomes there are high. People in China want low-cost, well-designed kids clothing and Nishimatsuya wants to successfully expand overseas.
Building a Sustainable National Society: NERICA Rice and Agricultural Aid in Sudan
(Mana Kuroko, Yamato Isizaka, Miyu, Kusaka, Keita Tabuchi, Hayato Moriki, Masaki Yoshida )
We have studied how to increase the standard of living in Sudan. Sudan is one of the poorest countries (#138 out of 187 countries). It’s GDP per capita is $1979.54. We’d like to support Sudan's agricultural sector, and are considering the introduction of new varieties of rice such as NERICA. The name NERICA comes from the phrase “New rice for Africa”. NERICA rice is a hardy species of rice plant that requires the use of only small amounts of fertilizer and pesticides. We would like to use NERICA rice to improve the nutrition of the people of Sudan.
Historical Tourism and International Tourism Development: The Plan to Change all Japanese People into Himejian
(Maiko Kitani, Momoka Konishi, Kenichiro Arita, Misato Hamada, Takumi Fukushima, Miki Mizutani)
While the number of tourists who visit Himeji Castle has increased, Himeji City is facing a number of tourism-related issues, most notably, the lack of people visiting Himeji City's other tourist destinations. Our goal is to attract tourists interested the castle and get them to see more of Himeji City. We want to make an “Oasis” for tourists close to Himeji Castle that will offer transportation and sightseeing information, as well as the chance to participate in unique experiences, to encourage more tourists to visit other places in Himeji after seeing Himeji Castle.
Historical Tourism and International Tourism Development: The Revitalization of the Nozato Shopping Arcade and the Himeji Arts and Crafts Fair
(Miki Uemura, Nagato Sumita, Luna Nishimoto, Kosuke Morimoto, Rinka Yanase)
Hearing the name Himeji makes us think of Himeji Castle. On the one hand the number of tourists is increasing, but on the other hand it is causing tourism in the city to be localized. We think introducing tourists, not only to Himeji Castle, but also to places only local people know, will lead to the revitalization of Himeji. So we have decided to focus on the area of Himeji City called Nozato. It is the designated buffer zone between the city and the castle. Though Himeji City is working on scenic preservation in the area, few foreign and domestic tourists in Himeji are aware of it. So we will revitalize the area and promote it through various events.
In the morning, students listened to the keynote address and a panel discussion, then each study group put their poster up. In the afternoon, they looked around freely for 20 minutes, then they gave presentations on their topics, looked around some more and asked other groups questions.
Many students realized the difficulty of integrating the results of their surveys into one poster, as well as introducing the results of their survey clearly within the allotted time. I think that many students enjoyed talking and introducing their projects with moderate seriousness. Each group was given a chance to make a presentation. It was a new experience for them to be asked questions by students from other high schools and university professors. Some students did their presentations in English. Students from high schools in other prefectures, such as Osaka and Tokushima, also joined. It was interesting that a high school school from South Korea joined too!
