The Door to Tomorrow - The Dignity of the Japanese People
Our homeland of Japan is surrounded by major powers whose intention is future hegemony, and we are geopolitically in an unstable position. Moreover, as finance becomes increasingly borderless, the current situation is that Japan and the Japanese are lagging behind in their globalization. With the dawn of an age where there will be even more movement of people, money, goods and information at home and abroad, I think that, in order to give a clear shape to this country, what is required most is that we should have “dignity as Japanese.” Dignity as a Japanese, born from the coexistence of individual dignity and social ethics, means loving our country, actively being part of society and taking responsibility for the country’s future, and may well be essential to survive the upheavals of the international community.
We have achieved material prosperity today but the dark side of society spreads ever wider. The increase in brutal crimes and suicides reveals the strains affecting the country. The Japanese must confront these problems with dignity. The country’s future cannot be left to anyone else; we Japanese must create it ourselves. We must never look the other way or run away from them. We must face them head-on and solve them with dignity. It is we who create the future.
The Current State of Affairs in Japan - The Bright and Prosperous Society of the Future Created by Jaycees
What can be seen from the city of Tokyo, a city that symbolizes today’s Japan and its strains? Standardized administration. A monotone culture symbolized by streets lined with franchised restaurants which look the same wherever you go; a culture that simply discarded its old townscapes. The conformity in people’s values.
In essence, it is precisely a diversity in values that spawns creativity. If we want to produce a multilayered civilization and a dynamic society we must take another look at the current social system as it has been since the post-war era. There is no hope for Japan’s future if we go on as we are now. Furthermore, if we continue to put priority on today’s material affluence, convenience and rationalism, we may face increased unprecedented social problems that mankind has never experienced before.
The problems of our city of Tokyo are the problems of Japan, and the problems faced by Japan are connected with the problems of the world. Given this, it is vitally important that we young economic leaders living in Tokyo and being aware of it should consciously combat these unprecedented social problems with intelligence, courage and passion. Rather than overemphasizing economics or giving priority to convenience or rationalism, it is the duty of Jaycees to build the new world city of Tokyo. We can fulfil it precisely because we are Japanese, offering pride and hope for this country’s future and leading the way to a bright and prosperous future society.
The Path to Take - reating New Values
With a history stretching back over 60 years, the Junior Chamber International Tokyo movement now demands new values. Now that the generation, which suffered the pangs of hunger, has attained the society of which it dreamed, new problems for human society have arisen, problems that were not seen in their day. The age when prosperity meant waste and extravagance is already over. Regarding the problems faced by the society, what we should do now is to create new values aiming for a new form of a (mature) bright and prosperous society. This is creation of sustainable cities and a populace that can live with dignity. It is not a matter of choosing between contradictory values−between economic development and environmental conservation, and between competence to beat the opposition and a well-rounded character. They need to be combined with “symbiosis and coexistence.” We need to fuse existing notions, not to be bound by them, to create something totally new, by mustering creative energy of young people with unlimited potential. Creating and propagating these new values, this is the next mission of Jaycees.
It is today, when the social problems of Japan and the world city of Tokyo are not to be solved easily, that it is our duty as young people responsible for the future to take action for that society. Our actions will create new values.
The Strategy to Adopt - Local Action with a Global Outlook
Local activities form the nucleus of Junior Chamber International Tokyo’s activities, and Tokyo JC has a District Committee. Via activities rooted in local communities, the District Committee combines the functions of problem-finding and running and developing activities so as to truly play the role of the center of the movement. At the same time, its agenda is to find a way to link the problems discovered on the spot with the ideal for which to aim. The Policy Board is required to be able to analyze and draft this, and also to transmit it and make proposals.
“Discuss public policy from an international perspective and take action in our own community”−this is the distinctive feature of Tokyo JC and our proud duty as the Junior Chamber located in the metropolis of Tokyo.
Towards a Glittering Future - The Potential of Tokyo JC
In order to change society, the most important thing is that each individual member should address social problems in earnest and take action, experiencing the true meaning of prosperity in the process. The true essence of our organization is the aggregation of actions and the discussions for them. The storehouse of Junior Chamber International Tokyo’s 60-year history makes all kinds of actions possible.
The field of our activities is infinitely wide and deep, if we so wish. The glittering history established by our predecessors is not something for us to merely look back on; it is a shining stage to which we accede.
We have inherited from our predecessors the wherewithal to link our thoughts with actions. We, the current members of Junior Chamber International Tokyo, can use it if we voluntarily recognize the problems of the as-yet-unknown mature society of Tokyo. Reforming a society requires the efforts of all those who live in it; we have both the right and the duty to grapple with the social problems of the area, society and country in which our families live.
A mature society is one that is created by each and every individual living in this country. A distinctive feature of Tokyo is that each street corner in this city has its own function, role, traditions, culture and rich cosmopolitanism. The Japanese people possess resolute strength and compassion. The new shape of Japan will provide the splendid unity of the society, community and individual, and this is what we aim for.
Just as Japan’s Junior Chambers started with Junior Chamber International Tokyo and spread out across the country, in our 60th year let us bring forth a new Junior Chamber movement from right here in the Junior Chamber International Tokyo!
We Jaycees will create new values that recall yesterday with affection and form the cornerstone of a creative city for tomorrow. Moving from an era of choices to one of symbiosis and coexistence, we will build a society in which individual dignity and social ethics coexist ~ The Japan of the Future Ushered in by the New World City of Tokyo ~
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