Direction of the Respective Designs
Direction of the Respective Designs
Japan Design
As a result of the 2009 elections, there was a historic change in governing parties in Japan. The upper house election will be held in July 2010, the first national election since this change in governing parties. This major change in government necessitates a thorough verification. We at the Junior Chamber International Tokyo will verify the manifesto while also working to capture the voices of citizens and ensure that they reach the candidates.
We must thoroughly verify whether the new government is being run in accordance with the manifesto proclaimed during the election, and we must create a space where this verification can take place from the citizens’ perspective, not just the opinions of a portion of the media or experts.
In addition, we must no simply verify, but citizens themselves must voice what it is that they are looking for in the future of the country. The future of this country must be created not by bureaucrats, not by politics, but by the people. In the citizens’ discussion group to be held in May, we will gather the unbiased, real voices of citizens under the title of “Tetsuron”.
We will then bring the voices of the people gathered through the verification of the manifesto and the citizens’ discussion group to the candidates, and get the clear perspective of the respective candidates in response. Based upon this, we will then hold a public discussion group in a new format, where citizens and candidates can engage in discussions. We will create a mechanism where citizens will be able to choose candidates in the coming election based upon their proposed policies and measures. Through this large scale activity, politics will cease to be impersonal, and will ensure that the people of Japan will be able to take pride and have an awareness of their authority, taking the initiative to become involved in the future of this country.
Tokyo Design
With Tokyo residents with a love for the city creating "Tokyo that inspires dreams’” as our operational policy, we will undertake activities with a focus on the idea that the allure of a city lies in the personalities of the people who live there. Tokyo, the city in which we live, is one of the leading cities of the world.
Yet this city also has issues as a large metropolis. For example, an overwhelming population density during the daytime, disaster prevention demand due to the urban development, accomodation for an aging society, environmental issues, an increase in crime, and educational issues for children.. The old concept of neighbors looking out for each other no longer applies. These issues arose with the development of the city, and are due in large part to the dilution of the community with the growth of the city.
The 18th Century city of Edo was the largest city in the world and an overpopulated city when it reached a population of 1.4 million. Further, the people who gathered in Edo were originally from a variety of other regions. They developed a sense of pride in living in Edo, pouring their love into the city, and they had a sense of compassion and respect for those around them. These people expressed this in their actions known to this day as “Edo shigusa”, the manners and behavior of Edo.
This year, Junior Chamber International Tokyo will use such “Edo shigusa” to create “ Tokyo that inspires dreams”, giving form to the pride and love that all residents of Tokyo have in their hearts for this city. It is our goal to create a Tokyo that we can own with love and pride in the face of the world.
Area Design
Centered on the directors of the respective board of directors of the 23 wards of Tokyo, we as young citizens will identify regional issues with our honed senses, thinking of methods to resolve these issues based on actual experience and acting upon them to create a bright and prosperous community.
For the past 35 years, the district boards of directors have divided into the 23 wards and conducted activities rooted in the region, and for this reason, we believe that the district boards are most able to identify the true issues faced by the region. Regional issues are not ones that can be seen from the broad perspective of the larger city of Tokyo. One of the roles of the district boards of directors is for members of the respective boards of directors to constantly identify the issues of the region, looking for solutions based on new ideas, and to take the responsibility for building a better region.
In addition, through these regional activities, we will take on a larger role than in years past in cultivating people and serving as a foundation for interpersonal exchange. Junior Chamber International Tokyo will ensure that the members who are active in the 23 district boards involved in area design are able to grow and able to contribute and to go on to succeed for the entire city of Tokyo and the entire country of Japan. We will promote these activities to ensure that they serve as the basis for further vitalize the activities of Junior Chamber International Tokyo as a whole.
