The Center of Community Project is an important new subsidized project (*) that was set up by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in the 2013 academic year. The aim of this project is to develop universities as centers of regional regeneration and revitalization by encouraging universities to collaborate with municipalities and providing support for university-wide education, research and public contributions geared towards local communities.
* 319 universities (342 schools) from across Japan applied for this program; Akita University was selected as one of 52 universities (56 schools) for the program.
Regional Development aimed at promoting an Independent Aging Society in which all Individuals have Value
According to future population statistics by prefecture released by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research on March 27, 2013, by 2040 the rate of population decrease in Akita Prefecture will be 64.4%, and the rate of aging will be 43.8%, both of which are the highest values in Japan. In addition, the figures show that the population ratio of people aged between 0 and 14 years will be 8.3%, the lowest in Japan.
Although Akita’s prefectural government sees this rapidly progressing depopulation and declining birth rate coupled with an aging population as major challenges in urgent need of redressing, and has taken a range of measures to rectify the issues, nonetheless they continue unabated. It is predicted that 26 years from now, the day will come when we see an ultra-aging society in which 4.3 out of 10 people will be over the age of 65 years.
As the current situation stands, Yokote City, Kitaakita City and Katagami City, which are all participating in the project, have the following rates of aging: Yokote City: 32.2%; Kitaakita City: 37.6%; and Katagami City: 27.1%, showing that they are already ultra-aging societies. Amidst the increasing trend towards nuclear families and the weakening of local ties, these areas face uncertainty in a number of ways, such as their ability to respond to earthquakes, a lack of nursing and medical care, threats to the transmission of traditional forms of culture that breathe life into the region, and a shortage of community ties through the loss of elementary schools that have been a much-loved feature of local communities for many years.
With the aging population set to become even more severe in the future, regional development in which residents can lead independent lives, help each other out and live as valued members of the community is a matter of the utmost urgency that need resolving.
In respect to issues of the utmost urgency that need resolving, the following 3 themes and 5 issues were chosen following consultations with participating municipalities from the perspective of making it possible to utilize the educational and research seeds generated by each faculty, and to facilitate collaborations between departments. Work is now underway to tackle these themes and issues.
Theme 1: Safe and Secure Regional Development in Aging Societies
Issue 1: Disaster prevention against earthquakes in winter in areas which receive heavy snowfall (Yokote City)
Issue 2: Tsunami countermeasures in vast areas of low-lying land (Katagami City)
Theme 2: Regional Development through Medical Treatment and Nursing Care that provides the Elderly with Peace of Mind
Issue 1: The creation of regional networks that give consideration to at-home nursing and medical care (Yokote City)
Theme 3: Vigorous Regional Development through the Promotion of Local Cultures
Issue 1: “The Tale of Ani” – Contemporary utilization of Ani Town’s unique culture stemming from its thriving mining industry in the past (Kitaakita City)
Issue 2: Revitalization of regional activities through the construction of a comfortable multipurpose community facility utilizing the site of the former Toyokawa Elementary school (Katagami City)
The project is scheduled to run for 5 years, from academic year 2013 to 2017.
Click here to view the Center of Community Project pamphlet.
| Date | 場所 | Content |
|---|---|---|
| Apr. 23, 2014 | 100th Anniversary Hall 2F Meeting Room | Akita University Center of Community Project Self-Evaluation Committee meeting |
| May 7, 2014 | Administrative Office Building 3F Meeting Room 3 | 1st committee meeting |
| May 14, 2014 | Administrative Office Building 3F Meeting Room 3 | Review board on funding for regional-oriented education and research |
| May 22, 2014 | Administrative Office Building 3F Meeting Room 3 | 2013 Academic Year External Evaluation Committee |
| May 23, 2014 | Administrative Office Building 3F Meeting Room 3 | Hearing on funding for regional-oriented education and research |
| May 25, 2014 | Sansan Yokote (Yokote City) | Kiki-Kaki Training Session in Yokote |
| Jun. 5. 2014 | Administrative Office Building 3F Meeting Room 3 | Akita University Center of Community Project Self-Evaluation Committee meeting |
| Jun. 9, 2014 | COC office | Japan Kiki-Kaki School in Oga committee meeting |
| Jun. 21, 2014 | Katagami City Multipurpose Community Facility ‘Toyokawa Community Center’ |
Participation in Sanaburi Festival, Toyokawa district, Katagami City |
| Jun. 21, 2014 | Yokote City, Yamauchi district | COC survey: Implementation of a survey relating to awareness of home nursing care among residents of Yamauchi district, Yokote City |
| Date | Place | Content |
|---|---|---|
| Oct. 22, 2013 | Yokote City (Yokote Government Office/Kita Government Office) | 1st three-way meeting in Yokote City |
| Oct. 28, 2013 | Katagami City, Showa Government Office | 1st three-way meeting in Katagami City |
| Nov. 21, 2013 | Y2 Plaza, Yokote City | Kiki-Kaki Volunteer Study Group |
| Dec. 2, 2013 | Kitaakita City, Ani Government Office | Issuance of letters of commission for cooperation in data gathering and research |
| Dec. 2, 2013 | Kitaakita City, Ani Government Office | 1st three-way meeting in Kitaakita City |
| Dec. 19, 2013 | Yokote City, Yamauchi Regional Bureau | Local meeting in Yokote City regarding the creation of regional networks that give consideration to at-home nursing and medical care |
| Feb. 1, 2014 | Akita University 100th Anniversary Hall | 1st Kiki-Kaki Volunteer Study Group |
| Feb. 6, 2014 | Yokote City Fureai Center, Kamakura Building | Akita University Center of Community Forum in Yokote |
| Feb. 20, 2014 | Y2 Plaza, Yokote City | Kiki-Kaki Volunteer Study Group |
| Mar. 1, 2014 | 100th Anniversary Hall | 1st Kiki-Kaki Volunteer Training Session, Section 2 |
As part of the Center of Community Project, these funds were put in place with the aim of supporting teaching staff from this university with a desire to improve education, research and public contribution activities that encourage the university as a whole to engage in more activities which are geared towards the local region.
[2014 Academic Year]
Out of all the applications for themes emphasizing regional-oriented initiatives in the 2014 academic year, of the 27 applications 16 were selected following screening (excluding 1 application withdrawal).
Faculty/Center |
Themes |
|---|---|
| Faculty of International Resource Sciences | 1 |
| Faculty of Education and Human Studies | 9 |
| Faculty of Medicine | 1 |
| Graduate School of Engineering and Resource Science | 1 |
| International Exchange Center | 1 |
| Center for Regional Development | 2 |
| Innovation Center for Engineering Design and Manufacturing | 1 |
| Total | 16 |
Faculty/Center |
Selected theme |
|---|---|
| Faculty of International Resource Sciences | “The Tale of Ani” – Contemporary utilization of Ani Town’s unique culture stemming from its thriving mining industry in the past |
| Faculty of Education and Human Studies | Status surveys of Ani’s culture and the community system that support it |
| Proposal for educational psychology research relating to a comprehensive understanding of children which takes into consideration local culture and a teacher training and cultural inheritance program rooted in the region to be implemented alongside a range of psychological standard tests at elementary schools in Akita Prefecture | |
| Development of experimental equipment for tsunami models corresponding to Katagami City’s hazard map | |
| Construction and implementation of regional development involving student participation which centers on Toyokawa Community Center | |
| Geographical research on the inheritance of daily life culture in former mining areas in Akita Prefecture – The inheritance of good culture and food autonomy in areas surrounding Sanmai Kozan, Daira Kozan and Toyokawa Yuden. |
|
| “The Tale of Ani” – Contemporary utilization of Ani Town’s unique culture stemming from its thriving mining industry in the past (Kitaakita City) | |
| “The Tale of Ani” – Contemporary utilization of Ani Town’s unique culture stemming from its thriving mining industry in the past: Regional collaborative activities utilizing Ani’s traditional food resources in a modern context | |
| Surveys and research related to regional development support projects in Gojome-machi | |
| Comparative research on Japan and the United Kingdom relating to the connections between local industry and theatrical culture: Centering on comparisons between cities in northern England and Kosaka-machi, Akita Prefecture | |
| Faculty of Medicine | Developing the foundations in local communities for people with dementia to live in security: Holding a lecture course for training dementia supporters among Akita University’s students and teaching staff and research relating to testing the effectiveness of this lecture course |
| Graduate School of Engineering and Resource Science | (Tentative) Project to develop technologies to protect and support elderly persons living alone through ICT |
| International Exchange Center | The formation of a consortium for regional development that utilizes the site of the former Toyokawa Elementary school: Implementation of collaborative project work between Akita University students and residents of Toyokawa district, and participation in local activities by international students |
| Center for Regional Development | Understanding the vibration characteristics of houses in cold regions with heavy snowfall (Disaster prevention against earthquakes in winter in areas which receive heavy snowfall) |
| Research relating to the nature of disaster prevention and disaster amelioration education based on the regional characteristics of Akita Prefecture (part 2) | |
| Innovation Center for Engineering Design and Manufacturing | Development of a small rocket engine for use in education for children in Akita Prefecture in collaboration with pyrotechnists from Omagari and its application in space education in collaboration with Akita University’s affiliated elementary school |
[2013 Academic Year]
Out of all the applications for themes emphasizing regional-oriented initiatives, 17 were selected in the 2013 academic year.
Faculty/Center |
Themes |
|---|---|
| Faculty of Education and Human Studies | 8 |
| Faculty of Engineering and Resource Science | 3 |
| Faculty of Medicine | 2 |
| Center for Regional Development | 2 |
| Innovation Center for Engineering Design and Manufacturing | 1 |
| Venture Incubation Center | 1 |
| Total | 17 |
Center for Regional Development, Akita University (COC office)
1-1 Tegatagakuen-machi, Akita City 010-8502
TEL: 018-889-3173
FAX: 018-889-3168
E-mail: coc25@jimu.akita-u.ac.jp
