A paper created by a student from Faculty of Global Studies won the Excellence Award at the CHIBA UNIVERSITY PRESS, sponsored by the Chiba Nippo newspaper. This is the third time the student has won this award, following wins in 2019 and 2021.
CHIBA UNIVERSITY PRESS aims to help university students learn media literacy necessary for working adults through the creation of newspapers, thereby strengthening their ability to disseminate information and contributing to the improvement of the university and the community. This year, seven universities in Chiba Prefecture (Edogawa University, Keiai University, Seitoku University, Chiba University of Commerce, Teikyo Heisei University, Tokyo College of Management, and Tokyo University of Information Sciences) participated.
This time, the students interviewed a Ukrainian student who fled the war and fled to Japan, a student who moved to Yotsukaido City from Afghanistan with his parents, and a Russian father and son who run a Russian restaurant in Chiba City. They compiled information about their lives in Japan, their feelings for their homeland, and their families who remain there, and also interviewed support groups for foreigners in Japan and International Division of Chiba Prefecture about the current situation and issues. The article was published on October 21st.
At the online closing ceremony on December 14, one school was awarded the Excellence Award and two schools were awarded the Special Award, and the students were presented with certificates of commendation. Since five of the six student journalists from our university are currently on short-term overseas training, only one representative received the certificate.
In a commentary by the Chiba Nippo newspaper, the judges praised the program for receiving a unanimous vote, just like last year, for tackling difficult issues, such as animal welfare last year and the Ukraine crisis this year, and for conducting comprehensive interviews with support groups and the prefecture's International Division.
- * The published article can be viewed on the Chiba Nippo Newspaper's "CHIBA UNIVERSITY PRESS" website (https://www.chibanippo.co.jp/cup/).
This time, I placed emphasis on "Today's form of support". I was conscious of conveying the form of support realistically from various perspectives, such as those of those who have experienced war, those who provide support, and the response of the government. Looking at one topic from multiple angles leads to creative problem solving and the birth of new possibilities. This time, I was overturned in many ways, such as the inconveniences faced by Afghan women due to religion. I would like to be someone who can connect the circle of awareness so that more people can be aware of problems and have flexible thinking, rather than leaving what I have learned and realized from this experience as it is, but share it with others and have them understand it.
Shiori Koide, second year student Faculty of Global Studies (graduated from Matsudo Municipal High School)
When I interviewed students who had evacuated from Ukraine, I had a lot of trouble communicating in English and translating and summarizing the information into Japanese. Hearing directly about the tragic situation there made me realize that what we know is only superficial, and I strongly felt that we should not mistakenly assume that we understand everything about something just by obtaining some information. In the future, when I use various information in my university research, I would like to make use of the experience of this interview and incorporate not only information from literature but also voices from the field.
Tomomi Ishikawa (graduated from Mito Commercial High School), 1st year Faculty of Global Studies