Students from the Community Cafe Project, who are taking the regular course "Project Practice" at Faculty of Service Innovation, opened a limited-time cafe, "CAFE REYKJAVIK," on campus (December 2nd and 3rd) and at "Taberuba" in the shopping center directly connected to JR Ichikawa Station (December 7th and 8th).
Until now, as part of our SDGs awareness-raising activities, we have proposed projects to raise awareness of ethical consumption by offering fair trade and locally produced products. However, as a new initiative, we aimed to create a project that would focus on gender and give each customer an opportunity to think about it.
This time, the theme was Christmas from Iceland, a country that has been ranked number one in the world for the 15th consecutive year in the gender gap index, and where a unique culture remains. Menus were developed and events were planned with the cooperation of companies and stores in Ichikawa City.
On November 19th, the students visited the Embassy of Iceland in Japan, where they learned about Icelandic culture and Icelanders' views on gender from Ryosuke Hosaka, the Commercial and Public Relations Officer. Based on what they learned at the embassy, they created a panel and used it to explain the differences between Iceland and Japan to visitors.
We also borrowed a panel from the Japan Women's Learning Foundation, a public interest incorporated foundation, entitled "Discover Gender," and asked participants to place stickers on illustrations of gender hidden in daily life and society that they identified with or found interesting. They then wrote their own thoughts on sticky notes, which were then displayed.
During the event, many people visited the store and deepened their understanding of gender and ethical consumption while enjoying Icelandic food and fair trade coffee.
I was a little nervous about this first attempt at raising awareness of gender equality, but thanks to the cooperation of the Japan Women's Learning Foundation and the Icelandic Embassy, I was able to gain a deeper understanding of the current situation in Japan. I realized that it is necessary to provide a forum that gives people an opportunity to think about social issues, not just gender issues. I also learned that it is important to be creative in planning and public relations efforts to attract interest. I would like to continue to value the idea of "putting things into practice and taking action."
Rina Komatsu (3rd year, Faculty of Service Innovation, Hokuto High School graduate)
As the event leader, I struggled with everything from planning to running the event, keeping track of the overall project progress, and coordinating with external parties. In order to better communicate the importance of gender equality, I visited the Icelandic Embassy and spent about an hour and a half learning about the current situation in Iceland. I felt that I could gain a deeper understanding by actually visiting the country and listening to the opinions of people with knowledge, rather than just researching my questions online. I would like to pass on what I learned from this experience to the next generation and focus on creating an environment that will help members grow.
Nozomi Sato, second-year Faculty of Service Innovation (graduated from Makubetsu Seiryo High School)
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