Destination:<\/span><\/span> Eiheiji Town, Fukui Prefecture (Eiheiji Campus of Fukui Prefectural University), Echizen City, Katsuyama City<\/span><\/span>\u00a0\u00a0<\/span> Fukui Prefecture can be considered a representative of the local region. With the Hokuriku Shinkansen line extended to Fukui and Tsuruga on March 16, 2024, it has been a critical issue for the region to show solutions for regional revitalization. While Fukui Prefecture is said to have the highest level of happiness in Japan, it also faces the challenges of a declining birthrate, an aging population, and a shrinking population. Can Fukui Prefecture realize a highly productive and profitable region while still maintaining its characteristics? We visited the core areas of Echizen City and Katsuyama City, which form the distinctive industrial economy of Fukui Prefecture, to look for the seeds of future local and regional development and local revitalization measures. On the final day, students made a presentation on branding measures to enhance the value of the region in a grareco format. Six students belonging to the Department of Business Administration, Faculty of Economics, Fukui Prefectural University, also participated in all programs of this study tour.<\/span><\/p>\n The 2025 Fukui Study Trip took place in Echizen City and Katsuyama City of Fukui Prefecture, a prefecture often said to have the highest level of Happiness in Japan. Under the theme \u201cLet\u2019s Brand the Region!\u201d, we spent four days and three nights thinking deeply and enjoyably\u2014about the concept of \u201cregion”.\u00a0 In today\u2019s Japan, where depopulation and aging are rapidly progressing, what should the ideal form of \u201clocal areas\u201d be?\u00a0 Before the trip, during the SI (Social Intelligence) program, I encountered a striking idea: instead of chih\u014d s\u014dsei (regional revitalization), we should pursue chiiki s\u014dsei (community revitalization).\u00a0 The change from \u201cregion\u201d to \u201ccommunity\u201d made us reflect on how we might be unconsciously reinforcing the devide between urban and rural areas.\u00a0 With this in mind, we joined the study trip, ready to rediscover the unique charm that each chiiki (community) holds. Utsuki Mei<\/span> Overview of Activities Destination: Eiheiji Town, Fukui Prefecture (Eiheiji Campus of Fukui Prefectural Univer […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":8324,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[97],"tags":[124],"class_list":["post-8299","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-other-en","tag-award-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8299","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8299"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8299\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8346,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8299\/revisions\/8346"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8324"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8299"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8299"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/inst\/rlc\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8299"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/span>Participants:<\/span><\/span> 10 students<\/span><\/span> (including 1 RA)<\/span>
<\/span>Period:<\/span><\/span> February 26, 2025 (Wednesday) to March 1, 2025 (Saturday)<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>
<\/span><\/p>\nActivity Report<\/h4>\n
Experience Report from participants<\/h4>\n
\nEchizen is a city that is rich in tradition; Echizen Washi with over 1,500 years of history, and Echizen forged blades holding a history of over 700 years.\u00a0 We had the chance to visit actual workshops and factories to \u201csee, hear, and touch\u201d the craftsmanship firsthand.\u00a0 These experiences helped each of us connect with the local charm. What are the differences between industries struggling with succession and those thriving?\u00a0 Through fieldwork, we examined these points while seeking clues to effective branding.
\nMeanwhile, Katsuyama holds many tourism attraction sites,\u00a0 including the Echizen Great Buddha\u2014the largest in Japan\u2014, and the popular Fukui Prefectural Dinosaur Museum\u2015On the way to Katsuyama City, there is also the historic Eiheiji Temple (in Eiheiji Town).\u2015 Compared to Echizen, we saw that Katsuyama has a\u00a0 distinct \u201cbrand\u201d that shapes their unique identity.\u00a0 Within our given time, we were able to appreciate the beauty of these wonderful\u00a0 regions.\u00a0 On the final day, we developed and presented our own ideas for regional branding.
\nWith 16 participants, we had 16 different perspectives.\u00a0 While\u00a0 respecting and sharing each other\u2019s thoughts, we shaped them into\u00a0 tangible ideas.\u00a0 We also had a pleasure of enjoying local cuisine!\u00a0 We\u00a0 visited local restaurants recommended by Fukui residents, and tried\u00a0 Fukui\u2019s soul food Sauce katsudon, and even handmade Echizen\u00a0 oroshi soba to eat.
\nAlthough our ability to make an impact may be limited, this study\u00a0 trip provided a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reflect on what we\u00a0 should do, what we shouldn\u2019t do, what we want to do, and what we\u00a0 can do as future contributors to regional development.\u00a0 To all the\u00a0 new WISH residents: the SI programs are valuable opportunities to\u00a0 learn and make meaningful connections. We highly encourage you to take part in this study trip!
\nLastly, we extend our heartfelt thanks to Professor Sugiyama and Associate Professor Kitano of Fukui Prefectural University, their students, and everyone else who made this experience possible.\u00a0 And to the WISH members who joined\u2014thank you for an unforgettable four days!<\/p>\n
\n<\/span>(Translated by Hinako Hayasaki )<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"