IMAGINE KANAZAWA 2030 is a platform for realising KANAZAWA SDGs through partnerships between three partners — United Nations University’s IAS OUIK, Kanazawa City and Junior Chamber International Kanazawa (JC Kanazawa), as well as local residents, regions, NPOs and companies.
The Council for the Promotion of IMAGINE KANAZAWA 2030 has held the first meeting of fiscal 2021.
First, the above three partners, which make up the secretariat, talked about the progress of the previous year’s projects and introduced this year’s projects. Then, the council members explained their individual projects and held discussions.
Promotion of Five Policies in Fiscal 2020
First, the secretariat of the council reported on the activities carried out in fiscal 2020.
(1) Training of people who will realise KANAZAWA SDGs
Kanazawa Nishi High School has been implementing problem-solving learning (PBL) since 2019 according to a three-year plan. Also, the Kanazawa Next-generation SDG Idea-thon event was held. In addition, other activities were carried out, such as workshops on Kanazawa SDGs for the general public, seminars with invited guests from the municipal governments of central Ishikawa, and a programme for internship students.
(2) Communication and dialogue — Creating opportunities for partnerships
At the SDGs meeting, the Four Leading Projects for the promotion of Kanazawa Future Visions were established by people from the private sector and young officials of Kanazawa City Hall. The SDGs Café event, which is open to everyone, was held online eight times with a total of 500 participants.
In January 2021, the Hokuriku SDG Future Cities Forum was held online, and government members and stakeholders from all ten SDG Future Cities in Hokuriku participated to discuss their visions for the Hokuriku region of the future.
(3) Creating a flexible organisation — Organising an enforcement system and enhancing partnerships
The Kanazawa City SDGs promotion headquarters was established in April, and the Council for the Promotion of IMAGINE KANAZAWA 2030 was established in June of last year. The council consists of the mayor of Kanazawa as Chairperson, the director of JC Kanazawa and the director of United Nations University IAS OUIK as Deputy Chairs, and eight other members from companies, citizens’ organisations and universities.
In July, IMAGINE KANAZAWA 2030 Partners was launched as a platform to create partnerships for achieving Kanazawa SDGs. At present, over 130 companies, organisations and individuals are registered as partners. Three meetings were held last year, and observation tours were offered by Ishikawa’s Morning Catch Project in order to deepen mutual understanding and friendships among the members.
(4) Conveying and spreading information — Information diffusion
Umebachi-san’s IMAGINE KANAZAWA 2030 PV was created and run through the official website, facebook and TV commercials. The official website was upgraded to send out information online effectively. Leaflets, pamphlets and campaign goods for Kanazawa Future Visions were produced, and a large tapestry was hung in Kanazawa Station’s Motenashi Dome.
(5) Realising sustainable Kanazawa tourism — Kanazawa SDG tourism
We are promoting sustainable tourism that harmonises with the lives of our citizens, with the theme of “responsible tourism.” Our goal is to make both local residents and tourists happy. Tourism activities that combine the three aspects of economy, society and environment are being carried out. Through the promotion of Kanazawa SDG tourism, we can create harmony between tourism and the lives of our citizens, as well as circulation in the local economy. Our hope is that both citizens and tourists will think about Kanazawa’s attractions in order to create a sustainable city.
We have held workshops and lectures for tourism-related businesses. Moreover, information about Kanazawa SDG tourism was disseminated through a website (https://kanazawa-sdgs.jp/kanazawa-sdgs-tourism/), a promotional video (Kanazawa SDGs Tourism) and tie-ups with online media.
Further development of Kanazawa SDGs in fiscal 2021
Next, the secretariat explained the plan for fiscal 2021 projects and budgets. With the goal of attaining SDGs, meetings among the partners will be held regularly to discuss funding from the private sector and its management and operation mechanism. Furthermore, Kanazawa’s original indicators and targets for monitoring the progress of SDG initiatives will be established to visualise the attainment of SDGs. Seminars for citizens and government officials will be continued, and idea-thon events will be held for students ranging from elementary school age to university students. As for SDG tourism, incentives will continue to be offered to those who implement pioneering activities for the promotion of SDGs. Also, local production and local consumption of eco products required for SDG tourism will be discussed. In addition, activities will be carried out to help the operators of accommodations and locally created optional tours understand the practical methods for attaining SDGs, thus raising awareness of SDG tourism and establishing the accreditation scheme for SDG tours.
Introduction of activities by United Nations University IAS OUIK
UN IAS OUIK is implementing the SUN Project, a Sustainable Urban Nature Project, and holding workshops to discuss the maintenance and management of gardens in Kanazawa, with the catchphrase “Let’s become gardeners together!”. They have also started activities to connect this project to sustainable tourism; they are participating in the efforts to visualise the achievements of Kanazawa SDGs and discussing the targets of sustainable tourism.
From now on, it will be important to disseminate the achievement of Kanazawa SDGs globally. UN IAS OUIK hopes to play a role as an organisation of the United Nations in that effort; it will use the UNESCO Creative Cities Network with the theme of “culture and SDGs” and hold an international event focusing on SDG tourism in collaboration with the United Nations World Tourism Organization.
(Presentation by Mr. Watanabe, UN IAS OUIK Director)
Introduction of activities carried out by JC Kanazawa
JC Kanazawa is implementing the Connection through Picture Books Project, which aims to facilitate companies’ understanding of the concepts of diversity and inclusion through donations of picture books to nurseries and kindergartens. They also intend to promote the ESG management promotion programme in order to improve the sustainability of companies.
Other projects they are implementing include Kanazawa Culture Tourism, which provides opportunities for residents and tourists to experience the culture of Kanazawa, including cultural events and performances as a business model and the Future People Project, which helps university students acquire advanced IT literacy.
These four activities are connected to the international conference to be held in September, “Kanazawa Mirai Summit 2021 — Handing Down Kanazawa to Future Generations”.
Lastly, the members of the council explained their activities and had discussions on future activities to be carried out through partnerships. The participants confirmed from their individual standpoints that this year’s projects would be promoted further, and the meeting ended in success.
