Message from Mayor City of Yokohama
I would like to extend my best wishes for the 2020 JCI World Congress Yokohama. It has been five years since the JCI World Congress was last held in Japan. This year will be the tenth time the event is held in Japan, and the first time in Yokohama. On behalf of the City of Yokohama, I would like to welcome all of the Junior Chamber International members participating from 130 countries and regions worldwide.
As the largest organization for young professionals in the world, Junior Chamber International has actively engaged in confronting societal issues. The organization has produced many young leaders who are currently at the forefront of the global community and has contributed significantly to advancing sustainable society. I would like to express my deepest respect for all of your efforts.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about vast changes in the environment surrounding us. In the midst of this situation, holding the World Congress and providing an opportunity for young, passionate citizens to interact and discuss thoughts is especially significant. I sincerely appreciate all the efforts made by JCI Yokohama and all of those who contributed to prepare a safe and secure congress.
As an "SDGs Future City" selected by the Japanese government, Yokohama aims to realize "Zero Carbon Yokohama" by achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. Through several pilot projects, including one related to the local production and consumption of biofuel, and by sharing information and expanding initiatives throughout Japan and the world, we aim to contribute to the achievement of global SDGs.
Going forward, we will continue to join forces with the JCI members, businesses, universities, and regional communities in order to resolve the urban issues cities face in Japan and abroad while striving for the advancement of a sustainable society. Thank you for your continued support and cooperation.
Mayor City of Yokohama
Message from Governor of Kanagawa Prefecture
The Kanagawa Prefecture has been collaborating with the Junior Chamber International in numerous projects that address social issues. We are pleased that this year's JCI World Congress during November 3 to 7 will be held in one of our cities, Yokohama, for the first time. Although parts of the Congress will be held online due to COVID-19, it will be an excellent opportunity for JCI members from 130 countries and region worldwide and the Kanagawa Prefecture to connect.
The Kanagawa Prefecture implements a range of policies based on the concept Vibrant INOCHI ("vibrant life"), and together with the Yokohama City, we have been recognized by the Japanese government as one of the leading local governments that pursue SDGs. In June, Kanagawa facilitated the establishment of the Japan SDGs Action Promotion Council, in which JCI Japan also participates as member. Meanwhile, in March next year, we will also hold the SDGs Action Festival, in alignment with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). As such, based on the SDGs' overarching motto of "leaving no one behind", we are driving initiatives to remind people that our individual behaviors can help shape the future and to encourage taking specific action.
Japan and the world is in the midst of combatting COVID-19. Earlier this year, the Kanagawa Prefecture attended to the cruise ship, Diamond Princess, which entered the Yokohama port with a growing number of passengers affected by the coronavirus. However, we were able to leverage learnings from the event and successfully develop a new medical care system, the Kanagawa model, ahead of other prefectures. I believe that it was our experience in advancing SDGs efforts that enabled us to quickly put infectious disease measures in place.
Further, at the ME-BYO Summit Kanagawa 2019 last autumn, we announced the ME-BYO Index, which was developed through discussions with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the University of Tokyo. The index is now available in the form of smartphone apps. Kanagawa promotes daily health management using such latest technologies, encourages people to work from home and switch to online meetings, and seeks to establish a new lifestyle that utilizes big data, AI, and ICT.
At the World Congress Yokohama this year, we look forward to JCI members' proposals on how to leverage digital transformation to create new sustainable ways of living and help pave the way for the new "with COVID-19" age.
Governor of Kanagawa Prefecture
Message from Local President JCI Yokohama
Congress Director 2020 JCI World Congress Yokohama COC
Many issues lie in our world today, and people and the society earnestly seek for their solution. Such solutions will not be generated by simply furthering what we already do today; they require fundamental innovations.
How many companies worldwide place innovation as part of their corporate visions?
How many local municipalities worldwide actively seek innovation?
Innovation that will help transform the world in a positive direction. In any day and age, the world constantly requires innovation.
What is "innovation" in the first place?
We believe that innovation is not only about "transformation" that is based on economic advancement measurements. Advanced technologies, ideas, new thoughts and perceptions, and most importantly, combinations of simple ideas based on our acquired wisdom and experiences or synergies between actions that we take to solve problems could also be innovations that better the world.
Our concept, The Crossroad of Innovation, is a very simple one. We believe that innovation is, at the end of the day, about single individuals meeting, connecting, and starting something new together. Rather than leaning excessively toward convenience or advancement, we value placing importance on sensitivities, respecting uniqueness, connection between people, enabling a content world, and hence, co-creation.
Through this congress, we hope to maximize the potentials of JCI's global network and enable people to collaborate in promoting the SDGs or identifying seeds for innovation that will help resolve global issues. A key factor in the process is happiness among each one of us and the people surrounding us. It all starts with stopping to think what happiness is for each one of us, pursuing our individual uniqueness, and accepting the uniqueness of others. If we open ourselves to others, prompt a chain on empathy, and continue endeavors to enable better changes along with our peers, there will surely be a brighter future awaiting for us.
Ken Sakakura
Local President JCI Yokohama
Daisuke Dennis Manabe