Tahachi　Ikeda (President, Junior Chamber International Osaka)

Realizing Osaka as a City of Dignity
Let Us Open a New Page of History by Fulfilling Our Civic Responsibility

Introduction

How does one perceive Osaka when seen from the outside world?
How will future generations perceive those of us who lived in Osaka in 2011?
What can we do during our short lifetimes to benefit our future generations?

Whoever you are, your life is an integral part of history; all your actions are interrelated with the actions of other people in the world. None of us are independent from any incident taking place in the past or in the future, in our neighborhood or in a remote country. In short, we are all mutually related, and all incidents in this world, in our history are interrelated. With this view in mind, we must fulfill our roles with due sense of responsibility, to relay the baton from previous generations to future generations. At the same time, we must work to resolve current problems through concerted efforts and bequeath a better world to future generations.

At present, in our city of Osaka and in Japan, we enjoy materialistic affluence. Moreover, thanks to the remarkable progress of information technologies and related infrastructures, we can easily obtain information and learn what is happening all over the world. On the other hand of this luxury, it is extremely difficult to select the facts and useful pieces of information from among this information overflow. Under these circumstances, many people tend to be influenced by inaccurate information, such as sensational rumors, without forming their own opinions and seeing things from a long-term perspective. However, to create a better future, we must avoid being influenced by fluctuating social tides, and make wise decisions by studying what our predecessors in history have experienced. Rather than being discouraged by current situations, we must work to create a renewed fervor for Osaka by integrating our diversity to transform this city into “A City of Dignity.” Through our efforts to fulfill our responsibility for future generations, we must work to create a self-reliant city of independent thinkers with a moral compass, not affected by sensational information; a people that respects one another and lives in harmony.

Dignified Citizens Can Create a New Page in History

History is created by the will of the people. Throughout history, one can see that progress is always driven by the people. When we look back at history, events such as the independence of many Asian and African colonies after World War II, as well as today’s widespread awareness of the importance of protecting the global environment are not the consequences of one individual or a nation. Instead, these positive outcomes were generated by the collective will of the people and the drive of the elected leaders. Progress in our history has been, and will be driven by individuals, organizations and communities that employ independent decision-making, promote dignity and determination, and exert their rights to elect leaders and instate constructive policies. We must not act like a flock of sheep but behave as independent thinkers. To fulfill our responsibilities for future generations, we must act boldly and solve current problems. In addition, we must first try to understand what is happening around us and consider current problems as a matter of our personal concern. We must stay alert and thoroughly investigate the problems, their causes, backgrounds, and seek appropriate solutions. We must study the views of all stakeholders, and see how we can benefit them before making decisions based on our own will and knowledge. By forming a collective wisdom of “Dignified Citizens”, we can head toward the right direction to open a new page of our history.

Promoting Regional Cooperation

As citizens of this city, we are composed of many people, rich cultures and historical assets. We enjoy these peaceful times because of the untiring efforts of our predecessors to create a foundation for Osaka and its unique culture and traditions. Only by respecting our predecessors and truly appreciating the assets they have created are we able to create a new era toward our future. To do so, we must first learn about our ancestors, how they contributed to the city and fostered its culture. We must study the background of historical events and the reasons the events occurred. During school history classes however, students are encouraged to memorize various historical facts and important years without cultivating personal interest in the events themselves or the historical figures. For example, Osaka was once Japan’s commercial and logistical center where agricultural and other products were gathered from around the country. Many merchants also moved into Osaka and established diverse businesses. Osaka, however, did not develop into Japan’s major commercial hub in one day. For many preceding centuries, residents in Osaka have long held friendly exchanges with people of other regions and countries abroad. Through cross-cultural communication, the people of Osaka have fostered a unique characteristic of openness toward different cultures and extraordinary curiosity toward innovation. Together, they had created what we call “the Osaka spirit”. Moreover, through their activities and expressiveness, the citizens have spurred social changes, thereby influencing the course of history. Osaka as Japan’s logistical center, therefore, is the result of all these interrelated factors, along with Japan’s relationship with its neighboring countries. Therefore, adult citizens must not pass on the vital history as mere facts and data to the next generation, but instead teach the children by feeling our ancestors’ enthusiasm toward Osaka and understand the background that has made this city what it is today. I believe this is an important mission for our citizens.

Let’s Build a Foundation for Sustainable Growth

An essential cornerstone of any city is its businesses. Konosuke Matsushita, founder of Panasonic Corporation, once said, “A company is a public entity of society.” In this short sentence, he implies that through business activities, a business must contribute to society. To fulfill the mission of a public entity, in addition to seeking profits, a business must work to benefit the city, country and the entire world from a long-term perspective. All members of a public entity must understand that their roles are not just to work for the corporation they belong to, but also to serve society, humanity and the world. Although Japanese enterprises have long been urged to fulfill their corporate social responsibility and noblesse oblige (noble obligations), in actuality, however, many enterprises have merely followed the social trends and practices of other enterprises, rather than taking the initiative in civic duty as a corporation. In other words, many enterprises have conducted corporate citizenship activities just to fulfill their social quota. In the past, enterprises placed a higher priority on gaining greater profits rather than fulfilling their social responsibility. Today, however, we acknowledge that businesses cannot uphold such ideals. Instead of regarding CSR activities as something necessary to avoid social criticism, an enterprise must regard them as a means to embody its own philosophy. As public entities of society, businesses and organizations must work to contribute to society. I believe any enterprise and group should base their development on this philosophy in order to create sustainable growth. Moreover, if people who believe in this principle combine their effort and exert leadership in their respective areas, they will be able to contribute to society even more effectively. Through such efforts, they can foster good relations with all stakeholders and help create a splendid society. To conduct more CSR activities, corporations and organizations must work together as vital organs of society to create long-lasting assets.

Let’s Develop Diplomatic Relations between Osaka and the World

Just as individual residents together constitute a city, individual nations jointly form the global society. Residents, enterprises and other organizations have responsibilities to fulfill, not only for their respective cities, but also for their countries and for international society. In addition to national and local governments, citizens must work to promote friendships between people, cities and nations. In fact, I believe citizens are key players in building strong ties between countries. In many cases, “private diplomacy” is formal exchanges of views which may not lead to concrete solutions. However, diplomacy should consist of efforts to fulfill social responsibilities. Members of respective communities all around the world can work together and take advantage of their local experience and community relationships. I truly believe that we can work to build partnerships with people in other regions even more proactively. Moreover, we must expand the scope and areas of our grassroots activities to encompass various other regions in the world to foster world peace. To this end, we must broaden our views and become aware of our roles as global citizens. At Junior Chamber International (JCI) Osaka, we are eager to promote and conduct activities to foster world peace. We are working to benefit people not only in Osaka, but also all over the world.

Boldly Presenting Junior Chamber International (JCI) Osaka！

Finally, I would like to address members of JCI Osaka. After the end of World War II, Japanese society experienced rapid change. Japanese people began pursuing only their self-interests, rather than fulfilling their social responsibilities in their communities. Instead of making independent decisions, they delayed making their own decisions or relied on others to make decisions. In such times, JCI Osaka inaugurated its activities to meet social demands. For more than 60 years, JCI Osaka has continued implementing various activities not only because its members wanted to engage in such activities, but because society needed our services. With the social demand on one hand and a group of young people eager to meet those needs on the other, JCI Osaka has benefited both present and future generations throughout its history. In Japanese there is a saying: “Those who strongly desire to step ahead and have the drive to make that their sole goal will create a ladder.” This saying implies that aspiration is the source of invention. We must be aware of our place in history, and with newly established guidelines, review whether our present activities are in tune with our founding principles and if we can achieve our set goals. With these things in mind, we must actively pursue our goals with determination and enthusiasm. To create greater positive social changes, in addition to our own JCI Osaka activities, we must also seek collaboration and partnerships with other groups and organizations. By collaborating with many people and organizations, JCI Osaka will be able to present itself to a greater spectrum of people and receive honest evaluation and support. This will allow JCI Osaka to further its development and evolution, helping us to review our own history in order to pass on our activities for a brighter future. Our decisions and activities must open a new page of history. Since its founding, JCI Osaka has been the source of inspiration for diverse activities in Osaka. JCI Osaka will be inscribed in the history of this city as a leader of innovation for future generations.

In conclusion, let us earn our place in history as individuals who have led lives of dignity in Osaka, “A City of Dignity.” Our combined efforts will pave the way for succeeding generations to live in a brighter future.