■The iU is now open. Six months have passed since that time.

It has been six months since iU, also known as the Professional University of Information and Management for Innovation, opened.

I had the opportunity to issue a report online to our 250 partner companies and 300 visiting faculty members.

This is a university that fosters professionals industry experts who can usher in innovation through information, that is, ICT, in the domain of management, that is, business.

Linking these ideas together gives us Professional University of Information and Management for Innovation

Its formal name is iU. But that name alone is too short for formal approval, so we went with Japan's longest name instead.

It was the first university in the world to include innovation in its name.

But it's long, so the name is ultimately iU.

We are implementing five key points.

1. Utilize ICT, business, and English.

Have a curriculum available nowhere else.

2. Learn "at" companies.

This is a university, but provides the context offered by companies.

All students intern for half a year.

3. Create new things "with" companies

Eighty percent of the 27 faculty members are from the industry.

Professionals teach the student body.

There are already 250 partner companies. And that number is still growing.

4. Thorough online education.

The school opened online due to COVID-19, but we had made the necessary preparations, so there was no confusion.

By contrast, the campus is dedicated to real-world activities such as business development, manufacturing, and the like.

Many universities are currently closed, but iU will open starting in June.

However, classes continue to be online. Students are taking classes via their computers here and there from different places.

5. Two sites in Tokyo.

The main school building is near Tokyo Skytree in Sumida Ward. It's an open environment without walls.

A satellite campus is located at Takeshiba in Minato Ward. It's an industry-academia collaboration special zone for smart cities.

The SoftBank headquarters is on the upper floor, and we will pursue work on 5G, robots, and AI facilities together.

Minister Takuya Hirai has requested that we cooperate with the Digital Agency.

We have already achieved the above five points. This alone is revolutionary, but we are taking on five more challenges.

1. Visiting professors: 100.

A pool of talent. If you set a goal of 100 people, visiting professors will bring their friends. Sometimes the students bring new talent in.

Now it's 300 people.

Since there are 200 students in a given grade, the university now has more professors than students.

2. Everyone joins the company.

Create the i Co., Ltd. where everyone can enroll as employees. Everyone earns money to pay their tuition fees.

3. Everyone starts their own business.

All students take on the challenge of starting a business at least once in their four year program. It's likely a world first.

If everyone succeeds in starting a business, the employment rate would be zero.

That's the goal: everyone an owner out of college.

But 90% will likely fail. Failing is more likely to lead to learning.

You could call it Failure University.

4. Special education zones.

Takeshiba CiP has been certified as a National Strategic Special Zone, but the main school building in Sumida also intends to aim for special zone designation.

Special zone could be a radio zone where special radio waves can be used, a copyright-free archival zone, a special zone where robots operate, and a special visa zone for international students.

5. Overseas partnerships.

Promote partnerships with overseas universities and create passports that allow for traveling back and forth.

Various projects are already underway.

Entrepreneurial support. Taking action through the "Super Entrepreneurship School."

Build communities around universities, technical colleges, and high schools. Match entrepreneurs, consultants, and VCs.

E-sports. In collaboration with the Japan esports Union and other groups, we launched the "Super E-Sports School," a community of schools from universities to elementary schools, along with researchers.

iU recommends club activities such as e-sports.

What I want to create myself is an athletic club.

By exercise here I don't mean sports, but rather student movements about exercising their rights.

Students, as stakeholders, could proactively suggest ideas to university management.

The club would provide helmets, masks, and sunglasses. However, we would not provide them clubs, as that would incite violence.

Let the students create the university as they see fit.

Approval was delayed, but the first year was quite competitive. And there were many unexpected students.

Some who quit college:

Several students quit Keio University or other prestigious schools to join us.

Existing schools must have failed to satisfy them.

Parent-child enrollment:

A father and son and a mother and son have enrolled.

How surprising to see such demand. Should we make a course for families?

"I persuaded my parents to let me join."

That is what many of the students have to say. Sorry to the parents. But also, thank you. How promising.

"Let us start a business already."

Our original design was to let them intern as juniors and start a business in their senior year, but some students wanted to start a business in year one, and some already have.

The students are a lot more interesting than I expected.

I have two requests to the companies and guest professors.

First, have fun with it.

You can use the university. When I was at MIT and Stanford, companies made liberal use of the university. In Japan, things are cut off.

Evaluate it as you would.

I hope people will sharply rebuke our flaws. This will improve us for the better. In that way, I want to grow it into a strong community.

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A consortium of professional colleges has been established.

■A consortium of professional colleges has been established.

The School Education Act was amended, and for the first time in 55 years, in 2019, a new type of university ("professional university/professional junior college") was created.

Th iU (Professional University of Information and Management for Innovation), which I opened as president, is one of them. Eighty percent of full-time faculty members are real-world practitioners of the field they represent, and the system of imposing half-year internships on students as compulsory is now possible because of this new scheme, whereby professional colleges are treated as professional universities.

In this way, "professional universities and professional junior colleges" strengthen cooperation with industry and local communities, provide high-quality practical vocational education that responds quickly to changes in social conditions, and develop human resources that contribute to the development of Japan.

Therefore, a professional college consortium was established to share the educational approaches, initiatives, and outcomes of each professional university and professional junior college, further improve the quality of education, and disseminate this widely to the world, and develop and improve upon this.

It will begin as a coalition of 11 professional universities and professional junior colleges nationwide.

Through 1-2 meetings a year, as well as ad-hoc online meetings, we aim to share initiatives and outcomes from these educational bodies and realize improvements in their management and educational approaches. Furthermore, we aim to contribute to the development of professional universities and professional junior colleges by discussing and examining their significance and roles expected of them.

Tokyo Professional University of Health Sciences and iU will be responsible for this secretariat.

At the time of the launch, the symposium was held online out of the iU campus in Sumida Ward.

There were 10 presidents all together.

It was a star-studded group that sent shivers down my back, among them Hiroyuki Yoshikawa (formerly president of the University of Tokyo), president of the International Professional University of Technology in Tokyo; Seiichi Kndo (former director of the Agency for Cultural Affairs), president of the Professional Institute of International Fashion; and Takao Kitabata (former vice minister of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry), president of Kaishi Professional university.

I'm a youngster by comparison.

I was told to state my aspirations, so I made a comment.

I wanted to create a university unlike any seen anywhere in the world.

This is unprecedented in the world, from the standpoint of a convergence of information + management + innovation. Over 200 companies from within and without Japan have announced themselves as partners, so I can sense there is a need.

Since it is more important to attract the abilities of real-world projects than pure academism in this field, 80% of teachers are actual practitioners of their disciplines. Furthermore, there are over 250 visiting faculty members, which outnumber the students.

We will thoroughly work "with" companies, and create and learn "at" companies.

As an extension of that, everyone aims to be an entrepreneur. All of the students intend to be entrepreneurs.

There is no other precedent like this. The plan was for them to take on the challenge of starting a business when they were in their fourth year, but the first year students are already moving towards entrepreneurship, being very proactive.

If everyone succeeds in starting their own business, the employment rate would be "zero"--so aim for "zero" employment!

Yet 90% might fail. Three years later, some indeed will.

Around that time, we could put up a sign advocating "Failure University," where people learn from mistakes.

Our challenge is a small one. The challenge is how to spread this wave by collaborating with other schools around the world.

We have already begun activities to create communities around universities and high schools that are passionate about entrepreneurship or interested in e-sports.

We are partnering closely with members from professional universities to offer something unique to professional education.

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”That is all for today.” The column has come to an end.

■ ”That is all for today.” The column has come to an end.

The Digital Agency has been established. Physical name stamps and faxes have been done away with. Digitization of government. Digitization of education. Digitization of medicine. Promoting cashless payments.

Digital-first is the government's number one challenge. It is now about priorities more than anything.

I was even more deeply impressed.

After all, that is what I had been lobbying for all this time.

I ended the "That is all for today" column on Yahoo!, which I had run for 8 years.

The date was September 2012 when I started. I began serializing this column around the time the administration shifted from DPJ control to Abe's LDP.

I broadly proposed digital policies to the Abe administration, and the column ended as that administration did.

"I'm a policy maker!" September 2012

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/blog-post.html

This is what I was saying at the beginning.

February 2013 "7 Digital Plans I'd like Abe Administration to Implement"

Digital textbooks, open data, digital copyrights, digital IP, digital infrastructure, smart cities.

Huh, it’s just like what I'm still saying now.

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2020/11/blog-post_4.html

Since then, I have been continuously making appeals about raising the priority of digital policy.

I do it every year. For instance...

2013: "IP vision: three trajectories"

"Improving our priorities. It is important to raise the position that content policy and intellectual property strategy occupy in Japan's policy."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/blog-post_5.html

2014 "Miscellaneous thoughts on copyright issues, part 2"

"We need to establish priorities for intellectual property. However, for the sake of the future, we should avoid situations where intellectual property is sold for agricultural purposes. Considering the circumstances, appeals from the IP rights holder side have been minimal."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2020/11/2.html

2015 "Points of concern while evaluating the TPP agreement."

"My concern comes down to what is a priority in terms of the national interest."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2020/11/tpp.html

2016 Digital Textbook Promotion Q&A

"What is the cause of the disparity in dissemination? It's the motivation of municipal heads. The education digitization budget has been secured, but has instead been allocated to roads and other public works at the discretion of local governments. The problem is what priority digitization of education is given relative to other administrative projects."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/q.html

2017 "Sharing Economy Interim Report"

"I hope that this report gives the government leverage to increase the importance of these policies."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/blog-post_95.html

2018 "Intellectual Property Plan 2018, Full Discussion."

"I have always insisted on two points: the first thing to do is to raise the priority of intellectual property policy within Japan."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/2018.html

2019 "The Education Digitization Promotion Act was enacted."

"I want to further raise the priority of digital education policies."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/blog-post_61.html

2020 "Miscellaneous thoughts on COVID-19, Part 1: An Opportunity to Overturn Japan’s Failure Over the Last 30 Years."

"We will overcome the COVID-19 predicament. At the same time, we should leverage it to achieve a digital-first approach, which was not possible in the thirty-year Heisei period, and make it a future legacy."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/30.html

This was followed by the "5 DX articles we hope to see from the Suga administration."

"The work cut out for the new cabinet is clear: DX. This and this alone."

https://ichiyanakamura-thatisallfortoday.blogspot.com/2021/01/dx.html

I said the same thing insistently, and the long-term administration came to an end.

Digital policy has secured the highest importance and a new cabinet was inaugurated.

As a column written by a single citizen, I hope it made a dent, maybe 1/100 millionth, in the conversation.

It's now time for me to step down.

That is all for today. Shop’s all closed up and empty now.

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These are educational manga, too!

■These are educational manga, too!

50 selected works from the "These are educational manga, too!" project.

The selections include Machiko Satonaka, Takafumi Horie, and Yohei Sadoshima.

bit.ly/3qNYFOe

Hakozume

Keep your hands off Eizouken!

Dance Dance Danseur

Blue Period

I wrote some comments about For Immortal Children in the Galaxy, so I'll share them here.

○Keep your hands off Eizouken!

bit.ly/3n6xXOV

This is a chronicle of some high school girls’ club activities, an anime creation diary, and a mecha science fiction plot that combines fantasy + delusions. The blend of three characters’ aesthetics is quite attractive.

The first is a girl who excels in creativity and drawing, but has some difficulty communicating. Another is concerned because she has drawing ability, but she is also a celebrity in her own right, being an attractive fashion model. One has a producer's temperament and is only interested in business. In this way, the story boldly weaves the otaku world over the stories of the backgrounds of these three girls.

Though set in 2050, there were 20th century style lines like the "Atto Odoroku Tamegoro" gag (popularized by Hajime Hana of the Crazy Cats) showing up in the barracks or public bath. Appearing in the delusions and animes are steampunk items like propellers, chainsaws, treaded vehicles, and robots. They are ever-present and everywhere.

It's not like there are bad guys or annoying adults. It's not like some shocking events take place. Nevertheless, while fighting with their parents and school, they struggle along to turn their dreams into anime.

The anime version directed by Masaaki Yuasa, which brilliantly visualizes the unique style of a combination of detailed mechanical items and grand delusions into in real life, is also excellent.

○Hakozume

bit.ly/3m2S2UZ

A tale of the brave battle of a young female police officer living in an unruly male society. This is not an action, suspense, or mystery piece that follows major incidents or great evils, such as the potboiler and police plots seen on TV or movies, but rather the daily life of a regular police officer who expends energy in dealing with pickpockets, molesters, and lovers' quarrels, all faithfully depicted.

The protagonists are also good-for-nothing, annoying types: they want to fall in love and have fun, all the while complaining about petty grievances like working overtime and handling dangerous duties. However, the bosses and senior colleagues, who sport fearsome scowls, are actually all kind-hearted, and their attentiveness to others is first-class. There is a certain beauty in putting effort into a job where you risk your life and where your efforts are unseen and unappreciated by the world.

It's also an elegant gag manga depicting subtle facial expressions and dialogue, carefully interwoven together. Each frame is rich in detail, so it takes time to read. It may not have the unbelievable characters of Kochira Katsushika-ku Kameari Koen-mae, but police are still a treasure trove of stories. The author was a police officer for ten years before becoming a manga artist, so the work is the perfect crystallization of affection for, and awareness of the realities of, the police force.

○Dance Dance Danseur

bit.ly/3n6y5Op

A junior high school student who was concerned about his masculinity and bottled up his interest in ballet awakens to the world of dance and delves into a primarily female world. He goes wild, has fun, suffers, and bursts with vitality. His dynamic energy is a joy to see.

He just lets himself go with the music, rhythm, physical expression, and emotions. He works hard with his partners and rivals to refine his own expressive ability, body, and skills. Nonetheless, he is in a sacred place of traditional art where history and theory have been built up over time. The highest peak in the world is ridiculously high. He learns with his coaches and teachers, gets in altercations, and moves forward. By the time he realizes, he is at the peak.

However, this work is not just a gutsy coming-of-age story. Its true value lies in the fact that it shows that manga can even depict dance in such detail. When it comes to dance scenes, the movement of the body, rhythm, angles and frames, and all of the expressions shine brightly, and you get a sense of immersion and ecstasy that you've never experienced before.

The protagonist is still growing. I'm interested to see where the plot develops.

○Blue Period

bit.ly/3n8fEc5

This is a story of a boy on a straight shot to Tokyo University of the Arts who is fascinated with drawing.

He has excellent grades, is flashy, and is a popular, handsome guy who drinks alcohol and cigarettes even though he is a high school student. But the truth is that he is empty inside. One day, he becomes captivated by a picture and drawn into the world of fine art. He embarks on a different career path than the one he had envisioned.

Of course, it's fun. Everything is new to him, and he learns. He gradually becomes able to depict things he couldn't. He suffers. And he struggles. Painting is a solitary affair. Yet you get to look all around you and notice new things. There are also things to be learned from interacting with one's friends, rivals, and teachers.

The duality of the self-portrait shown in the first exam clearly is faithful to the protagonist. Bad students and honors students, strivers and cowards, romantics and realists. But the main character is by no means special. Everyone is multifaceted, and our route is never a single track. Be it art, study, or sports, we think about ourselves, decide our own path, and continue on while carrying our own concerns. It's a path everyone goes through. This is a text that lets you think about your own life and growth.

○For Immortal Children in the Galaxy

bit.ly/378lODA

Children live through an endless eternity in a future where the rest of humanity has perished. A simple-minded older sister who loves rap and an introverted younger brother who loves reading. And also an immortal mother. The older sister seems to represent nature, the younger brother represents civilization, and the mother represents God.

The story is a depiction of eternal time, and starts with the premise: "10,000 years ago, I saw this future" and "I will surely see the same starry sky 10,000 years from now." Having an infinite amount of time means you can explore anything and everything, and still come back, no matter where you go. You are also free of the ultimate fear of dying.

Precisely for that reason, the only crisis that befalls is when the lives of those around them are lost. From their standpoint, a pet's life is but an instant, with its death representing a loss of love and a wound that remains forever. They raise a human child who comes from the sky, and eventually die. They reject immortality and die. Triggered by that, the elder sister sets off with excitement on a journey to become a human being, that is, in search of death.

What is life, what is death? What is eternity, what is a moment? Because the characters have a gentle touch, they are easy to relate to, making you think deeply.

 

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