G7 Student ICT Summit in Takamatsu
The G7 Student ICT Summit in Takamatsu was held at the Kagawa International Hall on December 12 (Sat), 2015 as a related event for the Ministers' Meeting in order to foster an awareness of issues related to ICT and promote international exchange, as well as to inform many people about the organization of the ICT Ministers' Meeting and increase momentum.
Video message from Minister Sanae Takaichi of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications
As support from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in the organization of the meeting, Minister Takaichi delivered a video message that expressed her "hope for the outcomes of a new ICT society that can be said to have started in Takamatsu."Coordinator: Professor Ichiya Nakamura
Graduate School of Media Design, Keio University
Similar to the G7 Summit, ten students from eight countries participated from the G7 countries, with the addition of Sweden as an EU member state. The meeting welcomed Professor Ichiya Nakamura, a professor at the Graduate School of Design at Keio University who is responsible for internet policy at the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications as the coordinator for the summit. Participants exchanged views on the theme of "ICT and Young People Today and the Future of the Human Race."
The meeting was conducted with simultaneous interpretation in Japanese and English similar to an actual Ministers' Meeting and discussions were carried out on the advantages of ICT, such as the extremely useful tools of newly developed communications and tele-commuting (being able to work while at home), as well as disadvantages, such as people becoming too dependent on ICT with too-frequent use. A lively exchange of ideas was carried out on the importance of taking personal responsibility in order to not become too dependent on ICT and the benefits of helping many people in developing countries gain access to ICT.
Working together to formulate responses
Following the discussions, each of the ten students proposed ten words (one word per person) that captured the image of the symbolic language of ICT. All of these words were used in the creation of a proposal document by the students on the future of ICT. The recommendations from this student summit are scheduled to be announced at the G7 Ministers' Meeting.This site is managed by Kagawa Prefecture MICE Promotion Council.