Developing human resources to address Japan's issues and change society from the roots.

The Ultimate Changemaker, Mr. Sascha Haselmayer, Founder/CEO of CITYMART

On December 10th, 2015, Ashoka Japan hosted “The 9th Fellow Speaker Series” at GRIPS in Roppongi, Tokyo. The main guest speaker, Mr. Sascha Haselmayer, is the founder and CEO of CITYMART. In the introductory speech, the founder and chairperson of Ashoka Japan, Nana Watanabe, explained the history of Ashoka and its systemic change initiative, then introduced Mr. Haselmayer as the "ultimate changemaker".

CITYMART is an online platform that helps local governments realize effective public investments

CITYMART is the first global platform that connects local governments to new ideas from citizens and entrepreneurs to solve urgent problems in cities. The founder, Mr. Haselmayer, started his career as an architect and urban planner, but he soon realized that things like rebuilding and functional designs wouldn’t solve the problems in communities.

So in 2011, he founded CITYMART with the motto, “Transforming the way cities solve problems”. Currently, his company is working with more than 50 cities worldwide. In Mr. Haselmayer`s speech, he used case studies from Stockholm, Sweden and St. Paul, Minnesota, USA to demonstrate different strategies for helping the blind. His case studies illustrated that different results can be achieved through various methodologies.

Sharing ideas with Mr. Ryo Yamazaki, the community innovator in Japan

In the second part of the session, another panelist, Mr. Ryo Yamazaki, a Japanese community innovator, shared his thoughts on the situation in Japan. Mr. Yamazaki concluded that currently, Japanese local municipalities don’t openly communicate with global private companies that are using new methods and technologies. Therefore, he said he wants to help these two parties connect with each other more.

So far, Mr. Yamazaki has been working with more than 250 cities in Japan to rejuvenate communities. His approach includes hosting workshops and encouraging residents to directly participate in solving problems.

Towards the end of the event, during the Q&A session, audiences were seeking advice/opinions for their current issues, and asking detailed questions regarding the CITYMART structure as a business. Overall, more than 250 audience members reacted positively to Mr. Haselmayer. He is known as one of the most popular changemakers. Many believe that this civic problem-solver will be influential in changing this world drastically in the next 50 years.

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2019.08.24

Forbes Acknowledged Ashoka As One of the Top Innovative and Impactful Social Enterprises Forbes listed Ashoka among the top 5 most innovative and impactful social enterprises highlighting them as examples of what can be learned from each to apply to one’s own business. Regarding Ashoka, the Founder and CEO Bill Drayton is considered the godfather of social entrepreneurs by bringing the term into the mainstream. Since 1981 the organization has grown to 3,500 fellows from 92 countries aligned in an effort to make a positive impact in the world. One of the notable traits of the organization highlighted on the list is their youth focus where they strive to work with and influence younger generations and put them in charge of different initiatives. 　 For more information about Ashoka Japan’s projects, please visit our website, click here. https://bit.ly/30twh6R #ashokajapan #ANABLUEWING

2019.08.23

Creating a Model for Transportation Medical Care: Takashi Kawazoe Takashi Kawazoe, who was selected as an Ashoka Fellow in 2013, appeared as a guest speaker at the Ashoka Youth Social Venture Fundraising Pitch event held by Ashoka Japan on July 20. The grandson of an A-bomb survivor in Nagasaki, Kawazoe was concerned about health from an early age, and took an interest in medical care management due to factors including his experience of volunteer work at homes for the elderly. Kawazoe founded Carepro, Inc. (http://carepro.co.jp/), developed a system of self-check medical stations, built a scheme for spreading the idea of preventive medicine in Japanese society, and led a policy change in the field. At present, he is constructing a platform for matching of those who don’t have access to transportation and medical and nursing care employees and businesses. He spoke with enthusiasm about his desire to create a model for "transportation medical care" through this service. While it is unfamiliar at present, the term "kotsu iryo" (transportation medical care") may sound familiar soon. 　 For more information about Ashoka Japan’s projects, please visit our website, click here. https://bit.ly/31rSeTE #ashokajapan #ANABLUEWING

2019.08.22

From Recovery to a Connection with the Tohoku Region: Nami Harada Nami Harada says she received power from the people of the Tohoku region when she visited the area to do volunteer work in her first year of high school in 2012. She launched Kikkake Syokudo after entering college, out of a desire to find some way to provide support for the region from Kyoto where she lived. To prevent the 3/11 disaster from fading from memory, she started Kikkake Syokudo (https://kikkake-syokudo.org/), where people can enjoy cuisine and alcohol from the Tohoku region on 11th every month. The Reconstruction Agency is going to be abolished in 2021, and she was apprehensive about the plight of the farmers and fishermen after the end of aid from the government. At the Ashoka Youth Social Venture Fundraising Pitch event held by Ashoka Japan, she presented her aspiration to bring her efforts into a new phase by registering Kikkake Syokudo as an NPO, with the help of their supporters as well as farmers and fishermen of the Tohoku Region Rather than focusing on the “recovery” from the disaster, Harada would like to propose many different ways that people in cities can get connected to the Tohoku region. 　 For more information about Ashoka Japan’s projects, please visit our website, click here. https://bit.ly/2KKH4mn #ashokajapan #ANABLUEWING

2019.08.18

Positive sports coaching with “Double Goal”: Tadahiro Kobayashi At the Ashoka Youth Social Venture Fundraising Pitch event held by Ashoka Japan, Tadahiro Kobayashi, representing a nonprofit Sports Coaching Initiative (https://www.sports-coach.jp/), made a presentation on how to improve sports coaching culture in Japan. Developed on sports psychology by Ashoka Fellow Jim Thompson (selected in 2004, in the United States), Double-Goal Coaching is a new style of coaching for attainment of both victory and personal growth, without falling into the "winning is everything" mentality. This methodology has been adopted by more than 8.6 million sports coaches in the United States. Kobayashi wants to have it take root in Japan, and asked the participants for their assistance, not only in the form of funding but also through providing knowledge and referring to key people. His pitch resonated with all of the attendees and greatly enlivened the whole venue. 　 For more information about Ashoka Japan’s projects, please visit our website, click here. https://bit.ly/33lKDHY #ashokajapan #ANABLUEWING

2019.08.18

Holding of the Ashoka Youth Social Venture Fundraising Pitch Event On July 20, Ashoka Japan held the Ashoka Youth Social Venture Fundraising Pitch event for the first time. At this event, four Youth Venturers (Daichi Yano, Shu Kudo, Tadahiro Kobayashi, and Nami Harada) pitched their own projects. Among 100 Youth Venturers, 13 applied and went through the subsequent screening by a panel of Ashoka Fellows and venture capitalist, and the four passed to be finalists. The selection criterion was whether the project would truly create social impact in the future. The audience listened to the pitches by the four finalists, and then decide how much and to which one(s) to donate. To raise funds, the four earnestly presented their own awareness of issues, determination to take action, project plans, what they would use the funds for, and project strategy. The attendees made some keen observations and asked them some pointed questions. The program unfolded in lively atmosphere of positive feedback which lasted three hours. Such programs held by Ashoka Japan will keep inspiring and encouraging the resolution of social issues in the future. 　 For more information about Ashoka Japan’s projects, please visit our website, click here. https://bit.ly/2Yzknvc #ashokajapan #ANABLUEWING

2019.08.10

Empowering Kids Through Involvement Ashoka Fellow Ximena Abogabir, a mother to three Changemaker children, was interviewed by Ashoka and shared some of her philosophy for parenting: "I always involved them in my work and my main message was that work is fun and you can do amazing things. I never said 'thank God it is Friday' because first studying and then work is how I found my best friends and had my best moments. When I brought work home, I always asked them to work together with me. Even when we went on vacation, we would bring paper and pencils and make posters to invite the kids to activities we would organize for the local community. The money we raised we used to build a school." 　 For more information about Ashoka Japan’s projects, please visit our website, click here. https://bit.ly/31nGEsQ #ashokajapan #ANABLUEWING

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