English

Sekai wa Hitotsu
Gifu International Center (GIC)

International Exchange &Multiculturalism Information Magazine
July 2024

No.159© 岐阜県 清流の国ぎふ・ミナモ ♯ 0195

The Gifu Prefectural Japanese Learning Support Center is now open!  Here at the Gifu International Center, we haverecently opened the “Gifu Prefectural Japanese
Learning Support Center”, to support foreign
residents of Gifu Prefecture by providing
opportunities to learn Japanese and the culture
and rules closely related to daily life, andby supporting the creation of such learning
environments.
At the opening ceremony held on June 18th,
the new signboard was unveiled following
opening remarks by Governor Furuta and Board
Chairman Yoshida, and a congratulatory address
by Mr. Yagi, Director for the Promotion of Social
Education at the Ministry of Education, Culture,Sports, Science and Technology.
The Japanese Learning Support Center will
provide consultations related to Japanese
language learning, as well as organizing online
Japanese classes, training Japanese language
instructors, and supporting local Japaneseclasses set up by municipalities, companies,
and other organizations.

Board Chairman Yoshida

Governor Furuta

Director Yagi

Introducing our new Coordinator for International Relations!

Nice to meet you all, my name is Yin Xiuzhen and I’m from Jiangxi Province in China. I
started working as a CIR here at the Gifu International Center in April. This is my third timein Japan, but it’s been 12 years since I was last here.
It's my first time in Gifu Prefecture, but because Gifu and Jiangxi share a longstanding
friendship partnership of 35 years, I’ve been familiar with Gifu for a long time. Gifu
Prefecture, blessed with astounding nature, is considered a must-see tourist destinationin Japan. My home province of Jiangxi actually has many places that resemble Gifu.
Jiangxi has scenic beauty and is full of cultural attractions. It has spectacular mountains,
clear rivers, old towns, traditional houses, folk villages and historic archaeological sites listed as UNESCO World
Heritage Sites. On the other hand, Jiangxi’s provincial capital Nanchang is a vibrant city lined with high rise buildings.
So in Jiangxi, history and the modern era blend together harmoniously. Please visit if you have the chance and enjoy
the many charms of Jiangxi Province to the fullest!
I feel truly honored to have the opportunity to work as a CIR at the Gifu International Center. I hope to settle inquickly so that I can perform my duties well and be of service. My current duties include translating and interpreting,running Chinese language classes and multicultural events, etc. I am excited about engaging in cultural exchange andinteracting with the people of Gifu Prefecture. I look forward to working with and meeting you all in the near future!
●1 ●Close up！
Introducing groups
operating in Gifu

Gifu Prefecture Polish
Exchange AssociationOn February 27th, with Gifu Prefecture Governor Hajime Furuta, Gifu Prefectural
Assembly Chairman Ikuo Nojima and the Mayor of Ena Takane Kosaka as advisers,
the Gifu Prefecture Polish Exchange Association was established. President Shinichiro
Abe of the Ena City Tourism Association and President Kumiko Tashiro of the Ena
City International Exchange Association were appointed as the President and the Vice
President respectively of the Gifu Prefecture Polish Exchange Association.
The Polish Ambassador to Japan Paweł Milewski, member of the House of Representatives
Keiji Furuya and the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Yoshifumi Tsuge were welcomed asguests at the opening ceremony, which was held at the Polish Embassy in Tokyo.
The exchange was set in motion by the Polish canoe team, who were competing in theTokyo 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games, coming to Ena for pre-games training.
Later, fundraising activities for Ukrainian refugees living in Poland began after the Russian
invasion of Ukraine, with large donations being made. In particular, the Ambassador
himself participated in the Ena Kita Junior High School graduation ceremony to convey amessage of thanks to the pupils for their fundraising efforts. In August 2023 the Silesian
Voivodeship province in southern Poland and Gifu Prefecture signed a memorandumof friendship and cooperation, and following the launch of the Exchange Association,
on March 28th 2024 the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology (in Krakow,Poland) and the Hiroshige Museum of Art (in Ena) signed an agreement of friendship andcooperation. For the signing of the agreement, a Polish delegation that included MangghaMuseum Director Katarzyna Nowak, five other members of staff from the museum, andDirector Urszula Osmycka from the Center for Public Relations and Culture visited Ena tofurther the exchange.
We will continue to promote projects with the aim of developing the exchange with Poland.

48th National High School Comprehensive Culture Festival
To be held in Gifu, the land of clear waters in 2024
Wednesday 31st July to Monday 5th August 2024, for 6 days
~ What is the National High School Comprehensive Culture Festival? ~The National High School Comprehensive Culture Festival is anannual festival of art and cultural activities that high school students
from all over Japan participate in, and which will be held for six days
between Wednesday 31st July and Monday 5th August. The event’s
location rotates through all the Japanese prefectures, so this year Gifu
Prefecture is holding the event for the first time in 40 years.
Approximately 20,000 high school students from around the country
will gather together and approximately 100,000 visitors will attend thefestival, making it the largest domestic cultural event in Japan.
In addition, high school students from other countries will be invited
to participate in the general opening ceremony and the parade, and will
engage in exchange with high school students from Gifu Prefecture.
Outline of the festival:
EventsGeneral opening ceremony, parade

Stipulated
divisions(19 in total)

Theatre, choir, wind music, instrumental and orchestralmusic, traditional Japanese music, sword danceaccompanied poetry recital, folk entertainment,
marching band and baton twirling, arts and crafts,
calligraphy, photography, broadcasting, Go, Shogi,
debate, Japanese playing cards based on the classicalOgura Hyakunin Isshu poetry anthology, newspaper,
literature, natural science

Cooperative
divisions

Special needs school(s), local studies, flower arranging
competition●2 ●(July 2021) Poland’s canoe team publicly practicing for
the Tokyo Olympics. Children cheered for them using
handmade fans of the Polish flag.

(February 2024) From the left, Polish Ambassador to Japan
Paweł Milewski presents bouquets of flowers to President
Abe and Vice President Tashiro at the opening ceremony ofthe Gifu Prefecture Polish Exchange Association.

39th National Cultural Festival, 24th National Arts andCulture Festival for persons with disabilities
Gifu Land of Clear Waters Art Festival 2024
Monday 14th October (national holiday)
to Sunday 24th November 2024

~ What is the Gifu Land of Clear Waters
Art Festival 2024? ~The Gifu Land of Clear Waters Art Festival 2024 is theunification under one name of the 39th National Cultural
Festival and the 24th National Arts and Culture Festivalfor persons with disabilities. It is an event where various
kinds of cultural activities are presented, performed andexchanged on a national scale. It will be held for 42 days
from Monday 14th October to Sunday 24th November, andthroughout this period different events will take place inevery municipality and area of the prefecture so anyone
and everyone can become familiar with culture and thearts.
The festival’s slogan is “Togetherness and Connecting
for the Future: Creating a Culture of Clear Waters”. Withthe use of the key phrase “clear waters”, (“seiryu” inJapanese, it can also be translated as “clear streams” inEnglish), which is a vital part of Gifu’s identity, the slogan
expresses the goal of widely sharing local resources
and the efforts of local people both domestically andoverseas, along with creating new opportunities forexchange and “a culture of clear waters” unique to Gifu
in the post-COVID era.

Useful Information for Foreign Residents*Child and Family Agency/ Survey and Research Project for the Promotion of Children and Childrearing Support in the 1st year of Reiwa (2019 fiscal year).
From the “Healthy Parents and Children in the 21st century - Maternal and Child Health Handbook/ Leaflet (multilingual version)”.
●3 ●Informat ion From Other Organiza tions in Gifu

Let’s celebrate Bastille Day with Brazilian-style BBQ andJapanese-French rakugo exchange!
July 14 th marks Bastille Day in France, and under France’s founding principles offreedom, equality and fraternity, Cyril Coppini (a traditional rakugo storyteller of Frenchnationality) and Brazilians from all over Japan are invited to gather together in Gifu toengage in exchange with the people of Gifu through enjoying food, rakugo storytellingand samba. Let’s all have fun and experience this multicultural event!
Date and time

14 th July 2024 16:00-20:30 Churrasco Brazilian BBQ
18:30-19:30 Japanese-French rakugo performance

Location

Entokuji Temple (6-24 Kanda-machi, Gifu-shi)

Joint hosts

Gifu Prefecture Japanese-French Association
Gifu Prefecture Japanese-Brazilian Association

Eligibility

Anyone can participate

Capacity

150 people (for the rakugo storytelling)Price

Enquiries

Rakugo performance: 1500 yen (for members of the Japanese-French or Japanese-Brazilian
associations, or when bought in advance), 2000 yen (for non-members or when bought on
the day of the event).
Churrasco BBQ party: 2500 yen (1500 yen for elementary school children).
Japanese-French rakugo performance applications:Gifu Prefecture Japanese-French Association
Address: 12 Hashizume-cho, Gifu-shi
TEL/FAX: 058-235-7253 090-3850-9478 (Iizuka)
Email: i-grec@mub.biglobe.ne.jp
Churrasco BBQ applications:Gifu Prefecture Japanese-Brazilian Association
TEL: 058-263-4315
FAX: 058-263-4357
Email: kumada@earth-p.com

Information
Gifu Prefectural Consultation Center for
Foreign Residents
Please get in touch if you are facing difficulties
regarding life in Japan in areas such as taxes,
housing, education, and welfare. We work withadministrative parties to help you find solutions
to your problems. ※We cannot provide services
in certain areas such as medical interpreting.

Issued By

Opening hours : Monday to Friday 9:30 – 16:30※excluding public holidays and the New Year holiday period
Phone number : 058-263-8066
Languages : English, Chinese, Portuguese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Korean,
Indonesian, Thai, Khmer, Nepali, Burmese, Spanish, Malay, Mongolian
In-person consultations are available in English, Chinese, Portuguese,Tagalog and Vietnamese at the Gifu International Center. For other languages,
consultations are only available over the phone.

Gifu International Center (GIC)

Gifu Chunichi Building 2F,1-12 Yanagase Dori, Gifu City, 500-8875
Tel: 058-214-7700 Fax: 058-263-8067
E-mail: gic@gic.or.jp URL: https://www.gic.or.jp
Opening hours: Sunday to Friday 9:30 – 18:00
Closed: Saturday, Public Holidays, New Year Period
Languages: English, Chinese, Portuguese, Tagalog, Vietnamese

Date ofPublication

July 1, 2024

(Published three times per year in July, November, and February)