JLGC NEWSLETTER­Japan Local Government Center ( CLAIR, New York )Issue No. 95 / Feb 2019

1.CLAIR Fellowship
Exchange Program 2018(Page 1-6)

2.The New York Times
Travel Show 2019 (Page 7)
3.JETAA Winter Activities(Page 8)

1. CLAIR Fellowship Exchange
Program 2018
The CLAIR Fellowship Exchange
Program 2018 was held from
October 28th to November 6th.
This program affords senior stateand local government officials anopportunity to experience
Japanese government administration firsthand. This year
the program was held in Tokyo and Okayama Prefecture.
Theme: Promotion of Okayama IndustryOkayama Prefecture has a long history as a manufacturing
center for automobiles, agricultural machinery andshipbuilding. Utilizing the ultra-precise production
technologies accumulated in the course of the developmentof these industries, the prefecture is currently focusing on
the cultivation of next-generation industries in fields suchas transportation and energy.
Participants held discussions with their counterparts inJapan. Also, they interacted with local people andexperienced the beauty of Okayama scenery (Korakuen
Garden etc.), and immersed themselves in the traditional
Japanese culture (tea ceremony etc.) of the area.

What is JLGC?
Japan Local Government Center,New York, works on behalf ofprefecture and local governments
in Japan to provide them withresearch and liaison services tosupport their efforts to adopt bestpractices in local public
administration and to help themachieve their goals in fostering
better international relations.

JAPAN LOCAL GOVERNMENT CENTER(CLAIR, NY)
3 Park Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, NY 10016-5902
212.246.5542 office • 212.246.5617 fax
www.jlgc.org

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Comments from the participants.
Ms. Michele Meade

State Fiscal Monitor, Division of Local Government Services, Stateof New Jersey
Chair of the International City/County Management Association(ICMA) International Committee
I have had the good fortune to travel with local government officials to many places aroundthe world while participating with the ICMA International Committee. These experiences
have been transformational for me. Instead of the world feeling bigger and more distant,
the world seems smaller and more intimate. I never fail to be amazed at how people fromdifferent countries are much more alike than we are different. We may look different andhave different words to describe physical objects and different ways to describe ourthoughts, but on the most fundamental level, we are human. We find humor together, wecare about our communities the same, we love our children and our mothers and fathers;
we worry about their health and welfare the same. And we want to leave this planet ofours in a prosperous and healthy state for future generations.
On this trip, through the CLAIR Fellowship Program, I participated with eight local
government colleagues from the United States and Canada in the annual Local
Government Exchange and Cooperation Seminar in Japan. Our trip began in Tokyo with aseminar on the structure of Japanese local government, discussions about population loss
and a view towards promoting a world-famous city. Tokyo provided a glimpse of the oldand the new of Japanese culture which neatly coexist through architecture and art.
The main portion of the seminar was focused on economic development and industry inOkayama Prefecture in the western portion of Japan. Okayama is known as the land ofsunshine and it delivered on its promise! We were warmly greeted by Governor Ibaragi
and from there began a 5-day visit where we learned about the innovative collaborations
between the prefectural government and its small and medium businesses. I wasparticularly impressed with the Industrial Technology Center of Okayama Prefecture, agovernmental function, which shows a partnership with industry that is different from thetypical model in North America. The Technology Center supports small and medium
businesses with high level testing facilities and collaborative product development to help
businesses succeed. This is a model from which we can learn. There were also informative2FEBRUARY 2019

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visits to several Okayama businesses with innovative products from medical and assistive
devices to machinery to the new Japanese blue jeans which are currently sold in the UnitedStates.
In addition, we explored Okayama’s rich culture and history – including a traditional
Japanese tea ceremony and famous Japanese garden, a visit to a shrine, the traditional
craft of Bizen pottery, the harvest of persimmons, as well as products made with thedelicious Okayama peaches and muscat grapes. Our hosts in Okayama were fun andgracious and I thank them for their time, informative site visits and thought-provoking
discussions as well as for their generous hospitality.
A homestay capped off the visit to Okayama! I spent my time with the Ozaki family whereI tried on a kimono, slept on a traditional Japanese futon (extremely comfortable!), tried
many homemade Japanese dishes (delicious!), visited historic Kurashiki and lunched at a
Kaiten-zushi, a sushi restaurant where the plates with the sushi wind through therestaurant on a conveyor belt moving past every table, counter and seat (fun and yummy!).
To be welcomed into the home of strangers who don’t look like you and speak yourlanguage only sparingly, share meals with them and to leave as friends is an extraordinary
experience. It makes the world small and shows the strength of the human experiencesurpasses language and cultural differences.

Ms. Martha Brown
Deputy Commissioner, Milwaukee Dept. of City Development
National League of Cities (NLC)

While I have enjoyed two previous personal trips to Japan, I am grateful to CLAIR for
affording me the opportunity to gain perspectives that relate to my own 40-year career inmunicipal government. The lectures, site visits, and opinion exchanges opened my eyes tothe ways in which Japan has organized planning and service delivery.
I was particularly impressed by strategies through which national policy is interpreted andimplemented at the local level with respect to economic development. We learned about3

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many such approaches, including the meticulous national program to foster traditional
crafts production; the wide array of research and development services available to small
industrial firms in Okayama Prefecture, and the “All-Japan” diplomatic partnership.
These efforts are practical, thoughtfully designed, holistic and effective. They illustrate adeep commitment to cooperation among all levels of government.
Thanks to the careful, thorough planning by the CLAIR team, our days and evenings werefilled with a satisfying variety of experiences and encounters. The CLAIR staff who
accompanied our group provided outstanding support, valuable context and commentaryMrs. Angela Morgan
President, Association of Municipal Managers, Clerks andTreasurers of Ontario (AMCTO)
It was a privilege to be part of the 2018 CLAIR Fellowship Exchange Program with otherstate/provincial and municipal colleagues from the United States and Canada. The
experience deepened my knowledge of Japanese government structures and culture. It wasa wonderful opportunity to learn about the challenges facing Japan is local governments
and the strategies they are putting in place to address these challenges. All the Japanese
officials we met with were open and welcoming, providing a great opportunity to shareideas and knowledge.
In Okayama Prefecture, we learned how local governments support industry and some of
the innovative businesses that thrive in this area. The homestay was the highlight of theexchange, allowing me to get an inside look at Japanese culture and families. I thank all
the representatives from CLAIR and Okayama Prefecture for their hospitality, attention todetail, and organization. It was a wonderful experience that I will continue to share withothers for many years.

Don’t forget to look at here articles!
○National League of Cities (NLC)○The Council of State Governments (CSG)

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Fellowship Exchange Program 2018
Date
Oct 28SSchedule

Accommodation

Arrive in Japan
OrientationTokyoOct 29

Tokyo Program
Lecture : Japanese Local Government System
Site Visit : Tokyo Metropolitan Government (TMG) Building
Lecture : Bureau of Industrial and Labor Affairs, TMG
Welcome Reception hosted by CLAIR

Tokyo

Oct 30Tokyo Program
Site Visit : EDO-TOKYO MUSEUM
Site Visit : Japan Traditional Crafts Aoyama Square
Opinion Exchange with Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA)
Courtesy Visit to Director-General for Policy Coordination(Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC))
Opinion Exchange with MIC Staff
Welcome Reception hosted by MICTokyo

Oct 31

Regional Program (Okayama Prefecture)
Presentation on Okayama Prefecture
Courtesy Visit to Governor of Okayama Prefecture
Welcome Reception hosted by Okayama Prefecture

Okayama

Nov 1

Regional Program (Okayama Prefecture)
Site Visit : Industrial Technology Center of Okayama Prefecture
Site Visit : Daiya Industrial Co., Ltd.
Site Visit : Yuasa System Co., Ltd.

Okayama

Nov 2

Regional Program (Okayama Prefecture)
Site Visit : Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter
Site Visit : JAPAN BLUE Co., Ltd.
Site Visit : Kojima Jeans Street
Site Visit : Seto Ohashi Bridge

Okayama

Nov 3

Regional Program (Okayama Prefecture)
Site Visit : Okayama International Center
Site Visit : Okayama Korakuen Garden
Meet with Host Family

Okayama

Nov 4

Nov 5

Nov 6Homestay

Regional Program (Okayama Prefecture)
Evaluation discussion of visit to Okayama
Farewell Lunch hosted by CLAIR
Return to Tokyo
Departure from JapanOkayamaOkayama—5

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CLAIR Fellowship Exchange Program 2018

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2. The New York Times Travel Show 2019
From January 25th to 27th, 2019, we attended The New
York Times Travel Show, one of the biggest travel showsin North America, to promote tourism to local Japan as
an exhibiter at the Nippon Booth. The Nippon Booth wasmainly sponsored by the Japan National Tourism
Organization (JNTO) and co-sponsored by Japan Local
Government Center, some Japanese travel agencies,
tourism bureaus, and railway companies to showcase thecharm found all over Japan.
On the first day, we proudly presented a live calligraphy
performance by Ms. Shunkin Takahashi, a local
calligrapher, where visitors could ask her to write somewords or learn how to write calligraphy from her. It wassuch a great success that we regrettably had to stop
accepting participants in order to finish it within thedesignated time.
Through the Travel Show, we were introducing must-see
areas around Japan, especially where members of ourstaff are from, as well as temples and shrines, bypromoting collecting “Go-shu-in” (red stamps with artistic
calligraphy you can get there) with our own leaflet madeto look like a Go-shu-in Book. You can see some examplesof temples and shrines that we were featuring at thisevent here.
In addition, at the JTB booth, Gunma, Niigata, Nagano
and Gifu Prefectures promoted the attractions in theirareas, and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government was also
exhibiting their own booth while doing a candy workshop.
The number of foreign tourists visiting Japan isincreasing every year. We hope more and more people
discover the attractions in Japan, especially in local areas
where you can experience unique Japanese culture.

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3. JETAA Winter Activities
We still have some more cold winter days, but JETAA chapters’ activities are hot! We would
like to introduce some JETAA activities held in the winter season.
The JETAA Rocky Mountain chapter and the Japan America
Society of Colorado together hosted a Nengajō making event
on December 1st, 2018. Around 30 participants were able tocome and learn about the traditions behind Japanese New
Years cards and just be creative, making something fun tosend to their friends. JET alumna Tracey
Petruff (ALT, Nagasaki Prefecture) led
the event, showing how to cut stencils
and even create stamps to make the cards festive. Of course, on handwere motifs for the year of the boar, and people got busy creating thecutest Inoshishi or just used common symbols of Japan like Mt. Fuji orbonsai trees. For many of the alumni present, it brought back nostalgic
memories of elementary school visits filled with lots of genki kids.
(Adam H. Lisbon, President, JETAA Rocky Mountain Chapter)

New England JETAA held its 10th annual cross chapter skitrip from January 25th to 27th, 2019. The ski trip is open to
JET alumni, as well as friends and family of JETs fromchapters across North America. This year, we welcomed 25
participants from the New England and New York chapters fora fun weekend of winter activities and great company.
We have traditionally held the trip in Killington, Vermont - thelargest ski resort on the East Coast. Although skiing and snowboarding are the primary
attractions, participants are also able to enjoy other outdoor
activities such as snowshoeing, tubing, skating, or just visitingsome quaint boutiques and cafes. We also host a group dinner on
Saturday night for everyone to connect and get to know othermembers of the JET family. We have been fortunate to havegreat turnout over the years, and we hope to keep building
connections between fellow JET's in the years to come.
(Josephine Chong, President, JETAA New England Chapter)8