The 1st Local Idea Contest was held on June 18, 2023, at 2 PM.
The Local Idea Contest is an advanced version of the Hackathon Camp @ Okayama, which was held from March 16 to 19, 2023.
One of the perks awarded to the MVP at the presentation of the Hackathon Camp @ Okayama was the right to participate in the Local Idea Contest.
The Local Idea Contest is a contest where students with a desire to start a business or activities can utilize local fields to the fullest based on their vision and turn their ideas into reality.
The feature of this contest is, above all, the venue.
Presenters will make their presentations from each venue in Kasaoka City, Nara City, and Fujinomiya City.
Additionally, a metaverse venue is also provided as a viewing location, allowing participants to experience the atmosphere of the contest online!
This time, a total of 8 finalists from 3 local venues who passed the document screening took the stage to present their passionate visions and business plans.
The author also took the stage.
I will report on the heated contest.
The information provided is based on the information at the time of the article's publication in October 2023. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What is the Local Idea Contest?
This event is organized by the Student Activity Support Consortium StBASE (known as StBASE).
Iori Terada, a member of the Community Revitalization Cooperators in Kasaoka City, is also one of the organizers.
Nara City is cooperating, and Kasaoka City and Fujinomiya City are also providing support.
One of the features of the Local Idea Contest is that it is conducted in collaboration with various administrative bodies.
Flow of the Local Idea Contest
At the event, 3 finalists from each venue in Shizuoka, Nara, and Okayama, who passed the document screening, presented their business plans, totaling 9 finalists (8 due to absences on the day).
At each venue, the following 3 individuals served as facilitators, connecting the 3 venues.
- Iori Terada: Community Revitalization Cooperator in Kasaoka City, CEO of KakeruX Co., Ltd.
- Hayate Takamura: Community Revitalization Cooperator in Kasaoka City, CEO of Robomin Co., Ltd.
- Tomoki Imai: Former intern of the Community Revitalization Cooperators in Kasaoka City, CEO of Ligula Co., Ltd.
The order of presentations on the day was as follows.
- Hiroya Kato (Shizuoka venue)
- Yuki Matsubara (Shizuoka venue)
- Junpei Takagi (Shizuoka venue)
- Tomiya Iwaida (Nara venue)
- Mito Matsui (Nara venue)
- Karin Sakamoto (Nara venue)
- Ayuha Miyamoto (Okayama venue)
- #Okayama JKnote (Okayama venue)
- Shota Morimoto (Okayama venue)
The presenters' passionate presentations
The 9 individuals presenting this time advanced through the fierce document screening.
After the presentations from the Shizuoka and Nara venues, it was finally Okayama's turn.
The first presenter from Okayama is the author Ayuha Miyamoto.
I presented a plan for a social media platform aimed at people struggling with coordination.
I often find it difficult to think about coordination and always worry if the combinations of clothes I wear are strange.
Therefore, I came up with a social media platform where users can take photos of their clothes and get suggestions for combinations from users who are good at coordination.
I often participate in business contests, but I was very nervous to present to entrepreneurs and government officials who knew nothing about my plan.
The feature of the venue, Kasaoka Port Passenger Terminal "Minato Kobanashi," is that the audience is very close.
As a result, conversations were lively between the presenters and the audience even before the contest started.
It was reassuring to present in front of people who had already warmed up to each other, and I was able to enjoy it.
▼ The next presentation is by #Okayama JKnote.
Surprisingly, the youngest participants in this contest are middle school and high school students.
They presented a plan for a mystery-solving event utilizing Hokancho in Okayama City.
"I want people to know the charm of Hokancho, which is our activity base!" "I want to give back to Hokancho!"
From such feelings, they proposed an event where participants can enjoy solving mysteries while walking around Hokancho, involving local shops.
Don't underestimate them just because they are middle and high school students.
They were very impressive in considering what kind of funds are necessary for the business and how to gather those funds...
Their strong desire to revitalize Hokancho! was clearly conveyed during the presentation.
As a writer, my feelings for the community resonated with theirs, and I felt a strong urge to support them! during their presentation.
▼ The last presentation from the Okayama venue, and the grand finale of this contest, is by Shota Morimoto from Okayama University with the title "Let's Feel Nature".
He proposed an event plan that incorporates elements of RPG (role-playing game) to enjoy nature even more.
Morimoto focused on the large population of gamers.
He discussed the "interesting stories," "mood," "graphics," and "character appeal" that people who love games seek.
He wondered if these could be utilized for regional revitalization and presented an idea titled "Real RPG Travel" that incorporates the fun of 2D into the local tourism industry.
As a travel enthusiast, I found that if exciting events with game elements were held, it would make me want to visit places I had never been before.
If realized, it was a presentation that made me think I would want to visit even places that are a bit far away.
Iwaida Tomoya, who was selected as MVP at the Hackathon Camp @ Okayama, presented not from the Okayama venue but from the Nara venue.
He unveiled a new business plan titled "Home Training Continuation Support App KeepFit", which differs from the plan presented at the previous Hackathon Camp.
This plan proposed forming a community and encouraging each other through chat functions to continue home training.
Even when you think, "Let's do some training!", it can be hard to keep going.
I am exactly in the target demographic of those who want to continue but find it difficult.
I was listening with the thought that I would definitely like to try it out.
There’s also a metaverse venue!
In addition to Kasaoka, Nara, and Shizuoka, a metaverse venue was also provided for the Local Idea Contest.
Participants can enter using smartphones or computers, but at the Kasaoka venue, participants could wear VR goggles to experience being in the metaverse venue.
I also experienced it. This is what it looks like inside the goggles.
With three venues being held, it is easy to feel that the presentations from venues other than the one you are participating in are far away.
However, by immersing yourself in the metaverse, the venues that previously felt distant became much closer, and it was exciting to enjoy a different sense of presence from the main venue.
The thrilling announcement of results. The winners are...
Finally, the results are announced.
Three regional grand prize winners will be selected from each venue, and one grand prize winner will be announced.
The regional grand prize winners are as follows.
- [Shizuoka] Hiroya Kato: "Holding a Fujinomiya Marche aimed at revitalizing the city."
- [Nara] Karin Sakamoto: "Development plan for elderly people using airbags and clothing."
- [Okayama] #Okayama JKnote: "Mystery-solving tour of Hokancho."
The Shizuoka venue grand prize was awarded to the first presenter, Kato
Kato analyzed the characteristics of existing marches and felt that the challenges were the timing of the events being difficult for young people to participate, the small scale, and the irregularity of the events.
He proposed to hold marches regularly at times that are easy for young people to visit and to encourage vendors from outside the city to increase the number of visitors to Fujinomiya City, thereby preventing student attrition by increasing events for young people in Fujinomiya City.
Because Kato knows Fujinomiya well, he proposed multiple locations based on places where people tend to gather.
His strong desire to prevent young people from leaving and to have more people visit Fujinomiya! was conveyed clearly because he knows the charm of Fujinomiya.
The Nara venue grand prize was awarded to Karin Sakamoto
She proposed "Air Clothes," which combines clothing and airbags.
It seems that Mr. Sakamoto was inspired to create this plan from the experience of his grandmother falling and getting injured, as well as witnessing a scene where an airbag saved a life in a traffic accident.
It was very impressive that he proposed not only making clothes but also building services to ensure the safety of the elderly.
He wants to reduce the anxiety of the elderly about falling and the concerns of their families so that the elderly can walk with peace of mind.
Mr. Sakamoto's presentation strongly conveyed his feelings for his family.
As society ages, businesses targeting the elderly are increasing.
I was reminded that the desire to "help those close to me" can lead to ideas that solve social issues.
The Okayama Venue Grand Prize was awarded to #Okayama JKnote
#Okayama JKnote has been involved in various activities in Hokancho.
I thought that the relationships built with shops and people in the shopping district, along with the strong desire to further "energize Hokancho" based on those activities, moved the judges' hearts.
The prestigious Grand Prize was awarded to Junpei Takagi from the Shizuoka venue
The Grand Prize was awarded to Junpei Takagi from the Shizuoka venue, who presented a plan to "reduce mismatches in choosing campsites and create a sustainable camping culture."
Mr. Takagi loves camping.
While camping, he uses multiple sites to choose a campsite based on the atmosphere, what is sold on-site, and whether there are hot springs nearby.
If he randomly chooses a campsite due to the complexity, mismatches can occur, leading to situations like, "This isn't what I expected!"
Additionally, the rules vary by campsite.
What is allowed at one campsite may be prohibited at another, and troubles related to this are occurring in various places.
Therefore, he announced a service called "I’ll be camp." that aggregates not only the information campers want but also the information that campsites want to convey.
From the presentation, it felt like the love for camping led to an understanding of the issues and a plan based on needs.
Although it is still under development, I heard that the site is already live, which conveyed the seriousness of the plan in his presentation.
From the Writer
"I want to solve local issues with my own ideas!"
"Is there a way to solve the issues I think about every day?"
Even if you think so, it takes courage to convey that to others, especially to people you meet for the first time.
When I first participated in a business contest, I was anxious that my ideas might be rejected.
The Local Idea Contest was a place where judges seriously listened to the ideas of such challengers and offered advice to help them take a step forward, as well as a chance to meet other challengers from different regions who are tackling issues.
Why not turn the issues you have into ideas?
- Photo courtesy of: Nishiyama
First Local Idea Contest Information
| Name | First Local Idea Contest |
|---|---|
| Location | Kasaoka City, Nara City, Nara Prefecture, Fujinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture |
| Homepage | Student Activity Support Consortium StBASE |
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