Regarding Challenge 110 “Everyone Thriving Project”
April 2023
Director in Charge of Challenge 110, 2022 Rotary Year
Nippon Convention Service Co., Ltd.
President and Representative Director:
Mr. Hirotake Chikanami
The “Challenge 110: Everyone Thriving Project” was decided after a year of discussions under former Challenge 110 Chairperson, Mr. Katsumasa Hayashi, and following approval by the Board of Directors.
The theme of creating a society where everyone can work with vitality originated from an introduction by former Administrative Vice-Minister of Health, Labour and Welfare, Ms. Atsuko Muraki, who had once given us a table speech, and it was championed by President Kuroda.
Regarding disability, there are two models: the medical model, which views the individual with a disability as the problem, and the social model, which sees disability as a social issue. At Tokyo Rotary Club, upholding the principles of service, we will focus our efforts on this social model.
Ms. Muraki taught us that “90% of people with disabilities in welfare facilities are capable of working” and “the vast majority of people with disabilities want to contribute.” However, only about 600,000 of the approximately 8 million people with disabilities in Japan—representing 6% of the population—are employed. The primary reason is not their disabilities themselves, but that society creates these barriers.
Therefore, as a program to realize vocational service, community service and youth service, we are launching this project under the principle that “if society creates barriers, society can also remove them.” This is Tokyo Rotary Club's challenge toward realizing an inclusive society.
So, what kind of program will we implement? It is a job coach support.
This program is unique in that job coaches support both the individuals with disabilities and the companies that hire them, providing education and guidance to the employers.
Many of our members likely employ individuals with disabilities. However, there is often a significant gap: what employers believe is beneficial may not align with what the individuals with disabilities actually desire. Our goal is to bridge this gap through professionally trained job coaches. They connect the perspectives of both parties, creating inclusive workplaces where many individuals with disabilities can achieve self-fulfillment and active involvement.
The project has already launched, with the first three scholarship recipients selected. Today, we will introduce five candidates scheduled to graduate next year. Furthermore, an exchange event for job coaches already active in companies has been scheduled for June 17th at Otsuma Women's University. We encourage interested parties to participate.
Next year, Mr. Shinkichi Suzuki will take over as a committee chair. We appreciate your continued support.
Published in the TOKYO WEEKLY, April 26, 2023