Session ⁄ Event

Event Report

The talk session showcased everyone's passion for ramen and their deep love for their hometown. At the end, the audience joined in by filling out a board with their own ideas for promoting Nanyo City.

The first regional forum of the "YAMAGATA Youth Summit 2024" was held in Nanyo City on October 22nd. This time, the event theme was "Spreading Omotenashi Culture to the World: Nanyo's Love of Ramen". A diverse group of people, including high school students, an actress, and Japanese residents born overseas got together to exchange their thoughts and ideas about ramen, which Nanyo City is now putting effort into.

About the story behind the creation of the famous "Nanyo City Hall Ramen Division," passion and love for ramen from popular ramen shop owner, perspectives on Nanyo City's ramen from as far as Barbados, Nanyo's local appeal seen through the eyes of high school students, and the ultimate experience an actress hopes to bring to life in her hometown... The talk session brought together these various passions and showcased the mutual admiration between the local government, private sector, and students. The event reaffirmed for everyone present that Nanyo City's true pride lies in its spirit of hospitality and its people's shared love of their hometown.

Mr.Shiraiwa recalled that it was students in the town who made him realize that ramen was truly a local treasure.

The ramen restaurant which Mr.Imura opened after moving from Tokyo is now extremely popular! He said he wants to return the favor to Nanyo City for welcoming and accepting him.

Although she now lives in Osaka, where there is an abundance of ramen restaurants, Ms.Kobayashi insists that Nanyo's ramen is still the best! She says that she continues to tell her colleagues and friends in Osaka about how wonderful Nanyo City really is.

As the mayor of Nanyo Mirai, Mr.Suzuki conducted interviews with local people on the streets about what made Nanyo so special. Through these interviews, he was able to convey the hidden charms of Nanyo City to the public.

Ms.Yamaguchi told everyone about the Nanyo High School City Hall Club's current efforts to engage the community, and how to send messages that will resonate with the generation that was raised alongside social media.

The actress Ms.Tachibana, who actively shares updates under the hashtag #TachibanaRamenClub on her social media, passionately spoke not only about ramen but also shared her dedication to her work and the important values she hopes the high school students in the audience will cherish.

Regional Forum

Speakers

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  Panelist

  Nanyo City Hall Ramen Division Assistant Director

  Takao Shiraiwa

  On July 2, 2016, Takao Shiraiwa launched the "Nanyo City Hall Ramen Division R&R Project" in the role of the Assistant Manager. Now in its ninth year, the project aims to raise awareness of Nanyo City as a "town with delicious ramen" and to promote the local community further by increasing the number of people engaging with the city through the power of ramen.

• 
  Panelist

  Menya Aoi Handmade Noodle Shop Owner

  Kengo Imura

  In 2012, Kengo Imura and his family of four moved from Tokyo to Nanyo City. Shortly after moving, they renovated an old traditional folk house and opened their ramen shop, "Menya Aoi." Imura dedicated himself to perfecting unique and delicious ramen recipes, including seafood tonkotsu and charred tan tan ramen. Within a few years, the shop gained such popularity that customers from all over Japan traveled to visit the rural restuarant, often forming long queues stretching around the block. To accommodate the growing demand, the restaurant has since relocated to a new building along the national highway. Committed to quality, they make all their noodles, soup, and toppings in-house daily wit the motto, "Time and effort are the best seasonings." In addition to their in-store service, they also produce frozen ramen for customers to enjoy at home.

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  Panelist

  Former Nanyo City International Exchange Promotion Committee Member

  Dawn Kobayashi

  Born in Barbados, Dawn Kobayashi began studying Japanese due to her love of Japanese anime, later going on to study abroad in Japan. She then moved to Nanyo City, where she served as the Nanyo City Host Town Promotion Officer from October 1, 2017, to July 29, 2018 and the Nanyo City Coordinator for International Relations (CIR) from July 30, 2018, to July 29, 2021, before continuing on as a Nanyo City Fiscal Year Employee until August 31, 2021. She now resides in Osaka. During her time as CIR in Nanyo City, she worked to promote Barbados at various schools and local festivals, aiming to be "a bridge between Japan and Barbados."

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  Panelist

  Nanyo High School
  Mayor of Nanyo Mirai / Chairperson of Nanyo Mirai Council and 4th Vice President of the Nanyo High School City Hall Club

  Reira Suzuki, Riana Yamaguchi

  Nanyo High School is the only high school in the city. The school's Nanyo Mirai Assembly and the Nanyo High School City Hall Club are actively involved in community development activities, with students handling everything from planning to implementation themselves.

• 
  Panelist

  Actress / Nanyo City Ramen Ambassador

  Kanna Tachibana

  Kanna Tachibana is an actress from Yamagata Prefecture and on April 20, 2017, she became the Nanyo City Ramen Ambassador. She has appeared in many films, including "Masquerade Hotel" and "Masquerade Night," and the TV drama "Ooku" (NHK). Her hobbies and skills include singing, dancing (jazz for 7 years, traditional dance for 2 years, ballet for 2 years, 2 national cheerleading championships), and calligraphy.

Facilitator Ken Miura Branding Producer at Brand new day Inc.

Born in Yamagata in 1993, Ken Miura graduated from Nihon University Yamagata Senior High School before studying abroad at the University of Washington in the United States. After initially consulting for sole proprietors, he shifted to working in brand strategy development for corporations. Currently, he focuses on helping small and medium-sized enterprises craft their missions and visions to uncover and articulate their unique values. His services encompass a broad range of areas, including websites, advertisements, new business development, and recruitment, all aimed at delivering a comprehensive brand strategy that fosters a strong internal company philosophy and reflects the core values of the companies he works with.

Host Naoko Inoue

Born in Yonezawa City, Yamagata Prefecture, and raised in Kawanishi Town, Naoko Inoue is currently a proud resident of Nagai City. During her time as a student at Kunori Gakuen Girl's High School in Yonezawa, she transferred to Glendora High School in California, USA, in 1991 before going on to study at California's very own Citrus College. In 1998, she returned to Japan after working at a travel agency in LA and trying her hand at the media talent industry.
Naoko has worn many hats over the years: Radio DJ, commercial narrator, lounge DJ, bilingual English and Japanese event MC, a TV reporter for YBC Yamagata Broadcasting, TUY, and SAY Sakurambo TV, magazine model (Bi Story), interpreter, and to top it all off, she is currently active as a preschool English teacher as well as performing as one of the Yamagata Maiko. In addition, she is one of the instructors of the Yamagata Prefectural Board of Education's "Learn from Professionals" program.